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Savage
"The first time I saw him, I knew what he wanted from me. He was not a burden, but he was heavy."- Scarlett Ouo
Set in 1950s Detroit, this is the passionate love story of Tomas Yusef, a young man that came of age during Nazi occupied Poland - a man hardened by the horrors of war, and his obsession, Scarlett Ouo, the woman determined to love him in spite of his cruelty.
Savage takes a journey through time to explore the depravities of war, and also the redemption found by unconditional love.
Set in 1950s Detroit, this is the passionate love story of Tomas Yusef, a young man that came of age during Nazi occupied Poland - a man hardened by the horrors of war, and his obsession, Scarlett Ouo, the woman determined to love him in spite of his cruelty.
Savage takes a journey through time to explore the depravities of war, and also the redemption found by unconditional love.
- GenresFiction
308 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 15, 2016
395 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 4, 2017
Check out this review, and many more, on my blog https://jessjesinghaus.wordpress.com
Savage is a great title for this sometime tender, oft brutal, but always compelling story. Readers who expect a romance may find themselves disappointed, as a bulk of this story deals with the Holocaust, but the background love story really helps drive the tale. I would warn readers that there are several possible triggers in this tale; besides the obvious brutality of the concentration camp and the gas chambers, there is an episode of abuse between Scarlett & Tomas that might agitate some readers.
The book utilizes a clever device, in which a young woman stumbles upon a diary / journal written by her deceased mother-in-law Scarlett and chronicling the early days of her relationship with the man, Tomas, who would become her husband. Interspersed within the present-day narrative of young Avi reading the journal and the journal "entries" themselves (more on these entries later) are flashbacks to Tomas' life in Poland during WW2, both in the Warsaw Ghetto and, later, concentration camp.
Okay, back to the journal entries... Initially the style here was quite jarring. Instead of reading as actual diary prose, these portions were told in third person omniscient POV. It took quite a while for me to adjust to the style. Likewise, Tomas' flashbacks were similarly written. As a reader, I couldn't figure out if young Avi was supposed to be reading these portions out of Scarlett's journal or if they were 'extra' story included for me.
Each aspect of the tale, Avi's portion, Scarlett's journal, and Tomas' war story were well written and the story was highly compelling, but it was the disconnect between the three that kept me from giving it five stars. Also, if I'm being honest, I would wish this book a cover makeover. It's a little thing, but the title & author name are difficult to read. Despite the slightly awkward transitions between the different portions of the story I still couldn't put this one down. It was quite the page turner.
**I received an electronic copy of this book from the author which I then chose to voluntarily review**
Savage is a great title for this sometime tender, oft brutal, but always compelling story. Readers who expect a romance may find themselves disappointed, as a bulk of this story deals with the Holocaust, but the background love story really helps drive the tale. I would warn readers that there are several possible triggers in this tale; besides the obvious brutality of the concentration camp and the gas chambers, there is an episode of abuse between Scarlett & Tomas that might agitate some readers.
The book utilizes a clever device, in which a young woman stumbles upon a diary / journal written by her deceased mother-in-law Scarlett and chronicling the early days of her relationship with the man, Tomas, who would become her husband. Interspersed within the present-day narrative of young Avi reading the journal and the journal "entries" themselves (more on these entries later) are flashbacks to Tomas' life in Poland during WW2, both in the Warsaw Ghetto and, later, concentration camp.
Okay, back to the journal entries... Initially the style here was quite jarring. Instead of reading as actual diary prose, these portions were told in third person omniscient POV. It took quite a while for me to adjust to the style. Likewise, Tomas' flashbacks were similarly written. As a reader, I couldn't figure out if young Avi was supposed to be reading these portions out of Scarlett's journal or if they were 'extra' story included for me.
Each aspect of the tale, Avi's portion, Scarlett's journal, and Tomas' war story were well written and the story was highly compelling, but it was the disconnect between the three that kept me from giving it five stars. Also, if I'm being honest, I would wish this book a cover makeover. It's a little thing, but the title & author name are difficult to read. Despite the slightly awkward transitions between the different portions of the story I still couldn't put this one down. It was quite the page turner.
**I received an electronic copy of this book from the author which I then chose to voluntarily review**
September 12, 2017
I couldn’t put this book down. The story is layered and complex and looks back at the life of a family in the ghetto of war torn Poland, the new beginnings in America and the next generation about to embark on their own family.
Through a diary that is written as a book in itself, it shows the love that develops between two people who have both known unbearable hardships in life and have done what they need to do to survive. The writing is absorbing. There were times when I had to look away from my kindle the images were so graphic in my mind.
