Savage Lands by Stacey Marie Brown

“Always hold yourself with honor. Especially in death.”

Plot Summary

Almost twenty years after the barrier between Earth and the Otherworld fell in the Fae Wars, Budapest is balancing on the precipice. A battle for dominance is brewing between the elite fae and the privileged humans in Eastern Europe. The prejudice between the sides is bubbling with hate and violence.

Nineteen-year-old human, Brexley, has grown up in privilege, but not without heartbreak. After being orphaned, she is taken in by General Markos, living in a walled city rife with power grabs and ruthless political games. Then one night the course of her life changes, and Brexley is thrown into the most feared prison in the east. Halalhaz, the House of Death—where you go in but don’t come out.

She must learn to live with the worst of fae and human criminals. The rule of hierarchy puts humans on the bottom, where the only way to survive each day is to make alliances with the fae.

Here she meets the sexy, vicious legend, Warwick Farkas. A myth among man and fae. He is as brutal, cruel, arrogant, and as lethal as the lore says he is, ruling the prison with unchallenged authority. Brexley can’t deny an intense draw to him, one that might cost her life.

If The Games don’t take her out first—

A fight to the death where only one survives.

Warning: Violence; Sexual Harassment

My Review

Brexley has a peaceful life in a world where Fae and humans battle for dominance, or would have if she didn’t endanger her life by robbing trains at night. In one of those nights Brezley and Caden, her love interest, rob a train but all goes wrong when Brexley gets caught. At least, she thinks, now she doesn’t have to endure an arranged marriage that General Markos is forcing into her.

I knew the pressure Caden was under, the constant need to prove his worth to his father. But still, I pushed because I sensed the boy I loved was slipping through my fingers. And he was all I had left.

Brexley is sent to a ruthless prison where anyone who goes in never comes out again. At least alive.

There she suffers the violence of other inmates towards her, all because she’s human and fae and other creatures really hate humans, find them disgusting and not worthy of a single breath. The few who actually like her, warn her about one thing only, and it’s important: whatever she does, she mustn’t attract the attention of Warwick Farkas, the most feared and dangerous inmate inside the prison. Warwick does anything he wants, everyone obeys him, even the guards.

“What’s above demons?” His gaze slowly slid to mine, lowering the mug from his lips. “Him.”

No matter how much Brexley tries to keep his attention away, their chemistry is automatic and sometimes she feels Warwick knows exactly what she’s thinking.

You may scare everyone and dominate this room, but you will not rule me.

Without giving anything away in order to maintain his only rule (not have any kind of relationship with the other inmates), Warwick keeps Brexley safe and even tries to lift her spirit after some hard decisions she needs to make in order to survive.

“Calling me a legend without my even touching you? Just think what you will call me when I do.”

I connected with Brexley immediately and loved her relationship with Caden. Caden is Brexley’s best friend and they’re in love with each other but none admits to it until it’s too late. Despite loving her childhood best friend, Brexley feels a raw connection with Warwick. She can’t keep him out of her mind. Warwick is a beast of a man, that kind of alpha male feared by all but with a soft spot for only one woman: Brexley.

Although there aren’t sex scenes in this book, the sexual tension is over the top between the two of them. I’m curious to see how their relationship will evolve in the second book and what will happen when she faces Caden again and how that will affect Warwick, who has a really short temper.