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Maxum
Zach enters a magical competition at Summa, an elite university in the Maxum world, hoping to earn mentorship. The competition is divided into four Celadon, masters of nature; Psychron, strategists and leaders; Electron, innovators of technology; and Premier, the guardians of their world. Except Zach carries a dangerous secret. He isn’t a Maxum. He’s an imposter. A human.
For lovers of Divergent and The Hunger Games.
For lovers of Divergent and The Hunger Games.
347 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 25, 2025
13 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 17, 2025
Great book. Can’t wait for the next one. Awesome world building and great set ups for the rest of the series.
August 18, 2025
Eerie, Thrilling, and Impossible to Put Down
The Masked Investor HOOKED me from the first line and never let go. Set in a forgotten Oregon town, this thriller blends secret societies, twisted friendships, and nightmarish creatures in a way that feels both original and deeply unsettling.
The story follows Zach Taylor, a reluctant teen who’s dragged by his best friend Jason to a mysterious event deep in the woods. What starts off like an elite masquerade complete with masked CEOs, red carpets, and holographic stars quickly spirals into horror territory. Without warning, Zach is thrown into a conspiracy involving mutated animals, cryptic investors, and a place called the “Human Integration Organization.”
The writing is atmospheric and sharp. You can feel the mossy forest, the glittering chandeliers, and the creeping dread building with each chapter. The tension between Zach, Jason, and Sarah adds emotional depth, while the surreal elements (like a deer with serrated teeth!) are genuinely disturbing in the best way.
If you give any book/author a chance, PLEASE let it be this one!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
The Masked Investor HOOKED me from the first line and never let go. Set in a forgotten Oregon town, this thriller blends secret societies, twisted friendships, and nightmarish creatures in a way that feels both original and deeply unsettling.
The story follows Zach Taylor, a reluctant teen who’s dragged by his best friend Jason to a mysterious event deep in the woods. What starts off like an elite masquerade complete with masked CEOs, red carpets, and holographic stars quickly spirals into horror territory. Without warning, Zach is thrown into a conspiracy involving mutated animals, cryptic investors, and a place called the “Human Integration Organization.”
The writing is atmospheric and sharp. You can feel the mossy forest, the glittering chandeliers, and the creeping dread building with each chapter. The tension between Zach, Jason, and Sarah adds emotional depth, while the surreal elements (like a deer with serrated teeth!) are genuinely disturbing in the best way.
If you give any book/author a chance, PLEASE let it be this one!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 27, 2025
❤️😲Absolutely fascinating!
Zach is waiting for his friend Jason, who's supposed to pick him up by car.
Jason arrives and parks his gleaming Porsche, giving Zach just enough time to settle in before speeding off...
>>>>>>>>
This is an astonishing novel that seamlessly blends genres: dystopia, science fiction, fantasy, thriller, and romance, sweeping the reader away on a fascinating adventure packed with action and surprises!
Nothing is as it seems in this novel.
What sometimes seems a little confusing while reading will make sense by the end of the novel.
Personally, I think this story could have even stood on its own given the ending.
But since this is only volume one, I'll be delighted to read the next one!
The author apparently has other surprises in store for us...
I highly recommend it!
PS: The book cover is gorgeous ❤️
I couldn't resist!
Zach is waiting for his friend Jason, who's supposed to pick him up by car.
Jason arrives and parks his gleaming Porsche, giving Zach just enough time to settle in before speeding off...
>>>>>>>>
This is an astonishing novel that seamlessly blends genres: dystopia, science fiction, fantasy, thriller, and romance, sweeping the reader away on a fascinating adventure packed with action and surprises!
Nothing is as it seems in this novel.
What sometimes seems a little confusing while reading will make sense by the end of the novel.
Personally, I think this story could have even stood on its own given the ending.
But since this is only volume one, I'll be delighted to read the next one!
The author apparently has other surprises in store for us...
I highly recommend it!
PS: The book cover is gorgeous ❤️
I couldn't resist!
August 2, 2025
This book was such a good time. I was so interested in the story. I wish there was some more depth to the characters, but besides that the plot was amazing and easy to follow. This was a well thought out dystopian. Usually, I do not read YA and I still enjoyed this one!
August 12, 2025
-The book's theme is interesting and generally speaking is good. Without trying to give too much away, it's about a group of young people thrown into a completely different situation than they're used to and must adapt if they want to survive but they find themselves in more things that they could manage . It makes for a good science fiction book. The Maxum theme is interesting. A group of teenage friends who, find themselves in an "out of the ordinary" situation where the main character is the chosen one and, awakens their powers. I think i would have enjoyed it more if, instead of following the precept of young people, it had focused on slightly older people but in general it's an excellent book for teenagers or young adults.
August 21, 2025
I was contemplating between a 2/3 star.
The premise and world building of this book is pretty nice. There is a lot going on, and I have a lot of emotions right now.
So... Let's get into it.
Firstly, what I enjoyed about the book:
1. Very descriptive and allowed me to see the new world we were entering.
2. World was curiously interesting. The manipulation aspect
3. The twist at the end I guess
4. Side Characters FTW! Go T***** & A***
What I Dislilked:
1. The Main Character
2. His intense obsession over a girl
3. The intensely long beginning.
4. The synopsis is honestly 10X more interesting than what I read in the book. I don't remember seeing much of the things in the synopsis in the book at all.
5. It's not a HINT of romance at all....
Overall...
This book would have been better if the beginning was a little faster, and the romance was toned down a little. I was done with the main lead, and actually enjoyed the side characters far more. I really believe the book might have been much better, if it had better pacing at the beginning and and less of an obsession over romance by the main lead and the love triangle I did not care for.
P.S. I was kindly gifted this book as an advanced copy by NetGalley for an honest review.
The premise and world building of this book is pretty nice. There is a lot going on, and I have a lot of emotions right now.
So... Let's get into it.
Firstly, what I enjoyed about the book:
1. Very descriptive and allowed me to see the new world we were entering.
2. World was curiously interesting. The manipulation aspect
3. The twist at the end I guess
4. Side Characters FTW! Go T***** & A***
What I Dislilked:
1. The Main Character
2. His intense obsession over a girl
3. The intensely long beginning.
4. The synopsis is honestly 10X more interesting than what I read in the book. I don't remember seeing much of the things in the synopsis in the book at all.
5. It's not a HINT of romance at all....
Overall...
This book would have been better if the beginning was a little faster, and the romance was toned down a little. I was done with the main lead, and actually enjoyed the side characters far more. I really believe the book might have been much better, if it had better pacing at the beginning and and less of an obsession over romance by the main lead and the love triangle I did not care for.
P.S. I was kindly gifted this book as an advanced copy by NetGalley for an honest review.
July 21, 2025
This book for me hovers on the border between 3 stars and 4 stars. I feel like it has the potential for having a great plot. Unfortunately, there are a lot of little plot holes. Most of these could have been fixed with a few great pre-publication readers. I did get a free ARC through BookSirens (and I provided a voluntary review), so hopefully some of these issues were resolved in the final book version.
The main character, Zach, and his friends are supposedly headed to college. The whole story has a very juvenile feel to it. I'd say that they feel more like middle schoolers, maybe early high school (freshmen or sophomores) at the oldest.
This might be a tiny spoiler, so if you don't want even a small spoiler, skip ahead. I really don't like the "love at first sight" trope, and that's used in this book. I want to see why two characters fall in love. In this case, there's really no substance to their relationship, but then suddenly they both claim they are in love.
I did appreciate that this was a clean novel. There's no swearing (although you will encounter some "replacement swear words" along the lines of things like "darn"). There's no sexual content. You'll get some kissing, but that's as far as it goes. There is some violence, but it's mild and definitely would not qualify as graphic.
For me, with a little editing, this could have been a solid 4-star book. This is the first book in a planned series. Even as the book is, it was interesting enough that I'd consider reading the next book in the series when it comes out.
The main character, Zach, and his friends are supposedly headed to college. The whole story has a very juvenile feel to it. I'd say that they feel more like middle schoolers, maybe early high school (freshmen or sophomores) at the oldest.
This might be a tiny spoiler, so if you don't want even a small spoiler, skip ahead. I really don't like the "love at first sight" trope, and that's used in this book. I want to see why two characters fall in love. In this case, there's really no substance to their relationship, but then suddenly they both claim they are in love.
I did appreciate that this was a clean novel. There's no swearing (although you will encounter some "replacement swear words" along the lines of things like "darn"). There's no sexual content. You'll get some kissing, but that's as far as it goes. There is some violence, but it's mild and definitely would not qualify as graphic.
For me, with a little editing, this could have been a solid 4-star book. This is the first book in a planned series. Even as the book is, it was interesting enough that I'd consider reading the next book in the series when it comes out.
