4 out of 5 Hoots
It has been a while since I have read a good sci-fi novel and this book did not disappoint. Indian Hill follows a boy who is living a pretty normal life from childhood to adult hood until one day while at a concert him and thousands of people get abducted by aliens.
These aliens have abducted humans from three different regions of our planet and have created a gladiator like battle system for their own enjoyment. They ranked all of the men and have them face off against each other to the death. The women who were abducted by these aliens were given a worse fate…they became the spoils of battle. What this means is that they are given to the winners and the winners can do whatever they want to do to them, including rape and murder in front of everyone watching the battles. This actually becomes a very big part of the story.
The main character, Mike, is a lover and not a fighter and when he gets put in this situation he has no choice but to fight. He does surprisingly well in the battles and eventually ranks up to the point that he gets his first spoil. He was shocked to be given a woman as a prize, but he is even more shocked when he found out that if he dies she will be given away to the winner. Now he is not just fighting for his life, he is fighting for hers and any other woman that is given to him.
Overall, there were a few parts in the very beginning that were kind of slow. I understand that Mark Tufo need to show the reader the kind of person Mike was, but it dragged at parts. One the battles began it actually became a lot more interesting . The battle scenes were really interesting and were some of the most interesting parts of the book. Reading the portions when the men would rape or murder their spoil were a bit much at times, but they added to the desperation Mike had to survive. I loved how his own need for surviving took a backseat to his neat to protect. While other men gave in to their dark desires, he fought to keep his humanity and to protect others. I will absolutely be reading the rest of the series.
The Owl's Book Nest 