Max by James Patterson
Date: January 2010
Page Count: 287
BOOK DESCRIPTION: Maximum Ride and the other members of the Flock have barely recovered from their last arctic adventure, when they are confronted by the most frightening catastrophe yet. Millions of fish are dying off the coast of Hawaii and someone--or "something"--is destroying hundreds of ships. Unable to discover the cause, the government enlists the Flock to help them get to the bottom of the disaster before it is too late.
While Max and her team are exploring the depths of the ocean, their every move is being carefully tracked by Mr. Chu--a criminal mastermind with his own plans for the Flock. Can they protect themselves from Mr. Chu's army of mercenaries and save the ocean from utter destruction?
MY REVIEW: After making myself finish the previous title in this series, THE FINAL WARNING, I thought this offering would be just as prophesying and dull. MAX wasn't bad but the series is losing its luster and its special essence. Once again Max narrates with enough snark for the entire flock. They perform air shows to help her mom's group, CSM, until someone starts shooting at them. Then Max is actually shot and abducted, taken to some mysterious place where she meets Mr. Chu. He wants Max to get her mom to sever ties with CSM. Max doesn't like to take orders so she doesn't pass on his warning. Next thing they know her mom is abducted. And only Max and the flock of mutant kids can save her.
The first book, THE ANGEL EXPERIMENT, was new and exciting. We were treated to an interesting storyline, great characters, short chapters, funny one-liners, with loads of action scenes. The second, SCHOOL'S OUT-FOREVER, and third, SAVING THE WORLD, were also good, but then the politicizing in THE FINAL WARNING had me shaking my head, not believing what I was reading.
MAX was kind of fun, but ultimately predictable, and in many spots downright boring. Max the girl has become mean (give Jeb a break!) with mostly everyone, except Fang. Angel is adorable and always seems to get a fair share of pages, as does the Gasman, but Iggy and Nudge were shortchanged. I've always had a soft spot for Iggy and Fang and Iggy was just a device for Gasman's outrageous antics this time around. The one good part which saved this story for me was the growing relationship between Max and Fang.
Once again the ominous dose of foreshadowing was thrown at us: the end of the world is coming, Angel is special. Okay, I get it. But let's breathe some life back into Max and the flock. Don't let it die a sad and limp mess. I hope this month's release of FANG will redeem a series I actually enjoyed at one time. And someone should pay attention to the character descriptions and stop making Max a blond on the front covers.She's a brunette.
RATING: +++
SERIES: You betcha.
REVIEWED BY: Laurie
BOOK SOURCE: Swapped. Glad I didn't buy this.
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