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Surrogate #2
Surrogate: Hunted
Sequel to the epic, world-spanning Surrogate.
Alien Scum. Royal Concubine. Destroyer of Traditions. Alyward Etain Ixtii detests the hate-wielding labels others place on her, but there is one label she wholeheartedly embraces—Mom. With her husband, Leigheas, their five children, and her goddaughter relying on her, Etain manages a careful balance between her family, her diplomatic career, and her problematic, opinionated breeding instinct dubbed She-Beast. But balance can’t help when Etain and her Human goddaughter, seventeen-year-old Brigit Feney, must run for their lives.
Brigit and Etain have been abducted and transported via stolen wormhole technology to the planet Clkya, where the primary government, Clkya Sa, sees them as meat-production livestock. When the militaristic Znyrs religious cult offers protection from the Cycalk meat markets, Etain accepts Defender Stra Ttla and her wife Yalntry Sar’s assistance and eventual affections, ensuring Brigit’s survival while denying herself thoughts of family and She-Beast her greatest desire—fellow captive, multi-lingual entomologist and Earth pagan, Mateo Sato.
However, Etain’s dreams and She-Beast’s cravings will be destroyed if Clkya Sa has its way. The blood-thirsty government wants its livestock returned and the Znyrs eliminated so they’re colluding with Etain’s old enemy, Usurer Serria, to accomplish their goals.
The hunt is on and survival is the only option.
Alien Scum. Royal Concubine. Destroyer of Traditions. Alyward Etain Ixtii detests the hate-wielding labels others place on her, but there is one label she wholeheartedly embraces—Mom. With her husband, Leigheas, their five children, and her goddaughter relying on her, Etain manages a careful balance between her family, her diplomatic career, and her problematic, opinionated breeding instinct dubbed She-Beast. But balance can’t help when Etain and her Human goddaughter, seventeen-year-old Brigit Feney, must run for their lives.
Brigit and Etain have been abducted and transported via stolen wormhole technology to the planet Clkya, where the primary government, Clkya Sa, sees them as meat-production livestock. When the militaristic Znyrs religious cult offers protection from the Cycalk meat markets, Etain accepts Defender Stra Ttla and her wife Yalntry Sar’s assistance and eventual affections, ensuring Brigit’s survival while denying herself thoughts of family and She-Beast her greatest desire—fellow captive, multi-lingual entomologist and Earth pagan, Mateo Sato.
However, Etain’s dreams and She-Beast’s cravings will be destroyed if Clkya Sa has its way. The blood-thirsty government wants its livestock returned and the Znyrs eliminated so they’re colluding with Etain’s old enemy, Usurer Serria, to accomplish their goals.
The hunt is on and survival is the only option.
ebook
Published March 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 9, 2018
In the interest of honesty, I had the opportunity to proofread this novel. When I was asked to do so, I was thrilled. I loved the first book, and I was excited to see where the story was going. It was every bit as good as I'd anticipated.
One of the things I look for in a great book is excellent characters. There's no shortage in Surrogate's world. When Etain and Brigit are captured, it gives the opportunity to expand readers' understanding of yet another culture and the various beings within it.
First, there's Etain's ever-expanding family. Her species is a central female with a circle of people who each fulfill a different emotionally and/or physically intimate role in her life. They are woven together and around Etain, and it's a joy to watch these relationships deepen and change as they need. Besides the obvious celebration of polyamory, there are also some parallels to how we live and love and the places people hold in our "circles." It's beautiful and affirming.
On the flip side, there are some dark elements as well. But within those, there are rays of light. In the prior novel, I'd had the impression of the Cycalk as predators. That's only partially true. Etain and Brigit are initially kidnapped by the ruthless sort who want them for their potential to breed new meat. But there's another, deeply spiritual side to these beings, and they are complex and interesting. There's enough vivid detail to develop a good understanding of their world, but the main draw is the Cycalk themselves. We see through their eyes why the practitioners of Znyrs have chosen a different path and what the consequences are for those choices.
As always, I love Etain. She is the definition of a survivor. Her loyalty and fierce protection of the people she loves means she won't tolerate them being hurt. But her open-mindedness leaves her softened to new experiences and learning about other cultures. This is just the right blend of toughness and tender-heartedness and forms the core of the story.
