John Sandford and Michele Cook follow up their New York Times bestseller, UNCAGED, with the next nail-biting installment in The Singular Menace series.
Shay Remby and her gang of renegades have struck a blow to the Singular Corporation. When they rescued Shay’s brother, Odin, from a secret Singular lab, they also liberated a girl. Singular has been experimenting on her, trying to implant a U.S. senator’s memories into her brain—with partial success. Fenfang is now a girl who literally knows too much.
Can the knowledge brought by ex-captives Odin and Fenfang help Shay and her friends expose the crimes of this corrupt corporation? Singular has already killed one of Shay’s band to protect their secrets. How many more will die before the truth is exposed?
John Sandford is the pen name of John Roswell Camp, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and bestselling author known for his gripping thrillers and popular crime series. After earning degrees in history, literature, and journalism from the University of Iowa, Camp began his writing career as a reporter, first at The Miami Herald and later at The Saint Paul Pioneer Press, where he earned critical acclaim for in-depth series on Native American communities and American farm life. His work won him the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing in 1986. In 1989, Camp transitioned into fiction, publishing two novels: The Fool's Run under his real name and Rules of Prey under the pseudonym John Sandford. The latter launched the long-running “Prey” series, starring Lucas Davenport, a sharp, fearless investigator navigating politically sensitive crimes across Minnesota and beyond. The series grew to include spin-offs and crossovers, notably featuring characters like Virgil Flowers, a laid-back BCA agent with a sharp wit, and Letty Davenport, Lucas's equally determined daughter, who stars in her own series starting in 2022. Sandford’s books have consistently appeared on the New York Times bestseller list, with over two dozen debuting at number one. Known for his dynamic storytelling, fast pacing, and keen attention to detail, Sandford combines his journalistic roots with a gift for character-driven narratives. He remains an avid reader and outdoorsman, and continues to write compelling fiction that resonates with readers who enjoy intelligent thrillers grounded in realism and driven by memorable protagonists.
The second book of a trilogy has a tendency to drag a little to set up for grand finale in the third book. This was NOT the case for Outrage. This is an action packed suspense story that I really enjoyed. Tara Sands, the narrator for the first audio book returns for the second installment. I have grown used to her style and find that it works well enough.
If you can't turn off your "reality checker," the story might be a tough read. The story and action sequences are pretty much like a Hollywood movie. Like the first book, I just rolled with the story and had a good time doing so.
The story picks up at the end of Uncaged. A group of teenagers taking on a powerful and ruthless research company conducting unethical research on humans. When they broke Odin out of a research holding facility, they also helped a young Chinese woman escape. They find out a conspiracy runs much deeper than they ever thought possible. The end of the first book was a minor cliffhanger. The end of the second book is a MAJOR cliffhanger.
Once again, the characters are well-written including X the dog. Shay, is the major player in the story. While I really like Shay's character, the things that she does are a real stretch for a 16 year old teenage girl. On the other hand, I like the way her character is developing. I'd like see her in some future story where she is older, say 18 or 19.
I'm going to have to take break from finishing this trilogy. I am full of anticipation to read the next and final book Rampage.
This is the sequel to Uncaged. Although this is labeled as a teen novel, I have enjoyed both books (and yes there will be a third in the series next year. The teens with their adult helpers are a very interesting cast if characters and I have enjoyed getting to know them all.
I just finished this book and it was amazing. I couldn't put the book down. I just spent the whole day reading this book because it was THAT GOOD. I'm also really sad because the book just ended of in the middle of nowhere. Then I find out that there is another book coming out in 2016. Like WTH. IM ALSO RLLY PISSED!!!! I need that book now PRONTO.
