I finished Fierce Kingdom on the same day as the Las Vegas shooting. To read a book about a mass shooting in a zoo on the same day as those horrifying headlines/videos/images hit the news made the story cross from fiction to real life. The questions Joan raises about saving her son versus saving others are ones we should never have to ask ourselves but the likelihood of having to do so increase with every shooting. What a horrible way to live.

Like all tragedies, the story starts out almost idyllic. The descriptions of the park where Joan and Lincoln play are beautiful, establishing a lovely connection between mother and son, and providing a calm before the storm. This scene is key for building Lincoln and Joan's relationship and establishing their personalities. It also provides a fantastic counterpoint to the alone time mother and son will later get.

For the remainder of the novel, tension ratchets as Joan struggles to remain hidden while seeing to the needs of her child. As in any situation where facts are not known, it is fear that drives Joan and determines her action or inaction, fear of the unknown assailants, their whereabouts, and their reasons for the shootings. As she flits from fear to worry to anger and back again, we see her struggle with the situation into which she is forced and watch how her emotions at any given second impact her decision-making. It makes for a fascinating cat-and-mouse scenario, especially because we really only see it from the mouse's point of view.

Where Fierce Kingdom really impresses is in its morality debates between surviving and saving lives. More than once, Joan must make the toughest of decisions if she hopes to keep her son safe. But as time passes, and it becomes more of a struggle to keep Lincoln quiet, Joan also must confront the choice between her own safety and that of her child. All parents declare they would die for their children, but when faced with that actual life-or-death scenario, would we really do so? For a parent, it does not get much scarier than that, and Ms. Phillips captures the emotional turmoil Joan undergoes with aplomb.

Fierce Kingdom is probably not the novel to read right now. The Vegas shootings are too near to our hearts, involving too many people, and affecting families and friends around the globe. However, it is an important read. Through Joan, readers can wrestle with the same decisions Joan faces. It is almost a fire drill for parents caught in a mass shooting. Schools and places of employment perform lockdown drills regularly to practice for such scenarios. Ms. Phillips provides parents with a similar preparatory exercise in Fierce Kingdom.

Thank you to Viking Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for review! All opinions are my own.

This one came as a recommendation from one of my favorite Booktubers, Books and Lala, as she is someone whose opinion I hold in high regard when it comes to thriller books. She had this on her TBR and suddenly, it started popping up everywhere around me with high praise, so I ended up picking it up on NetGalley. While I had my issues with it, it was still enjoyable and I'm really glad I got the opportunity to read it!

Plot:
Joan and her four year old son are relaxing in their last moments of playtime at the zoo for the day. It's been a good day and the two are happy. But as Joan is making her way toward the exit before closing time, she sees something that makes her turn and run, clutching her son in her arms. For the next three hours, she continues to run, and only Joan's knowledge of both her son and the zoo keep them a few steps ahead of the danger that lurks in the zoo.

This book was a solid "okay" for me, personally. It wasn't really tense or thrilling like I was expecting, but I did find myself wanting to find out what would happen next. I think that the fact that this book takes place over the span of a few hours really allowed me to just sit down and read through this relatively fast. I didn't want to really break the pacing of the book so I found myself turning page after page fairly quickly. Speaking of the pacing, I did feel it moved at a moderate pace, probably trying to build up suspense for the reader. Again, I didn't find this very thriller-esque, but that may have just been because of my inability to really connect with the main character. Fierce Kingdom did change points of view multiple times, but never for very long. I didn't enjoy the other characters as much as Joan, so that also may have contributed to my "okay" feeling on the book overall. I did enjoy the cat and mouse feeling that Joan was experiencing, having to make her way around the zoo while there were men creeping around killing people (not a spoiler, it's pretty obvious) and trying not to get caught. That was a cool experience and I do wish it been expanded upon more because unfortunately, Joan doesn't really...do anything for a large portion of the novel. She does have to focus on keeping herself calm and her son, but she mostly just...sits there. I understand, you probably don't want to move around without knowledge of where the potential killers are, but it just kind of left me bored while reading. There were a few things I took issue with, but the overall story was decent with, as I said above, moderate pacing that was easy to just kind of fly through.

Characters:
First off, I have to say that as I am not a mother, I wasn't able to really connect with Joan as a character throughout this book. She also did a few things that just really drove me nuts while reading, such as refusing to call the police and throwing her cell phone away as a distraction when she had perfectly good rocks she was already throwing. Just...why? I suppose if I was put in a situation like that, I may not make the best decisions either, the ones she made just did not sit well with me. But she did do the best she could under the circumstances, and I guess that's really all one could ask for. She did have to not only try very hard to keep herself calm, but her son as well. Lincoln was very active and did get loud at times, and I feel that if he had seen Joan outwardly panicking, then it would have caused him to act out even more and potentially get them caught. I'm sure as a mother, staying calm under stressful situations in order to keep your kid(s) calm is not an easy task, so again, doing the best she could in her situation. She was a fairly strong character, doing all that she could to keep herself and her son safe no matter what, and I did have moments where I did genuinely enjoy her. I do feel that I would have liked her a lot more had the story solely focused on her and Lincoln instead of switching character points of view throughout, but she was an overall strong character that really did stand out to me and that I enjoyed reading about. I just wish she hadn't thrown away her phone!

Unfortunately, I did not enjoy any of the other characters in this book. They weren't really fleshed out very well but rather were like your typical nondescript side characters. Kailynn was a pretty boring teenager character, not much background on her was given and she only really came into play towards the end of the book. Even then, she wasn't a huge part of anything and I just didn't really like her very much. Also, Margaret felt like she was just there for convenience which will only really make sense if you've read the book, but just like Kailynn, she was a pretty boring character. The side characters really felt like side characters and Joan was more of the main character focus. Again, I wish she had been the only point of view that I got to read from as I think that she could have been developed more and I think at that point, I would have enjoyed the book a lot more than I did.

Writing:
I believe I stated this above but Fierce Kingdom was a fairly easy book to just sit down and read through. I genuinely think that with the entire book taking place over a few hours really allowed me to just sit down and read through it without stopping. I felt like I didn't really want to break the pace of the book by putting it down, so I just wanted to read it in its entirety. The writing was very easy to follow, though not as suspenseful as I had hoped for. But Gin Phillips did do a good job at drawing me in and making me want to read more about Joan and Lincoln. I wasn't able to connect or really care about any of the other characters, but I feel that they may have been written that way on purpose? Almost as if the author wanted you to focus on Joan's story but also have a few different points of view to see the situation from. If that was the case, the author did a great job at that. One thing I did have a problem with was the abrupt ending! I had gotten very into the story, especially by the end, and then just as things kind of picked up and got intense, the book ended. I was left feeling somewhat empty and like the true ending was almost stolen from me, if that makes sense. It was just a very sudden "this happened and then this and the end" without much warning and it definitely had me turning the pages back to make sure that it really was the end and that I didn't miss anything. It was an interesting place to end the book at, that's for sure, and I suppose we as readers are supposed to kind of draw our own conclusions as to what happens. There were some lose ends that didn't get tied off but again, I guess we're supposed to kind of create our own ending. I did enjoy Gin Phillip's writing enough to where I would consider checking out her other books, so that was a definite win for me!

Overall, I did enjoy this book despite it just being a relatively alright read for me. I think that the main character will be easily relatable for mothers (or even fathers!) that read this book as the main plot point of the story is a mother protecting her child. It wasn't the most A+ thriller I've read this year, but was still an enjoyable read and was pretty easy to get through in one sitting. Despite the issues I had, I would recommend this to anyone looking for a decent thriller that's fairly quick to get through!

Three and a half stars: A sharp, riveting and terrifying tale that will have you glued to the pages, but beware of the abrupt ending!

