The End: Book One of The Sanctuary Series

by Cheyne Curry, Roselle Graskey

The power flickers, the ground shudders and when the backup system kicks in, Lieutenant Jessica Baumer and Staff Sergeant Branna Maguire do a routine equipment analysis and check the exterior surveillance cameras, where they see an unspeakable horror. Somehow, someway, without warning, the world as they know it has ended. Originally used as ‘lab rats’ for an isolation experiment they are in their subterranean data center at Fort Hood, expecting another “normal” exercise. It becomes anything but. There is little information available, which leads to many questions and no satisfactory answers. What happened and, more importantly, are there other survivors? When the air begins to clear, Baumer and Maguire set off on a journey to one of the few areas of the country rumored to be less devastated by the attack. Their mission is to reach sanctuary, a safe compound and shelter run by a woman who has been preparing for a catastrophic event for years. The law and order of modern day civilization has ceased to exist and the situation has become where only the strong and clever will make it to another day. Others join the two soldiers along the way; some are skilled, some are in need of rescue and others, who will stop at nothing to be masters of this new world order. Do Baumer and Maguire, even with their military training, have the capability and fortitude to make it to sanctuary? And, if so, what will they find when they get there? Will it be the hope for civilization and America’s future? Or is this really The End?

Genres: Lesbian

278 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 8, 2017

About the author

Cheyne Curry was born in Vermont, raised in New York and spent a good portion of her adult life being bicoastal. She enlisted in the US Army in 1977, went to basic combat training and Military Police School at Fort McClellan, Alabama and was stationed at Fort Ord, California and with the Southern European Task Force at Caserma Ederle, Vicenza, Italy as a working MP.

After the military, she experienced many lines of work to pay the bills but spent a majority of her working career in law enforcement/security management.Cheyne has also worked in theater and movies. In 2014, she wrote, co-wrote, scored, produced and occasionally acted in nine short films and hopes to do more, creatively, in 2017. She is an author, screenwriter, artist, musician and composer and would like to put all those talents to use in future projects.

In March of 2016, Cheyne started self-publishing under the banner of Bossy Pants Books.

Cheyne currently lives in the Midwest with her wife (and 3 Grunts Productions co-creator), Brenda Barton, and their fur kids, Liam, 11, a rescued Shepard-mix, Belladonna Bossy Pants, 6, a rescued black Siamese/Bombay and Mesa, a rescued Black Mouth Cur, aged 2.

Reviews

[Velvet Lounger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lieutenant Jessica Baumer and Staff Sergeant Branna Maguire are locked down in an underground “lab”, undergoing an experiment in how they cope with isolation, one because the Army felt she didn’t cope well when cut off, the other as punishment for having some issues with the abuse of authority.

When they do a routine check of the outside world they realise life as they know it has ended and it appears they may literally be the last ones standing. As comms becomes available they reach out and find others who have survived, but many are contaminated or come out into the open too soon and there are no guarantees of survival.

As the air clears they too must leave their underground shelter in order to see what is left, gather resources and find a safe place to live. The old world order has gone, now only the strong survive, but even strength is no guarantee as gangs stake out territory and commandeer the meagre resources available. Can Baumer and Maguire make it to the sanctuary they seek, do they have the skills to survive? How will they and those they meet carve out a new existence in a brutal new world?

Edge of the seat doesn’t even come close. This, the first in a new series of dystopian novels, is stunning in its intensity and breadth of vision. To literally wake up one morning and the world as we know it has ended, with a barrage of nuclear, neutron and chemical weapons essentially wiping out most of the world, and be faced with the overwhelming issues of survival. Literally breath-taking.

Baumer and Maguire are intriguing and powerful characters. They form a rock-solid core to the story and are the glue that we bond with. As their journey unfolds they meet others, equally well drawn, some they join with, others they leave behind, all stay in the mind as strong characters we are likely to meet again.

The journey is both gruelling and exhilarating. Tough both physically and mentally, they encounter horrors beyond civilisation, the world has literally reverted to the middle ages and the barbaric nature of man is revealed. This isn’t for the faint hearted, don’t expect an easy ride, it contains sex and violence, but is never gratuitous.