This book is not for the fainthearted, but it’s definitely one not to be missed.
Through a diary that is written as a book in itself, it shows the love that develops between two people who have both known unbearable hardships in life and have done what they need to do to survive. The writing is absorbing. There were times when I had to look away from my kindle the images were so graphic in my mind.
This book is not for the fainthearted, but it’s definitely one not to be missed.
August 30, 2017
This is hands-down one of the most beautiful stories I've ever read. I'm not one to read Holocaust stories; and this one begins with "1940's Poland." I thought, "Ugh." I couldn't have been more wrong. A mysterious diary is found by a young husband and wife, which turns out to have been written by the husband's deceased mother (Scarlett). The diary details the husband's father's (Tomas') life (pre- and post- marriage to Scarlett- things his son had absolutely no idea his father either went through, or was. This book takes you deep into the lives of this entire family, among others. The mother, the father, the prisoner of war, the protector, the friend, the husband, the master, the fear, the frustration, and the pain. Just read it. Angel Berry has created a masterpiece. Even the name of the book is intriguing and leaves you wondering how many persons the author intended to call by that name and maybe that there can be different levels of savagery for different reasons.
March 27, 2017
I won this in a GOODREADS giveaway --Savage by Angel Berry -- A romance involving the Holocaust.. I was torn by this book: the writing is average and kind of jumbles about but the storyline was very intriguing. A good historical fiction book.
January 9, 2017
It's hard to know how to feel about this novel. On one hand, the story and the characters at the heart of the novel are engaging, and beautifully depicted. Yet, the structure of the book is also extremely distracting, and that combined with countless comma errors make it pretty clear that the book desperately needed a good editor. The writing is also pretty uneven--in some cases being lush and engaging, and in others offering too many cliches or coming across as rushed--which again suggests that a good editor could have taken this book to a whole different level.
The biggest distraction for me is that much of the book is presented by other characters as if it's a diary--as if it was written by one of the present-time character's parents. The problem? It's not in diary form, but in narrative form, and covers more than one life. Thus, this central premise of the book just doesn't really make sense as it's presented. There are ways that this could have been avoided, but really, I'm not sure the idea of it being a diary at all particularly works. The author may have come at the story from this direction to make it stand out, but in the end... well, as it stood, it only drew attention to the fact that this was a novel and constructed.
So, all told, I'm not sure what to make of this. I'd read more of the author's work if it weren't self-published, certainly, because there was a lot of promise here, but given how distracted I was by both language errors and plot/structure issues here, I'm not sure that I'd take a look otherwise.
The biggest distraction for me is that much of the book is presented by other characters as if it's a diary--as if it was written by one of the present-time character's parents. The problem? It's not in diary form, but in narrative form, and covers more than one life. Thus, this central premise of the book just doesn't really make sense as it's presented. There are ways that this could have been avoided, but really, I'm not sure the idea of it being a diary at all particularly works. The author may have come at the story from this direction to make it stand out, but in the end... well, as it stood, it only drew attention to the fact that this was a novel and constructed.
So, all told, I'm not sure what to make of this. I'd read more of the author's work if it weren't self-published, certainly, because there was a lot of promise here, but given how distracted I was by both language errors and plot/structure issues here, I'm not sure that I'd take a look otherwise.
June 22, 2016
I did not expect this to be a book about the holocaust - so I was surprised to find that most of the book recounts one man's experiences in the Warsaw ghetto and later at a concentration camp. We follow Tomas in his battle for survival.
The book is actually the diary notes of Tomas's wife, Scarlett. In this book, Scarlett has died from cancer and Tomas is old and it is their pregnant daughter-in-law who discovers the diary and decides to read it with her husband. Scarlett has documented how Tomas survived and the scars this left on him.
The story is well written and harrowing. For me, a particular strength of this author was her attention to the relationships of her main characters - Tomas, his father and uncle, his mother, his sister, Tomas's best friend - they are all beautifully written. Though, of course, the dreadful deaths of many of them makes difficult reading.
Well done to Angel Berry for her wonderful prose.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, non reciprocal review.
The book is actually the diary notes of Tomas's wife, Scarlett. In this book, Scarlett has died from cancer and Tomas is old and it is their pregnant daughter-in-law who discovers the diary and decides to read it with her husband. Scarlett has documented how Tomas survived and the scars this left on him.
The story is well written and harrowing. For me, a particular strength of this author was her attention to the relationships of her main characters - Tomas, his father and uncle, his mother, his sister, Tomas's best friend - they are all beautifully written. Though, of course, the dreadful deaths of many of them makes difficult reading.
Well done to Angel Berry for her wonderful prose.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest, non reciprocal review.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews