[yasr_overall_rating]
Twelve-year-old Spencer embarks on a hunting trip with his abusive father, until a tragic accident leaves him alone and lost, deep in the woods. After a horrific bear encounter, Spencer stumbles upon Stu, a bald man who refers to the forest as his domain and claims it’s inhabited by otherworldly creatures he calls “the crazies.” Next thing he knows, Spencer is locked up in Stu’s cabin… But is it imprisonment or salvation?
Alex Saveliev, a reviewer for Irish Film Critic, released his first fiction novel ‘Stranded with Stu’ back in March, quickly followed by a short story ‘Maid’ to Amazon. Based on ‘Stranded,’ I will have to read ‘Maid’ and any subsequent books he releases. While suspense is not my preferred genre, I’m a wimp and only read this book in daylight, I was surprised by how enthralling the plot and characters were. Alex has a natural knack that should garner attention in the future.
Spencer grows up with an abusive sociopathic father and a mother afraid of leaving the couch. His life so unlivable at just twelve years old, Spencer creates an imaginary friend to cope with the daily beatings, harassment and horrible conditions his father forces on him and his mother. His father resents Spencer for his weakness and inability to be the son he had hoped for. The boy cannot swim, make friends, and is weak, both physically and mentally. He decides to toughen Spencer up with a man trip into the woods in the middle of winter.
Drunk with a backpack full of booze, Spencer’s father leads his son deep into the wintery woods. He forces the child to set up the tent while he drowns himself in another beer. Spencer leans on Abigail, his imaginary friend for support. Fickle like a feline, Abigail comes and goes, shifting back and forth between a human and a cat body to relieve Spencer of some mental anguish. Dad believed this trip could turn his boy into a real man and force his feeble mind to give up delusions such as Abigail. As the snow falls heavy and thick, the father and son drift through the forest hunting for dinner when Spencer’s father lands on a bear trap. Spencer tries to help his father, despite his desperate desire to let his father die. Unable to rescue his father’s foot, Spencer searches for someone to help to no avail.
Cold, alone, and scared, Spencer leaves the campsite to find the truck, and the cellphones left on the dash. Deep in the woods, far from cell towers, Spencer is forced to return to his dad. When he returns, only his father’s foot remains. The next twenty-four hours blur for the frightened child as he fights off a bear and passes out. Along comes Stu, a stranger in the woods to rescue the boy. Stu promises a phone, a warm place to rest, and food. When Spencer arrives in tandem with Stu to the tiny cabin in the wild, he quickly realizes Stu is not a savior but another scary monster, ready to gobble him up.
The tiny cabin, fortified by barred windows and multiple locks, becomes Spencer’s prison for the next several days as he learns Stu’s particular rules. Overcome by illness, the child seeks out opportunities to break free from his captor with little success. Stu proves to be beyond demented, calling the boy Saul instead of Spencer. Every noise outside his fortress is a threat from some unknown ‘crazy,’ determined to end his life. After fighting his illness and Abigail’s, Spencer frees himself from Stu’s grip and finds his way home only to return a year later to fight his inner demons.
For a first time novel, Alex impressed me with his ability to paint a vivid world full of unseeable and often familial horror. Such benign things turned wicked under his thumb. A few minor areas needed work before releasing to print. A few grammar issues remained of little consequence but the bigger problem was Spencer. While Alex captured the tone of a young child in distress, the child seemed too old for his years (not from trauma but from style) and unable to recognize his need to conform to his father’s ways or die trying. Abused children learn faster to bend their will and lose their soul in the process before finding the strength to gaining their inner strength.
Spencer seemed to have lost his childhood innocence but never acclimated to his lifestyle, which is fantastic as his was not a life worth living. Either way, I expected more grace in this coming of age story. Spencer was almost whiny when he should have been portrayed as strong-willed. I hope this is from lack of youthful trauma in the author’s life or perhaps he had a different perspective.
Every other element in the plot lined up to keep you on the edge of your seat. With massive ominous overtones, the story never played out to full-blown horror, which makes wimps like me able to breathe through to the next page. The ending felt too short and unlike the rest of the story, which displayed the inner thoughts of Spencer, it failed to share his reasoning. I would read this again, I expect another glance would provide more layers to this thoughtful tale.
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