The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride #1)

Reader reviewed by darklightkid

Six kids, ages 6-14, live all by themselves in a cabin high in the Rocky Mountains. Here we have Max, the fearless leader; Fang, Max's right-hand man; Iggy, the blind teenage pyro; Nudge, the fashionista motormouth; the Gasman (don't ask); and Angel, the cute but terrified little baby of the group. They are nothing like other kids. They were born in a secret science lab known euphemistically as the School. They are 98% human, 2% bird. They can really fly, because they have huge and majestic wings. And they also have other cool superpowers. For instance, Angel is a mind reader, and the Gasman can mimic voices and sounds with 100% accuracy.

But soon their peaceful mountain idyll will be horribly shattered by the arrival of the dreaded Erasers. These are the human-wolf hybrids used by the School as security guards - essentially, created werewolves. The Erasers, including Ari Batchelder, a little boy Max used to know at the School who has now been brutally modified into one of these nasty brutes, appear and after a raging fight, they kidnap Angel.

Max, Fang and Nudge go on a cross-country flight to rescue their lost Angel. Along the way, Iggy and the Gasman join them after they are forced to flee the cabin due to further Eraser attacks. They later end up captured and brought to the School, where Max meets her old mentor, Jeb Batchelder (Ari's dad), who was believed dead but is now revealed to be a traitor. Jeb informs Max, most cryptically, that she is destined to "save the world."

The flock soon manages to escape and, on information Angel managed to pick up during her brief stay in the School, travel to New York in search of another lab, called the Institute. As they search, Max develops the most splitting headaches imaginable, and also a strange Voice begins to talk to her in her head and give her even more cryptic advice. And all the while, a seriously awkward romance starts to develop between Max and Fang, mortifying the heck out of them both.

Welcome to the start of one of my all-time favorite book series. Now if only they could make the movie already!! (They should fire Catherine Hardwicke from the director's chair, because she's delaying the movie with her too many script rewrites!)

The Angel Experiment is an amazing start to the new James Patterson series Maximum Ride. I think James Patterson did a great job switching from adult to YA. Patterson couldn't have done a better job.

Honestly? Before reading this, I thought it was going to be a bit cheesy and kind of lame. I mean, genetically mutant kids with wings escaping from evil scientists and wolf guys? It sounded like one of those stupid TV shows that my brother always watches.

After reading this, I can definitely affirm that it is NOT cheesy or lame. I can't even really remember why I thought it would be. It was definitely fast-paced and exciting and full of action and kind of horrifying at some points. What's not to like?

Maximum Ride follows six children, who are 98% human, and 2% bird. (hint, hint: they've got wings) They've got kind of ridiculous names: Maximum (who IS a girl), Nudge, Iggy, Fang, Angel and Gasman. They live in isolation, because the evil scientists who created them are out to get them. Their caretaker, Jeb, has disappeared, but they all know he's (ahem) dead. One day, Angel is captured by the Erasers (seriously, erasers? it sounds like their pencil cases are out to get them) who are evil kind of werewolf thingies. So of course, Max and the rest of the flock fly off to save her.

I reckon that this should have been two books. One for rescuing Angel, and then another for being in New York.

At first I was really confused, because the book didn't actually clearly state that Max was a girl (or if it did, I missed it) so for the first, like, 30-50 pages I went on believing that she was a BOY, because Maximum sounds like a boy's name, which made me really confused because Max's "voice" sounded more girly. Then I saw the others referring to her as "she", and I was like "wait, she? Ooooohhh... Max is a girl." So yeah. Don't make that mistake. It's confusing.

I love Max's character. She's tough, witty, and caring, and violent and funny and daring (lol... that rhymes.)

I have some questions though, that weren't really touched on in the book. for example: how does the school get all this money? Is it government funded? Why do all the others have powers other than flying (e.g. mind-reading, breathing underwater) and Max doesn't? How did they get the bird DNA inside a human egg? Why the hell would you give up your child to be tortured and turned into a bird mutant?

Anyway, hopefully these will be answered in the next book. I would love to have wings, but I guess if I had to go through all they did to have them, it wouldn't be so fun. Still... Wings are so cool!

To sum it up, this was a great, action-packed book, and I can't wait to read the next one.

Reader reviewed by Erica Fullen and Samantha Mongold

  Fourteen-year-old Max introduced her and her flock and no one would dare forget these unusual characters. Born into the world as normal kids, they were kidnapped by scientists who fused bird DNA onto their human DNA. As a result, Max, Fang, the Gasman, Angel, Iggy and Nudge have incredible and amazing talents. Their beautifully feathered wings are for more than just show they literally can fly among the clouds.
The voice in her head won't tell her, though it won't keep quiet with all sorts of unwanted advice. And Max still doesn't know from where the voice is coming maybe from the chip implanted in her arm. But it all comes down to the fact that Max and her flock are still running for their lives and their freedom. The scientists want them back and have ordered the unrelenting Erasers, the half-human/half-wolf hybrids, on a constant hunt for the youngsters' return.
One fight with the Erasers leaves Fang dangerously wounded and quickly bleeding to death. A guy who walks by calls for an ambulance. He will die without help. At the hospital the doctors quickly discover that they aren't dealing with a normal patient, and the FBI soon arrives. One of their agents Anne invites Max and the flock to stay at her house for a little while to recuperate rest and heal. In exchange, they allow Anne to get to know them, ask questions and witness their talents. Max is skeptical and suspicious; she can't afford to trust anyone outside of her flock. But with Fang injured, she doesn't know what else to do. Soon Anne insists on everyone attending school. There, the children start making friends, and a boy asks Max out on a date. They enjoy their first traditional Thanksgiving and even have a bit of spare time to discover new talents, and to follow up on some clues as to their real parents' whereabouts. But something isn't right and Max is eager to move on. She has no idea what is about to transpire and is shocked to see a very familiar face.
Soon Anne insists on everyone attending school. There, the children start making friends, and a boy asks Max out on a date. They enjoy their first traditional Thanksgiving and even have a bit of spare time to discover new talents, and to follow up on some clues as to their real.