Joan and her four year old son, Lincoln, are soaking up the last rays of the sunshine on a lovely fall day. Lincoln is absorbed with his superhero figurines and it takes some urging from Joan to get him to pack up so they can head home. On their way out, they hear a loud noise. Then when Joan sees people lying on the ground and a man with a gun, her survival instincts kick in. She grabs Lincoln and runs. She will do everything to protect her son and keep him safe. Can Joan save Lincoln from a mad man with a gun while trapped in the zoo?
What I Liked:
*Wow! Fierce Kingdom is one intense read. This book grabbed me and sucked me in and didn’t let go until the final pages. It was terrifying, yet tender as you get to explore the fierce bond between mother and son. This is an unforgettable book, one that is pertinent to this day in age where our society is constantly under attack from violent gun attacks.
*I liked that the story wasn’t all about the intensity and terror that Joan and Lincoln faced in the zoo. The author utilizes numerous flash backs in order to establish the deep, unbreakable bond of love between Lincoln and Joan. As a mother, I could easily identify with Joan and her feelings for her son. I loved how the author peeled back the layers and showed us Lincoln, we get glimpses of his sweet, cute and funny behavior, that lightened the mood of the story. I loved this aspect of the book, and it made it easy for the reader to understand the intense feelings of protectiveness that Joan had for Lincoln.
*There are some other view points in the story, you get the deranged view point of Robby, one of the shooters. His voice is haunting. I liked how the author exposed his vulnerabilities and his motives. Then you get a brief snippet from Kailynn, a somewhat self centered teen, but when the shooting starts, she tries to help. I admit I didn’t like her at first, but as I got to know her a bit better, I enjoyed her. Then there is Mrs. Powell, a retired third grade teacher, who is precise and uptight. She was a tough sell early on, but she too shows her softer side. These added perspectives enhanced the story.
*The writing was sharp, intense and it evokes a lot of emotion. I loved the strong feelings that I felt. I went from fear and horror to tender love and compassion. The author does an amazing job, and I loved how she sucked me in. Her writing is detailed, strong and packed with profound metaphors and wonderful descriptions.
*I loved the fast pace of the story. It takes place over a three hour period. There is hardly a dull moment. I couldn’t put this one down. The action and suspense are remarkable.
One thing that stuck with me after reading this book, was when the author discussed how Joan wanted this shooting to follow the typical pattern, and how we as a society have gotten so used to these violent outbreaks. In fact, while reading this, there was another horrible gun tragedy here in the U.S. in Las Vegas. It speaks volumes that we are becoming desensitized to these violent attacks. When will it stop?
*The audiobook version narrated by Cassandra Campbell. I loved Ms. Campbell’s narration. She captured all the emotions from the paralyzing fear to Joan’s fervent feelings to protect Lincoln at all cost. This one was fantastic on audio.
And The Not So Much:
*This book was absolutely amazing, easily a four or five star read until the ending. The book ends abruptly leaving the reader looking for more pages. It is even more cruel than a cliffhanger because that is it, there is no more. I hate to give away too much, but I will warn readers that you won’t be satisfied. The book just ends with no aftermath, or fate of everyone revealed. I hated that. I needed to know. What happened to everyone??? I had so many questions! What a cruel way to end the book. WHY!? WHY!?
*Reader be warned there are some violent scenes. Thankfully, most of the violence occurs off scene, but there are still some disturbing killing scenes.
*Even though I enjoyed the additional voices of Robby, Mrs. Powell and Kailynn, I didn’t feel that these characters had enough focus. I wanted more from all of them.

Fierce Kingdom is an intense, suspenseful read with sharp, crisp, detailed writing that will evoke a range of emotions in the reader. This is a book that will suck you in, and expose you to a mother’s worst fear. How do you protect your child from a man wielding a gun? This is a thought provoking and terrifying book. My biggest hesitation with this book was the cruel and abrupt ending that left so much undone. This would have been a four or five star read, but the ending ruined it!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

Exciting plot idea, left me lacking throughout the middle but interesting premise. Exploration into the gunmen could have been more developed.

