Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Dekker's latest centers around the life of a mother who is stranded with a savage race unknown to modern man. When pampered Julian, a beautiful Atlanta belle, takes off for Australia and beyond, she doesn't expect to end up on a sailboat, tossed around by the sea and fighting for her life and that of her little boy, Stephen. After her rescue by strange natives she cannot understand, she is carried into the valley and forced into captivity. Soon, she discovers that she is going to die as a sacrifice to local traditions and suspicions unless she can gather her wits and find a way to make the warring tribes that have caught her spare her life. Despite the odds against her (white skin is looked upon as something to abhor, and most Tulim people find her ugly), Julian manages to form an alliance with the wife of a powerful prince in line for the throne. Unfortunately, this prince is also the brother of another man who wanted her, and if he can't have her, then he prefers her dead. Over time, Julian makes and forms alliances and, finally, presented with an unexpected gift she treasures above all else, finds a way to survive her captivity. Although the author exhibits a keen imagination, the story is repetitive and lacks focus. Known primarily as a Christian writer, Dekker leans heavily on Christian analogies that are, at times, heavy-handed. For fans of Dekker's Christian-inspired fiction.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Dekker, the prolific best-selling author of more than 20 books including the "Book of Mortals" series and "The Circle" trilogy, draws on his exotic Indonesian childhood for his new thrilling adventure saga. Following the birth of her son Stephen, Atlanta-born Julian Carter dreams about a mysterious jungle creature with a haunting voice who calls to her to find and save it. After she's widowed, Julian packs up her belongings and her son and sets out to be a missionary in Melanesia. Traveling to Thursday Island in the Torre Strait, mother and son are separated when their boat capsizes. Found floating adrift, Julian is captured and enslaved on a remote section of western New Guinea by a pair of warring brothers who rule by ancient laws. When Stephen is found alive, Julian reaches into her soul and sacrifices her freedom to enable him to survive. VERDICT Combining a rich visual portrait of a Stone Age civilization and a surprising spiritual redemption, this excellent book will engage suspense and historical fiction readers.-Susan Carr, -Edwardsville P.L., IL (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.