What do you think?
Rate this book
Going Underground
Oscar: Part One
Set in the year 2032, Oscar follows the story of one of the main protagonists from Going Underground, Oscar Saracen. It follows him through 3 stages of his life. Part One looks at his life from the age of 7: from the loss of his parents through the government's brutal regime, to his survival thereafter.
96 pages, Paperback
First published August 30, 2015
1 person is currently reading
13 people want to read
About the author
L.N. Denison
5Ìýbooks199ÌýfollowersWriter of things dark and disturbing..but that will soon change...watch this space!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
August 12, 2016
Oscar is a futuristic tale, following a boy through an extremely bleak environment. The novella is full of holocaustic imagery, as we are thrown into the middle of a war against an oppressive government that would sanction British blood from other surrounding island Caucasians-- specifically Scottish people, it seems. There is a governmental side to the war called, the administration, and another side simply called The Independent Mind.
At some point, there was a spike in the graphic imagery that got my attention—without posting a spoiler alert, I’ll say it’s biblical, and did take me by surprise.
Apart from this, I found the book was flat as an independent piece. One segment to the next, a person is captured, a person is tortured, a person grows hopeless and wants to die. Any deviation from this pattern would have added an arc to the story—a captive nearly escaping; a captive still wanting to escape within paragraphs of being captured; a captor having thoughts of doubt regarding his role in the war—but it repeats itself to the point of meaninglessness, which is also a problem I have with the premise.
The idea of a government facing a rebellion is of course tried and true. I find myself here wondering the background of the rebellion and the government. What history has led the administration to seek genocide? How did The Independent Mind come to existence (we have the name of a founder, and a brief introduction to him as a character), and how has it come to be so ruthlessly strategic? If some of this is explained in another book, I would recommend that an introduction may need to be added to this book.
Other suggestions I have include the use of a professional editor. I noted numerous problems with redundant language, and syntactical/grammatical errors, averaging at least one every two chapters, and including problems with the very last paragraph of the book.
I received a free copy for an honest review.
At some point, there was a spike in the graphic imagery that got my attention—without posting a spoiler alert, I’ll say it’s biblical, and did take me by surprise.
Apart from this, I found the book was flat as an independent piece. One segment to the next, a person is captured, a person is tortured, a person grows hopeless and wants to die. Any deviation from this pattern would have added an arc to the story—a captive nearly escaping; a captive still wanting to escape within paragraphs of being captured; a captor having thoughts of doubt regarding his role in the war—but it repeats itself to the point of meaninglessness, which is also a problem I have with the premise.
The idea of a government facing a rebellion is of course tried and true. I find myself here wondering the background of the rebellion and the government. What history has led the administration to seek genocide? How did The Independent Mind come to existence (we have the name of a founder, and a brief introduction to him as a character), and how has it come to be so ruthlessly strategic? If some of this is explained in another book, I would recommend that an introduction may need to be added to this book.
Other suggestions I have include the use of a professional editor. I noted numerous problems with redundant language, and syntactical/grammatical errors, averaging at least one every two chapters, and including problems with the very last paragraph of the book.
I received a free copy for an honest review.
September 30, 2015
Mainly for those interested in Oscar of Underground novel
Although it starts out as a pseudo-history book ("David and Janna were regarded as political activists, disseminating their conspiracy theories on why the war between England and Scotland began in the first place. The reason for the initial outbreak was simple: England’s greed-fuelled seizure of Scottish lands and properties. The Scots awaited the day that they would become an independent country and when that day came, they jumped into battle to try and regain what was rightfully theirs. For six years they had been trying and failing at every turn."), the narrative quickly switches to the ordeal faced by Oscar and his parents ("For no apparent reason, he had been pushed face-first into the concrete by one of the patrolmen, who then began to kick his helpless victim to a pulp. His misery was exacerbated by the participation of another aggressor.") - note that the following passages may be uncomfortable for some readers; thankfully Oscar's pains were somewhat mitigated with the help of a sympathetic fellow named Sam ("he resolved to find Oscar and keep him by his side."), who of course, is not what he appears to be!