Fierce Kingdom is a fast-paced novel that drops you directly into the action right at the start of the book. While at the zoo one afternoon with her young son, Joan sees something at the exit that causes her to retreat back into the zoo (a pretty obvious something). She spends the next three hours hiding in the zoo until the action-packed ending. This was a straight forward book with no twists but was certainly tense. Unfortunately, I never got into it. Joan does things that are nonsensical at times, like throwing her phone as a distraction to the...erm...something...that she's hiding from. She had been using this phone to keep in contact with her husband and, through him, the police. Being in an animal enclosure, one would assume she could have found a rock or something less important in her bag to throw. Then, about two-thirds of the way through the novel, the novel suddenly introduces two new characters in the form of other zoo guests hiding from danger. It shifts from first to third person perspective and we are now expected to care about these other people for whom we have no backstory or history. Surprisingly, they are more interesting and are more well-written than Joan is, but we're shortly back to Joan and her narration until the ending which, while action packed, is too ambiguous to be satisfying.

Fierce Kingdom by Gin Phillips is a multiple POV book with the main character being Joan. Joan is at the zoo with her 4year old son Lincoln. They are hurrying to the exit at closing time worried she has waited too long and she won't make it. When she gets to the front of the zoo she notices something is very wrong. You follow Joan on her nightmare night stuck in the zoo, where she must make impossible decisions to try and keep her little boy alive.
This book was full of emotion and struggle. It shows the lengths a mother will go to and the decisions she will make to protect her child. You can feel her love for Lincoln and her fear of losing him. She makes unimaginable choices even to herself ones she cant even believe. This was a thrilling book that kept me interested to the very end.

This had a great premise and storyline but the execution lacked a bit. Overall a pretty good read. 3.5/5 stars

Interesting story line about murderers running amok in a zoo that I found pushed the plot forward quickly. I liked the book but I did not find it to be a stellar read as some others have reviewed it to be. I think that the child's point of view could have been written more effectively. Otherwise, I definitely think readers should give this one a try.

REVIEW:

When I finished Fierce Kingdom by Gin Phillips, I actually felt my shoulders relax and drop. I’d been holding my breath while I was reading and was especially tense during the latter part of the story. This book was a quick-ish read for me, not only because of the length, but because I felt what was happening inside of that zoo down to my very bones. I kept imagining that it was me trapped inside of the zoo with my own child, making decisions that would either save us or end our lives, and I just had to know how the story would end.

As the story begins, Lincoln is in one of the more peaceful, less crowded areas of the zoo with his mother, Joan. It is about time to head toward the exit since the park will be closing for the day. As the two are wrapping up their play time, Joan hears some strange noises coming from another area of the park. (Were those gunshots, Joan wonders?) Joan’s fears are proven correct when she sees bodies strewn about and a gunman near the park exit. As fight-or-flight kicks in, she grabs her child and heads back into the park to find cover and wait out the situation. The next few hours for Joan are literally just STAY ALIVE SO I CAN KEEP LINCOLN ALIVE. As readers, we get to witness her thoughts and her actions as they occur.

I loved reading Joan’s thought processes, although some of them also horrified me: I loved watching her think critically about ways she might/might not be able to escape and how best to make it through this well-lit area or that uncovered walkway without drawing the attention of the gunmen. I loved watching her make decisions that she knew she probably would not otherwise make, and I loved watching her wrestle with her choices after the fact. I wondered if I would do the same things that Joan did.

It was terrifying, wondering what I would do in this particular situation. It was also terrifying to think that this situation is totally possible. The story is utterly compelling for these reasons. I never felt 100% connected to any of the characters, but I’m not sure that I was meant to connect with them in a story like this one. I think establishing that connection would have required page time that these characters just did not have, to be honest. This story moved so briskly; the characters were always in survival mode. And I’m okay with that. I’m also okay with the way that the story ended, which was quick and sort of abrupt-a little bit more open-ended than most of the stories that I read.

