Book #30

I, Exile by David Samuels

Exiled into a wasteland because of a heist gone wrong, Emelith vows to hunt down the one responsible. Except not all is what it seems in the haunted realm of the Cauldron.

Emelith is exiled to a wasteland as punishment for a crime. Exiled. To a wasteland. What a premise. Giving us lots of Mad Max vibes, Samuels propels us along through this godforsaken, horrific place, to help Emelith exact revenge on the one who put her there.

There’s a lot going on. Samuels almost doesn’t allow us to breathe, as he hits us with a new enemy or catastrophe every few pages. Violence, gore, and sorrow, all lead to Emelith gleaning more information about her prey, and slowly changing her goals.

The characters are good here, particularly Emelith who begins as a fierce, irritable loner, and becomes someone else quite entirely. The others are peppered with backstories and connections which allow us to understand them.

A great one for those with a penchant for monsters, adventure, violence, and women who are hellbent on redemption.