Chrissie's Run

Young Adult, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Mystery & Thrillers

By S. A. Mahan

Publisher : Tate Publishing and Enterprises, LLC.

ABOUT S. A. Mahan

S. A. Mahan
S. A. Mahan lives in the mountains of Colorado with her husband of 39 years.  She conceives her stories while hiking the Rocky Mountain trails, and then returns to her mountain home to write them.  She has 3 children and 6 grandchildren.  She raises alpacas, enjoys the fiber arts, and i More...

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Recent Winner of Reader’s Favorite 5-Star Seal with three 5-Star reviews.

SPECIAL:  $3.99 on Kindle - Go to Amazon.com!

 

Reader’s Favorite reviewer Patricia Reding says it best:

 

“Just sixteen, pregnant, betrayed by boyfriend and family, alone . . . and an outlaw, Chrissie is in big trouble. So opens Chrissie’s Run by S.A. Mahan, a story sure to have readers turning pages quickly and furiously. In the dystopian world of the New Republic, Chrissie does the unthinkable. When ordered to show up for an appointment at which the authorities will abort her child, one they say would be born handicapped, Chrissie runs. She finds her way to the underground of the city. Vulnerable, in part due to the hefty price upon her head, Chrissie struggles to protect herself and her child. Enter Moses, a gifted man and a protector, who helps Chrissie on her journey to find the mythical land of Haven. He is followed by Samson, Angel, and others, each of whom is willing to risk death in an effort to protect life. Meanwhile, Chrissie’s pursuers become more plentiful and stronger. How many will be willing to pay with their own lives to protect the single life of an innocent?”

 

Chrissie’s Run is a young adult, dystopian edge-of-your-seat page turner that you will literally not want to put down.  S. A. Mahan explores a future society that embraces full governmental control and social engineering.  It is a story of hard choices, and even harder consequences for Chrissie.  She hears ‘the voice’, the voice that tells her that her unborn baby is Daniel.  Daniel in the Lion’s Den.

 

Chrissie makes the hard choice.  Will she and Daniel survive?
 

I have 4-year-old niece, Ella Shalom, who was born with severe physical handicaps. Her mother was advised to consider abortion and refused to even think of it. Her courage and Ella's shining, indomitable spirit, inspired me to write this book.

Reviewed By Patricia Reding for Readers’ Favorite – 5 stars

Just sixteen, pregnant, betrayed by boyfriend and family, alone . . . and an outlaw, Chrissie is in big trouble. So opens Chrissie’s Run by S.A. Mahan, a story sure to have readers turning pages quickly and furiously. In the dystopian world of the New Republic, Chrissie does the unthinkable. When ordered to show up for an appointment at which the authorities will abort her child, one they say would be born handicapped, Chrissie runs. She finds her way to the underground of the city. Vulnerable, in part due to the hefty price upon her head, Chrissie struggles to protect herself and her child. Enter Moses, a gifted man and a protector, who helps Chrissie on her journey to find the mythical land of Haven. He is followed by Samson, Angel, and others, each of whom is willing to risk death in an effort to protect life. Meanwhile, Chrissie’s pursuers become more plentiful and stronger. How many will be willing to pay with their own lives to protect the single life of an innocent?

I thoroughly enjoyed S.A. Mahan’s Chrissie’s Run. I was encouraged by the strength of a young woman who found value to life — to any life —including one deemed expendable because of a physical handicap. I was comforted knowing that Chrissie drew strength from her memories of her mother, though Chrissie had lost her years before. I was enamored with the fact that Chrissie could recall how her mother had introduced her to another way, a way represented by the “sign of the cross” the woman made out on her daughter’s forehead from time to time. Without any knowledge of what it meant, for talk of God was not allowed in the New Republic, Chrissie drew on her memories of love and found a faith that spurred her on to seek freedom. I was delighted to see Mahan recognize the value of characteristics far more important than mere physical “perfection.” Finally, I was reminded, once again, of the dangers that come of allowing those with power over us to make decisions for us . . .

 

Reviewed By Lit Amri for Readers’ Favorite

Living in the New Republic means the right to live is decided solely by special clinics called Parlors. A deformed child inevitably leads to abortion. Daniel, Chrissie’s unborn baby, is deformed and will face the mandatory abortion. In the meantime, Chrissie and her boyfriend Jason will be sterilized. A day before the abortion process, Chrissie decides to run like her aunt before her in order to save her baby, searching for a place called Haven. While being hunted down by the government, she meets some unusual allies. Chrissie’s Run is an exciting sci-fi fantasy tale by S.A. Mahan.

Author S.A. Mahan manages to present a believable 16-year-old protagonist, Chrissie, who is trying to save her unborn child while being hunted down like a criminal. The message about pro-life in the story is commanding and it definitely would make any readers contemplate the issue of abortion that we have in the real world today. Mahan has created a futuristic yet realistic world – you can’t help but think about how our decisions today would affect our future. Mahan manages to avoid creating a predictable plot and the ending is very satisfying to make readers look forward to the sequel. Quintessentially, Mahan’s novel stands out from the rest in its genre. Chrissie’s Run is written for young adults, but I have no doubt that mature readers would love it as well. Undeniably poignant, imaginative and suspenseful, this is a novel with a powerful message that will touch readers of all ages.

 

Reviewed By Julia Schemmer for Readers’ Favorite

Chrissie's Run by S.A. Mahan provides a suspenseful insight into a 'perfect society', where a human life is anything but valued. This book follows Chrissie, a member of the Society who gives birth to a baby boy named Daniel. However, Daniel is born with a defect, and in this society, 'defected' children must be killed, and the woman must be sterilized. However, Chrissie takes a leap of faith by running away from the terrible, demeaning society into a life of hope and prosperity. Will Chrissie make it to Haven, or will she be forced to stay in the New Republic? Purchase your copy today and find out!

Life is valuable. From young birds hatching from an egg to seeing a baby being born, it is undeniable that life is precious, meant to be viewed as wonderful and delicate. However, in the New Republic, this is not so. The New Republic does not see children with disabilities as gifts, but rather disturbances to the flow of society. After giving birth to Daniel, the New Republic continues to hunt both mother and babe, and demands that she turn herself and baby Daniel in, or watch while thousands of innocents die.

Get ready for a read that will change your life. This book will have you on the edge of your seat, reading until the early hours. What I love about this book is that Chrissie chose life. Chrissie's Run by author S.A. Mahan provided the perfect balance of sweet, sentimentality, and suspense, making it an all-around great read. You'll be in tears by the time it is over, I guarantee.

 

5.0 out of 5 stars: C.S. Lewis meets Logan's Run meets Pilgrim's Progress meets Star Wars ! May 15, 2014

By R. J. Bennett

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This review is from: Chrissie's Run (Kindle Edition)

This little book by S.A. Mahan comes out of the corner swinging and packs a wallup from page 1, holding the reader's interest all the way to end, getting better as each chapter unfolds. You'd think that a book and its story would wind down at some point, but Noooo, it builds one layer on another and keeps getting better as a result, so that you just don't want to put it down ! This is a book to be enjoyed by futurists, by the young, the old, the forward-looking. There are good guys, bad guys, innocent bystanders, victories, losses, casualties of war and collateral damage. S.A Mahan makes you think while telling the story of Chrissie, the human jackrabbit, who runs not only for her life, but also for her unborn son, Daniel. Will she make it? Will she find Haven, the fabled place of safety? Why is the New Republic putting so much effort and manpower into finding and destroying her and the child? Get this book and find out; you won't regret it. Two Thumbs Up! Two more if I had 'em!
S.A. Mahan, I eagerly await your next book. Place me on your mailing list

 


 

4.0 out of 5 stars Girl Flees an Oppressive, Dystopian Society to Escape Compulsory Abortion, September 2, 2014
This review is from: Chrissie's Run (Paperback)
Chrissie lives in the New Republic, a nation ruled by a brutal, totalitarian government: a government so strict that even an out-of-the-norm purchase can result in a call from the local police force. And Chrissie has a serious problem, for she is pregnant with a physically deformed child, and the law requires all such foetuses be terminated at a government run Parlour. Yet Chrissie loves her unborn child more than life itself, and does a runner on the day the termination is scheduled.

