Review: A short but very entertaining story by Maria Schneider
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 20, 2011
Note: This review was originally published at Red Adept Reviews on July 3, 2011.Year of the Mountain Lion is a short story (304 Kindle locations). I'm not a big fan of selling single short stories, but I have purchased a few that piqued my interest enough. Having read several of Maria Schneider's books, I expected to enjoy the story, and I did.Year of the Mountain Lion was a story about Jolan, a young (American) Indian girl who had been banished from her Watahal tribe several years before the story began. She had learned to survive in the harsh, arid environment of the desert Southwest. Now, for reasons unknown to Jolan, the tribe was hunting her. When a young Watahal warrior named Aponi was injured, Jolan had a dilemma, since trying to save Aponi might cost both of them their lives.As the two struggled to survive in the merciless desert, one incident was very reminiscent of the gruesome scene in the 1954 film The Naked Jungle, where billions of army ants were devouring everything in their path.I enjoyed the story very much. Although very short (a half-hour read for me), it was an interesting story with sympathetic flesh-and-blood characters and the suspense of Jolan and Aponi fighting for survival against the elements. The ending was satisfying. I thought the story was appealing enough to possibly serve as a basis for a longer work about Jolan and the Watahal people.