Survival Instincts is the story of Sophia Vega who was born in the Philippines in 1958. It would have been nice if her life read like a storybook story, but that was not the way of God's path for her. Sophia's life was hard, and was full of many challenges; but she knew that everything happened for a reason, and trusted in God, and her family.

The essence of her story is family, and how she supported her family no matter what the consequences were to her. She was a woman up against great odds, and only through her determined perseverance and intelligence did she overcome her trials.

Maria J. Ryerson writes her words as if the next one might never come; you the reader will be on the edge of your seat as you flip through the pages at a high rate of speed to see just what happens next, and how the character of Sophia turns the tables in her favor.