written by J.F.
Gonzalez
published by Leisure Books (January
2006)
ISBN-10:
0843955678
ISBN-13:
978-0843955675
reviewed by Ty Schwamberger
03.16.2009
There is an old adage in
boxing – ‘stick and move.’ Survivor by J.F. Gonzalez doesn’t have anything
to do with the sport of boxing, but there is plenty of sticking and moving in
this splendidly grotesque and horrifying novel about a woman and her fight to
stay alive.
The main character in this
novel is a woman named Lisa. She and her
husband plan on going on a relaxing weekend getaway – where Lisa is going to
tell him that she is pregnant with their first child.
Their weekend of horror
starts off with them being a victim of road rage from a maniacal driver. Once they escape the mad-man driver, they
figure everything will be wonderful.
That is until they are pulled over by the police. The policeman informs them that someone has
issued a citizen’s arrest – by the same crazy driver that just tried to run
them off the road and is now parked behind the cop’s cruiser. Since the driver of their car was Brad,
Lisa’s husband, he is taken into custody.
Lisa, being an attorney, ensures him that they will figure out a way to
get him out of jail ASAP – but things don’t go quite as they planned.
A short time later, Lisa
is kidnapped. But these kidnappers
aren’t asking for ransom. They want Lisa
herself. They plan on making her a movie
star – in a snuff film.
What follows is a
soon-to-be mother’s instinct to keep herself and her unborn baby alive. Being scared beyond belief while being forced
to watch the star in the kidnappers previous film and what is surely going to
happen to her, she is able to think fast and negotiate her release – by giving
them money and someone else to take her part in the movie. But, the kidnappers have ideas of their own –
to take her money, grab the replacement that Lisa offered up and then grab Lisa
instead of letting her go.
Lisa does manage to escape
and what ensues is; a battle for the police to find the kidnappers, a friend of
Brad and Lisa trying to keep them safe while the hunt continues and for Lisa to
keep her sanity. When it’s all said and
done, bodies have been violated in unimaginable ways and Lisa and Brad’s life
will never be the same.
When I started this novel,
I came into it with an open mind. As I
always do. But, the part in the
beginning when the couple is pulled over and Brad is arrested for his road rage, struck me as a little
unbelievable, until I read the following quote that J.F. posted on his message
board (http://www.briankeene.com/forum/index.php?board=31.0)
on
“The initial pullover scene was
easy to write since it was based on an actual incident that happened to me.
Most of that scene, including the dialogue between the characters, was
recounted from memory. A few people questioned the validity of something like
that actually happening in real life, but believe me; in
Overall I found this book
highly entertaining, gruesome and animalistic. Survivor
has an intriguing great storyline that I have never encountered before, great
characterization and the action and violence that is necessary for any great
horror read.
When I posted a ‘thank you
for writing this book’ on J.F.’s message board, he
replied, “You’re welcome, and thank you for taking a chance
on it. These comments more than make up for the few pieces of hate mail and
death threats I've received from the book.”
So, if you’re looking for
a gruesome tale of someone’s fight to stay alive by all means, I suggest going
out and picking up a copy of this book.
Oh, if you’re still unsure
where the reference to ‘sticking and moving’ comes in, read the book and ye
shall see...
Just hope you never have
to feel it.
Well, unless you’re into
that sort of thing.