There were a couple of things with the plot that I didn’t completely fall in love with, like the inclusion of a few chapters from other characters’ POVs. There are only a few of these, and these POVs are brief, but they were just enough to take me out of the story a little bit and slow the pacing down until Joan’s perspective started back up again. On the other hand, I can see the value of these POVs because they allowed me to get a peek into the other characters’ thoughts and see their actions first-hand.

One other thing: there were two secondary characters that got some fairly significant page time but were just dropped from the narrative after a certain point. When I finished the book, I was left wondering what happened to these two people, and I still feel a little bit fidgety because I do not know if they made it out okay.

AUDIOBOOK NOTES:

Even though I received a copy of Fierce Kingdom by Gin Phillips for review, I decided to add the audiobook from the library after I began reading so I could have longer periods of time with the story instead of putting the book down every time I needed to do some work around my house or cook or drive. I was very invested early on and I couldn’t stand the thought of putting down the story and waiting longer to find out what happened with Joan and Lincoln.

The Fierce Kingdom audiobook is narrated by Cassandra Campbell, and I always enjoy her narration. In this case, I think she did a great job voicing Joan all the way through the story. I think she did a particularly great job with Joan’s desperate, hurried thoughts and also with the many times that Joan was trying to talk patiently with Lincoln so as not to scare him, even though their very lives and safety were at risk.

In retrospect, the few chapters that were the POV-switches that I mentioned earlier might have been a little bit confusing to me if I had listened to the audiobook only without having my book nearby to reference who was speaking – this is just an observation. This is something easily remedied with backspacing and rewinding on the audio. I still recommend the audiobook to those considering a listen for this title. For me, it was most fun to have the audio on hand toward the end of the story, when the action in the book was heightened.

This is one of the most terrifying thrillers I have read in a long time, possibly ever, though more on that topic later. This book focuses on a mother and son who are out on an afternoon trip to the zoo. As they go to leave at the end of the day, they notice someone shooting people near the entrance. From here the mother, picks up her son and runs off into the zoo to try and keep herself and her son safe.

In theory, I feel like this doesn't seem like it would be that terrifying, but the author does such a fantastic job with the descriptions and building the tension, that you just can't help but feel a nervous wreck while reading this book. I honestly feel like this could have easily been a one sitting read for me, because there doesn't ever feel a safe time to stop reading, and you just need to know that they are going to be okay. Due to the subject matter and the tension, you also find yourself reading at an incredible pace as you just need to know more, so that makes this a relatively quick read too. I found it surprising in some ways that a book like this could scare me more than more traditionally scary books, though I feel like this is something that is going to keep popping up more and more in todays society and also in our literature. This book essentially gives you a fly on the wall experience of being in a shooting/terrorist sort of situation, and that is something that is becoming everyones worst nightmare. Throw into that fact that you have a four year old boy involved in this story, and that this was meant to be a nice pleasant afternoon visit to their local zoo, I'm sure this would be terrifying reading for any parent.

So if I loved this book so much, why did I only give it four stars? Quite simply, I didn't enjoy the beginning. I'd say the first seven percent of this book honestly bored me because to me, it was just standing in the way of the terror to come, which is what I'd picked this book up for. I know you need to set the scene, maybe even help the reader develop a relationship with the characters before all the drama happens, but honestly, I didn't enjoy it. I didn't care about the child's toys, or imagination, or any silly foreshadowing about good and evil. It all felt forced, fake, and bored me.

Other than that though, I highly recommend this book. If you are someone who is worried about whether it is gruesome, then worry not as it's not too graphic at all. There are small mentions of blood, bodies and animal cruelty too, though none of it is overly graphic. If you are looking for something to terrify you, or a quick read that will have you gripped, then definitely check this book out.