The authors’ background is obvious throughout and gives an incredibly strong sense of reality to the military behaviour and action of our heroines. But this is so much more than a story about some military adventure, the world building and vision of what could be the reality of a post-apocalyptic world is simply brilliant.

I couldn’t put it down. I didn’t want to. The only problem with it is waiting for volume two. Curry and Graskey better be beavering away because they have impatient readers waiting. Even if you don’t normally read dystopian or fantasy of any sort, this book will intrigue and fascinate, keep you up way pat your bedtime and inevitably ask the question.. how would I survive?

[Cab · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revised 07/04/2017
I finally came back to this book and picked it up where I abandoned it. I'm very glad that I did. I was definately in the right head space and was sucked right back into the story. My earlier inability to focus on the story had to be me not being in the right head space, because this time around I was in it and fully engaged with the story. If you don't like military, end of days distopia stories this might not be for you. If you do and you like interesting characters I think you will like this. There are a couple of chapters that were slow for me in the beginning of the story as the characters start to figure out what's happened but it picks up the pace again once you get introduced to Szabo and Prescott. I'll admit that my favorite character is the incredibly dangerous McGuire.

I am seriously contemplating reading the next in the series.
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Original Review
Ok I admit it, I got sucked right in and then I fell right out. I ended up putting the book aside because I had too many things going on. Now when I go back to read it I just can't get into it. I want to like it and I know it's gotten good reviews. The writing is good, I think (at this time) it's just not my style. I'm putting this aside and will try from the beginning at a later date.

[XR · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so good that I want to read it again, but I won’t ‘cause I’m starting the next book instead. I’ll read again another time though.

Where to start? The characters from the beginning hooked me in, Baumer and Maguire make such a great duo, which got better when more came into their lives. There are horrible scenes to read through and awesomely gruesome scenes that follow, but my take away from all of that is Maguire is the fucking shit! Pardon the French, but my God if she was a real woman I want her to be my mate or even my mum. She can adopt me.

Anyhow... my mind’s all over the place ‘cause I seriously loved this book so much. I can’t wait to get my hands on the next book and I’m not sticking to my KISS process. Bleh!

[susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg I hope 2 comes quickly

Omg this was awesome. I loved the storyline. I admit I teared up a couple of times. I don't like noble and I hope our Irish hero takes her out. If you like this type of storyline I definitely recommend this book to read.

[Class Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This made me think of "the walking dead" of course, but better !!
Like the tv show, it grabs you and you can stop reading it until the end (and being extremely frustrated to have to wait for the next season... euh book !)
Like the tv show, it's really unpleasant when some of the characters you came to really like have some very bad things (like I for exemple death...) happening to them.
Unlike the tv show it's full of wonderfull and powerfull female characters !
And I really appreciated the military background of the book (like in "Permission to recover") at wich Cheyne Curry excel... even if it's a little bit hard to understand sometimes for a poor french civilian...

Overall, maybe not the best book of the centurybut a really captivating one !

[Cynthia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Content warning: there are two (gang)rapes during the timeline of the story, one of which is described as it happens.

I honestly liked that it wasn't focused at all on romance. But apart from that, it is full of clichés (including sexist ones), and casually racist (specifically with the "my grandmother was Comanche" appropriative stereotype, and the "rest" of the little but awful Native representation, as well as racist comments).

[M.E. Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast paced with strong female characters under disastrous circumstances. Curry's and Graskey's military background makes this ring true. The story pulls you in and keeps you turning the page.

[Pam Shelton-Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part this book was decent. I like that it had strong female characters given so many stories have the women as victims or helpers. It went a little too far with the anti-men sentiment. In a post disaster of this magnitude, you would need to utilize the skills of all survivors willing to work together and not arbitrarily rule out all of the men. Mags was definitely nearly overtuned in her skills but also a complex character that became likable.

[Melanie Schmotzer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. It was not the typical book I tend to read, and i didnt know what I was getting into when I started, but couldn't put it down. Going to purchase the 2nd book today. This is the 3rd book I have read from Cheyne Curry and she rocks.

[Heather Henkel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good

I found this book amazing. There were tough issues and circumstances that were horrible but the characters made the story. I really like Maguire and can't wait to read the next book.