Savages is a 2010 novel written by Don Winslow. The novel follows O, Ben, and Chon: three friends/lovers who live in California. Ben and Chon run a weed business together. The Baja Cartel begins to take an interest and wants to partner up. But when Ben and Chon refuse the cartel kidnaps O. Adapted into a 2012 film of the same name, directed by Oliver Stone and starring Aaron Johnson and Taylor Kitsch as Ben and Chon, with Blake Lively as O, Salma Hayek as Elena, and Benicio del Toro as Lado.
Tropes within the novel
- Actual Pacifist: Ben starts the novel out this way. He starts getting more violent once O is kidnapped.
- Affably Evil: Elena, the leader of the Baja Cartel.
- Anyone Can Die: Every named character barring Magda is dead by the end.
- Ax-Crazy: Lado, Elena's right hand. More accurately, chainsaw-crazy, as that is his weapon of choice for beheadings.
- Back-Alley Doctor: Ken 'Doc' Lorenzen, a former medic from Chon's unit who helps out when Ben's hurt.
- Bested by the Inexperienced: Pacist turned badass Ben is able to kill numerous cartel soldiers only about two days after learning how to shoot properly.
- Beware the Nice Ones: O is a sweet California girl, but is also the one who kills Elena.
- Blood Knight: Chon, ex-Navy SEAL who will go to war in a heartbeat.
- Boom, Headshot!: A common way characters go.
- BFG: Chon uses a .50 cal Barrett 90 towards the end of the novel.
- The Cartel: The main antagonists are cartel members, trying to move in on Ben and Chon's (relatively) small weed business.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Chon is a former Navy SEAL who saw some bad things in the Middle East. Somewhat averted because Chon doesn't have PTSD, at least according to him.
- Dirty Cop: DEA Agent Dennis Cain, who acts as Ben and Chon's inside man.
- Disappeared Dad: Both Chon and O's dads left.
- Disproportionate Retribution: The cartel kidnaps O because Chon tells them Fuck You.
- The Dragon: Lado, who acts as Elena's top enforcer.
- Enemy Civil War: The Baja Cartel is in the middle of one at the start of the novel.
- The Don: Elena Sanchez Lauter of the Baja cartel.
- Downer Ending: Ben, Chon and O overdose on morphine together after being mortally wounded.
- Driven to Suicide: Dennis walks onto train tracks after he tells Ben and Chon he is into deep with the cartels.
- Fun with Acronyms: O calls her mother P.A.Q.U or Passive Aggressive Queen of the Universe.
- Heterosexual Life-Partners: Ben and Chon. Cemented by the fact they romantically share O.
- Immodest Orgasm: How O got her nickname.
- Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: Ben is a pretty bad shot, he gets better as the story goes on.
- Instant Death Bullet: Averted, most characters need a couple shots before staying dead.
- Laser Sight: Lado gets to see about a dozen of these pointed at him before he is unloaded into.
- Neck Snap: How Lado kills Estaben.
- Nice Guy: Estaben is genuinely friendly to O. He even convinces his cartel "buddies" to give her internet. It doesn't save him in the end.
- Off with His Head!: Decapitation is a favorite of the cartel.
- Polyamory: Ben and Chon share O in a romantic/sexually relationship.
- Precision F-Strike: The whole plot kicks off because Chon said Fuck You to the cartel.
- Prisoner Exchange: Ben and Chon trade Elaine's daughter Magda for O. It doesn't end well for anyone.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Chon is red, being stubborn and violent and Ben is blue, being a pacifist and much more mellow.
- Robbing the Mob Bank: Ben and Chon start robbing the cartel towards the end of the novel as a message.
- Roaring Rampage of Revenge: Ben and Chon go on one to get O back.
- The Starscream: El Azul, a former enforcer under Elena who wants the throne.
- The Sociopath:
- Chon again. He has no PTSD from Iraq and has no issue murdering people.
- On the other side of the border, Lado. He is involved in all of the murder and torture you'd expect from The Cartel.
- Turncoat: Lado has been giving El Azul information.