The love that Chrissie shows her unborn child touched me deeply, reminding me of when an ultrasound technician asked my wife, who was pregnant in her 40s, if she would keep her child if he had Down syndrome. My wife had answered without hesitation, "I will have my baby, regardless of what he is like." In the book, Chrissie says, "I will not kill my baby! In the Parlor, I saw his heart beating. How can anyone kill their baby after that?" This message is especially relevant to today's world.

'Chrissie's Run' is an awesome adventure with barely a dull moment. Although Chrissie is hunted by the might of the New Republic, including shadowy, evil 'closers,' she is rarely alone, for like with the Scarlett Pimpernel and others like him in the days of the French Revolution, many brave souls step up to help Chrissie on her 'run,' even though it places their own lives in jeopardy.

One aspect of 'Chrissie's Run' that puzzled me was that many protagonists and antagonists were clairvoyants. Speaking from a purely Christian point of view, I thought it would have worked better if the antagonists were the only ones to get their powers and abilities from clairvoyancy, while the protagonists could have gotten their powers and abilities from God, such as the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. That being said, the powers of the 'clairvoyants' in the book reminded me of E.E. Doc Smith's lensmen.

I particularly liked the characters in 'Chrissie's Run.' The chief antagonist was mean through and through, with a sadistic streak and unlimited resources at his fingertips that he did not hesitate to use. The other 'closers' were almost as evil. In contrast to them were those who helped Chrissie, fighting only as a last resort, and quick to offer mercy. The main character, Chrissie, began the book innocent and naive, which got her into bucket loads of trouble. However, she was also resourceful, adapted quickly to her circumstances, and is very, very determined.

The author was not afraid to bump off the characters; creating scenes that really tug at the heartstrings when a character I had grown fond of died in their efforts to help Chrissie and her unborn child escape the clutches of the evil closers.

The book was also satisfyingly unpredictable, taking many unexpected twists and turns, before it finally reached its dizzying and satisfying conclusion.
 

 
5.0 out of 5 stars Chrissie's Run? Non-stop action!, August 23, 2014
This review is from: Chrissie's Run (Paperback)
In a world where choice is not an option, where non-conformity is punished in the most final way, a young woman finds a way to choose - rebelling against a repressive government to protect her unborn child. Chrissie cannot give up her child to abortion, even though he is "deformed" and "abnormal". It is a choice that many women face, but in Chrissie's case, her world doesn't allow choice, it simply destroys those who, in the womb, do not conform to their version of normal and valuable. So, Chrissie runs, leaving her safe, comfortable world for a wilderness of fear and privation in order to protect her unborn baby. Along the way she is guided by those who understand that worth is not determined by physical perfection, that belief in a higher good is the foundation of life. And along the way Chrissie becomes a strong, intelligent woman, accepting the consequences of her choice and fighting to protect herself and her child.

"Chrissie's Run" leaps off the page and immerses you in a world of danger, sacrifice, and action. From the opening words to the last page, you run with Chrissie through a world where everyone is either trying to kill her - or save her. A non-stop adventure, this amazing book will keep you reading long past your bedtime and leave you wanting the next installment of the story as soon as possible. An amazing blend of futuristic dystopia and C.S. Lewis style allegory, "Chrissie's Run" is the most absorbing and thought-provoking book I've read lately!