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Maximum Ride #1-5
Maximum Ride Five-Book Set
1250 pages, Paperback
First published November 20, 2009
33 people are currently reading
3427 people want to read
About the author
James Patterson
951 books355k followersOfficial US Site
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead
James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead
James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
July 26, 2012
My favorite set of books I have ever read. I would reccomend this to anyone. Whether you're 10, 15, or 40 the story is worth while. The detail is so rich you feel like you are in the skies with them, you get to know the characters so well how they act, speak, what they think you would consder them your friends! It's absolutley insane, in an awesome rare kind of insane. I love when books are so captivating, so utterly enthralling you can't put them down, and this book lives up to that and is the epitome of incredible writing.
January 13, 2013
Most of my friends (including me) were reading this book during the same time period, and they were all so crazy about the series. I read the first book, and I liked it. It was ok. I read the second, hmm. It's fine. Until I read the fourth. Or fifth. Meh, doesn't really make a difference to be honest. I could just summarize the entire series in one paragraph. No really, I'm serious.
The problem with this book is that so many events happen that add up to nothing. They are so useless, it doesn't make sense. What's the point about adding events that wouldn't really make much of a difference whether they were there or not?
I added the "one" star to the rating only because the idea that Patterson gives in this book was really unique and nice. It was different, but he could have made it much more enjoyable.
I think one or two new books of the series came out. Not sure really. If I do read them at some point, it means I've definitely run out of other books to read.
Read the books if you want. Or don't. Like I said, no difference made. :p Just my personal opinion.
The problem with this book is that so many events happen that add up to nothing. They are so useless, it doesn't make sense. What's the point about adding events that wouldn't really make much of a difference whether they were there or not?
I added the "one" star to the rating only because the idea that Patterson gives in this book was really unique and nice. It was different, but he could have made it much more enjoyable.
I think one or two new books of the series came out. Not sure really. If I do read them at some point, it means I've definitely run out of other books to read.
Read the books if you want. Or don't. Like I said, no difference made. :p Just my personal opinion.
April 5, 2025
For some reason I gave the Maximum Ride Five Book Set 3 stars in 2013. I don't know why I did that, but she (me in 2013) has spoken and I'm not going to change it now. That being said, today in 2024 I would give books 1-5, and only books 1-5, 5 stars. The reason being that I truly believe this series changed the trajectory of my life.
Fang leaving in book 6 was literally the most painful and traumatic experience of my entire life, worse than any breakup, worse than any death, worse than literally anything else I have ever experienced. After Fang left was the only time in my entire life I met the criteria for depression (To be diagnosed with depression, a person must have symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for at least 2 weeks — the National Institute of Mental Health).
My mom was so desperate to help me out of this depression that she went and found the James Patterson blog and community forum, Max-Dan-Wiz, which doesn't even exist anymore. My own mother explained to me that there was something called "fanfiction" and people could write alternate endings to Maximum Ride. You can see where this is going.
So then for months I spent every night from 10pm-2am reading Maximum Ride fanfics on Max-Dan-Wiz. From there, somebody recommended some other fanfic website, I think Quizilla(?) that probably also doesn't exist anymore. Then I migrated over there and stayed a while. Eventually one of my favorite authors there announced they were permanently migrating to a different website...a brand new website... one that we all know today. And that website was WATTPAD (early Wattpad, before it became monetized). Oh yes. I fell into the Maximum Ride --> WATTPAD pipeline.
Today as a fully developed adult with a serious job, I spend my free time devouring stalker romance, werewolf romance, and sometimes even vampires, fairies, aliens, snakes, spiders, krakens, dragons, and there may have been a troll or two. And you can thank James Patterson, Fang, and my mother 12 years ago.
Fang leaving in book 6 was literally the most painful and traumatic experience of my entire life, worse than any breakup, worse than any death, worse than literally anything else I have ever experienced. After Fang left was the only time in my entire life I met the criteria for depression (To be diagnosed with depression, a person must have symptoms most of the day, nearly every day, for at least 2 weeks — the National Institute of Mental Health).
My mom was so desperate to help me out of this depression that she went and found the James Patterson blog and community forum, Max-Dan-Wiz, which doesn't even exist anymore. My own mother explained to me that there was something called "fanfiction" and people could write alternate endings to Maximum Ride. You can see where this is going.
So then for months I spent every night from 10pm-2am reading Maximum Ride fanfics on Max-Dan-Wiz. From there, somebody recommended some other fanfic website, I think Quizilla(?) that probably also doesn't exist anymore. Then I migrated over there and stayed a while. Eventually one of my favorite authors there announced they were permanently migrating to a different website...a brand new website... one that we all know today. And that website was WATTPAD (early Wattpad, before it became monetized). Oh yes. I fell into the Maximum Ride --> WATTPAD pipeline.
Today as a fully developed adult with a serious job, I spend my free time devouring stalker romance, werewolf romance, and sometimes even vampires, fairies, aliens, snakes, spiders, krakens, dragons, and there may have been a troll or two. And you can thank James Patterson, Fang, and my mother 12 years ago.
