Survivor of the
Clan
By: Jennifer Ott
Publish Date: September 10, 2016
Published By: Author
Genre: Suspense, Thriller, Futuristic, Science, International
Pages: 242 Kindle Edition
Source: Jennifer Ott
A roar of
motorcycles disturbs a peaceful congregation leaving church on an Easter Sunday
outside Edinburgh Scotland. One of the motorcyclists assassinates geneticist
Dr. Kyle Locke, while another abducts his daughter, Shelby Locke witnesses her
entire life taken from her in one instant. When clues arise that lead to
Odessa, Ukraine, it is Shelby who steps up the search to find her daughter and
her husband’s killer.
Arriving in Odessa offers more questions than answers. Confronted with the
suspects, Shelby must face her own past, as a child, and that of a mysterious
woman whom she has recollections of a precarious time in the near past.
In order to save herself and her daughter, she must find the courage and compassion to face issues that plague mankind and its future, only then can Shelby and Amelia be free.
In order to save herself and her daughter, she must find the courage and compassion to face issues that plague mankind and its future, only then can Shelby and Amelia be free.
*********************************
Welcome
to my review of another of Jennifer Ott’s books, Survivor of the Clan!
Check
out my featured post to the right for my previous review for Desperate Moon, one
of the author’s previous books and foray into all things Euro vampire and just
well-rounded story telling.
Survivor
of the Clan is her latest publication where she takes on our current human
condition from an ancestral DNA perspective, and I’ve never read of a MC (Shelby
Locke) profession of being a doll maker so for me these are different themes
than I usually read about. This also brings in more than one layer to the
meaning of the word ‘clan.’
So
through Shelby’s brave journey to find her abducted daughter, Ott plumbs interesting
concepts such as whether our human DNA carries memories from our ancestors and
even bygone emotional responses to our environment that may not necessarily be
beneficial to us anymore as times have changed, a lot! I also really like that Shelby’s
story is very current with stuff that’s happening in our world right now such
as the take that human life is being detrimentally orchestrated by powerful
global companies.
Even though there’s a scientific basis to the story, Ott’s writing
has a warm, almost homey feel often focusing on the food and cultural
traditions of the Ukraine and the importance of family that ultimately lure
Shelby away from what she believes to be her best interests. The need to know about our
family roots is ever a strong one for us all, good and/or bad.
Survivor
of the Clan is also a story about Shelby’s own search to find her origins as
she is an adoptee. This is really the primary plot that intertwines with her finding
her kidnapped daughter who has been taken to the Ukraine where Shelby finds her
own mysterious and somewhat frightening birth roots. During this journey, she
is led down some terrifying and unspeakable paths.
Steady pacing and new revelations keep the story moving and the reader engaged, and the ending reveals
some very unexpected surprises that Shelby learns on her path to discovering
her origins. I really liked how the ending isn’t like a perfect cut and dry, comes
with some violence, but we are left with upbeat, hopeful feelings for Shelby.
Fav
quote: “When you share eyes, you share a
soul.” At 6.3/488
Some
minor typos.
If
you like to savour stories that delve into the very substructure of human make
up and make you think about where your own emotions and thoughts are coming
from, be sure to pick up Survivor of the Clan, an interesting and
thought-provoking read that presents the reader with fascinating possibilities. 4.3 stars!
You will find Jennifer Ott on the internet at these links:
