Description: This book aims to make an earnest endeavor to reconcile the different aspects and realms of the cosmos. It is a compendium of original philosophical ideas presented in the most practical way. From comprehensively defining God - De-cluttering the disarray that surrounds it to classifying human nature , categorizing instinctual behavior of individuals and elaborating pertinent theories and proposing new ones - this book beautifully touches upon all those aspects with simplicity and clarity. The book also gives ample illustrations to make concepts clear and tangible. Focusing on Morality and virtue, it explains logically as to why that is the best choice there is for individuals - systematically proving the same. It explains righteousness in the light of several theories including the Karma theory.
It also compares and contrasts - logic, instinct and intuition and the validity of each of those under different circumstances. The author also speaks of the importance of progressive thinking and lucidly explains aspects like evolution of the soul.

To quote Socrates - " All right conduct depends on clear knowledge, that not only does the definition of a virtue aids us in acquiring that virtue, but also that the definition of the virtue is the virtue." This book is an attempt at doing just that.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased and honest review

“When I look at you, I see that girl I knew as a kid. Someone who was always smiling, always happy, and has stayed like that, no matter what. You’re like this one single bright fucking spot of sunshine I have in a life that pretty much sucks otherwise, so don’t you dare wish you were anyone else, or think you can’t have what you want. You should have everything you want, Jamie. Everything.”
 
Jamie and Dean have been friends ever since their meeting in detention in high school. When one night led them to pushing the boundaries of friendship and Dean shying away, they have now stuck to the platonic side of things. The more they hang out though, the more flirtations and buried emotions start to creep up. Jamie and Dean are both feeling lost as more grown up decisions come their way; can they be each other's rock?
 
The Hierarchy of Needs is second in the Portland Rebels series and while you could get away with starting with this book, I would recommend reading the first, The Duality Principle. Jamie and Dean's tension filled flirty relationship is discussed somewhat in that book and I think would help the reader get into the flow of this story quicker if they had that background. I thought this one started off a little slow and if you haven't read the first, you will probably feel somewhat lost as to why you should care about these two as a couple. For most of the book, we don't really get to see Jamie and Dean fall in love so much as fight to repress those feelings. It is later on when they decide to give in a little do we see their bonding connection.
 
Jamie and Dean were great New Adult characters with their doubt, inexperience, and trying to find themselves. Jamie feels like the unsuccessful black sheep in her family while Dean feels trapped by his; both are trying to grow into who they think they should be while secretly wanting something very different. These internal battles gave a fuller and more authentic feel to our characters just starting to hit adulthood. Dean pushing Jamie away because he didn't feel good enough for her was sweet if not a bit of an overused plot. Jamie was great in her final refusal to put up with Dean's back and forth and demand they settle their feelings one way or another and ooh boy when they do! As with the first book, this one was punctuated by some subtly sexy scenes and then some not so subtle ones. Due to the fact that our couple had pretty much already fallen in love, the story relied more heavily on the sexy times. Their sexual chemistry was great (if you like hair pulling, you're in for a treat) but I found myself missing the emotional initial sparks of newly discovered attraction.
 
This is a shorter read, one you can read in one sitting and will want to as you'll be anxiously anticipating Jamie and Dean finally releasing all that sexual tension. We also get a small mention of the first book's couple and two possible stars for a third book in the series. I love how this author writes believable NA characters and stays away from making her guys abusive (Dean is a sexy tattooed teddy bear); I enjoy being carried away in her stories for a couple hours. If the friends-to-lovers’ trope is your candy, like playful flirting, struggling to find yourself, and the aforementioned hair pulling, you really need to pick up a copy of this.

Dean hooked one finger into each of her belt loops and pulled her against him. Their lower bodies collided. “Two days. Nothing held back. Everything we want. Just forty-eight hours of my hands in your hair and you stripped down to nothing.” Jamie’s mouth dropped open in a sudden gasp. Her hips rolled without her permission. His gaze flicked down to her waist. “That was pretty.”

