Audio Friday

The Hunt (The Cage #2) by Megan Shepard

Narrated by Barrie Kreinick

Summary from Goodreads:
They’ve left the cage – but they’re not free yet.
After their failed escape attempt, Cora, Lucky, and Mali have been demoted to the lowest level of human captives and placed in a safari-themed environment called the Hunt, along with wild animals and other human outcasts. They must serve new Kindred masters – Cora as a singer, Lucky as an animal wrangler, and Mali as a safari guide – and follow new rules or face dangerous consequences. Meanwhile, Nok and Rolf have been moved into an enormous dollhouse, observed around the clock by Kindred scientists interested in Nok’s pregnancy. And Leon, the only one who successfully escaped, has teamed up with villainous Mosca black-market traders.
The former inhabitants of the Cage are threatened on all fronts – and, maybe worst of all, one of the Hunt’s Kindred guests begins to play a twisted game of cat and mouse with Cora. Separated and constantly under watch, she and the others must struggle to stay alive and find a way back to each other. When Cassian secretly offers to train Cora to develop her psychic abilities – in order to prove the worthiness of humanity in a series of tests called the Gauntlet – she’ll have to decide fast if she dares to trust the Kindred who betrayed her or if she can forge her own way to freedom.
Forced to perform for dangerous enemies.
Trained to unlock the secrets of her mind.
Determined to prove humanity’s worth.
Betrayed by the only Kindred she trusted, Cora must rely on her developing powers to try to free herself and her friends – even if using them might just destroy her mind.

This the second in a series of three books, the third will be out next year.  Basically the story is that the Kindred, an alien species, have been taking humans and basically keeping them in zoo like enclosures. In the first book Cora and 5 other humans are put in an ‘enclosure’ where they are given entertainments, food and are watched by the Kindred.  They are expected to breed.  Cora wants none of this and convinces the others that they must escape.  The escape goes horribly wrong and only one of the five manages to elude recapture.  The second book opens a few days after the first book ends.

The concept of aliens keeping humans as pets or in zoos, is not new.  But this series is slightly different.  Some of the Kindred believe that humans are intelligent and should not be treated as they have been. Cassian is the only Kindred wanting to help Cora and her friends.  Cora has mixed feelings about this, mostly because she is attracted to Cassian, but also because he has given her reasons to not trust him. The plot is complex enough with twists and turns that are not totally unexpected, but still keeps you guessing.  The narrator does a good job with the pacing and changing her voice for the different characters.  This is good solid science fiction with aliens, romance and adventure to satisfy most young adults.

The trailer is pretty good for the first book.