The way the character of Oscar grows through the three stages of life is quite meticulously handled by the author. Be it his trust issues ("If he was finding it difficult to trust Sam, then who could he trust?"), to his inherent leadership qualities ("‘We need to get out of here as soon as possible; we may no longer be safe.� he warned. He may have been only seven, but Oscar knew what John was trying to say.") as well as his frustration and aggravation ("Oscar backed away angrily, and then turned and ran. He headed back upstairs to his bedroom and slammed the door with emphasis") are finely delineated. The dialogs are pretty much spot on, with just about the right words being said at the right time ("‘Just a few hundred yards to go, boys!� she chimed, as they headed quickly towards the place they were about to destroy."). The atmosphere is chilling, sometimes a bit too chilling for comfort. Miriam is the strong and caring activist you would have expected to find in the ruins of French revolution but sadly not today; let us hope we would have someone like her by 2032!
The reader is, thankfully, at times relieved from bearing the burden of the dark and chilly nature of this novel with occasional humorous elements, such as:
"You are stood here today, charged with high treason against the government—and sentenced to death by hanging, drawing and quartering. Do have anything to say before the sentence is carried out?� the judge and executioner asked. She burnt holes into him. What a stupid question to ask—how the hell can I say anything with this thing on my face? She growled at him as a reply"
Overall, a suitable book for those who liked Oscar's character in the Underground book.
Although it starts out as a pseudo-history book ("David and Janna were regarded as political activists, disseminating their conspiracy theories on why the war between England and Scotland began in the first place. The reason for the initial outbreak was simple: England’s greed-fuelled seizure of Scottish lands and properties. The Scots awaited the day that they would become an independent country and when that day came, they jumped into battle to try and regain what was rightfully theirs. For six years they had been trying and failing at every turn."), the narrative quickly switches to the ordeal faced by Oscar and his parents ("For no apparent reason, he had been pushed face-first into the concrete by one of the patrolmen, who then began to kick his helpless victim to a pulp. His misery was exacerbated by the participation of another aggressor.") - note that the following passages may be uncomfortable for some readers; thankfully Oscar's pains were somewhat mitigated with the help of a sympathetic fellow named Sam ("he resolved to find Oscar and keep him by his side."), who of course, is not what he appears to be!
The way the character of Oscar grows through the three stages of life is quite meticulously handled by the author. Be it his trust issues ("If he was finding it difficult to trust Sam, then who could he trust?"), to his inherent leadership qualities ("‘We need to get out of here as soon as possible; we may no longer be safe.� he warned. He may have been only seven, but Oscar knew what John was trying to say.") as well as his frustration and aggravation ("Oscar backed away angrily, and then turned and ran. He headed back upstairs to his bedroom and slammed the door with emphasis") are finely delineated. The dialogs are pretty much spot on, with just about the right words being said at the right time ("‘Just a few hundred yards to go, boys!� she chimed, as they headed quickly towards the place they were about to destroy."). The atmosphere is chilling, sometimes a bit too chilling for comfort. Miriam is the strong and caring activist you would have expected to find in the ruins of French revolution but sadly not today; let us hope we would have someone like her by 2032!
The reader is, thankfully, at times relieved from bearing the burden of the dark and chilly nature of this novel with occasional humorous elements, such as:
"You are stood here today, charged with high treason against the government—and sentenced to death by hanging, drawing and quartering. Do have anything to say before the sentence is carried out?� the judge and executioner asked. She burnt holes into him. What a stupid question to ask—how the hell can I say anything with this thing on my face? She growled at him as a reply"
Overall, a suitable book for those who liked Oscar's character in the Underground book.
June 21, 2016
Oscar is a novella prequel to the author’s previous novel Going Underground. We now hope to learn about the background of Oscar Saracen, one of the main characters in the original book, and a leader in the resistance movement. We now meet Oscar as a child at the point his parents are arrested for treasonous activities. The English government is already well down the path to the dictatorship shown in Going Underground and so Oscar has already been prepared by his parents for their possible arrest. The boy is taken under the care of a neighbour who attempts to get him out of London to the supposed safety of Kent. It’s not a pleasant journey with betrayal, murder and revolution always close at hand.
