Early Review: The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda
The Hunt by Andrew Fukuda
The Hunt #1
The Hunt #1
Don’t Sweat. Don’t Laugh. Don’t draw attention to yourself. And most of all, whatever you do, do not fall in love with one of them.
Gene is different from everyone else around him. He can’t run with lightning speed, sunlight doesn’t hurt him and he doesn’t have an unquenchable lust for blood. Gene is a human, and he knows the rules. Keep the truth a secret. It’s the only way to stay alive in a world of night—a world where humans are considered a delicacy and hunted for their blood.
When he’s chosen for a once in a lifetime opportunity to hunt the last remaining humans, Gene’s carefully constructed life begins to crumble around him. He’s thrust into the path of a girl who makes him feel things he never thought possible—and into a ruthless pack of hunters whose suspicions about his true nature are growing. Now that Gene has finally found something worth fighting for, his need to survive is stronger than ever—but is it worth the cost of his humanity?
Gene is different from everyone else around him. He can’t run with lightning speed, sunlight doesn’t hurt him and he doesn’t have an unquenchable lust for blood. Gene is a human, and he knows the rules. Keep the truth a secret. It’s the only way to stay alive in a world of night—a world where humans are considered a delicacy and hunted for their blood.
When he’s chosen for a once in a lifetime opportunity to hunt the last remaining humans, Gene’s carefully constructed life begins to crumble around him. He’s thrust into the path of a girl who makes him feel things he never thought possible—and into a ruthless pack of hunters whose suspicions about his true nature are growing. Now that Gene has finally found something worth fighting for, his need to survive is stronger than ever—but is it worth the cost of his humanity?
Most people's mistakes don't have deadly consequences, but Gene is isn't like most people. In a world full of vampires, he is perhaps the only free human left, and has learned to survive by hiding in plain sight. He lives every day on the razor's edge of death as discovery would mean an instantly brutal death as his blood is incredibly intoxicating to the vampires. Yet, he still seems to have things under control. At least that is until he is selected as one of the few for the upcoming hunt for the last remaining humans. Discovery seems inevitable under the intense scrutiny of the other hunters as one false step will be his very last.
The Hunt has an incredibly chilling world where the vast majority are vampires, with very few humans left. In fact aside from the very few domesticated hepers for the hunt, our narrator, Gene is under the impression that he may be the very last free human left. He lives every day having to watch his every move and behavior to make sure he isn't discovered. While I do think his ability to fool the vampires for so long does stretch believability at times, I can't possibly imagine living in his position. When the only thing you really have to look forward to in life is that your inevitable death will be brutal, but quick, it is a wonder he hadn't long crumbled under the pressure. Granted, he is more than a little arrogant in his thoughts at times, but if that is how he hopes and survives then I can't really fault him for that.
At first glance, The Hunt looks like all the power is firmly in the hands of the "people" aka vampires rather than in the very few remaining hepers. However,there is just something about the way the vampires become slobbering idiots when hepers are even mentioned that sparks of a greater control over them. It is almost as if they have been conditioned to act this way in order to keep them all in a firm hand. The whole concept of the heper hunt seems to support that theory. If hepers are supposed to be such a delicacy, then why would they allow the last remaining few to be hunted to extinction. It just seems far more likely that they would have "domesticated" them, so that in the very least the hunt could continue on for years afterward. I'm still trying to figure out the Palace's angle on this as they seem to use the hunts to gain favor, but the hunt is supposed to destroy the last of the hepers. Don't get me wrong, I don't feel sorry for the vampires at all as they are quite violent and cruel, I just don't think they realize how much they are being controlled.
On a slightly side note I do have to express a little disappointment in the cover change. Granted, the new cover is nice, and does portray the more violent nature of the book. However, I felt the original one was quite stunning with the way it wrapped around from front to back. (The Hunt original cover image here). Getting back to the review, The Hunt is one of those books where you are so engrossed that you forget everything else around you. I just simply couldn't put it down once I started reading it. Even though you will have to suspend a little disbelief at times, The Hunt was an incredible ride from start to finish, and definitely is one of the best books I've read this year. I cannot wait to get my hands on the next installment. Violent, gritty, and quite original, The Hunt is sure to please even the most jaded genre fans.
(Received a copy from the publisher)
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