The book Outrage by John Sandford and Michele Cook is about a band of teenagers who are originally just standing up for animal rights. They find out a company called Singular is experimenting horribly with animals and go on a raid of one of their labs to find out more and do some damage. During this raid they find the company is doing work on humans to make them live forever, and they are treating these prisoners like lab rats. The teens do a lot more harm to Singular then they expected, and Singular gets to the point where they will shoot the teens on sight. The teens have to find out what they are capable of and who they can trust, and fast, before more people get hurt. John Sandford and Michele Cook create positive and even intimate relationships between the teens that are fighting for the right cause. This helps the reader connect to the characters and feel what they are going through even though the teens are doing things that aren't ordinary. The one quality I didn't like was how there were so many characters on each side that all had code names. It was hard to identify who was on the protagonist side or the antagonist side because the author was often switching sides during the conflicts to set up the story. The authors’ reason to write this story is to develop a sense of technological advancement at a cost. The authors’ other reason to write this book is to entertain the reader and create a thrilling picture in their mind. Being able to transfer your mind into someone else's body is a very advanced technological idea, but it is not worth killing innocent people. They don't have a choice but to let these rich people invade their minds and give up their entire life. A lot of important research can be done on humans, but it should not be done unless they volunteer. I would recommend this book because there is a lot of action and it is interesting with lots of plot twists. I would rate this book 4.5 out of 5 stars because it kept me turning the pages and the author did a good job of connecting me with the characters. Lastly, this book would be good for a reader who enjoys more of a science fiction theme and likes to be on the edge of their seats when reading a good book. I think people teenage years and up would enjoy this book because it is serious and has some graphic violence not appropriate for a younger audience.
This is a 3-4 star book. Gave it a 3 since it ends with a cliffhanger. AARRGGH I don't like those. On the other hand the character development is great! AND it is a good thing I can read the 3rd book in a couple weeks to find out the REAL ending :)
This is the second book in a series and is most certainly leading to a third, which I will definitely read. What starts out as a young animal rights group freeing some from a particular center turns into much more. Very intriguing, full of adventure, danger, and on the spot decisions for this young group.
"Outrage" the nerve-racking sequel in John Sandford and Michele Cook's exciting Singular Menace series begins after the escape of Shay's brother Odin and a Chinese prisoner from a secret Singular Laboratory. With a head full of wires and nodes and bound in chains, Shay and her friends soon discover that Fenfang holds the sporadic memories of U.S. Senator Charlotte Dash and whenever her alter personality surfaces Singular is not far behind.
Struggling to expose the corporate giant who's experimenting on humans their agenda suddenly becomes even more complicated when they begin hunting for the test subjects who Shay and her friends had to leave behind when they fled the laboratory. Now Singular's security has become even tighter and they know that there is a spy in the company especially after the death of Marcus West. When Shay contacts the leak in the upper echelons of Singular a trap is set that will not only expose him, but could lead to the capture of the Rembys and their team.
The plot is gripping, intense and quickly heats up when Shay and her friends not only begin hunting for the test subjects but Cade Holt is caught in a raid and a new ally with inside information is enlisted to further their fight. Fast-paced as events quickly unfold the action never stops. The story is well-written and spell-binding from the first chapter to the heart-stopping cliff-hanger at the end.
In this series John Sandford and Michele Cook have created characters that are unforgettable, emotionally intense and complex with all their flaws and faults. Shay Remby continues to be the tough, resourceful and impatient heroine who's not only skilled in rock-climbing and with a knife but is quickly learning to wield a gun. In this plot Shay and the stalwart, daring ex-gang member Cruz Perez have become romantically entangled which may eventually cause problems in her friendship with the cocky and arrogant hacker Cade Holt. Twist the talented artist with a host of shady connections continues to be quick-witted and sharp, while Odin the socially awkward computer genius begins to develop in unimaginable ways with Danny Dill's help. Yet it's the callous, and cold-blooded arrogance of antagonists like Sync, Thorne, and Charlotte Dash that add chilling excitement to this captivating story.
"Outrage" the second book in the" Singular Menace" series is highly- addictive and well-worth reading. I can't wait to see what's in store for Shay, Odin and their friends in the third book.
This is the second entry in a trilogy, it ends with a cliffhanger forcing the reader to read the 3rd book to find out what happens. Most books by Sandford, even though they are part of a series are stand alone. This series is meant for YA readers. The lines between good/evil are quite blurred. Will finish but I am not that impressed with this series.
I don't know if there was too long a gap from when I read the first book, but this fell really flat for me.
Singular is still trying to create immortality by putting people's memories in younger people. They hope to transfer the whole personality at some point. A lot of powerful people are involved including the VP of the USA. The rich and powerful hope to live forever and they don't care who gets hurt in the process.
Our group is still trying to stop them. They meet one of Singular's victims, Fenfang, during a rescue and they try to help her and use her condition to expose Singular. We meet some new characters, but no one in this book is particularly memorable for me.