The world-building here is fantastic. I like when I can uncover the secrets myself, through reading the story and getting to know the characters. As with the first book, we're thrown right into the deep end. It's not hard to catch up, since Etain is learning right along with us. Everything unfolds at a perfect pace. Not so fast that it's confusing, and not so slow as to become dull.
I don't want to reveal too much about the story itself because it's so fascinating, and anything I say would be both spoilers and pale in comparison. This is a world I can visit over and over and feel like there will always be something new to discover.
At its heart, this series is an anthem to survival and to the resilience of the spirit. It's an emotional and intellectual ride which I find wonderfully life-affirming. The series deserves to be read and re-read to catch all the metaphors and unlock the deep truths we might apply to our real world.
For phenomenal writing, a compelling story, and characters who feel real, this gets 5 stars.
One of the things I look for in a great book is excellent characters. There's no shortage in Surrogate's world. When Etain and Brigit are captured, it gives the opportunity to expand readers' understanding of yet another culture and the various beings within it.
First, there's Etain's ever-expanding family. Her species is a central female with a circle of people who each fulfill a different emotionally and/or physically intimate role in her life. They are woven together and around Etain, and it's a joy to watch these relationships deepen and change as they need. Besides the obvious celebration of polyamory, there are also some parallels to how we live and love and the places people hold in our "circles." It's beautiful and affirming.
On the flip side, there are some dark elements as well. But within those, there are rays of light. In the prior novel, I'd had the impression of the Cycalk as predators. That's only partially true. Etain and Brigit are initially kidnapped by the ruthless sort who want them for their potential to breed new meat. But there's another, deeply spiritual side to these beings, and they are complex and interesting. There's enough vivid detail to develop a good understanding of their world, but the main draw is the Cycalk themselves. We see through their eyes why the practitioners of Znyrs have chosen a different path and what the consequences are for those choices.
As always, I love Etain. She is the definition of a survivor. Her loyalty and fierce protection of the people she loves means she won't tolerate them being hurt. But her open-mindedness leaves her softened to new experiences and learning about other cultures. This is just the right blend of toughness and tender-heartedness and forms the core of the story.
The world-building here is fantastic. I like when I can uncover the secrets myself, through reading the story and getting to know the characters. As with the first book, we're thrown right into the deep end. It's not hard to catch up, since Etain is learning right along with us. Everything unfolds at a perfect pace. Not so fast that it's confusing, and not so slow as to become dull.
I don't want to reveal too much about the story itself because it's so fascinating, and anything I say would be both spoilers and pale in comparison. This is a world I can visit over and over and feel like there will always be something new to discover.
At its heart, this series is an anthem to survival and to the resilience of the spirit. It's an emotional and intellectual ride which I find wonderfully life-affirming. The series deserves to be read and re-read to catch all the metaphors and unlock the deep truths we might apply to our real world.
For phenomenal writing, a compelling story, and characters who feel real, this gets 5 stars.
May 28, 2018
I love this author for her ability to create rich and multi-faceted worlds and characters. This title, as in her previous works, makes you think and become vested in the world and characters. You cheer their triumphs and boo the villains (and there are some doozies). I can relate to the protagonist in this series in that I too do not understand the need for labels. But I do appreciate the one label she does subscribe to "Mom". The author makes you think long after you finish the story of what you would do to ensure that your child (whether biological or of the heart) survive. I admire Etain for her fierce independence, loyalty, and sense of commitment. I look forward with anticipation for the continuing saga of Etain and her ever growing "family". This author knows how to really weave a story.
April 8, 2018
FIRST THINGS first, this is a sequel to a book I haven’t read. It does alright as a standalone, but things can get confusing at times. I would recommend reading these books in order if you’re interested in them.
Hunted takes place in a futuristic, technologically advanced, outer space world that sometimes left me a little confused but given that I didn’t read the first book in the series, this is probably more my fault than the book’s. The author gives us a monstrously large universe where Earth is barely an afterthought. Filled with a variety of diverse alien species, not all of them humanoid, Hunted certainly showcases the author’s imagination and creativity.