As this book is a novella it is difficult to establish characters and their backgrounds in the space available. We don’t learn too much about any of the main players, and even Oscar is really only a spectator as the adults around him sink lower and lower in their inhumanity. I’m not even sure that there is enough in this book to show how the boy Oscar grows into the young man depicted in Going Underground and who would become a resistance leader. Yes, he witnesses at first hand the brutality of the government (and for that matter the resistance) but we are not shown enough of Oscar to see how this influences him as much of the action is concentrated on the adults and their actions.
Anyone who has already read Going Underground will know what to expect from L. N. Dennison. The world she has created is brutal and bloody, and the way in which she writes is similar with stark descriptions of torture and death. Oscar (Going Underground) is somewhere between a 3 and 4 star read. As a novella it delivers its story but could possibly offer a bit more of Oscar and how he absorbs the events around him. I ended up going for 3 stars in the knowledge that this is a novella and although it squeezes plenty of action into its limited pages we also miss out on some opportunities for character building.
As this book is a novella it is difficult to establish characters and their backgrounds in the space available. We don’t learn too much about any of the main players, and even Oscar is really only a spectator as the adults around him sink lower and lower in their inhumanity. I’m not even sure that there is enough in this book to show how the boy Oscar grows into the young man depicted in Going Underground and who would become a resistance leader. Yes, he witnesses at first hand the brutality of the government (and for that matter the resistance) but we are not shown enough of Oscar to see how this influences him as much of the action is concentrated on the adults and their actions.
Anyone who has already read Going Underground will know what to expect from L. N. Dennison. The world she has created is brutal and bloody, and the way in which she writes is similar with stark descriptions of torture and death. Oscar (Going Underground) is somewhere between a 3 and 4 star read. As a novella it delivers its story but could possibly offer a bit more of Oscar and how he absorbs the events around him. I ended up going for 3 stars in the knowledge that this is a novella and although it squeezes plenty of action into its limited pages we also miss out on some opportunities for character building.
June 6, 2016
This novella is billed as a “prequel� to Going Underground and it is written in the same breathless, slashing style.
But one learns almost nothing about Oscar except that he witnessed his parents being taken away by a brutal government determined to purify England of those not “pure bloods.� He cries, he sleeps, he is tired, and he gets hungry when not fed.
Bad things happen to his parents in one of those camps, things that his mother was forced to witness before she too is despatched. She is treated sternly, snarled at, barked and growled at, subjected to a delousing [!] process—a procedure, one assumes, intended to evoke WW2 concentration camps. Guards “cackle maniacally," an evil doctor “screeches,� she is “almost raped to death.� [How about something like “every hour or two, several guards would come to her cell and beat, kick, and rape her�? - show versus tell.]
A neighbor who affects friendly care turns out to be a patrolman waiting for an opportunity to turn him over to the government. A matronly member of the rebel group takes him under her wing until she meets her own horrific end. This reader was left wondering why (motivation?) at every turn.
But one learns almost nothing about Oscar except that he witnessed his parents being taken away by a brutal government determined to purify England of those not “pure bloods.� He cries, he sleeps, he is tired, and he gets hungry when not fed.
Bad things happen to his parents in one of those camps, things that his mother was forced to witness before she too is despatched. She is treated sternly, snarled at, barked and growled at, subjected to a delousing [!] process—a procedure, one assumes, intended to evoke WW2 concentration camps. Guards “cackle maniacally," an evil doctor “screeches,� she is “almost raped to death.� [How about something like “every hour or two, several guards would come to her cell and beat, kick, and rape her�? - show versus tell.]
A neighbor who affects friendly care turns out to be a patrolman waiting for an opportunity to turn him over to the government. A matronly member of the rebel group takes him under her wing until she meets her own horrific end. This reader was left wondering why (motivation?) at every turn.
May 12, 2016
Ms. Denison weaves several stories together around a young boy named Oscar. It's a futuristic view of the United Kingdom, that is brutal and cruel. What appealed to me is the reality of the situations that each character faced. Nothing contrived, no hero saving the day. A true and realistic view how a monstrous government can destroy their own citizenry.
