“Did you know the trees speak to each other?” She wrinkled her brow. “No.” “They do. They tell secrets in their roots, those deep, dark place that can’t be seen. I think we’re like that too. We know things deep, deep down, secret things, ancient things, that whisper through us, one to the other. You whispered to me. And I whispered back. You heard, didn’t you?” Her heart beat with love for him, at the sweetness of what he’d said. She nodded. “Yes, I heard.”

Have you ever read a book so beautifully crafted that you didn’t physically know what to do with yourself when it ended? You felt the immediate loss of the characters. They had become your friends, your confidantes, you were constantly cheering for them, crying for them, loving them. Then it’s over. Just like everything else. But their story and these people stay with you. You dream about them, you find yourself thinking about them randomly in the middle of the day. They never leave. Their story is unforgettable.

Savaged by Mia Sheridan is that story for me. Jak and Harper are those memorable characters that I felt the critical absence of when their story ended. There have only been a handful of books in my lifetime that I felt the way about. A 5 star review isn’t enough for the masterpiece Sheridan gifted us with. This journey was filled with twists and turns all perfectly placed to keep us begging for more, but still apprehensive about what might come next.

Jak’s character is the epitome of a gentle giant. A massive, wild man, who grew up in the woods, alone. He lives purely on animal instinct until he is taken in for questioning regarding the murder of the man who’s land he lives on. He smells Harper before he ever meets her. Her scent calms him and grounds him. It’s an instant connection between the both of them. They fall in love slowly. She approaches him with hesitance at the beginning; I don’t blame her, but she never could have guessed how lucky she would be. He, using his animal instinct, decides that she is his forever mate. I cried. He describes the passion and pull he feels towards her and his desire to never be apart from her. Harper has some major baggage, with her parents being killed when she was very young, and living in foster homes…she’s afraid he’ll leave her. Like everyone else. But he doesn’t and he won’t. That’s the beauty of this story. People always leave except when they don’t.

Taking a pause from reviewing for a moment, how do you guys feel about the idea of fate, or rather, purpose? Perhaps this idea is born out of the fear of meaninglessness? I’ve always believed that there’s a reason for everything. There’s comfort in it, yes, but there’s also too much for it to all mean nothing. I can’t comprehend that there is no purpose to anything. Sheridan elegantly introduced this idea into Jak and Harper’s story.

“That if we can hang on-survive-through the hard times in life, there is something better waiting for us. There’s a purpose we can’t always see. There’s an…order.”

As you read this book, the idea of fate becomes a regular theme. Jak and Harper discover that they are both alive because of the other person. There are each a hero to the other. The word “live” is almost as consistent as love in this journey. Both our characters struggled to live, survive, in their own way. Jak’s was a physical survival. He almost died on multiple occasions because he couldn’t find any food out in the wild. Harper’s was a mental survival. After her parents died and she went to live in foster homes, she retreated into her self. She couldn’t let go of the past and move on until she met Jak and he helped close the door for her. Surviving this life is hard. Sheridan’s superb narrative does this fact justice.

Sheridan is a true, unique, exquisite story-teller. A born natural talent. Most romance novels, these days, are written with the same formula. Now, I don’t mind that formula. I never get bored when I read because I know it always ends in a happily ever after. It’s why I enjoy reading romance so much. That being said, every once in a while, I find a diamond in the rough. Savaged was just that. The perfect four leafed clover. I only wish there was more. I’d read Jak and Harper’s story forever if I could. The perfect modern re-telling of the classic Tarzan. Just simply, perfect. Thank you for sharing this with us, Sheridan. Bravo.

As always…and yes, I know it’s the third quote, but there were too many to choose just one!! Here you go:

“You fill my soul.”