Savage To Savvy

Assessed for Awesome Indies
27 February 2017
4.5 stars

Overall Assessment

Heidi is hired as a research assistant at a development institute where she encounters Nicki, a young feral girl raised by dogs. Nicki is the subject of an experiment to prove that children not exposed to language at an early, critical stage, can nonetheless be taught language, grammar and other skills. Heidi learns, however, that this experiment with Nicki has a macabre twist.

Character and Plot

The characters in this book are well-developed, and put on display bit by bit as the story unfolds. Heidi and Nicki are the main protagonists, but the supporting characters, mainly the Professor, are developed indirectly. I sensed two story lines here; one was Nicki’s efforts to reclaim a dimly-remembered past and rediscover her humanity, and the other was Heidi’s exposure of the Professor’s inhuman and inhumane experimentation. Incident by incident unfolds, and the reader is made aware of what happened, by whom, and why, in this psychologically suspenseful tale.

Mechanics

The cover is a simple graphic that conveys the contents exceptionally well.

I give this author four and a half stars.