August 8, 2010
I absolutely love this series! I'm a sci-fi/action-adventure nut, so this series is right up my alley. The characters are likeable, the series as a whole is gripping (though book four was lacking), and I find myself counting down the days until the next book is released. It's definitely a series I'd want on my bookshelf.
There are times where it feels like James Patterson has left a bunch of loose ends and plot bunnies behind and forgotten them, and since the series is over halfway through I wish he'd tie some of them up instead of creating more, but they're not so detrimental to the series that it'd take away from the enjoyment--if anything, the uncertainties make the fan base flourish with speculation and curiosity. And who knows, maybe as the series draws to a close more questions will be answered. Either way, I would (and have) recommend this book to all teens I know, even the ones who don't like to read. Boys and girls alike will enjoy this series.
There are times where it feels like James Patterson has left a bunch of loose ends and plot bunnies behind and forgotten them, and since the series is over halfway through I wish he'd tie some of them up instead of creating more, but they're not so detrimental to the series that it'd take away from the enjoyment--if anything, the uncertainties make the fan base flourish with speculation and curiosity. And who knows, maybe as the series draws to a close more questions will be answered. Either way, I would (and have) recommend this book to all teens I know, even the ones who don't like to read. Boys and girls alike will enjoy this series.
May 18, 2011
I really liked the whole series and am impatiently waiting the next book. The sci-fi and the super villians and amount of them become a little complicated in The Final Warning, Max, and Fang. Either it was better in Angel or I am now up to speed. Not too much to understand the plot. Basically, no one can be trusted, everyone wants them for their own purposes ie scientific experimentation, super soldiers, personal bodyguards etc. and their are a lot more genetically mutated good people out their. Nothing too heavy for X-men fan.
January 25, 2011
An amazing series. James patterson is an amazing writter who can take you into his book. When reading you actually visualize and feel like your those characters and that you have their emotions. This story is great with a building potential all the way. The things he puts all of these kids through especially Max are amazing and yet they seem entirely plausible to us. This was the first series I read of James Patterson and now I have read many more of his books and continue to do so.
October 8, 2020
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“Holy [Insert your choice of a swear word here]," said Fang stunned.
I always want to scream a little bit in frustration whenever I see James Patterson's name on anything, and it's all because of this stupid book. Over the years, Maximum Ride has kind of stuck with me as an example of precisely how to eviscerate a genuinely intriguing premise with poor writing, shell characters masquerading as people with depth, and general word-vomit. It truly feels as though Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment exists basically for Patterson to announce to the world that he thinks teenagers are idiots. And what's depressing is that this isn't even the only poorly written drivel that Patterson has put out there. In my experience, that's almost all that he ever writes.
to Destroy a Decent Premise
I remember the first time I found Maximum Ride, I remember being really enamored with the idea behind it. A group of kids who were experimented on and escaped? Experiments that resulted in the kids having bird characteristics, wings included? This book sounded great. And I think Patterson knew that about his premise.
What I think he also thought was that if he just word vomited a terribly written book with a decent plot idea behind it, he'd make a lot of money off young readers. And yeah, that's exactly what he did. Because this book is both terribly plotted and terribly written. But the idea that started it? Yeah, that was pretty good.
Perhaps it was easy for Patterson to pump out a batch of novels by putting minimal efforts into the writing. But it left us with some of the most painful writing I've ever seen in literature. He never really put any depth into anything and this always bugged the hell out of me. This book and series always felt like a way of saying teenagers didn't deserve well thought, profound, or intelligent fiction. It felt like he just wrote it with the sole purpose of making money.
Disappointment
If you're looking for anything worthwhile in this novel, you're not going to find it. Maximum Ride is very clearly written by an old man who doesn't remember what it's like to be a teenager. His main character, Max, is meant to be an edgy heroine. But instead, she reads more like a little girl trying too hard to be cool and never really succeeding. There's no depth or dimension to any of the characters. Often times, instead of following an actual plot, Patterson has a habit of spiraling off into random pointless events that add absolutely nothing of substance to the novel as a whole.
I can't believe the number of instances where we are subjected to the most random and useless scenes in the lives of these characters. And it all seems to be solely for the purpose of padding the novel with extra pages. You could skip multiple chapters and still not read anything pertaining to the overall plot. Skipping even more chapters takes nothing away from anything you read.
The plot, itself, isn't bad. I actually really liked the premise when I first picked it up. I also kind of liked the world that Patterson built. But barring those initial concepts, there's not much to applaud about this book. Nothing he ever writes really does anything impressive with these themes and ideas. You get bare-bones plots and characters, leaving you feeling like you read an empty shell of a book. And yet the blurb that enticed you to pick it up in the first place had promised you so much more.
Just...Skip It
This book series is the sole reason behind my absolute distaste for anything with Patterson's name on it. It genuinely bugs the heck out of me that he's getting other authors published with his James Patterson Presents. I know first hand how vapid his novels are and hate that he's putting his name on the works of others. Granted, I would never judge another author's writing capabilities by another author's books, but I can't help the grating feeling I get whenever I see his name on a book. Maximum Ride made it incredibly difficult for me to take this author seriously at all.
