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The Alien Harvester Series #1
The Escapers
Escaping from prison is hard. Escaping from a prison guarded by aliens with advanced technology is harder. Escaping from an alien prison camp on an island hundreds of miles from the mainland seems impossible.
Fourteen-year-old Bryce hates the Imjac, the alien invaders who conquered Earth and, in the process, killed his parents. But he thinks their threats to him are over when he moves in with his aunt, uncle, and cousin Amanda on their dairy farm. But the Imjac capture Bryce and Amanda, forcing them to work in one of their prison camps, where the aliens seek the rich minerals of the Earth to fuel their domination of the universe.
When Bryce discovers his gift for using alien technology, will it be the key to escape from the island?
Fourteen-year-old Bryce hates the Imjac, the alien invaders who conquered Earth and, in the process, killed his parents. But he thinks their threats to him are over when he moves in with his aunt, uncle, and cousin Amanda on their dairy farm. But the Imjac capture Bryce and Amanda, forcing them to work in one of their prison camps, where the aliens seek the rich minerals of the Earth to fuel their domination of the universe.
When Bryce discovers his gift for using alien technology, will it be the key to escape from the island?
- GenresAmazonScience Fiction
272 pages, ebook
Published April 4, 2022
36 people are currently reading
464 people want to read
About the author
L.J. Monahan
4 books5 followersL. J. Monahan was born and raised in San Francisco and currently resides in Northern California with his wife, two sons, and a dog named Luna.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 16, 2023
When Bryce and his friends are kidnapped by aliens, they vow to do anything to escape. They’re isolated on an island and forced to work at a mining camp. The heartless Imjac soldiers throw anyone who breaks the rules off a cliff. Inside a mountain, the kids are told to mine a blue ore. It’s a bad result when one of them digs out a yellow element instead. Wondering why the Imjac leader is so enraged, Bryce determines to learn how this yellow mineral can help them escape. Time is of the essence. Their only food is a green drink that slowly turns their brains to mush. In a desperate race for freedom, Bryce uses his unique ability to work with the alien’s technology to formulate an escape plan. But will he and his friends live long enough to see it through? This fast-paced tale with immersive world-building and sympathetic characters grips you from the start and doesn’t let go. Good story for all ages.
June 16, 2023
This book was entered in The Wishing Shelf Book Awards. This is what our readers thought:
Title: The Escapers
Author: L. J. Monahan
Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 15
Stats
Editing: 9/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Content: 10/10
Cover: 4/5
Of the 15 readers:
15 would read another book by this author.
13 thought the cover was good or excellent.
15 felt it was easy to follow.
15 would recommend this book to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 7 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 4 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
Of all the readers, 4 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
15 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
15 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.
Readers’ Comments
“I’m a big fan of sci-fi this was right up my street. I enjoyed the plot and how they had to get away from the prison. I thought Bryce was a cool character too. This is a good novel for teenager looking for an exciting adventure with lots of suspense.” Male reader, aged 15
“I think Bryce is the best character. He reminded me of the hero in The Maze Runner; sort of determined and brave. The plot is very clever. I loved the premise of Earth being overtaken by aliens.” Female reader, aged 14
“I think this is a wonderful beginning to a set of books. The author is a strong writer who has written a very original sci-fi novel. There’s never a boring moment in it, and the ending was FAB!” Male reader, aged 15
“Not too long, exciting in parts, tons of suspense. I would read another book by this author.” Male reader, aged 14
To Sum It Up:
‘A fast-paced, sci-fi novel with a strong cast of characters. A BRONZE MEDAL WINNER and highly recommended!’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
Title: The Escapers
Author: L. J. Monahan
Star Rating: 5 Stars
Number of Readers: 15
Stats
Editing: 9/10
Writing Style: 9/10
Content: 10/10
Cover: 4/5
Of the 15 readers:
15 would read another book by this author.
13 thought the cover was good or excellent.
15 felt it was easy to follow.
15 would recommend this book to another reader to try.
Of all the readers, 7 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘plotting a story’.
Of all the readers, 4 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘developing the characters’.
Of all the readers, 4 felt the author’s strongest skill was ‘writing style’.
15 felt the pacing was good or excellent.
15 thought the author understood the readership and what they wanted.
