Savage Gerry: A Novel
$14.99-
“John Jantunen consistently zigs where other narratives would zag, creating a story that is far stranger and disturbing.” — Shelf Awareness
A thrilling apocalyptic tale that rushes from the inside of a prison to a world that feels even more dangerous. The End couldn’t have come at a better time for Gerald Nichols.
Dubbed “Savage Gerry” by the media, Gerald Nichols became a folk hero after he shot the men who’d killed his wife and then fled into the northern wilds with his thirteen-year-old son, Evers. Five years after his capture, he’s serving three consecutive life sentences when the power mysteriously goes out at the prison. The guards flee, leaving the inmates to die, but Gerald’s given a last-minute reprieve by a jailbreak. Released into a mad world populated by murderous bands of biker gangs preying on scattered settlements of survivors, his only hope of ever reuniting with his son is to do what he swore he never would: become “Savage Gerry” all over again.
Set in a future all-too-near our own against a backdrop of Northern Ontario’s natural splendor, Savage Gerry is a refreshingly Canadian spin on the Mad Max films.
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John Jantunen is also the author of Cipher, No Quarter, and A Desolate Splendor. He has lived in almost every region of Canada and currently lives in Kingston, Ontario.
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Published: April 2021
ISBN: 9781770415607
Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5 in.
Pages: 344
Reviews
“Savage Gerry is a gripping work of speculative fiction set in a spirited landscape that’s often neglected or ignored in Canadian literature. Northern Ontario is much more than just a vibrant setting in this story; land itself takes on the complicated and conflicting traits of the characters who move through it. Jantunen skillfully compels readers to both empathize with and loathe the people who inhabit this dystopian realm. It’s a thrilling novel about outcasts and survivors navigating a harsh world, much in the same vein as works by Cormac McCarthy and Stephen King.” — Waubgeshig Rice, bestselling author of Moon of the Crusted Snow
“This is an Old Testament novel of fire and brimstone, of a fierce, just God. This is a novel of an eye for an eye. This is a novel of strong and stoic men, who take care of their families and ask for no quarter. A novel of men’s actions, not their words. This is a novel of the love of men for their sons. This is a novel of strength, not of weakness.” — Les Edgerton, author of Hard Times, Adrenaline Junkie and others.
“A rip-roaring post-apocalyptic story told with passion and skill. But, for those willing to read a little deeper, there is another, much more disturbing layer to the book, with Jantunen eviscerating the illusions every one of us holds dear.” — Cloud Lake Literary
“While there are scenes of genuine horror, this is not a horror novel. I would call it post-apocalyptic literary suspense, as the reader, like Gerald, never fully knows what he might come across on his foot journey north. One thing is sure: he will need all his skills to survive this sojourn.” — The Miramichi Reader
“John Jantunen’s Savage Gerry is a savage and thrilling apocalyptic tour de force with echoes of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road and George Miller’s Mad Max series. Its gripping anti-hero has a true beating heart that will keep you rooting for him all along the way. Read this book!” — Lee Matthew Goldberg, bestselling author of The Mentor and The Ancestor
“A contemplative blend [of] genre and character.” — Tuerlemot blog
“It was impossible to put down.” — A Bookworm's World blog