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Wednesday, January 16, 2013


Taking the Knife by Tam Linsey (FREE TODAY through 22nd on AMAZON)


This short story is one related to the book Botanicaust by the same author. I am not entirely sure that this is earth but from my understanding somehow a poisonous weed has taken over the land. It has killed anything edible in its track thus leaving the humans no choice but to eat each other. They have a protocol for this. They go for as long as they can and then have hunger time. During this time the weakest of the tribe sacrifices themselves for the better longevity of the tribe. 


I am about to read the story this goes with this in order to wrap my head around the whole idea. While this little story is good, my problem is my inability to know the facts behind the story. I need to know more about what is going on, how they got that way and why the virus harmed everyone. So I will not be rating this until I read Botanicaust. I hope everyone can understand. 
*******



Botanicaust by Tam Linsey


Well I certainly have a better understanding of the world after Botanicaust since reading the book and the short did indeed make much more sense once I got really into it. In this novel we follow Tula, a doctor that works with cannibals. She prepares them for conversion; if they fail to want or be appropriate for conversion to a plant-like person they are euthanized   I do not think any of the factions involved in the plot are correct in the way they deal with life. 


First you have the Halladanian- these are the plant like people. They eat very little and require a specific amount of sunshine and water a day just like plants do. Their skin is green and they believe their way of life is the only way of life. They often force people they kidnap to convert, which is an extremely painful process. They also kill people and ask questions later. They kill them because a lot of people outside the protectorate (city) are cannibals. 


Then you have the cannibals- they are a group of human that are called tribes. They have somehow managed to survive the botanicaust by eating each other. The weakest, generally the oldest or youngest in the tribe is sacrificed for the tribe to eat. They attack anyone that is not in their tribe for food, as well. 


A third section of people are the Fossilites-They are people who live in the mountain caves and have manipulated science in order to make themselves immortal. A consequence of this action is for all that they birth have downs syndrome and eventually they suffer from elder diseases. They have little conscience over what they are doing to better themselves. They appear to be very selfish individuals.


Lastly there are the hold outs. They are a German speaking almost puritan Christian group of people that live behind electric fences. They are overly righteous and consider everyone that is not like them an abomination.  In fact anyone who disagrees with them is shunned and even those that were kidnapped from them are considered not of God. Anyone not of God is not worthy of their company. They call themselves the Old Order. 


I was so irritated and frustrated at the end of this book, I wanted to punch someone. Each group had major faults and cared for no one but themselves. It felt like they only wanted what they felt was right and anything that swayed from that deserved death. I did not like any group because of their selfish, self-righteous Bertha better than you attitude. It was as if each group had great ways of helping everyone but felt they had the right to decide who deserved to get help and who deserved death or to be turned into test subjects.



Now, that being said, I loved the book and cannot wait to read the next one. I am hoping that all the factions learn to live with one another, and it will be exciting to see where the story will take me. 



I have rated this a 5 out of 5 and rate the short that goes with it the same.



Born and raised in Alaska, Tam Linsey was the kid who took AP Chemistry and AP Biology her Senior year of High School. After winning a scholarship to a DOE camp at Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, touring the superconducting supercollider, and karyotyping DNA from the HIV virus, she came to realize if she pursued biomedical engineering, she might never see the outside of a lab again.

Consequently, she earned a Bachelor of Science in English, and now writes about fictional characters who have taken biomedical engineering to extremes. She is also an avid gardener, cook, fisherman and hunter, urban homesteader, and GMO labeling advocate in love with self-sufficiency. Her current residence is the great state of Alaska, where she was born and now lives with her husband and two wonderful children

Don't forget that Taking the Knife is FREE TODAY through January 22nd on AMAZON)

2 comments:

Tam Linsey said...

Wow - two reviews in one! Thanks, Leanne. It sounds like I did my job, if you are angry at all the factions. Humanity is flawed all the way around :) Hopefully, you liked Tula or Levi!

Unknown said...

I actually loved both Tula/Katie and Levi. I think you did a great job on the book. I am very glad you liked my review!