Trasmundo: Escape
(Trasmundo, Book 1)
by Varian Krylov
Release Day: August 6, 2015
Length: 236 pages
Length: 236 pages
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Gay (M/M), Romance
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Strange, quiet Luka doesn't live in this world; long ago he took refuge in his art, escaping into surreal mindscapes inspired by his favorite painters. In the beautifully monstrous realms of his imagination, he is safe from the pain of his losses: his family, his friends, his hope.
Until war breaks out, and he is forced to flee the only home he's known since he was thirteen.
Captured by an enemy soldier, young Luka is marched across brutal terrain, toward a fate known only by the bearded menace holding him prisoner. Quick with a knife, tireless and strong, Tarik guards the purpose of his mission as he takes Luka deeper and deeper into enemy territory.
When the soldier discovers the painful secret he has been hiding since childhood, Luka fears he is about to endure a new kind of cruelty, worse than being abandoned, ostracized or beaten. Or is it possible the soldier holding Luka prisoner is the one person who isn't afraid of the truth behind Luka's silence and lies?
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Tarik grinned, looking perfectly lucid. "Do you read sci fi?"
He'd only read a few. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Strangers in a Strange Land. Neuromancer. So many books he hadn't found the time for, yet. "Not really."
"Well, imagine, if one kilometer from here there was a door--a portal--and you could step through and end up anywhere you wanted, anywhere in the world, where would you choose?"
Images from photographs and movies flickered through Luka's memory. "I don't speak any other languages."
"So? You can learn another language. Where could you imagine being happy?"
Nowhere.
A faint smile curved Tarik's lips as he stared into the distance. "A little town somewhere in France? The Australian Outback? The beaches in Mexico?"
"Amsterdam. Or maybe New York." Once he said it, all Luka could picture was being homeless in those cities where a meal probably cost what he'd paid for a week's worth of food in his village.
"Really? A big city like New York? Ever lived in a big city?"
"I've always lived in a tiny village or small town. And I've always hated it."
"Tarik was quiet for a while. Finally he said, "I think a lot about the south of Europe. Somewhere warm. A medium sized city. Porto. Grenada. Marseille."
"Sounds nice. You should go, when the war's over. You're going to survive."
"And you're not?"
Luka shrugged.
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5 of 5 stars
Oh. My. God. This book is amazing! The character development blew me away. Luka is broken perfection. His past torments him, his present is a living nightmare, and yet he still hopes for a better future. I can't remember the last time I read a character that touched my heart as much as Luka did; I was amazed by his bravery and I cried over his pain. If I could I would wrap him up in my arms, shower him with love, and protect him from all the ugliness in the world.
Luka's first encounter with Tarik... what can I say? I wanted to string the man up by his ankles. How could he even contemplate hurting someone who is so obviously in need of protection? Tarik is complicated, a mixture desperation and strength. He holds himself accountable to a personal code of conduct that is unique and strangely honorable but make his motivations hard to interpret.
Set in a contemporary alternate reality, Escape is a raw and brutally honest portrayal of humanity at its best and worst. Action, drama, horror, hope, adventure, darkness and light are uniquely blended together to bring this story to life. As always, Varian Krylov's signature writing style is bold, placing her books in a class of their own. The subject matter is emotionally charged, the ending left me breathless and wanting more. Readers will either love it or hate it, there is no middle ground. Either way, I guarantee you won't ever forget it.
Pre-Order your copy before August 6th!
Since her girlhood in a sunny coastal town in California, Varian Krylov has nurtured a love of words and a curiosity about the deep, dark forces at work in human nature, especially sexuality, and how they often paradoxically twine with our tenderest impulses. Her stories tend to explore the sometimes fine line between what arouses, and what frightens, what we’re driven to, and what we’re ashamed of.
As witty and seductive as I am sarcastic and self-deprecating, I spend as much time as possible thinking and writing about sex. No, not dense, inscrutable post-feminist texts on media representations of gender and the body--that was grad school. I write stories--short stories, novels, and starting a few weeks ago, screenplays--most of which poke and prod and the dark little corners of human sexuality. In a sense, nothing's taboo, anymore. There's no act, no fetish that hasn't been made utterly banal in the proliferation of porn. What intrigues and excites me is the exploration of the conflicting impulses, the twisted psychology and turbulent emotions of people who find themselves unable to resist desires that lie beyond their own moral boundaries.
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