I love this book. I wouldnt do nothing to change anything about it. Everything is fine about it.

 

Reader reviewed by Tatie & Jenny

      I thought this book had some very intresting twist and turns. I really liked how many places the flock went to were actually real places. It had some supernatural things aswell; such as having wings and flying, and different charactors had different ablities such as Angel being able to read minds. Out of al the charactors; Max, Fang, Nudge, Iggy,Angel, and Gazzy I'd say Fang was my favorite.It was cool how Iggy and Gazzy can build bombs and other explosive stuff with Iggy being blind and all,  Heck I can't even build a paper airplane without it coming out not working. I loved how max was a Butt- Kicking kinda girl! *~*GIRL~POWER*~*!!!!!!!!!!!        Angel was kinda creey though how she could read minds and convince people to do things for her and the flock.Gazzy had really BAD gas attacks. Iggy was cool too. Nudge was VERY talkitive. But other than the blood crazy erasers chasing me I wouldn't mind to be a member o

Reader reviewed by w0lf13, -Cherry;;*

Maximum Ride Is Awesome! Its The Most Thrilling Book You Could Ever Read, All The Characters Are Great People. Max's Sarcasm Makes It Even More Thrilling. Its Mind Blowing, Wonderful, Action Filled And Exciting! Whoever Said Books Had To Be Boring To Read?  

Reader reviewed by Sarah Jane :)

Maximum Ride, named herself after a famous  astronaunt. She wasn't named by her parents at birth because Max wasn't given birth to. She was a test tube baby, a genetically made child. But Max and her friends aren't all human, they are 98% human and 2% bird. After excaping the "school" where Max was "born" with Fang, Izzy, Gazzy, Angel and Jeb, Jeb goes missing and they are forced to think the worst. One day while outside, the five are ambushed by Erasers, evil creations maade by the school to kill them, and they kidnap Angel, the youngest of the 5. This sends the flock, as they like to call themeselves, on a chase back to the school that they had been avoiding for years to save one of their own.

Reader reviewed by K

In the Maximum Ride series there are 6 bird kids who grew up in a lab where they were made.  They all have wings, different skills, and can kick butt.  The bird kids in the flock (their group) are Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel.  In this book Angel gets kidnapped by the people that created the bird kids and thats not a good thing.  For more on the flock and their adventure check out the books at a library or a store.

Reader reviewed by Steve, SGD

Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment is the first book in the Maximum Ride Series, and it is a great start to the wonderful sequel. The main character is Max, and she is not human. She resembles an angel. In This book, you take an exciting ride through Max's fight to rescue her little sister. I think this book is incredible, with action and excitement in every corner. You won't stop reading, because of the fact of the amazing twists the story takes that will make you wanting to read more.
The down part of this story is the ending. I don't want to give too much away, but it is depressing, not very well written, and it doesn't keep you up at night thinking about it in my opinion. Other than that, the book is amazing.
In all, this book is amazing, and I suggest you read it. It is full of twists, turns, action, and all out fun. This book is a magnificent way to start off the amazing Maximum Ride Series, and if you like fiction books full of ironic twists, and fast paced action book that will keep you reading throughout the story, then this is the book for you.



This Book Review Was Made By Steve For Literature Class.

Reader reviewed by Romelo Redman

While having an average day at their home, Max and the flock go out to pick strawberries, only for the them to be attacked by erasers. The erasers take off with Angel, so Max, Fang, and Nudge go off to save her. Eventually Iggy and the Gasman have to leave the flocks home, even though Max wants them to stay behind.

They all meet at Lake Mead, but not until Max has had a close run in with death. After leaving Lake Mead and reaching the School and saving Angel, the flock races off on their way to New York City to reach the Institute. Their reasoning for doing so, they want to find out their past, who their parents are, and why they couldnt just have normal lives like any other child their age. Upon the journey, they learn their new traits and what the real world is like. Not only will this occur, but an exciting twist about Maxs unknown life be only partially unlocked in the most exciting twist yet.

This book is an exciting thrill that keeps its readers on the edge of their seats and combines a solid story line with surprising plot twists along the way. It is written in great detail and lets the readers visually feel things as they occur, not only on a physical level, but an emotional one as well.

In conclusion, this book is a highly recommendable one, not only because of the suspense and excitement, but also the wonder and awe. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment is a family book, as well. This helps it appeal to all age groups and reading levels.