If you haven't read this series, I apologize for this review not making much sense. I just need to vent.
So, in case the thousands of reminders all over the cover haven't informed you, this is the last book to the Maximum Ride series. As an avid fan of the characters, all I can say is finally! Don't get me wrong, I still liked the series (well, the first half of it anyways), but its seems like it was dragged out way too long. Like an old dog finally resting from exhaustion.
For me, this series started going downhill around book 4 or 5. I just had to finish, having some inkling of hope that it would get better. It did, but not by a whole lot. This installment to the series was sooo overly dramatic with all the ads and buildup and everything. There isn't even a description or anything on the flap of the book. It just says in big bold letters THIS IS THE END. Big-friggin-whoop. And James Patterson seemed to have gotten cocky when writing this, perhaps thinking, "Teehee! People will buy this no matter what crud I write! They're hooked!"
... You win this round, Patterson.
And now to actually talk about the book. The 99 Percenters are still looking to wipe out the Earth's population, and emotions run high between the flock, who are - wait what? They're at school? Again? Seriously, how many times have they tried this, like three? This time seems to be working better for them, though, having their identities as mutant freaks out in public. At least now they can fly wherever and whenever.
Fang's still gone with his own little mini-flock, leaving Max wiiide open for Dylan to creep himself into the picture. I didn't hate Dylan all that much, but he did have his moments of peculiarity, and later in this book, insanity. (You'll get to that later when reading). When attending a normal high school, Max seems to be the only one out of place. The rest of the flock adapts well, especially Nudge and Dylan. Every girl freaking swoons over Dylan, and while Max herself is blushing, she thinks, "Man, thank God I'm not affected." You can't sneak by me, Maxie ;) heehee.
Despite everything these guys have been through in the flock, some of the characters are still so one-dimensional! Gasman rarely said anything, and it seemed as if he were trying to stay in character. And Iggy got, like, NO lines!!! Just a one-liner here, a quick smooch with Ella there, and then poof, no more characterization. Did Patterson not think there were any Iggy fans out there? RIGHT HERE, BUDDY! (*cough, meanie-head, cough)
And Fang? Can I just say I find his thing going on with Maya is creepy? I mean, the chick is Max's clone. Talk about a replacement (eyeroll). I felt really bad for Maya that Fang saw Max at a first glance whenever he looked at her, no matter how hard he tried not to or how much she tried to change herself.
So back to the plot, before I get into rant-mode again. Fang eventually returns to the main flock after hearing the Voice, which now everyone can hear. (It says different things to everyone, though.) Oh and you do get to find out who the Voice is, though I can't say it's much of a surprise. Fang shows up at the door, incredibly bloodied and broken. And despite that, he still want to rip the vocal chords out of Dylan.
One quick thing (that will likely snowball into another rant), I never really got Fang's blog. It was kind of interesting to see how he was trying to connect with the other people of the world, but how is he supposed to be the classic badass going around saying "Check me out, I have a blog." Pssht, seriously, who reads blogs? (-eyes dart around -) Oh, riiiight. This is a blog, isn't it?
Once the flock is all reunited (and it feels so gooood), and after a massive fight scene, they're led by a small group of good-guy scientists to a literal paradise. Coconuts, palm trees, hammock tree houses, the whole shebang. I thought that was a tad weird, but at this point I just gave in, like, "meh, why not?" At least they managed to have some fun before the apocalypse.
And that's kind of where the book took a downturn. The apocalypse scene itself was just a little off, causing my eyebrows to knit together in complexity, like it couldn't be right. A sneak peek of it: the sky explodes. Yeah. Explodes. Harsh, much? That's just part of it, so don't get mad about spoilers or whatever. I'm trying to help you here.
When the book finally ended, I repeatedly blinked at the last page and flipped around, thinking I missed something. I couldn't help but utter, "That's it?"
Yeah, folks, that's it. It leaves off in a weird spot, just leaving the reader floundering for more explanations about what the heck happened to the world. Way to go, Patterson, you've officially pissed me off.
I did like the romance scenes between Max and Fang, though, so that's a plus. Figured I should leave this review off on a good note.
Stay thirsty, my friends
- Julia
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