For all my "I don't really enjoy thrillers" chat this is the second one I've read recently that I really enjoyed. Fierce Kingdom is a fast-paced story in a novel setting with some interesting twists.

Gin Phillips's descriptive skills truly set your heart racing throughout this novel. Gunmen are loose in the zoo and a young woman is stuck with her baby, alongside a few other people she meets along the way. As she hides with and sometimes from the animals to protect her young son, the reader feels every moment alongside her.

It's not merely this constant adrenaline rush that makes this a read to remember, but the wonderfully realistic description of a young boy and his mother's love for him. If you like thrillers, you'll love this - and even if you don't, you might surprise yourself.

So very intense. As a mother myself, I could not stop reading even though it was scary. I couldn't wait to see how it ended. Will definitely be purchasing this for my library.

Well, I started this at about 11pm thinking I would read the first few chapters to make a start before the rest of the weekend, and then it was 2:30 in the morning and I was a shaking ball of nerves reading the last couple of pages. I simply could not put this book down.

This book literally had me shaking with nerves and sick anticipation as I followed Joan and Lincoln and Joan's desperate thinking on how she could make them safe, event though they more or less trapped in a large enclosure like sitting ducks. There were times that no danger was near-by but I was still left terrified because Joan was constantly thinking of the situation and all the different things she could do to protect Lincoln. There was also a moment in this book where Joan mentions a news story about people being killed in flash flooding in Texas, and that made the story so present and visceral for me in that moment because at the time I'm reading, tropical storm Harvey has hit Houston and people are losing their homes and even dying in the flooding.

One of my gripes in this book is probably that not all of the flashbacks we got were strictly necessary. Sometimes they pulled me too out of the story for a moment, though other times they did give me a breather and a chance to calm down before diving back into the present scenario. I'm not sure we 100% needed the short POVs near the start with Mrs Powell and Kailynn either. Meeting them properly the second time would have also sufficed as the first meeting.

I normally have issues with thrillers that do the cheesy epilogue at the end about how everyone who survived is fine and dandy again but in this case I would have liked one. I think someone like a news report would have been good to sum things up properly.

This book was really great for me, and I always love a book that keeps me up all night. I do have to recommend though I do warn people that this is a scary book!

Thank you net galley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

After seeing great buzz about this book, I was desperate to read it. Joan and her young son, Lincoln, are about to leave the zoo when gunfire is heard. Joan had to save her son and her own life.

I was quite disappointed with the story, the blurb to me, made the story seem to be an action packed tale of a woman on the edge but it lacked something for me.

I enjoyed the fast paced nature of this book! It was fun to read a story in one short time line!

This book started off great. Hard to put down. Then all of the sudden it just gets too wordy and nothing exciting or meaningful. Near the last 1/4 of the book it finally picks back up and is what the entire book should have been. I think that the basic concept of the book was a good one I just don't think it lived up to what it could have been.

Compelling fast-paced thrill ride that I read in 24 hours. Difficult to put down with relatable characters (although the villains are a little too broadly drawn). All in all a wild ride.

7% into this book and I couldn't put it down. This book is intense. The main characters are likeable and quirky while the storyline is creepy. It moves along at the perfect pace and sent me into small anxiety fits regularly over what would happen to Joan and Lincoln. I've already recommended this to every reader I've seen since finishing.

3.4 - perhaps less impactful on me, since I'm not a mother, but a solid, tense page-turner

I received an e-copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. This is the most terrifying book I have ever read and I have read a lot in the horror genre. Maybe this hits closer to home for me as I have a son the same age as Lincoln but I think anyone who is a mother will feel the same things that Joan is experiencing while reading this book. I can't even describe the terror this book brought and I inhaled it in one day needing to know how it ended. You will definitely never see a zoo the same way again. This book gets all the stars from me and will definitely be a favorite this year.