While the story has it's sad and gruesome moments, you have a sense that young Oscar will bring a bright light to a bleak environment, one day. L.N. writing style is not flowery nor does she waste words. She writes with authority and makes it clear the despair the characters live in.
I enjoyed it and look forward to reading Oscar's adventures.
While the story has it's sad and gruesome moments, you have a sense that young Oscar will bring a bright light to a bleak environment, one day. L.N. writing style is not flowery nor does she waste words. She writes with authority and makes it clear the despair the characters live in.
I enjoyed it and look forward to reading Oscar's adventures.
May 24, 2016
I received a free copy in exchange for a honest review.
**This review does contain spoilers.**
As the blurb says this is a prequel and backstory of Oscar Saracen from the Going Underground series. Not having read any of the other books, I had mixed feelings about this book.
The majority of the book was spent torturing the side characters. I'm not against the torture of fictional characters, in fact I've been heavily criticized for the amount of torture in my books. However in Oscar there seemed to be zero moral questioning in doing it. The torture was just a way of life.
There was subtle judgment of using torture in calling the holding cell for the torture victims the "Rape Room". After all, torture is done for the same reasons as rape, a sadist gets off on his power over the victim.
That is negated when the leader of the resistance, Miriam, has suspicions about Oscar's rescuer, Sam, and her first impulse is to torture him. He quickly admits to whatever she wants to hear, like anyone would, and she doesn't question if his confession was true or not.
This is the world that 7 year-old Oscar is thrown into. Where there are good no good guys, just evil vs evil.
On the good side, the book was very quick read and does leave the reader wondering how Oscar will take these horrible experiences and use them as an adult.
**This review does contain spoilers.**
As the blurb says this is a prequel and backstory of Oscar Saracen from the Going Underground series. Not having read any of the other books, I had mixed feelings about this book.
The majority of the book was spent torturing the side characters. I'm not against the torture of fictional characters, in fact I've been heavily criticized for the amount of torture in my books. However in Oscar there seemed to be zero moral questioning in doing it. The torture was just a way of life.
There was subtle judgment of using torture in calling the holding cell for the torture victims the "Rape Room". After all, torture is done for the same reasons as rape, a sadist gets off on his power over the victim.
That is negated when the leader of the resistance, Miriam, has suspicions about Oscar's rescuer, Sam, and her first impulse is to torture him. He quickly admits to whatever she wants to hear, like anyone would, and she doesn't question if his confession was true or not.
This is the world that 7 year-old Oscar is thrown into. Where there are good no good guys, just evil vs evil.
On the good side, the book was very quick read and does leave the reader wondering how Oscar will take these horrible experiences and use them as an adult.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2016
This is a prequel to the other stories in the Going Underground series and at times I felt as though it would have been beneficial to have read the other stories to provide a greater depth to the characters and more context to the storyline. As it was, I found myself unable to relate to any of the characters, who for me were not sufficiently rounded; this went as much for the bad guys as it did for the good ones. At the same time, the storyline felt a little disjointed on occasion; one or two scenes could have been left out altogether and others given more room to develop the characters and the plot.
There is a very considerable amount of violence in this book. Although there is nothing wrong with this in itself, when there is no counter-point to it then its intended impact is lessened and it can even start to become wearing on the reader, which is what happened for me. I appreciate this is intended to be a dark story, however less would definitely have been more in this case.
I did like the idea of seeing through a child's eyes the breakdown of society in time of war and the way this can bring out the very worst in people, but the irony here is that I would have liked to have seen more of things through Oscar's eyes.
There is a very considerable amount of violence in this book. Although there is nothing wrong with this in itself, when there is no counter-point to it then its intended impact is lessened and it can even start to become wearing on the reader, which is what happened for me. I appreciate this is intended to be a dark story, however less would definitely have been more in this case.
I did like the idea of seeing through a child's eyes the breakdown of society in time of war and the way this can bring out the very worst in people, but the irony here is that I would have liked to have seen more of things through Oscar's eyes.