There was some action, but the story didn't really move forward enough for me. Our group has some photographic evidence, Fenfang's X-rays and X the dog as proof of what Singular is doing. Two of our people are on a boat at the end, so there is another cliff hanger.
#2 in The Singular Menace series. This series is listed as YA, but it's a full adult readable action thriller. The group allied against Singular Corp. is comprised mostly of teens, including the 16 year old, unbelievably precocious Shay Remby, who had gotten involved, Uncaged (2014), when her autistic, animal rights, brother Odin went missing. This entry has plenty of action but ends in a cliffhanger; however #3 Rampage (2016) is already scheduled for publication.
Singular Menace series - YA - Shay Remby and her gang of renegades have struck a blow to the Singular Corporation. When they rescued Shay's brother, Odin, from a secret Singular lab, they also liberated a girl. Singular has been experimenting on her, trying to implant a U.S. senator's memories into her brain--with partial success. Fenfang is now a girl who literally knows too much. Can the knowledge brought by ex-captives Odin and Fenfang help Shay and her friends expose the crimes of this corrupt corporation?
I was a little disappointed in this one. I'm a big Sandford fan, and I enjoyed the first book in the series well enough. This one just had a little too much teen angst for me to fully enjoy. The characters are all identified by just one name (Cade, Twist, Shay, Harmon, etc..), even the antagonists are identified in the same way. Its a petty thing to bother me, but it just felt too forced - like most of the action throughout the book. Its amazing how teenagers can outwit mature ex-Seals and CIA bad guys with little or no trouble. I feel like the co-author must have penned the majority of this one, and Sandford just lent his name... Anyway, other than that, the writing and pacing are fine, and the story does have some merit. I just expected a little more as I did enjoy book one quite a bit. Not sure if I'll pursue the third book in the series....
OVERVIEW: Shay Remby (age 16) and her gang of renegades have struck a blow to the Singular Corporation. When they rescued Shay’s brother, (18-year-old) Odin, from a secret Singular lab, they also liberated a girl. Singular has been experimenting on her, trying to implant a U.S. senator’s (Senator Charlotte Dash) memories into her brain—with partial success. Fenfang is now a girl who literally knows too much.
Begins just where book 1 ended. Shay has cut her distinctive red tresses and along with X-5 (aka, X) the biomechanically enhanced dog, has dyed her hair black. In their Reno, Nevada hotel room hide out, Shay provides bolt cutters from Home Depot to release Fenfang from the chains still binding her.
Shay is outraged over the murder of their friend and ally Marcus West, an investigator for Singular, as well as all the other atrocities. Her plan: revenge and no mercy.
Fenfang (the girl with 2 brains) is a Chinese University student who was kidnapped near the North Korean border, drugged, transported by ship and turned into a mind transfer experiment by the Singular Corporation.
Singular seems to be trying to achieve a form of immortality, for sale to the rich and powerful. Since they cannot create a brain or body, they kidnap expendable people, erase their memories and move the mind of another person into that unoccupied brain / body. It's still in the experimental phase, requiring many test subjects--kidnapped victims who will eventually die from the experiment.
Fenfang has 400 holes drilled in her skull with tiny wires protruding from each. For the initial experiment some of Senator Charlotte Dash's memories were implanted in Fenfang's brain. At times the Senator's personality takes control, turning Fenfang into an enemy in their midst. Most of the time Fenfang is in control, but suffers from seizures and wears a wig to hide her wire-covered, shaved skull. She's not expected to live long, but Singular has gained valuable data for use on the next kidnapped test subjects.
Shay's gang of renegades include: her mildly autistic, computer genius brother Odin; Twist a wealthy artist who runs a teen rescue shelter; Cruz an ex-gangster from East LA; Cade Holt a hacker / computer punk and Fenfang who has to be watched in case the senator's persona shows up again and tries to stab them.
The gang's plan is simple: stay alive while trying to expose Singular's criminal activity (kidnapping, human experiments, murder, etc.) unfortunately they are outmanned, outgunned and outsmarted. In addition to the Singular thugs, the senator is in collusion with the VP of the USA. Together they have access to the US intelligence community, the NSA and all the others.
The US vice president warns Cartwell to get the situation under control or else. Or else, means they may take over Singular and get rid of the CEO and his team.