Readers’ Comments
“I’m a big fan of sci-fi this was right up my street. I enjoyed the plot and how they had to get away from the prison. I thought Bryce was a cool character too. This is a good novel for teenager looking for an exciting adventure with lots of suspense.” Male reader, aged 15
“I think Bryce is the best character. He reminded me of the hero in The Maze Runner; sort of determined and brave. The plot is very clever. I loved the premise of Earth being overtaken by aliens.” Female reader, aged 14
“I think this is a wonderful beginning to a set of books. The author is a strong writer who has written a very original sci-fi novel. There’s never a boring moment in it, and the ending was FAB!” Male reader, aged 15
“Not too long, exciting in parts, tons of suspense. I would read another book by this author.” Male reader, aged 14
To Sum It Up:
‘A fast-paced, sci-fi novel with a strong cast of characters. A BRONZE MEDAL WINNER and highly recommended!’ The Wishing Shelf Book Awards
January 21, 2025
The novel follows the main protagonist, Bryce, who is forced to live with his aunt and uncle after his parents were killed in an alien invasion. While trying to maintain a semblance of normalcy with his cousin Amanda and his extended family, the same blue skinned aliens arrive looking for workers to harvest a mysterious blue mineral. Taken against their will, Bryce and Amanda must deal with the harsh reality of surviving in an unknown area, surrounded by murderous blue skinned aliens.
Bryce, who is gifted with understanding alien technology, moves up the hierarchy of humans assisting the aliens. He joins a group named The Escapers, who devise a plan to overthrow their alien captors and escape back home. Only time will tell if they will succeed or not in their plan of escape.
I loved the characters within this novel. They all had well thought out and clear motives for themselves and their desires to escape. The action was constant. There was never a dull moment. The characters were always plotting and devising a means of learning about their captors and planning their escape to return home. The Escapers had suspense, plot twists, and sacrifice.
It was all set in a believable world where there was a real sense of pain and loss felt amongst all the characters. It is a truly phenomenal story told by an exceptional author.
Anyone who is a fan of Ernest Cline's Armada, Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Game Series, or Michael Crichton's Jurrasic Park, will love the thrills, suspense, and sheer panic you feel as you read onto each next page to discover what happens to these characters.
Bryce, who is gifted with understanding alien technology, moves up the hierarchy of humans assisting the aliens. He joins a group named The Escapers, who devise a plan to overthrow their alien captors and escape back home. Only time will tell if they will succeed or not in their plan of escape.
I loved the characters within this novel. They all had well thought out and clear motives for themselves and their desires to escape. The action was constant. There was never a dull moment. The characters were always plotting and devising a means of learning about their captors and planning their escape to return home. The Escapers had suspense, plot twists, and sacrifice.
It was all set in a believable world where there was a real sense of pain and loss felt amongst all the characters. It is a truly phenomenal story told by an exceptional author.
Anyone who is a fan of Ernest Cline's Armada, Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Game Series, or Michael Crichton's Jurrasic Park, will love the thrills, suspense, and sheer panic you feel as you read onto each next page to discover what happens to these characters.
October 7, 2024
The Escapers is an alien invasion story. One where humans are forced to mine a particular mineral from a volcanic island in the pacific ocean. The problem is, the mining of said mineral affects the miners drastically, turning them into mindless husks. The story centeres around one captured teen that refuses to accept his fate. It's not a new concept of course, but the story is a pretty good one, and although I'm wondering about the end of the story, I'm also thinking I might read more in this series. I mean, why didn't this guy tell the authorities what he found? I get his desire to wind up where he did, but you'd think he'd be a bit smarter about it. Oh well, there's always the next book.
July 11, 2022
A compelling story about an alien race using children as slave labor. The story was slow moving with some hints of action that got strung along too long. While told from the viewpoint a teenaged Bryce, more insights to the initial alien invasion and collapse/surrender of Earth’s governments and how society continued to exist would help the story. Local trading was hinted at but they still have had? School is still being held? More depth, not necessarily detailed analysis, would give it better realism.
Looking forward to book 2.
Looking forward to book 2.
July 19, 2022
I liked this book.
April 18, 2025
The Escapers
A good young adult book. I liked the bravery and turmoil they had to go through. Bryce had lost so much, and was determined not to lose anything or anyone else.
A good young adult book. I liked the bravery and turmoil they had to go through. Bryce had lost so much, and was determined not to lose anything or anyone else.
August 11, 2025
4 blue stars!!
RTF...
RTF...
January 20, 2026
Enjoyable with interesting storyline which captures. I cannot wait to start reading the 2nd ook in the series
February 8, 2026
Easy and enjoyable
This book was fast paced and an easy read. The main character is enjoyable and a classic good guy. It's a decent coming of age in the apocalypse type of story.
This book was fast paced and an easy read. The main character is enjoyable and a classic good guy. It's a decent coming of age in the apocalypse type of story.
July 15, 2022
Very good story
Story was very good. It was original and well written. A little slow moving but still interesting. Characters were terrific.
Story was very good. It was original and well written. A little slow moving but still interesting. Characters were terrific.
June 29, 2022
Very good story. Well written. A little slow moving but still good.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews