Running on Instinct

by N.M. Luiken and Nicole Luiken

Book Overview

The Selector is sent through people's dreams to decide who lives and who dies; a murderer with no conscience, no flaws, and no flesh. Genevieve would do anything to get away from him, she cannot shake the overwhelming dread that she will be the next victim.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812579100
• ISBN13: 9780812579109
• Release Date: August 2002
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 0.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.2" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

Wonderfully complex and intriguing

Having read Luiken's recent YA novels, Violet Eyes and Silver Eyes, I was curious to see how her first novel aimed at adults would turn out. I wasn't disappointed.The story focusses on a group of people with psychic powers, or Talents, known as Kithkinners. As it begins, some of them know each other, and others meet and interact as the story progresses. Penny, married with a three-year-old son and eight months pregnant, knows she has to get away. She doesn't know why, but her Danger Instinct is telling her she must. Her husband, after an unusual encounter with a neighbour, trusts her instincts. April is babysitting for Kirsty when her cousin's boyfriend, Gavin, shows up at the door, injured and on the run from the law. Genevieve is haunted by dreams of the Selector, and after a man using his words shows up and tries to kill her, she knows she has to leave. Their paths cross and the secrets to their identity lie in a simple nursery rhyme that they remember from their childhood. The talents they have will eventually save them from the monstrous Selector and his minions.That's making the story sound cliched and predictable, but it's far more complex than that. Although other reviewers have argued that the novel is incoherent, I found it to be one of the most wonderfully woven-together stories around. Everything just clicked into place. It's a story about instinct, love, trust and terror. A worthwhile read, to say the least.

Intriguing Thriller

Luiken's first adult book is a winner. She has a wonderful ability to weave a complex plot, combining many elements to produce a fascinating novel. The story hits the ground running and doesn't let up until the last sentence of the last page. If this is any indication of what Luiken can give readers, it's a great start!

none

Luiken's first novel is an extraordinary novel of suspense and psychological thriller; terrifically paced and shocking. For those who enjoy the early work of Dean Koontz and Michael Slade, Running On Instinct is a novel you won't want to miss...Gary S. Potter Author/Poet

An interesting horror novel

Because of his parapsychological abilities, the Selector seems God-like as he uses mind control to grab the soul of individuals, forcing them to join his army. With his need to cleanse humanity, the Selector seems more like the devil as he kills anyone with a physical or mental disability. His selection process goes much wider than say the federal Disabilities Act, as the sentence for corrective lens is death. His opponents, who are trying to stop him, are not even at a David level vs. his Goliath. Instead he sits at the top of the food chain while they remain below the lowest rung. Killing them seems as elementary as ABC to the Selector. However, a quartet of survivors struggling with the unexpected savagery and injustice of the Selector, are trying to endure as they prepare for a final showdown that they instinctively know they can only lose. RUNNING ON INSTINCT is an exciting thriller if the reader does not ask questions of why. The Selector will remind the audience of Freddie Kreuger (that is from the sequels and not the original Elm Street movie). He is clearly the focus of the tale though his victims take more center stage. N.M. Luiken provides an engaging concept within an action-packed tale, but fails to explain why the Selector chooses to cleanse the race, which leaves the audience feeling shortchanged. Still those who enjoy a dynamic energized thriller that never slows down and are willing to suspend belief will delight in Ms. Luiken's debut novel.Harriet Klausner