A review by beckiebookworm1974
Captured by H.R. Savage

4.0

I was in the mood for some post-apocalyptic Zombie fiction and this definitely fit the bill I found it to be well written and easy to engage with, the female protagonist I found to be likeable and very capable. Set twenty years after the outbreak and humanity are living in pockets banding together for safety. Thea resides in the small town of Playa Azul with her father a few others and a parcel of kids they've collected from harm. Over the years her dad has taught her everything he can about survival and staying alive in this harsh new world. When a scavenging mission goes wrong Thea again loses someone dear to her but there is no time to grieve as one of their own is very ill and needs antibiotics, with no time to waste and desperate Thea decides to attempt to sneak into El Castillo the compound of The Knights.

This is where Thea encounters Gunner The Knights leader and he's not exactly pleased to see her imagining her to be a spy: they don't exactly lay out the welcome wagon but when Gunner discovers just why Thea has infiltrated their walls he wants to help, obviously suspicious but without much choice, Thea agrees to an escort home.

So this is a story of survival and the beauty of human compassion it's also the exact opposite and showcases what happens when barriers break down civility is lost and survival instincts take over turning man into beasts. This one was action-packed from the get-go there's a potential looming war that is threatening Gunner's home and people from an age-old grudge and Thea is now caught firmly in the middle of it, unrequited feelings, an emerging romance, Zombies, danger and a whole load of community. The romance felt believable and the sentiment was sincere and I did believe in Gunner and Thea's emerging bond.

There were a couple of things that dropped my rating down slightly the first being that this was sole POV (Thea's) I think this was a missed opportunity and though Thea felt fully fleshed I didn't feel this way about some of the other characters. Gunner himself was a bit of an enigma and his lack of voice contributed to that. Also, the world-building could have been elaborated on more as we didn't really touch on any of the whys and what-nots maybe that will be explored going forward but it did feel like a blatant discrepancy in the narrative.

I liked both Gunner and Thea but did feel Thea could be a bit irresponsible and impulsive she never seemed to consider past the moment her acting in the now creating issues her inability to accept that she can't save everyone putting herself and everyone around her in danger. so this has an open-ended finish ready for book two to continue but it's not a major cliffhanger. I will definitely be reading the next in the series and I have no issues recommending this.



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/