It is also much more character driven than plot driven. The cast alone features dozens of people that became hard to keep track of. This isn’t to say that there isn’t a plot, there’s a lot of things going on in this book, but it follows a pattern – high-stakes problem, resolution, higher-stakes problem, another resolution, and so on. Every problem that the main character faces is, by the end, neatly wrapped up in a warm, peaceful HEA (or, what seems like one until the reader encounters a short afterward that sets up the conflict of the next book).
For a book this character driven, eternally concerned with the thoughts and feelings of Etain, the protagonist, this book has surprisingly little character development. The secondary characters have brief character arcs where they learn to accept Etain’s biology and social norms, but most of these problems are resolved within a chapter or two. Etain, however, begins the book as a warm, loving woman with a full, beautiful family for which she will fight tooth and nail and ends the book as a warm, loving woman with an even fuller, beautiful family for which she has fought tooth and nail. Etain undergoes some changes, including what seems to be her version of menopause, but it does little to impact the essence of who she is.
She endures truly dark and twisted ordeals, both physical and emotional, during her kidnapping and subsequent stay on an alien world, but shows very few signs of trauma, within or without. The plot all wraps up a little too cleanly for my taste and I wanted things to turn out a little grimier. Maybe that’s my penchant for angst and drama, something born out of my own admittedly bleak outlook on human nature, but something about the sweetness of the ending felt cloying. That could easily be the author’s intention, though; this “happy end” could be subverted in the following book or it could be a tribute to the enduring goodness of people.
All that aside, this book is pleasantly diverse. It features a broad cast of characters who span the sexual identity spectrum and makes a point of showing a healthy, loving polyamorous relationship. It had some trans representation, though only in tertiary characters, and includes some (kind of preachy-feeling) moments that explain both trans identities and polyamory. It also breaks the mold with the traditional sci-fi protagonists, featuring women and people of color. In terms of representation, this is vastly important and the book warrants reading on this alone.
Hunted takes place in a futuristic, technologically advanced, outer space world that sometimes left me a little confused but given that I didn’t read the first book in the series, this is probably more my fault than the book’s. The author gives us a monstrously large universe where Earth is barely an afterthought. Filled with a variety of diverse alien species, not all of them humanoid, Hunted certainly showcases the author’s imagination and creativity.
It is also much more character driven than plot driven. The cast alone features dozens of people that became hard to keep track of. This isn’t to say that there isn’t a plot, there’s a lot of things going on in this book, but it follows a pattern – high-stakes problem, resolution, higher-stakes problem, another resolution, and so on. Every problem that the main character faces is, by the end, neatly wrapped up in a warm, peaceful HEA (or, what seems like one until the reader encounters a short afterward that sets up the conflict of the next book).
For a book this character driven, eternally concerned with the thoughts and feelings of Etain, the protagonist, this book has surprisingly little character development. The secondary characters have brief character arcs where they learn to accept Etain’s biology and social norms, but most of these problems are resolved within a chapter or two. Etain, however, begins the book as a warm, loving woman with a full, beautiful family for which she will fight tooth and nail and ends the book as a warm, loving woman with an even fuller, beautiful family for which she has fought tooth and nail. Etain undergoes some changes, including what seems to be her version of menopause, but it does little to impact the essence of who she is.
She endures truly dark and twisted ordeals, both physical and emotional, during her kidnapping and subsequent stay on an alien world, but shows very few signs of trauma, within or without. The plot all wraps up a little too cleanly for my taste and I wanted things to turn out a little grimier. Maybe that’s my penchant for angst and drama, something born out of my own admittedly bleak outlook on human nature, but something about the sweetness of the ending felt cloying. That could easily be the author’s intention, though; this “happy end” could be subverted in the following book or it could be a tribute to the enduring goodness of people.
All that aside, this book is pleasantly diverse. It features a broad cast of characters who span the sexual identity spectrum and makes a point of showing a healthy, loving polyamorous relationship. It had some trans representation, though only in tertiary characters, and includes some (kind of preachy-feeling) moments that explain both trans identities and polyamory. It also breaks the mold with the traditional sci-fi protagonists, featuring women and people of color. In terms of representation, this is vastly important and the book warrants reading on this alone.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews