Driven to the Hilt: The Deepest Cut review
Since October is almost upon us I thought I’d start with a photo of a normal-sized spider from my backyard. I’m generally, just fine with spiders as long as they’re not too big and aren’t crawling across my face. But, if a spider reached the size of a cat or larger it would fill my nightmares. Recently, I finished The Deepest Cut by D.G. Lamb that had spider-like animals worthy of nightmares.
The novel follows a boy, Joshua, living on a mining colony on a far-off planet. He’s tragically orphaned and forced to live on the streets. While he’s trying to find a safe place to live, Joshua accidentally ends up in the alien jungle that surrounds the colony dubbed ‘The Swamp’.
The Swamp is a mystery to the colonists—a place to be feared and avoided. Most explorers who stepped inside died in horrible ways. The last expedition resulted in the on camera death of a pseudo-celebrity from the venom of disturbingly large spider-like animals (spider vipers). from the venom of disturbingly large spider-like animals (spider vipers). Survival in such an alien and undocumented world be a spider infested nightmare.
When only a few years older than Joshua, I did a survival course in Northern Alberta. There were no giant spiders, just a black bear that passed through. I was lucky; it was summer, and the forest was full of food—I just had to find it.
After two weeks, all I’d eaten was occasional meals consisting of chokecherries (which made my mouth numb), fireweed (nutritionally equivalent to spinach but unpalatably bitter), a few unlucky crayfish (i.e. the ones I could actually catch) and wild onions (which are tasty).
Getting this inadequate food supply filled my days all the while dealing with constant hunger. Basic survival is hard work in an environment where I knew what I could eat and wasn’t alone.
Joshua was alone in an unfamiliar environment which he had no choice but to deal with. Through his ordeal, his emotional journey is complex and fascinating. But, Joshua’s story of physical survival is what I found most compelling about the book.
Once in The Swamp Joshua used his wits to figure out how to coexist with the local flora and fauna. He was smart about it. Instead of boldly marching in, he took his time and systematically explored the edges to get what he needed to survive — and this was my favourite part. The Swamp felt like a rounded out ecosystem, with a unique food web. Here the world building was as complex and unique as Jeff VanderMeer’s Annihilation or The Memoirs of Lady Trent series by Marie Brennan.
Like I felt after reading The Hobbit and the Harry Potter Books, I’m glad spiders are the size they are in this world. I’m looking forward to finding out how Joshua copes with the next set of adventures in the next book!
Already a social outcast because of his father’s alleged betrayal, young Joshua finds himself trapped outside the mining colony on the planet of Cypress Grove. He faces a murky rainforest infested with a creature so deadly, it has kept all humans confined inside their only settlement for decades. If he can manage to escape these alien wilds, he must then brave the even darker dangers of the colony’s underworld.
It is a tale of survival, a premature coming of age in an environment demanding resiliency, inventiveness, and self-reliance. But when teetering on the sharp edge of stark choices, decisions of life or death, can Joshua afford to consider questions of right and wrong, or does expediency rule the day?