June 7, 2016
Oscar Part One tells the story of Oscar Saracen and his family who have been subjugated by the government of England for seditious activities and the Saracens are sent to labor camp three, where the atrocity parade begins.
When I say atrocity parade, I mean it. The author takes great pains to illustrate the torture, pain and agony inflicted upon the main character, Oscar's family, during their internment. You really get a sense of the ruthlessness of the patrolmen and guards of the camps, and the evil of the ruling regime.
Oscar's fate is greater than perishing in a labor camp and he eventually meets the resistance group "The Independent Mind" which plots strikes against the regime.
This novella really illustrates how Oscar is radicalized and why he will become the bookish revolutionary in the future, which is chronicled in the follow-up novel Going Underground: Independent Minds. There was a slow point or two, but by and large the action built to a shocking finale. Give it a try if you enjoy dystopian books!
When I say atrocity parade, I mean it. The author takes great pains to illustrate the torture, pain and agony inflicted upon the main character, Oscar's family, during their internment. You really get a sense of the ruthlessness of the patrolmen and guards of the camps, and the evil of the ruling regime.
Oscar's fate is greater than perishing in a labor camp and he eventually meets the resistance group "The Independent Mind" which plots strikes against the regime.
This novella really illustrates how Oscar is radicalized and why he will become the bookish revolutionary in the future, which is chronicled in the follow-up novel Going Underground: Independent Minds. There was a slow point or two, but by and large the action built to a shocking finale. Give it a try if you enjoy dystopian books!
May 26, 2016
This piece begins with torture, the middle contains torture and betrayal, and it ends with torture. The torture is described in great detail. Having established that the government is evil, and really capable of bad things the resistance doesn’t seem to be able to do anything but get captured and tortured.
Oscar the title character is presented as a child. As a child he is shuffled around, and has to witness a woman who was a caregiver being tortured. Since no character is truly developed it is hard to identify the main character. The story is called Oscar but it doesn’t seem to be about him. It is about torture the only thing described in great detail.
I give it a two out of five stars. I think the writer has potential but he didn’t give me a clear understanding of what he was trying to do with his characters or his story arc.
May 26, 2016
This piece begins with torture, the middle contains torture and betrayal, and it ends with torture. The torture is described in great detail. Having established that the government is evil, and really capable of bad things the resistance doesn’t seem to be able to do anything but get captured and tortured.
Oscar the title character is presented as a child. As a child he is shuffled around, and has to witness a woman who was a caregiver being tortured. Since no character is truly developed it is hard to identify the main character. The story is called Oscar but it doesn’t seem to be about him. It is about torture the only thing described in great detail.
I give it a two out of five stars. I think the writer has potential but he didn’t give me a clear understanding of what he was trying to do with his characters or his story arc.
Oscar the title character is presented as a child. As a child he is shuffled around, and has to witness a woman who was a caregiver being tortured. Since no character is truly developed it is hard to identify the main character. The story is called Oscar but it doesn’t seem to be about him. It is about torture the only thing described in great detail.
I give it a two out of five stars. I think the writer has potential but he didn’t give me a clear understanding of what he was trying to do with his characters or his story arc.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 19, 2015
This introduction to Oscar's story was an easy read. This book is mostly just an introduction to the character and to illustrate the horrors the family endures which set the stage for later events. I have not read more of the series so I cannot comment as to what happens to Oscar but this novel has made me interested. It was short and to the point. I appreciate when an author doesn't drag a story out, ie too much detail for the sake of length or dull periods of time to fill pages. This book is the right length for the story it portrays. If you love the dystopian novels, check out this first book in the series to see if it is a right fit.
December 19, 2015
A seven year old boy finds himself left alone during the 2032 war between England and Scotland.
This book has a strong central plot / ideas and believable characters set in a well thought out dystopian world, but the writing could have been tighter in places.
If you enjoy “dysfunctional future world� novellas this is probably worth a look.
This book has a strong central plot / ideas and believable characters set in a well thought out dystopian world, but the writing could have been tighter in places.