Shay and company decide to gather proof: X-rays of Fenfang's skull and hidden camera video of the senator and Dr. Janes, the lead scientist. Someone inside Singular is secretly helping them, sending a message that helped them avoid capture. It's Harmon the intelligence chief / the insider, he was upset and conflicted over the death of his friend West and only recently learned about the human experiments.
The gang succeeds at obtaining video and files, but the senator's guard dogs leave X and Cruz wounded. Dr Janes fools them, he gives a bogus code that erases the encrypted thumb drive files they stolen in book 1. However, Odin and Shay learn that their mom worked with Dr Janes years earlier and the story of her death (scuba diving in Australia) may not be true. Their parents supposedly died in separate accidents and after grandma died they were both raised in foster care.
Now the CEO Cartwell and Sync the security chief set a trap to catch the informer. They give all the suspects a different bogus location for the new detention center. When Shay's gang shows up at the Stockton address with Molotov cocktails, a flaming truck and calls to the police, Sync knows Harmon is their traitor. The bad guys also kidnap Cade. So Harmon joins Shay's gang, they kidnap CEO Cartwell to get Cade released and together hunt down the new prisoner/test subject location--it's on a ship.
Danny Dill, is Twist's pot-growing pal who provides them a hideout in the woods and is such an addled pacifist he'd let himself be robbed before ever shooting any bad guys, even though he owns guns. He even has a completely illegal M16 machine gun which he fires into the side of the ship for the sound effect, not to harm anyone.
At the docks Shay and Harmon sneak aboard, verify the ugly truth, test subjects galore just like Fenfang, but they're discovered and a gunfight ensues just as RVs and SUVs bringing more prisoners and guards arrive. Fenfang runs into the open when she sees her cousin Liko among the arriving prisoners, she's shot.
The gang takes Fenfang, retreats to their vehicles and escape, dropping her at a hospital and calling the police. They hear no sirens and so slowly drive by the pier. There's one cop car, no ship, no RVs, nothing--the bastards got away with it, again. And Shay, with her trusty mutt X and Harmon are still on board, hiding.
.
Mostly enjoyed it, even with the eye-rolling, unbelievable parts. Has some anti-gun nonsense typical of the liberal nut, the author John Sanford.
.
The Singular Menace series: (Young adult audience)
I was annoyed that there was no real ending for the book. Hubby picked this out as an audio book that we could listen to on drives. Interesting plot, interesting characters, but I didn’t like the reader and the various voices. And I really didn’t like that I must read the next book to get an ending.
I could give 85 stars just for the characters in these books you fall in love with them as soon as you meet them. The authors do an amazing job with character development and I'm so mad it's only a trilogy! I'm going to miss the characters so much!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
This series is so freaking good. SO GOOD. I can't believe I have to wait over a year for the third book though. It's just too long! And this ends on such a cliffhanger, ahhh!
It's been about two years since I read, enjoyed and reviewed the duo's first novel, Uncaged. I remember saying if Sly Cooper teamed up with a master thief who recruited kids, that would be the novelization. I rated it 3 stars, and I guess while there was a cliffhanger, the character that met his match was one I didn't care much for, so I didn't feel the urge to bite my fingernails off and promise I wouldn't cut my toenail even if it got ingrown until I got my hands on a copy of the sequel. But I've finally returned to the world of sneaky YA corruption, and here's what I thought.
So, Singular is the name of a company that is trying to develop immortality. Simple yet brilliant if you ask me. To do so, they are testing compounds and gizmos on some animals, including humans at this point. In the first book, an autistic vegetarian kid named Odin and his animal rights activists found out about this, and like in the Virals series, he sneaks in and rescues a dog named X and has no choice but to leave him with his outcast sister, Shay, who's found a temporary home in a slum-esque part of Hollywood, run by a man named Twist who hospitalizes a hotel of people who leave their freshly-chewed gum on desk undersides and can pack a punch. Now Odin, Shay, X, Twist, and two friends Cade and Cruz, are on the run with a girl who had they suspect a brain transplant, and she might be the one to lead to the way they will expose Singular's criminal actions.
My favourite aspect of this book is the new character, Danny. He's a drug dealer and farmer and just a noble uncle type. I enjoyed how his business is not really the spotlight of the film, because I'm kind of sick of seeing or reading about people on the black market getting handcuffed without the backstory of their business or themselves. Danny willingly helps out Shay with firing a gun even though he doesn't use them much himself...it's just a nice and humble element.
