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D.A. Serra

Primal Kindle Edition

by D.A. Serra (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

24 ratings

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The writer who made you laugh with Punky Brewster, who made you cry with Just Ask My Children, will now make you cringe with PRIMAL. This story was originally purchased by one of America's most prestigious storytellers James Cameron.

What if the worst happens and you are not a cop, or a spy with weapons training and an iron heart? What if you're a schoolteacher - a mother? In this gritty crime thriller a family vacation takes a vicious turn when a fishing camp is invaded by four armed men. With nothing except her brains, her will, and the element of surprise on her side, Alison must kill or watch her family die. And then - things get worse.

Print length

224 pages
Language

English
Publication date

May 13, 2012
File size

514 KB
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00839M7AQ
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Perry Street Pictures, Inc. (May 13, 2012)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 13, 2012
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 514 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 224 pages
Lending ‏ : ‎ Enabled

Customer Reviews:
24 ratings

About the author

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D.A. Serra

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Serra has been a screenwriter for twenty years. On assignment, she has written ten TV movies, numerous TV episodes, including two years as a staff writer for NBC. She has sold two original feature films, completed two more on assignment, and optioned two others. One is currently in active development. She has been hired for production polishes on several films.

Serra has now turned her attention to novels. She was a recipient of the 2012 Hawthornden Literary Fellowship where she was invited to spend a month in residence in Scotland writing. Her first novel was a semi-finalist for the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Award given by the Faulkner Society in New Orleans, LA.

Deborah's most recent book 2 BROADS ABROAD: Moms Fly the Coop is a collaboration with her sister and co-author Nancy Serra Greene. The comic travel memoir chronicles their ill-planned road trip around Ireland and is published by Library Tales Publishing in NYC.

Serra has taught writing at the University of California, Wofford College, and continues to teach at writers' workshops and conferences nationwide.

Please check her website: www.deborahserra.com and 2broadsabroad.com

MEMBER: Writers Guild of America, PEN USA, Judge 2013 PEN USA Screenwriting Award

Customer reviews

5 star		49%
4 star		8%
3 star		25%
2 star		18%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Mr. Anonymous

Good idea but poor execution

Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2013

Verified Purchase

I like the idea of a character who is totally out of her element but must find the resources to overcome a huge challenge. However, the execution of this book leaves much to be desired. The characters are not very believable or well-developed, and Serra doesn't know how to build tension properly. I found the plot to be very implausible in parts, and my interest waned quickly. I gave up on the book about half-way through.

Helpful

Zaia

Mary Higgins Clark, watch out!

Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2012

Verified Purchase

I downloaded Primal and the new Mary Higgins Clark at the same time, and of the two, to my surprise, although I am a big MHC fan, I really enjoyed Primal best. If you love a good thriller, like I do, this is the book to read! A real page turner, riveting suspense, - well conceived and beautifully written - this author should to be on every thriller lover's 'to read' list!

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Michael C Bertin

Shattering our bubbles

Reviewed in the United States on June 27, 2012

Verified Purchase

"Primal" the new book by D.A. Serra is a page turner. The story line and the characters engage you, and once you start you won't put it down until you are finished. The story reminds us that no matter how carefully we craft the "bubble" around our every day existence, no matter how safe and secure we make our environment and our lives, a chance encounter with evil can shatter that bubble and change our very persona forever. This is a great read.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Amazon Customer

Great read. Couldn't put it down

Reviewed in the United States on April 24, 2016

Verified Purchase

Great read. Couldn't put it down.

Helpful

synapsekid

Better than PD James

Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2012

Verified Purchase

An astonishingly gripping tale, but more than that, it is full of insights, and wonderfully well written. The voice is unique, but it has that PD James quality.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Fiction Books

"The Most Dangerous Place On Earth Is Between A Mother And Her Child"

Reviewed in the United States on October 10, 2013

Primal by name and Primal by nature, just about sums up this skillfully written, high octane and intensely powerful psychological thriller.

Primal love, longing, fear, hatred, loathing, violence, survival, retribution ... the adjectives just keep coming to mind, to evoke the descriptive power, intensity and sheer strength of the writing, which held me mesmerised and in thrall, from the very first, to the very last word and beyond.

This is a perfectly plotted and plausible illustration, of just how one single moment in time, as an innocent bystander, can set in motion a chain of actions, which can change lives forever, damage the very fabric of a family with events which are so ferocious and stir up such raw and fierce emotions, that the consequences can chill to the bone.

An intriguing, well drawn, totally believable and unforgettable cast of characters, wove a plot and dialogue so full of realism and intensity, that I was constantly on the edge of my seat and engrossed, with the adrenaline pumping, as I tried to anticipate their next move.

Sitting on the outside looking in, I could almost feel the tension and intensity of the moment when Alison realises that Hank and Jimmy are in terrible danger, with the threat of their deaths being dangled as bait, in an attempt to make her capitulate and give herself up to her fate, along with her family and their camping companions.

However, this disparate, desperate and dysfunctional family gang of four brothers, completely loyal to each other in an almost unrestricted, cruel and lawless way, totally underestimates just what lengths Alison will go to, to protect and save the ones she loves. Using new found skills and a strength that she doesn't know she possesses, her retribution and vengeance, against these would be assassins knows no bounds or limits in its violence and finality ... Alison is not about to take prisoners!