If you enjoy “dysfunctional future world� novellas this is probably worth a look.
July 8, 2016
The English are torturing the Scots in this “futuristic� novella. Why the quotation marks, you may ask? Well, it seems the future looks exactly like the past. It’s as if someone—say, the author—were holding a centuries old grudge against England. Mind you, it’s not that I don’t understand: I was, after all, born in France. Everybody knows there is a love/hate relationship between us bloody frogs and them roast beefs—as the frogs call the Brits.
If Denison wants to start another war of independence, why not, although the recent Brexit might ease the Scots into a sweet, bloodless revenge.
But sweet and bloodless might not be what our author is seeking here. Au contraire.
For while plot and characters appear underdeveloped in Oscar, torture is not. Were he still alive, the Marquis de Sade would be highly entertained. But if one is neither warned nor into S&M, there are moments that get painfully uncomfortable—and close to inappropriate unless one reads them in books in another category. If the author wants to underline the cruelty of the Brits, we get the point. But watch that line to cross between cruelty and indecency. Besides, war can be obscene on both sides, so to achieve richness in a literary work, one must underline brutality on both fronts. If the work is well written, the reader will figure out which side the author is on and will go with her.
And here, it is all too simplistic. There is good on one side and evil on the other. Period. At the same time, this good and this evil are not properly drawn out here. Let me explain.
The characters, whether they are friends or enemies, men or women, appear to be the same. They certainly move fast, but their psychology is nonexistent. It’s a good thing it is explained to me some people love little Oscar while others just want to manipulate him, for there is no sign of love or lack thereof through gestures or dialogue. The author chooses to tell instead of showing, in other words.
As for Oscar himself, although this seven-year-old boy has seen his parents taken away from him by monstrous enemies, he still manages to sleep like a log on comfortable mattresses. There is no child psychologist in sight in this futuristic work, just a rough leader playing fairly cruel mental games with this presumably wounded boy.
I hope the rest of the trilogy will depart from this sketchiness and will insist on character and plot development rather than torture scenes and ruthlessness in abundance. Even if the intent is independence. And if it is revenge, remember the saying: “Revenge is a dish best served cold.�
If Denison wants to start another war of independence, why not, although the recent Brexit might ease the Scots into a sweet, bloodless revenge.
But sweet and bloodless might not be what our author is seeking here. Au contraire.
For while plot and characters appear underdeveloped in Oscar, torture is not. Were he still alive, the Marquis de Sade would be highly entertained. But if one is neither warned nor into S&M, there are moments that get painfully uncomfortable—and close to inappropriate unless one reads them in books in another category. If the author wants to underline the cruelty of the Brits, we get the point. But watch that line to cross between cruelty and indecency. Besides, war can be obscene on both sides, so to achieve richness in a literary work, one must underline brutality on both fronts. If the work is well written, the reader will figure out which side the author is on and will go with her.
And here, it is all too simplistic. There is good on one side and evil on the other. Period. At the same time, this good and this evil are not properly drawn out here. Let me explain.
The characters, whether they are friends or enemies, men or women, appear to be the same. They certainly move fast, but their psychology is nonexistent. It’s a good thing it is explained to me some people love little Oscar while others just want to manipulate him, for there is no sign of love or lack thereof through gestures or dialogue. The author chooses to tell instead of showing, in other words.
As for Oscar himself, although this seven-year-old boy has seen his parents taken away from him by monstrous enemies, he still manages to sleep like a log on comfortable mattresses. There is no child psychologist in sight in this futuristic work, just a rough leader playing fairly cruel mental games with this presumably wounded boy.
I hope the rest of the trilogy will depart from this sketchiness and will insist on character and plot development rather than torture scenes and ruthlessness in abundance. Even if the intent is independence. And if it is revenge, remember the saying: “Revenge is a dish best served cold.�
August 5, 2016
There is not one redeeming feature in this story. Not one character that I could care about and not one description of any event worth reading. The story is told, and I mean told, in the manner of a fourteen year old boy who has been tasked with making up a really, really nasty horror story to tell around the camp fire. Sadly, there is no horror since there is no sympathy for any of the very stupid people who populate the country. The only character with an ounce of interest was Sam and he didn’t last long when confronted by the almost imbecilic Miriam.