October 1, 2025
Maxum is a YA dystopian sci-fi novel that follows Zach, a normal teen who just wants to see a path forward for his deceased father's dreams and inventions. To that end, Zach sneaks into a secret, elite "Masked Investor" event where he hopes to gain a patron for his father's work. Unfortunately, the night takes a dark turn, and Zach, along with a small group of friends, find themselves being introduced to a secret race of people, known as Maxums, who can manipulate matter. Zach and his friends are tasked with infiltrating a Maxum academy and, ultimately, preventing a war between Maxums and humans.
I really wanted to enjoy this book - the concept is unique, dark, and intriguing. I love a good dark academia book, especially one with a dystopian backdrop. However, Maxum just didn't live up to its potential. To begin with, the pacing throughout the book is off. Way too much time is spent on trivial scenes and details (such as the obsession with Sarah) and way too little time on relevant and interesting plotpoints (such as the students' Dances- I thoroughly enjoyed this scene). There is almost no character development, and a lot of the characters are quite annoying. In particular, Zach is written extremely immature. The dialogue throughout is also awkward. The book definitely needs another round of editing.
With all of that said, I still think there is/could be potential in this series.
I really wanted to enjoy this book - the concept is unique, dark, and intriguing. I love a good dark academia book, especially one with a dystopian backdrop. However, Maxum just didn't live up to its potential. To begin with, the pacing throughout the book is off. Way too much time is spent on trivial scenes and details (such as the obsession with Sarah) and way too little time on relevant and interesting plotpoints (such as the students' Dances- I thoroughly enjoyed this scene). There is almost no character development, and a lot of the characters are quite annoying. In particular, Zach is written extremely immature. The dialogue throughout is also awkward. The book definitely needs another round of editing.
With all of that said, I still think there is/could be potential in this series.
July 26, 2025
MAXUM!!!
Maxum is one of those books that totally caught me off guard… in the best way! I thought I had a handle on where it was going at first, but then it flipped the script and became something super mysterious, weirder, and more addictive than I expected. The writing is sharp and immersive, and there’s this constant feeling of unease as the plot just builds and builds. Such a good book! I couldn’t put it down.
What I loved most was the atmosphere—it’s eerie, elegant, and just a little bit surreal. The characters felt real and messy, especially Zach, who’s not your typical hero, which made everything hit harder. There’s definitely a dystopian vibe, but it’s not a copy of anything I’ve read before. If you like stories that feel both thrilling and unforgettable, this one will stick with you long after you finish.
Maxum is one of those books that totally caught me off guard… in the best way! I thought I had a handle on where it was going at first, but then it flipped the script and became something super mysterious, weirder, and more addictive than I expected. The writing is sharp and immersive, and there’s this constant feeling of unease as the plot just builds and builds. Such a good book! I couldn’t put it down.
What I loved most was the atmosphere—it’s eerie, elegant, and just a little bit surreal. The characters felt real and messy, especially Zach, who’s not your typical hero, which made everything hit harder. There’s definitely a dystopian vibe, but it’s not a copy of anything I’ve read before. If you like stories that feel both thrilling and unforgettable, this one will stick with you long after you finish.
September 5, 2025
This was a DNF for me. The back cover blurb basically covers the first chapter or so, and I made it to Chapter 14 before I had to admit I just wasn't invested. I found Zach's continual complaining about having a crush on his best friend's girlfriend to be really annoying (it was overshadowing the story), and he seemed to have a lot more context and information about the secret world that he'd landed in than the story seemed to allow for. The first dozen chapters really dragged on for me, and I couldn't even drum up some anticipation for the big thing that's supposedly happening next. The premise is interesting enough, and other readers might not have the same issues as me, but ultimately this wasn't a book I felt I needed to finish.
Also, why was he so obsessed with ??
Also, why was he so obsessed with ??
September 18, 2025
Maxum was a gripping, enjoyable YA sci/fi with a dystopia backdrop done well. The story was fast paced and well written with the characters being well fleshed out and all having very different yet likeable personalities and the setting being different yet immersive and interesting from start to finish.
However, the only two factors that I wasn't a fan of were the insta love between Zach and Sarah as well as Zach and Emily in the book as well as the fact that I believe the story would have benefited better if it was set in a school setting as opposed to the secret society house setting which was provided.
Overall a refreshing, unique read and I look forward to the sequel.
