Read More Sleep Less Blog: Transcendence by Shay Savage

synopsis

It’s said that women and men are from two different planets when it comes to communication, but how can they overcome the obstacles of prehistoric times when one of them simply doesn’t have the ability to comprehend language?

Ehd’s a caveman living on his own in a harsh wilderness. He’s strong and intelligent, but completely alone. When he finds a beautiful young woman in his pit trap, it’s obvious to him that she is meant to be his mate. He doesn’t know where she came from; she’s wearing some pretty odd clothing, and she makes a lot of noises with her mouth that give him a headache. Still, he’s determined to fulfill his purpose in life – provide for her, protect her, and put a baby in her.

Elizabeth doesn’t know where she is or exactly how she got there. She’s confused and distressed by her predicament, and there’s a caveman hauling her back to his cavehome. She’s not at all interested in Ehd’s primitive advances, and she just can’t seem to get him to listen. No matter what she tries, getting her point across to this primitive, but beautiful, man is a constant – and often hilarious – struggle.

With only each other for company, they must rely on one another to fight the dangers of the wild and prepare for the winter months. As they struggle to coexist, theirs becomes a love story that transcends language and time.

★★★★★ 4.5 stars! ** February 13, 2014: full review now posted.

Whew, what an amazing story! I absolutely LOVED everything about it. Once again, Shay Savage has delivered an outstanding male point of view that managed to keep me hooked from the moment I started reading it. And most of all, she has created another unique, swoon worthy hero that managed to sweep me off my feet with just a few of his many achingly sweet and adoringly funny gestures.

In essence, Transcendence is a love story but it is also a story about survival, communication, hope and the courage to fight for what you want and about finding love in the most unexpected places.

Caveman Ehd has been on his own for quite some time. Ever since his family and the rest of his clan died, he's been living in solitude while trying to survive the ever-changing seasons in the barren land where he lives.

"I have no idea how long it has been since I felt the comfort of another person's presence, only that many cold seasons have passed since then."

Then, on one of his hunts, he suddenly stumbles upon a young, beautiful girl who has fallen into his pit trap. Ehd is immediately taken away with her beauty and he couldn't be happier with his discovery since it seems he's finally found his long awaited mate.

Elizabeth ("Beh"), on the other hand, has no idea where is she or how she's gotten there. She went from the twenty first century she grew up in to suddenly landing in this prehistoric age populated by cavemen who have no knowledge of the English language. It's extremely hard for her to adjust to her new conditions and at first she tries to keep her distance from Ehd as much as possible, even though he's the only other person around who's able to help her survive.

As the story progresses both Ehd and Beh have many struggles to overcome; the most important one being their lack of communication. Ehd doesn't speak English so every single one of their "conversations" has to go through a bit of sign language and facial expressions. Then, there's also the fact that Ehd first and only thought is that Beh is his new mate and he wants to put a baby inside her so they can form a family. Of course, that's not how it works in our century and when Beh keeps turning him down he has to find new ways to make her like and care for him. Along the way, his feelings for her grow stronger and he begins to realize all he really wants is for her to just be there with him, not just as his mate but as his partner as well.

"There is nothing more important than Beh, and if making her happy means my own sorrow, I will have to accept that."

Even though there is practically no dialogue and the entire story is told from Ehd's POV, Beh and Ehd still managed to communicate their love for each other beautifully and that is exactly what made their love so epic. Ehd never failed to show her with his actions that he was willing to do anything to protect her and make her happy and Beh on the other hand, tried to show him with the few words she was able to teach him how much he meant to her as well. They were both such strong characters and I can't even begin to imagine what life must have been like for Beh to adjust to her new life conditions. Together though, they tried to be there for each other whenever the other one was going through a difficult time and they managed to make to most of the life conditions they were given.

All in all, this unique, captivating, heartfelt and at times hilarious love story is an absolute must read. And let's face it, you do not want to miss meeting caveman Ehd, I assure you! ;)