Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Each year, a down-and-out America looks to the Gauntlet games for sheer spectacle and -- for one lucky state -- a better chance at survival. In 2023, former-police-detective-turned-paramedic Lara Evans is poised to enter the punishing endurance competition, determined to bring glory and a major economic boost back home to Oregon. But treacherous tests of physical and mental prowess -- and a pack of cutthroat rivals -- are far from the greatest obstacles Lara faces. Saving a hit man's victim has made her a target, and the murder of a fellow contestant has branded her a suspect. Yet the games must go on. And with a nation's eyes -- and a killer's crosshairs -- focused on her every move, Lara will have to think faster, hit harder, and risk far more than any player ever has in order to outrun the jaws of defeat and outgun the specter of death.
Synopsis
Just over a decade into our future, America is a stricken country where jobs are scarce, health care is a luxury for the wealthy, and hope rides on the annual Gauntlet games--a punishing physical and mental competition where the victor brings not only pride but an economic windfall back to his or her home state.
In the 2023 games, former police detective turned paramedic Lara Evans represents Oregon. But the contest's notorious obstacles and cutthroat rivalry may be the least of her challenges. After saving a government bureaucrat's life--and literally dodging a bullet--she finds herself in the crosshairs of a relentless hit man. And when another Gauntlet contestant is murdered, a stroke of bad luck puts Lara on the wrong end of damning evidence.
Still, the games must go on. And with the country, the law, and a killer watching her every move, Lara must use all her strength and savvy to beat the odds, claim the prize, and win back her life in the most dangerous game of all.