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Maximum Ride: the Angel Experiment by Patterson

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson (2005)
Part one of the Maximum Ride series

Maximum Ride. She's a girl. Great name, don't you think? She chose it herself:

'Like Sally Ride, the astronaut. Maximum Ride.'

Did I say girl?..sort of. Let's ask Max:

Basically, we're pretty cool, nice, smart - but not 'average' in any way. The six of us - me, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel - were made on purpose, by the sickest, most horrible 'scientists' you could possibly imagine. They created us as an experiment. An experiment where we ended up only 98% human. That other 2% has had a big impact, let me tell you.

They're bird kids. They've got wings. They can fly. And other stuff too.

And they've got enemies. There was another experiment that made it past infancy:

Part human, part wolf - all predator: they're called Erasers. They're tough, smart, and hard to control. They look human, but when they want to, they are capable of morphing into wolf men, complete with fur, fangs, and claws.

And guess what:

Basically, they want to rip our throats out. And make sure the world never finds out about us.

So it's down to Max. She's the oldest. She's the leader. She protects the flock. And she's dynamite, especially when her 'baby' Angel is kidnapped by Erasers. Nothing is going to stop her, except possibly the rest of the flock when they sample her driving:

I was sweating and about to jump out of my skin with anxiety about driving, but I tried to look way confident and calm. 'I mean, it's not as good as flying, but it beats the heck out of walking!'
I smiled bravely over at Fang to see him giving me a steady look. 'What?'
'Could you take it easy on the hairpin turns?' he said.
'I'm getting better,' I said. 'I just had to practice.'
'I didn't know a van could go up on two wheels like that,' Nudge said. 'For so long.'

Super-fast action, six brilliant bird-kid heroes. They're a team. Max tells the story in her own words. She's funny, tense and quick witted. Superb, tight writing. I was enthralled by this book. Couldn't put it down. Put your life on hold while you read this book.

Review by Reading Matters.com

My opinion: I, too, loved this book. I had not read it before, because I assumed it was about racing or some such thing (silly me). When I actually read a review, I immediately dove into the series and have been recommending it ever since. It is one of those series that you can't wait to see what happens next. Enjoy!!

Rating: 5 out of 5

Delerium by Lauren Oliver

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn't understand that once love--the deliria--blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold.

Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Haloway has always looked forward to the day when she'll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: she falls in love.


I enjoyed reading the quotes from the health and safety handbook and various sources of books and poems at the beginning of each chapter. Oliver's writing is outstanding! She's created this twisted world where love is considered a disease. I wondered how she would pull it off and as I continued to read, I fell effortlessly into her world. Ah, the dangers of love. Who would have ever thought the idea of love could be so construed in one’s society making it deadly to one's health? Oliver's take on a society governed with rules against love captured me page by page.

The characters are well-crafted. The weight of society and its rules really takes a toll on not only Lena and Alex, but you can see its effects of the so called cured. Lena has dreamed of how life will be after the cure. She wants to forget and be free of her memories of her mother and to her the cure is the only thing that will solve this. I don't think she ever imagined that her life would turn out totally different. Alex, the love interest in this book is definitely a keeper & the two of them together fighting against the odds only endured me more to their plight. A heart-breaking romance - Just amazing!

This book had my mind churning and wondering what if? I can't imagine living in a society where you are forced to take a cure for love. Everything about the whole process of eliminating love was beyond my imaginings but at the same time, I got it. I guess this is a testament to Oliver's writing that it provoked so many emotions out of me.
Book review by Fantastic Book Review.com

Rating: 4 out of 5
Reading Next: Tension of Opposites

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