The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1)
by James Patterson
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Book Reviews of The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, Book 1)
Book Review: Not everyone should attempt to write YA fiction
Summary: 1 Stars
I've never read James Patterson, but assumed that he was a good writer because he's published so much. I'm still going to give him the benefit of a doubt and say that he might be a good writer for adults, but this little trip into Young Adult fiction was a mistake. He can't write from the perspective of a 14 year-old girl. This was painfully obvious from the start. The whole time I had the feeling that he was writing down to the audience. It has the distinct vibe of "This is what the young people are saying these days, right?" The main character is what I'm guessing is supposed to be a strong female role model. She's annoyingly flawless. Seriously, no flaws, except maybe her uncontrollable urge to save people. She never had any real fear, doubt, insecurities. She never thinks about herself. She just beats up monsters and goes on and on about how much she loves her adopted siblings, whom she selflessly raises with no help. I consider myself a pretty empathetic reader, but I couldn't care about any of these characters. Flat. Predictable. Horribly named.
I've heard the plot praised for being fast-paced, but it was choppy and unbelievably. Conflicts popped out of nowhere and then disappeared with the help of luck and random, previously undiscovered super powers. I like a good sci-fi or fantasy read. I'm pretty good at believing the unbelievable, but I couldn't get lost in this story. I was constantly jarred back to reality by the completely unreal characters.
Book Review: Run Max, Run!
Summary: 3 Stars
Even if I rate this item 3/5 it doesn't necessarily means that it sucks, partially because this review is based in what I tend to like and enjoy yet I couldn't find. Or partially because this review is based in what I dislike and yawn at, and found right here.
First, if you like characters running all the time to escape 'imminent problems', this is for you. I could muster it the first time, and maybe even the second, but time after time they kept running away from the Erasers. I understand that they are more "powerful" and that always surprise the gang, but gosh, it was overkill to read about it so many times.
Second, if you like (really) childish character you might uber-love the second part of the book. I know that this is a young adult's book but I like adolescent characters instead of kids. Even worst, apparently the "childish" acts are nothing serious in the eyes of a lot of characters. Disappointing.
Third, if you like characters with fantastical abilities but that are only used rarely, again this is for you. They might be growing now and understanding how their powers work, but the fact that they don't exploit those advantages seems so stupid. I like more malice in the mind of my characters, even if it's mixed with cliched thoughts.
Nonetheless the book was very easy to read, and I always wanted to keep reading more (mainly because I was hopping that something exciting would occur, but it never did).
Book Review: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson
Summary: 5 Stars
The Angel Experiment
By: James Patterson
The Angel Experiment is apart of a series called Maximum Ride. The Series was written by James Patterson. The whole series of Maximum Ride is fiction. The book is about a 14 year old girl named Max Ride (also known as Maximum Ride) and her "gang" consisting of Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel who is the youngest at 6 years old, who all are 98% human, and 2% bird, and that 2% bird is their wings. So they can fly!!! Well the story is about these six kids who are pretty normal in most ways, except that they grew up in a lab, living like rats in cages, but now they're free. Besides that they're being hunted down by Erasers (crazy wolf-like creatures with a taste for flying humans). The story takes you from Death Valley, California all the way to New York Cities sub ways. While on this long run from the Erasers they encounter many obstacles like when they have to rescue Angel from the Erasers after she was captured. They also try to track down the flocks missing parents. This book was one of the best books I've read in a long time. The reason why is how there was never a dull moment, something was always happening. I think that this book could be for anyone willing to read a couple pages of the book because after that you don't want to put it down.
Book Review: Should have kept with Lake House
Summary: 2 Stars
This was my first ever James Patterson novel. I was at the grocery store and the cover caught my eye. I had just gotten my check and thought, it can't hurt to buy this because I hear Patterson is good. Right?
After a few chapters, I was disliking this book immensely. I'm surprised I actually managed to finish it. The writing is choppy, the characters flat, and the dialog... lame. It was also a very quick read - the book looks thick enough, but when you open it, there's not a lot of words on each page - apparently the font and spacing were deliberately stretched out to make this book look meatier. The descriptions are sparse, and the idea - interesting on its own - falls flat within the writing of this... book.
After that, I got Lake House (by chance - a coworker gave me a bunch of old books she no longer wanted) and read it, and was amazed at how much better Lake House was compared to this. By itself, Lake House is not that much of a impressive read, but compared to this 'young adult' novel, Lake House is masterfully written. I'm not sure why Mr. Patterson decided he needed to tweak the whole 'bird-children' idea for this book when it had been better in Lake House. After finishing 'Maximum Ride', I felt no compulsion or interest whatsoever to buy any more books in this series.
Book Review: Fantastic Young Adult Series
Summary: 5 Stars
Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson, is a young adult novel loosely based on the characters from his book When the Wind Blows.
Maximum Ride and her "flock" of friends are on the run. But these aren't normal children. Max and her group are mutants, humans with part avian DNA. That's right. They have wings and can fly. And some in the group have extra abilities that they're just discovering. Max and the rest of the flock are being chased and hunted down by the nefarious Erasers, genetically enhanced boys that can shift into wolf-like creatures. The Erasers work for the "white lab coats" and the school that the flock ran away from. When one of her flock gets captured, Max and the others form a rescue party. But nothing goes as planned. And they're in for a big shock when they realize that someone they trusted may be just as evil as those they left behind.
Maximum Ride is a wonderful series that both teens and adults will love. The characters of Max and the other children seem like normal, everyday kids, thrown into a harsh environment and problems beyond their control. With plenty of action, adventure, and mystery, this book is even more fun than its adult novel predecessors.