 

Woohoo! Yes, bang it out

This is a story of two people that are stuck in a routine and don’t know how to
break free. Jamie and Dean are very smart individuals. Each has goals and
dreams that they want to accomplish. The problem is that instead of following
their hearts and working toward pursuing what they dream of, each has done
what is expected of them. I liked The Hierachy of Needs. Ms. Allen appealed
to the heart, mind and spirit with Jamie and Dean. The struggle to break
free is what lead these characters to discover all that was being searched
For was right within their grasp. A well written story with a few hiccups along
the way. I received an ARC of this story for an honest review.

Out of the Woods by Syd McGinley My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Recommended for: Open minded fans of M/M & and Dystopia/Apocalypse fiction
Read from March 26 to 31, 2014 — I own a copy, read count: 1

 

A Captivating Story of the Taming of a Free-spirited Wild Boy in a Post-Apocalypse Totalitarian Society

I have thoroughly enjoyed reading Out of the Woods. It is a pleasure to watch the unique and original storyline unfolds as I tried my best to solve the mysteries surrounding the woodland boys and the men from the Before Times buildings. I pondered on why the men would hunt the boys each Fall? Why would new younger boys kept appearing in the woods skipping and singing. Are these new boys replacements for all those older ones which the men took with them? Where on earth did they come from when there's not a woman in sight? And lastly, why the men honour the Mothers greatly whereas the wood boys idolizes the Lady? These are only part of the mysteries found within the book and I am going to leave a theory of mine towards the end of this review on a major mystery everyone is dying to know. I am going to take my own shot at uncovering the layers of veils for that much speculated mystery.

These mysteries made Out of the Woods a highly compelling story. Apart from this there are other positive areas such as the well crafted characters that are engaging and relatable, amazing world-building with intriguing societal setup and exciting plots that super-glued me to the book.

Each of the characters have their own distinctive personality. And they are all memorable in their own way. This is especially true with Tarin our much adored protagonist. Tarin is a contented wild child of the woodland. His free-spirited ways with his valiant heart and plucky nature won me over. There is an endearing sweet innocent that surrounds him. He is also the character that made this story a whole lot of fun! His guileless approach to his new surroundings in the men's settlement resulted in many hilarious situations. Tarins says the darndest things! He tickles my funny bone countless times with his silly antics. He might appear to be clueless most of the times, yet there are times where he is wise beyond his years. I love him to bits.

The atmospheres at the men's settlement is always buzzing and alive with activities. Their daily lives are fascinating to me. Watching the men trying to reconstruct a civilized society based on what was left behind after what I think was an apocalypse destruction was thought-provoking.

Although there is only one antagonist in this story, I would say he wasn't the biggest threat to our protagonist or to his friends. It was men's greed for power and over ambitiousness of maintaining absolute control over others that made many suffered unfairly. This was nothing but outright tyranny and enslavement in the guise of protection and safety. Hence I reckon this issue as the predominant threat to Tarin and the boys.

The men adopted to a totalitarian societal setup that bears strong resemblance to a militarian organization. They are segregated by ranking and entitled to certain benefits according to their ranks. While the boys will always be boys; they do not have any authority or any actual autonomy. (I am unsure if this is a spoiler, but I decided to hide it to be on the safe side. So explore at your own risk)

The most, they are viewed as men's possession. A status symbol and a privilege all of the men are vying for; the boys are the ultimate price that bespoke a men's achievements.

(spoiler show)

This hierarchical system promotes powerplay that encourages oppression of the weakest. While I am fascinated by this societal structure, I am also repulsed by the harsh treatments of the boys because of it. As the judicial system was only made up by several of the top guns, the men are inevitably favored.


MY THEORIES ON THIS UNIQUE MALE DOMINATED WORLD:

I believe I have a different perspective as to how this extraordinary world came about in comparison with other readers views. Scientific experimentation and gender imbalanced was amongst those theories pointed out by some readers.

 

As for me, I would like to think of this as a results of an intentional gender segregation designed by the females in order to control over the male population as an effort to contain the male's destructive nature that might have caused the apocalypse. I am guessing the apocalypse gave the females a chance to built a matriarch society with the aim of protecting mankind from further self destruction and extinction. It is some form of a preservation movement.