Having been an only child, Alison, a normally mild mannered and quiet teacher, lives in her insular world, shying away from even her husbands large and boisterous family and the emotional demands that makes on her. However, not even the power of family connection can prepare any of them for the intensity of the reactions which Alison exhibits in the aftermath of that fateful day. Even though physically her body has healed, her personality seems changed almost beyond recognition and her mind is honed into a constantly alert and defensive state, her senses more acute, focused and single-minded in her belief that the family's ordeal is not yet over.

Despite Deborah introducing a couple of stabilising and calming characters to the mix, who mediate between the couple and try to reassure Alison that her constant fears are unsubstantiated, to husband Hank, it begins to look as though Alison has completely forgotten that both he and Jimmy are also constantly re-living the terrible events, of what started out out as quality family bonding time together and resulted in them all seeing things which will be indelibly etched on their consciousness forever. Just when it seems that the family are destined to separate and be irrevocably ripped apart at this crucial time in their recovery, Alison discovers that her female intuition, or mothers survival instinct, call it what you will, has not left her and that all her fears culminate in one last and very final chapter in the story, when her resolve and energy reserves will be put to the ultimate test, before she can relax and allow her mind and body to recover, as she refocuses on her family, safe in the knowledge that she has done her duty and been prepared to lay down her own life to protect the ones she loves and holds most dear.

Deborah has seamlessly adapted her screenwriting skills into writing a novel replete in observational details, full of mature and thoughtful dialogue, deep and emotional thought and containing excellent storytelling techniques in short and `punchy' chapters, very reminiscent of the scenes in a film.

I can definitely see why `Primal' might have started life as a screenplay and personally I think, that with the right cast, it has the makings of an excellent film.

...

As this book was a review request, a PDF of `Primal' was sent to me by its author, Deborah Serra, free of charge.

This in no way influenced any comments I may have expressed about the book, in any blog article I have posted. Any thoughts or comments are my own personal opinion and I am in no way being monetarily compensated for this, or any other article.

I personally do not agree with `rating' a book, as the overall experience is all a matter of personal taste, which varies from reader to reader. However some review sites do demand a rating value, so when this review is posted to such a site, it will attract a 5 out of 5.

...

Helpful

Diana (@Offbeat Vagabond)

So good, it gets 6 out of 5 stars! Intense, emotional and just plain brilliant!

Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2012

Brilliant! That is really the only word I have to describe this book. Primal just takes you to a place that is fast paced, aggressive, emotional, and well...primal (couldn't help it). This is a story I will be telling everyone to read because I think it is essential for people to. This may not be based on a real story, but it felt that way. You get an instant connection these characters and the situation that has been forced on to them. One of my favorite reads this year and I can guarantee that it will most likely be one of yours as well.

I love our characters. It feels so real. I couldn't help but just imagine myself and people I know as these characters. It is hard not to place yourself in this book. Our main character Alison is a school teacher, a wife, and a mother. She is a sweet and loving woman who likes to bury herself in books. To treat her son for his birthday, they go on a fishing trip at an old cabin. Sadly, they were not aware of the prisoner (who is on death row) who escaped with his equally psychotic brothers heading at the same lodge. Alison finds herself outside looking in while her son and husband are trapped inside with the murderers. Alison starts off scared, but something quickly takes over her and she will fight to the death to save her family. And all of this happens in the first half of the book. There is not just one climax and then it is over. There is so much more.

I love how we dive into her family and how their lives are after what happened as well. Her husband Hank loves her so much and like at the lodge, he feels helpless to help Alison. There is so much disconnect between them. Hank was a great supporting husband and seeing him struggle with himself and with trying to connect with his wife was heartbreaking. I was most proud of their son Jimmy. Being a kid, he is able to look at the situation in a different way. The more he shares it with his friends, the more he feels like he was part of a game and it doesn't scare him. Then we have Ben, the main criminal. He was nothing like his brothers, he knew the right things to say, how to be calm and had great instincts and it made him more terrifying. All the brothers put you on edge, but Ben was just too calculating.

This book started off as a screenplay which has been purchased by James Cameron himself and for good reason. This book would make a fantastic film. The plot in Primal will have your face buried in it. The suspense and the intensity is almost staggering. You will have a hard time taking your eyes away from it. The story is just incredible because it shows things from both sides. We have Alison trying to save everyone in the cabin and we have the new her adjusting to life after the chaos. Just reading this, you feel all the emotions they are going through and with Alison, it is the toughest. She is lost, full of fear, anxiety, and anger. I won't give too much away, but I couldn't blame her.

Primal is a book that will be stuck in your head for a very long time. It forces you to ask yourself, "What would you do? How far are you willing to go to save those you love?" This is one hell of a debut. Serra has quite honestly written a classic. She even even takes it all a step further by showing us the aftermath. I mean how do you adjust to life after something like this? Can you ever find balance? Can you ever get back to what is normal? Primal definitely strikes a chord especially if you are a mother. This is an intense, psychological thriller that will leave a mark. It holds no punches and it will leave you breathless. If you are looking for a thriller to add to your bookshelf, look no further. Primal is an absolute must read.

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D.A. Serra

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