Thankyou to Net galley and the publisher for an arc of this book.
However, the only two factors that I wasn't a fan of were the insta love between Zach and Sarah as well as Zach and Emily in the book as well as the fact that I believe the story would have benefited better if it was set in a school setting as opposed to the secret society house setting which was provided.
Overall a refreshing, unique read and I look forward to the sequel.
Thankyou to Net galley and the publisher for an arc of this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 22, 2025
A far out dystopia fantasy
Such a strange suspenseful YA mixed fantasy. The book grew my interest because of being in an Oregon town. It started out pretty interesting and the after the kids arrived at a party, the whole thing became too confusing for me to understand what was going on.
I continued reading in hopes things straightened out, but it only got more confusing.
I understand it is a dystopia storyline and made for YA readers so maybe it was just not made for my kind of mystery reading.
It was however, written very well and took some imagination to come up with some of the scenes and storyline characters.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Such a strange suspenseful YA mixed fantasy. The book grew my interest because of being in an Oregon town. It started out pretty interesting and the after the kids arrived at a party, the whole thing became too confusing for me to understand what was going on.
I continued reading in hopes things straightened out, but it only got more confusing.
I understand it is a dystopia storyline and made for YA readers so maybe it was just not made for my kind of mystery reading.
It was however, written very well and took some imagination to come up with some of the scenes and storyline characters.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
November 3, 2025
I received this book as an arc from Netgallery
This book was not bad. I would say that this book is good for YA.
In saying that. We get to understand the characters Zach and Sarah however. Jason In the start of the story he was intriguing then he becomes somewhat of a side character in the book then towards the end we get to know his character and what he went through and we end up finding out why he's like that. He's a broken person. I don't like Sarah at all she doesn't respect Zach or even her boyfriend relationship. The ending of the book is good for the start for the next book in the series.
This book was not bad. I would say that this book is good for YA.
In saying that. We get to understand the characters Zach and Sarah however. Jason In the start of the story he was intriguing then he becomes somewhat of a side character in the book then towards the end we get to know his character and what he went through and we end up finding out why he's like that. He's a broken person. I don't like Sarah at all she doesn't respect Zach or even her boyfriend relationship. The ending of the book is good for the start for the next book in the series.
July 31, 2025
Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC and the chance to read this book in return for an honest review.
I did not finish this book. I made it around 43% and decided it was a DNF for me. I think overall there was too much and not enough going on. We were getting a lot of explanation and world building but I wasn't drawn in like I was when I read the synopsis for the book.
This is why I am having to rate it 3 stars, I think the book was just not for me. Thank you again to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC
I did not finish this book. I made it around 43% and decided it was a DNF for me. I think overall there was too much and not enough going on. We were getting a lot of explanation and world building but I wasn't drawn in like I was when I read the synopsis for the book.
This is why I am having to rate it 3 stars, I think the book was just not for me. Thank you again to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC
September 29, 2025
3.5 stars.
For starter, the writing is solid. It reminds me of Harry Potter -techno version-, i guess.
Cons
The concept of the division.
I don't like how vague the classes especially when they first arrive in Summa. Only reconfiguration class that have a clear explanation and story, then it fast forward to three months later without showing any other classes and their struggle in learning. I want more of it actually.
Then the dance.
The dance was their essay for entering the school divisions, they shouldn't have already mastered the skills. They should show just enough ability to convince the division to accept them.
Lastly the romance, it okay for the first few chapters, then it become too much and distracting the story from the mission and studying. Zach and his branching romance was annoying and later cringey.
I like Thomas and Anna. They were drama free lol.
The last chapters were engaging with the twist. I like it.
The ending unfortunately was cliffhanger, because this is part of series.
For starter, the writing is solid. It reminds me of Harry Potter -techno version-, i guess.
Cons
The concept of the division.
I don't like how vague the classes especially when they first arrive in Summa. Only reconfiguration class that have a clear explanation and story, then it fast forward to three months later without showing any other classes and their struggle in learning. I want more of it actually.
Then the dance.
The dance was their essay for entering the school divisions, they shouldn't have already mastered the skills. They should show just enough ability to convince the division to accept them.
Lastly the romance, it okay for the first few chapters, then it become too much and distracting the story from the mission and studying. Zach and his branching romance was annoying and later cringey.
I like Thomas and Anna. They were drama free lol.
The last chapters were engaging with the twist. I like it.
The ending unfortunately was cliffhanger, because this is part of series.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews