Review: Transcendence (Transcendence #1) by Shay Savage ★★★★★

It's said that women and men are from two different planets when it comes to communication, but how can they overcome the obstacles of prehistoric times when one of them simply doesn't have the ability to comprehend language?

Ehd's a caveman living on his own in a harsh wilderness. He's strong and intelligent, but completely alone. When he finds a beautiful young woman in his pit trap, it's obvious to him that she is meant to be his mate. He doesn't know where she came from, she's wearing some pretty odd clothing, and she makes a lot of noises with her mouth that give him a headache. Still, he's determined to fulfil his purpose in life - provide for her, protect her, and put a baby in her.

Elizabeth doesn't know where she is or exactly how she got there. She's confused and distressed by her predicament, and there's a caveman hauling her back to his cavehome. She's not at all interested in Ehd's primitive advances, and she just can't seem to get him to listen. No matter what she tries, getting her point across to this primitive but beautiful man is a constant - and often hilarious - struggle.

With only each other for company, they must rely on one another to fight the dangers of the wild and prepare for the winter months. As they struggle to coexist, theirs becomes a love story that transcends language and time.

Review:

Ed and Beh forever!

This was one of those titles whose premise was just too intriguing to resist! I stumbled across it via Goodreads (thank you to whoever rated it five stars and made it appear in my feed!). I mean, a caveman and a modern-day woman, divided by a language barrier and about a gazillion years of evolution, thrown together in a virtual melting pot just to see what happens? I don't know about you, but I needed to see how that turned out! Then, to find out it was all written in the caveman's POV? Ah, I'm in literary escapism heaven!!!!

Seriously, it was so much fun, I couldn't tear my eyes away from it. And what I really loved was because it's all written in caveman Ehd's POV, we can only deduce from his descriptions where (and when) Beh comes from. How he describes her funny clothes, the coloured smudges on her eyelids, her shiny straight hair that smells of fruit. This isn't the first romance I've read where the hero and heroine don't share a common language, and I'm definitely finding that I really enjoy stories with this trope. The fact that they have to learn other ways to communicate means I get more of what I love - the small actions, movements and gestures, facial expressions and meaningful looks that often portray much more than words ever could anyway.

In terms of plot, essentially, I've already summed that up for you - it's simply what happens when these two very different creatures are thrown together in isolation during dangerous times and with a limited ability to communicate. Added to this is the fact that Ehd has been alone for several seasons and was just about to let the hunger take him when Beh appeared out of nowhere in his pit trap, and suddenly he has a reason to live, to hunt, someone to protect - a mate. It just might not be quite was Beh is looking for at first... :)

Ehd's narration was so adorable! His confusion over his new mate's strange behaviour and annoying squawking sounds - it was too cute! And why doesn't Beh know she's supposed to be making baskets out of the reeds while he hunts? Everyone knows this! lol.

The only difficult pill to swallow regarding this book was how we're reading Ehd's narration, written in perfect English with a decent vocabulary, and yet Ehd cannot, and will not ever, be able to speak, so it's a little confusing how we're hearing his "voice" and the thoughts he's forming if you see what I mean? But who cares? I don't! I wouldn't have wanted anything but his perspective on events, because it was so endearing, so enchanting...Gah! Even when he was being a typical caveman and a bit of a butthead, because we knew what he was thinking, it all made perfect sense. *sigh*

I'd recommend Transcendence to every fan of romance, regardless of your interest in time travel (or cavemen). It's an odd duck, but I promise you won't regret picking it up.