Maximum Ride:  The Angel Experiment by James Patterson is exactly what its title says–a a ride.  This book is not about character development, dialogue, or writing style; it is all about the plot and action.  Laid out in ultra-short chapters and told mostly in first person by the protaganist, Max, this is a thriller that unrelentingly propels forward, driven by action.  Although the protagonist is a female, the format and style of this book very much have guy appeal written all over it.

The ending pauses the storyline more than concludes it.  Maximum Ride:  The Angel Experiment is the first book in a series that should appeal to young adult fans–both male and female.

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  38 religious exclamations, 1 offensive hand gesture.

Violence/Gore: Brief scene in which characters are attacked with punching, hitting, kicking, etc. (general description); a kidnapping; talk about sectioning a character’s brain for scientific purposes; cruel experiments on a character; a character is zapped with an electric device; a scene (2-3 pages, general descriptions) in which character fights bullies with punching, hitting, etc. resulting in a bloody nose, cracked ribs, injury by gunshot; a car crash; an explosion resulting in 2 deaths (non-detailed); three seperate fight scenes involving kicking, hitting, bleeding from nose, etc.; a character bites another characters hand drawing blood; a character dies from non-violent causes; a  brief fight involving kicking, punching, etc. resulting in a human death (non-detailed, but somewhat emotional).

Sex/Nudity:  A character kisses another character.

Mature Subject Matter:

Scientific ethics, genetic experimentation, exploitation of children, death.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

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