 

What supported this idea was because the Mothers only leave males in the woods even when said male has females siblings. For example, Tarin's sister Nalini gets to stay with the Mothers while he and his brother and male cousin was sent off to the woods. There was no mention of men amongst these woman who seems to have higher knowledge and technological advancement. Therefore I suspect they are deliberately keeping the men in the dark, only allowing low technology assistance and under their constant monitoring and commands because of the preservation movement I've just mentioned above. Another point from this angle is that they are also controlling the male population with intent since there was no females made available to these men. Yet this matriarch society manages to produce offspring by themselves and even gets to decide who goes where in the men's society. The Mothers has supreme pick of genes from the obedient pool of man who worships them like goddesses. The men's fanatical idolization of the Mothers felt somewhat like a cult religion.

(spoiler show)

 

MY CONCLUSIONS:
Out of the Woods is certainly a character and plot driven story. There are many intriguing aspects in the lives of these men and boys to keep the wheels in my brain spinning endlessly churning out one speculation after another. I always appreciate books that made me think, helps keep my brain from rusting away. Heh.

Sex was sparse and low key. I was quite surprised it wasn't heavy on the sex as the men and the boys are all pretty hedonistic in nature. Don't fret though, because gifts (that's what they called jism/cum) are flying everywhere 'all the time' despite the lack of penetration.

I had SO much fun trying to try to figure out all those new words used to describe Before Times stuff, for example the 'silver duck', 'divid' and 'go-sloshes'. It's quite funny once you get what they actually meant.

I didn't spend time to talk about Tarin's relationship with his man because I wish to focus on the uniqueness of the setting and also to share my impression of the story as a whole. If you must know, the romance aspect wasn't the core of this story. It is more like a sub-plot. Tarin and Garrick did have a rocky beginning and they both have to work out their priorities before their relationship could take the next step. Yes, Garrick is a good man at heart and his patient and caring ways made him suitable for Tarin.

The focus of the story is really on Tarin's struggles on fitting in with the men's civilized community and his effort to find himself again in a strange world he was thrown into. It wasn't an easy feat and he was fighting them every steps. Everything felt wrong to him, his beliefs was scorned, his will and freedom was forcefully taken away from him. His only hope for survival is his submission. In the men's eyes Tarin is just a savage that needed to be tamed and to learn his place amongst the men.

I know some readers might find the woodland boys to be too childlike and dislike the story because the boys' peculiar behaviour would make the men appears like perverted geezers pawing on the kids. Nevertheless I am excusing this odd behavior of the boys because they have essentially lived in seclusion ever since young and devoid of adult attentions or exposure to the civilized world. Therefore it is highly plausible for them to retain their innocence and to displays such level of naivety akin to a young child just on the onset of puberty despite being in their late teens years. Hell! the boys can't even speak properly, they lack vocabulary and grammatical knowledge to make their dialog mature.

All this makes sense to me and I am glad the author has the wisdom to depict these special boys with such strange situations realistically. In fact, I would commend the author for her superb skill at bringing to life such a difficult character to portray, as the main character. Making him an engaging character who not only charmed the readers but carried the storyline effortlessly was an amazing feat.

I wish I could tell you more but I do not want to spoil the story for you. Do read this with an open mind if you wish to gain more than just a capture-captive story. I loved it so much that I picked up the sequel right after putting this book down and finished the second book in record breaking time.

If you wish to explore more of Tarin's world, you might want to check out the author's page dedicated to this wonderful book: TARIN'S WORLD (it is very informative and I really appreciate the author's effort on putting it up. How I wish other books I've ever read has such a page for the readers)



BOOK DETAILS:
Title: Out of the Woods
Author: Syd McGinley
Publication Date: March 22nd, 2011
Publisher: Torquere
Type: Novel, 80,349 words (approximate)
Genre: Post-apocalypse and Dystopian M/M Fiction, Science Fiction-Futuristic
Main Characters:

Tarin (a young woodland boy), Garrick/Beak-face (a hunter cum Captain and also Tarin's man), Mart (Tarin's former protector in the woods), Cale (a Lieutenant and also Mart's man), Titus (Head of the religious group and a co-commander of the community), Sten (he is a General and a co-commander with Titus), Ofer (an abused community boy), Cory (a woodland boy under Tarin's protection), Edon (Sergeant), Gideon (Healer cum Colonel), Helem (Armorer cum Colonel), Jadon (a Major), Micah (Cadet), Kenan (Cadet)

(spoiler show)

Tags/Keywords: 