I also enjoyed how much I can compare this to a strategy game. Both Singular and Twist keep trying to stay a step ahead and take every precaution possible. You never really 100% know who's ahead and if one side is falling into a trap, or has already fallen into one. They have a realistic way of communicating as well, and even a funny way too: primarily through Facebook pages. And you know how hard it is to find very concrete information these days? In the wake of the Trump-Clinton bloodbath, uncovering stories with 100% fact is tougher than ever and Shay knows if they don't do their actions properly, Singular will manufacture new evidence and bury the story. This book and the other one got me interested in stories that have been falsified over the decades.
Some criticism comes from comparing this book to the first one. In Uncaged, Shay and her team did stunts such as displaying a big banner on a Wall-Street-esque building with razor wire so it would take more time to be taken off. Then they snuck past the fence surrounding the Hollywood hill and decorated it with Christmas lights displaying a URL to lead a police investigation. Basically, these ideas were fun stunts that I wished were true. In this book, the crew still do some really cobra-stinging anarchy but without that feeling of fun. Instead, they break into a home with locks and security dogs, infiltrate a party and hide a very significant man in a bathroom stall where he won't be able to move. In Uncaged, there was a clear amount of annoyance and even legit anger with this corrupt company. In this novel, Shay and her friends are calling most of the shots and it's not quite the same here. It's I guess more investing when you have a corrupt leader and they do stuff front and centre. They did it in the last book, just not as much here.
Also, there's a member of Singular having second thoughts, and his desire to do the right thing is obviously a good message but at this point in time, the idea felt simple, yet not so brilliant to me.
This sequel to The Singular Menace is nowhere near as inventive or fun as the first book, and doesn't deliver the same cruelty on the opposing side that makes Singular so infuriatingly corrupt, but its high stakes still transcribe here, and when things end up going from here to there, the conclusion, Rampage, feels like it's going to be a big knockout.
“Outrage,” the second book in the series The Singular Menace created by John Sandford and Michele Cook, was very enjoyable because it was exciting from the beginning to the end. Like the first book in the series, I selected it because it took place in the modern era which is the time period I grew up in. It also got my attention because it was about people on the run, so I knew it would be full of action and suspense. It exceeded my expectations for the action, suspense, and character development. I really liked all of the characters in the book because they actually talked and acted like me and the people I see everyday, so I was able to easily relate to them. In addition, all of the main characters including, Shay, Twist, Cade, Odin, and Cruz, are in my age group, so I was able to understand the problems and challenges they were facing. At the start of the book, Shay was a nice fifteen old girl who did not want to hurt anybody. However, as the book goes on, she ends up becoming the exact opposite. She becomes someone who will fight for what she believes in, and will give no mercy to anyone telling her otherwise. She shows this when she finds out that the man she is interrogating killed her friend: “She was standing right behind Thorne and she kicked him in the crotch. She kicked him like an NFL punter would kick a football, like a German soccer star would shoot on goal”(Sandford, Cook, 268). This was the beginning of Shay’s new identity as she was becoming a stronger individual. She becomes someone who believes that changes will occur only if someone does something about it. Her character is very motivating and makes the reader want to fight for what is right. “Outrage” is a book written for teenagers. I only recommend it to teenagers and above because throughout the book there is dialogue that involves mature language not suitable for younger readers. The readers that will thoroughly enjoy this book are those people who enjoy action and suspense. They will be intrigued as they discover characters who have multiple sides and are emotional, but will not back down in a fight. I certainly enjoyed the story and the characters, and know that if you read this book you won't have an “Outrage.”
Book 1 of this 3-book series was sort of fun, sort of disappointing, and net just enough to prompt me to read book 2. At now 50% complete I’ve decided to stop reading it. Why? The following from my review of book 1 explains:
“I fancy myself able to set aside reality when reading fiction. After all the premise of fiction is not-real. Definitional. That noted, some genres are admittedly more fanciful and fantastical [than others]. I perhaps mistakenly classified this novel as fictional action / crime / thriller … along the lines of other Sandford series. Action? Yes. Crime? Yes. Thriller? Yes. Fantasy? Well, I find myself needing to suspend reality a bit more than typical … approaching fantasy. Seventeen and 18-year olds (what are the odds at that age) siblings (what are the odds?) with perfectly complimentary skills (what are the odds?) to match the trained pros (what are the odds?) who are themselves already in the top 1% of the top 1% in their profession.”