I am amazed that this story is the prelude to a series. I will not be reading it and I hope never to have to read such poorly written and shoddily constructed books in the remainder of my lifetime. The use of the word, was, constantly and repetitively, made the whole effort of reading this extremely unpleasant. It is a badly written litany of very poorly described torture.
Chapter one tells us of the events of Oscar’s parent’s capture and his survival.
Chapter two describes in great detail how Oscar’s father is mutilated and slowly murdered. I assume we are meant to believe that the camp is not a happy place but the telling, the constant telling, fails to convey any sense of dread. We are told the guard is a nasty man, we are told the boss of the camp is a nasty man but neither of them is described in any way.
Chapter three is more of Oscar’s travels.
Chapter four takes us back to Ms Saracen and her trials at the camp. She is repeatedly raped after inviting the men to do so, rendering the rapes less than uncomfortable for her.
Chapter five sees the pointless and inhumane treatment of Oscar’s only friend and his eventual execution which seemed frivolous and contrived just to insert another violent episode.
Chapter six sees Ms Saracen eventually dying but the whole episode seemed surreal and again, pointless. Torture needs a purpose otherwise it is self-gratification of an abject kind which is meaningless, as is the story so far.
Chapter nine has to be the most stupid bit of writing I have read in years. The members of the group have no plan, no weapons and no idea what to do. The Independent Mind, a bunch of morons with no leadership walk aimlessly to their certain deaths as if they are zombies. Maybe a zombie in the story would help it along!
Chapter thirteen, the final chapter, relies on the telling of a gruesome execution. First it was to be a burning at the stake but then the author forgot about that and had a partial hanging followed by disembowelment and then beheading followed by quartering with a chain saw.
I am amazed that this story is the prelude to a series. I will not be reading it and I hope never to have to read such poorly written and shoddily constructed books in the remainder of my lifetime. The use of the word, was, constantly and repetitively, made the whole effort of reading this extremely unpleasant. It is a badly written litany of very poorly described torture.
Chapter one tells us of the events of Oscar’s parent’s capture and his survival.
Chapter two describes in great detail how Oscar’s father is mutilated and slowly murdered. I assume we are meant to believe that the camp is not a happy place but the telling, the constant telling, fails to convey any sense of dread. We are told the guard is a nasty man, we are told the boss of the camp is a nasty man but neither of them is described in any way.
Chapter three is more of Oscar’s travels.
Chapter four takes us back to Ms Saracen and her trials at the camp. She is repeatedly raped after inviting the men to do so, rendering the rapes less than uncomfortable for her.
Chapter five sees the pointless and inhumane treatment of Oscar’s only friend and his eventual execution which seemed frivolous and contrived just to insert another violent episode.
Chapter six sees Ms Saracen eventually dying but the whole episode seemed surreal and again, pointless. Torture needs a purpose otherwise it is self-gratification of an abject kind which is meaningless, as is the story so far.
Chapter nine has to be the most stupid bit of writing I have read in years. The members of the group have no plan, no weapons and no idea what to do. The Independent Mind, a bunch of morons with no leadership walk aimlessly to their certain deaths as if they are zombies. Maybe a zombie in the story would help it along!
Chapter thirteen, the final chapter, relies on the telling of a gruesome execution. First it was to be a burning at the stake but then the author forgot about that and had a partial hanging followed by disembowelment and then beheading followed by quartering with a chain saw.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 18, 2016
A small child stuck in an uncaring world where it seemed bad people were good. His parents are ripped from him and are destroyed in gruesome ways. It is a very dark book. There is no one to trust and many twists and turns. What's to become of him?
May 23, 2016
A small child stuck in an uncaring world where it seemed bad people were good. His parents are ripped from him and are destroyed in gruesome ways. It is a very dark book. There is no one to trust and many twists and turns. What's to become of him?
August 21, 2016
This book was well written and I couldn't put it down. It has me curious about the previous books. Good read.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get help and learn more about the design.