Post-apocalypse, Dystopian, Patriarchal society, Matriarch, Totalitarian, Oppression, Abuse, Same Sex Relationships, Gay, Enslavement, Capture, Captivity, Confinement, Corporal Punishments, Pleasure Slaves, Sex pets, Slavery, Slave training, Military, Military ranking, Hierarchy, Caste System

(spoiler show)

Description:
Wild boy Tarin is determined not to be captured by the men who live in the decaying Before Times buildings on the other side of Tarin's woodland home, but he's just as determined to protect the younger boys in the woods. No one remembers being a child or knows where all the women have gone or how society crumbled, but for as long as they can remember, boys have lived in the woods and are hunted by the men each Fall. Some boys believe in a mysterious Lady who protects them, while others think the men are magic. Tarin knows better - he's met a man, and escaped by stabbing him. Hunted through the woods as he tries to protect the weaker Cory, Tarin is trapped and claimed by the very man he knifed. All Tarin wants is to stay in the woods and not have to get 'civilized,' but he's carried off into a different world of rules and discipline. Will he be able to survive now that he is Out of the Woods?


Excerpt found on Publisher's website:

Tarin curled his toes a bit tighter against the bark as he scooted his butt back, and leaned against the tree trunk. He wanted to be securely lodged to munch on his blackberries and nuts. He’d gotten more scratched than usual gathering the berries and he wasn’t inclined to share them with Cory who had done no work. He was a good ten arms off the ground and there were still plenty of leaves on the oak to hide him from grounders. He felt bad for the kids who couldn’t climb well -- one less escape route and hiding spot -- but Tarin relished the solitude and view. He sighed as he popped the first squishy purple fruit into his mouth. The woods were both lonely and crowded. The boys always knew where everyone was and what they were doing -- it was good sense -- but it was also smart to stay scattered in the run up to hunting season. Tarin hated the combination of no privacy and no real settled spot to call safe.

 

Tarin rolled the fruit around his mouth and mashed his tongue up to make it burst. Lady! It was good. Still warm from the sun and the sweetest thing he’d tasted all year.

 

He loosened his waist strings so his cock could poke free from his simple leather pouch of deer hide. He didn’t like wearing even that much but he’d learned to protect his cock and balls as he berry hunted. He missed Mart. Cory would pet him with his hands until Tarin gifted him with his come, but Mart had used his mouth to coax and lick his load from him. Mart would swallow straight from him, but Cory always primly lapped from his cupped hands. Tarin felt his gift was being politely accepted instead of relished. He tried to set an example by eagerly claiming his share from Cory’s cock, but it made no difference. Cory would shoot, but as soon as he was done he’d pull his prick away from Tarin’s still hungry mouth.

 

Tarin pulled at his foreskin a little and felt his cock push forward. He spat into his palm -- still purple with blackberry juice -- and rubbed his dick. He wrapped one leg tight around the oak limb and moaned as the bark chafed his inner thigh. It was rough, but felt so good. No one had caressed him since Mart. He rode the branch a little as he slid his foreskin back and forth. He leaned back to relieve the pressure on his balls and yelped as a twig prodded against his butt. Lady, how would that feel if it had poked in?

 

He bit his lip -- his cock had jerked at the idea even as his brain said ouch. Some of the boys said cocks could go there, but that was crazy talk. No one had ever actually done that! Mart said Aran, the boy who was his older protector, claimed his protector had got his cock in, but it had made Aran yell too loud, and even spit didn’t make it slide like a wet palm would. Tarin had grunted, and said it’s always someone who knows someone -- never any boy who’s actually here. Mart had sighed and moved his finger from Tarin’s tight, dry, little hole and agreed it didn’t seem likely.

 

Tarin pumped his hand faster. Lady! Yes! He tightened his hand and his come squirted between his fingers. Scat! He tried to cup his hand, but his precious fluid was already pattering onto leaves below him. Damn. That was bad luck -- and wasteful. He licked his fingers clean. Mm, berry juice and salt.

 

He leaned back against the tree trunk. Safe, private, fed, and satisfied. The sun and the breeze worked to dry his sticky cock and balls. He squinted across the treetops and tried to spot movements in the men’s camp.

(spoiler show)

 

 

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* Reviewed on April 10th, 2014

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