In book 2 the fantasy accelerates to, for example, include a corrupted U.S. Senator, a corrupted U.S. Vice President, a compromised NSA, etc. Plausible? Sort of. After all there seems no lack of corruption in public institutions. Probable to the degree of the suggested techno-conspiracy … hmm let me think about that. Don’t think so. Probable that a couple of teens and some heretofore dysfunctional new friends could by banding together become the dream team to bring it all down? Hmmm. Another puzzler … not.
And I suppose I’m weary of conspiracy as the form of evil it surely is.
Second in this YA series about a successful, eccentric 30-something LA artist (the bankroll) and a group of teen-activists who are taking on sinister Singular Corporation that is trying to achieve a screwball immortality for the few who can pay. The entitled's memories are implanted via wires stuck into the brains of kidnapped young-ish Chinese and Korean men and women with the goal of the implantees eventually becoming the young versions of those who want to live forever. Gruesome and murderous lab experiments and conspiracies that go to the highest levels of government and in more than one country.
Twist (artist), Shay (16 y/0 female bada$$), her autistic brother Odin, X (Singular lab dog rescued in Book 1 and a key companion and lookout), Cruz (former gangbanger), Cade (computer whiz), and Danny (friend of Twist and successful weed entrepreneur) have rescued Fenfang, a Chinese woman who's been implanted with the memories of US NM Senator Charlotte Dash, who's nearly as ruthless as the various Singular players.
Lots of pursuing, plotting, and driving around in California and the West. Fenfang is a crucial, and likable character whose implants are relentlessly causing her to whipsaw between herself and Dash and to experience dreadful seizures. She's a key piece of evidence the good guys use to try to publicize what Singular and its customers are doing.
Fast-paced with a cliffhanger ending setup for Book 3, which I've seamlessly segued into.
I've been craving straight-up thriller entertainment, and the Singular series fits the bill.
This is a very difficult book to rate. John Sandford is one of my favorite authors. Even though this series is not his usual and he co-authored it (not a fan), I decided to read it anyway. Uncaged (book 1) was good and ended in a typical fashion for a series. There was a bit of a cliffhanger ending but there was an ending. Outrage (book 2) was ok - actually dragged in spots but it doesn't even have an ending. This is like a serial read and you need all the books to get to the end.
Did not expect that nor do I like it! This was a 300+ page book - I EXPECTED AN ENDING. Had each of the books in the series indicated the story was not complete but was a serial (not a series) - I would have known and made the decision to read all or none of them. Deceptive way to sell books, Mr Sandford - YOU ARE BETTER THAN THAT!
Enjoyed this second book in the series. It ended with a cliff hanger to get you to read the next book in the series. In this story Shay and her friends free her brother Odin and an Asian woman who has been experimented on. After figuring out what has happened to the woman they go after the Singular company trying to find where some others have been hidden and stop them doing human experiments. They want to expose the awful things they are doing. They are on the run a lot hiding their location from Singular who have a lot of resources to track them. It is interesting to see what they can accomplish. There are several mishaps along the way and some of their people get hurt. Lots of action, good plot, keeps you interested.
While rescuing her brother from Singular's prison, Shay and her friends also rescue FenFang. She is a Chinese girl whose brain has been invaded by Singular. They implanted electrodes into her brain - a cluster of wires and beading which cause her to have seizures and without treatment, will ultimately kill her.
Memories belonging to a Senator have been planted in her brain, and this personality is attempting to take over FenFang's thoughts and actions.
With the help of a few people inside the Singular organization, Shay and her friends attempt to help FenFang and unveil the hidden horrors inside Singular.
Heard this on CD. Second book in the "Singular Menace" trilogy. Picks right up from the end of "Uncaged" (book 1) and takes off at full speed. My only complaint with the book is that it really can't be fully enjoyed as a standalone book - too much back story you need to know, although the authors did a pretty good job of catching new readers up, and book two leaves the reader at a major cliffhanger - it does not give the reader a satisfying ending. Didn't bother me too much as I fully intended to read/listen to book three.