Fang

Author: James Patterson
Genre: Young Adult – Urban Fantasy
Publication Date: March 15, 2010
Publisher:  Little, Brown and Company
Age Range: 12+
Pages:  309
Date Scoot Read: April 2011
Source: Audiobook

Scoot's Rating: 3- Didn’t like it.

Synopsis (via Goodreads): Being a kid with wings--constantly on the run--has never been easy, and Max and her flock are getting tenser than ever. First, on a trip to Africa, they meet a mysterious billionaire whose intense scrutiny of the Flock makes her fear the worst. And as if an impending apocalypse weren't bad enough, canny birdkid Angel makes a dire prophecy about Max's soul mate: Fang will be the first to die. Max's desperate desire to protect Fang brings the two closer than ever. But can the team weather the storm, or will the turmoil rip them apart for the last time?

Scoot’s Review:

On an African humanitarian aid trip the flock runs into trouble once again.  One more Mad Scientist to add to the list of evildoers and most shocking of all a new birdkid.  But not just any birdkid, this birdkid is a handsome teenager named Dylan with some special abilities to go along with the wings.  Max’s voice stirs up trouble once again when she is told that Dylan is her perfect match.  But what about Fang? And is Fang’s expiration date coming soon?  The pressure is on and the stakes are high in this installment of the Maximum Ride series.  I am pretty sure this series just fell apart after the third novel, but yet I keep coming back for more.  I was really hoping this would be a better book because I am a huge fan of Fang – or at least Fang in the first few books.  Honestly I still have hopes for Fang and Max, but it seems that all of the characters don’t get much development anymore.  The series is basically Max-versus-Angel and Max ‘saving’ the world – one service project at a time.  And Angel, seriously? The seven year old is taking over the flock? What world does that make sense in? None.  Obviously this world is not real (with a plot centering on kids with wings, mutated dogs, and evil mad scientists) but it just doesn’t seem at all realistic anymore and doesn’t pull the heart strings like it used to.  Without the same emotional connections and development the characters just don’t appeal like they used to.  The adventures have changed and not for the better.  The characters feel wishy-washy and the plot is out of whack.  I am holding out hopes for the last two books in the series, but sadly I didn’t enjoy this one.