The story as a whole amounts to what is basically power-written drivel, devoid of any substance at all. And it's a real shame because I truly do believe that the premise had a lot of promise. It's just a shame that it all turned out to be a pitiful waste. I think, ultimately, that I'd love to see a similar premise written by a more competent author who actually cares enough to spend the time and effort to really develop both plot and characters.
TLDR; Maximum Ride is a desultory waste of time and money, despite sounding interesting on paper.
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“Holy [Insert your choice of a swear word here]," said Fang stunned.
I always want to scream a little bit in frustration whenever I see James Patterson's name on anything, and it's all because of this stupid book. Over the years, Maximum Ride has kind of stuck with me as an example of precisely how to eviscerate a genuinely intriguing premise with poor writing, shell characters masquerading as people with depth, and general word-vomit. It truly feels as though Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment exists basically for Patterson to announce to the world that he thinks teenagers are idiots. And what's depressing is that this isn't even the only poorly written drivel that Patterson has put out there. In my experience, that's almost all that he ever writes.
to Destroy a Decent Premise
I remember the first time I found Maximum Ride, I remember being really enamored with the idea behind it. A group of kids who were experimented on and escaped? Experiments that resulted in the kids having bird characteristics, wings included? This book sounded great. And I think Patterson knew that about his premise.
What I think he also thought was that if he just word vomited a terribly written book with a decent plot idea behind it, he'd make a lot of money off young readers. And yeah, that's exactly what he did. Because this book is both terribly plotted and terribly written. But the idea that started it? Yeah, that was pretty good.
Perhaps it was easy for Patterson to pump out a batch of novels by putting minimal efforts into the writing. But it left us with some of the most painful writing I've ever seen in literature. He never really put any depth into anything and this always bugged the hell out of me. This book and series always felt like a way of saying teenagers didn't deserve well thought, profound, or intelligent fiction. It felt like he just wrote it with the sole purpose of making money.
Disappointment
If you're looking for anything worthwhile in this novel, you're not going to find it. Maximum Ride is very clearly written by an old man who doesn't remember what it's like to be a teenager. His main character, Max, is meant to be an edgy heroine. But instead, she reads more like a little girl trying too hard to be cool and never really succeeding. There's no depth or dimension to any of the characters. Often times, instead of following an actual plot, Patterson has a habit of spiraling off into random pointless events that add absolutely nothing of substance to the novel as a whole.
I can't believe the number of instances where we are subjected to the most random and useless scenes in the lives of these characters. And it all seems to be solely for the purpose of padding the novel with extra pages. You could skip multiple chapters and still not read anything pertaining to the overall plot. Skipping even more chapters takes nothing away from anything you read.
The plot, itself, isn't bad. I actually really liked the premise when I first picked it up. I also kind of liked the world that Patterson built. But barring those initial concepts, there's not much to applaud about this book. Nothing he ever writes really does anything impressive with these themes and ideas. You get bare-bones plots and characters, leaving you feeling like you read an empty shell of a book. And yet the blurb that enticed you to pick it up in the first place had promised you so much more.
Just...Skip It
This book series is the sole reason behind my absolute distaste for anything with Patterson's name on it. It genuinely bugs the heck out of me that he's getting other authors published with his James Patterson Presents. I know first hand how vapid his novels are and hate that he's putting his name on the works of others. Granted, I would never judge another author's writing capabilities by another author's books, but I can't help the grating feeling I get whenever I see his name on a book. Maximum Ride made it incredibly difficult for me to take this author seriously at all.
The story as a whole amounts to what is basically power-written drivel, devoid of any substance at all. And it's a real shame because I truly do believe that the premise had a lot of promise. It's just a shame that it all turned out to be a pitiful waste. I think, ultimately, that I'd love to see a similar premise written by a more competent author who actually cares enough to spend the time and effort to really develop both plot and characters.
TLDR; Maximum Ride is a desultory waste of time and money, despite sounding interesting on paper.
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March 16, 2010
Patterson creates a adventure of winged experiments that will have you on the floor laughing in tears. it's a very entertaining book with a of fun characters. i recommend this series
August 27, 2010
I loved The Maximum Ride Series. There is a lot of thrill and suspense. It is an adventurous sci-fi, but it has a romantic side to it too. I would recommend this book to teenagers.
September 14, 2010
This series is sooooo good!!!! It's really action-packed and interesting!
October 20, 2010
It's interesting, it's funny, it's romance-ful, it's sassy, what else could you ask? Oh yeah, there's also lots of gorey action in it
November 5, 2010
Maximum ride books are "ftw". It created emotion in me that I never knew I had, compasion. haha! just messing.
March 1, 2011
These were all entertaining, creative and an easy read. Fun books, not classics, but neat.
September 28, 2011
From the very first sentence, I instantly was captivated and I couldn't stop flipping through the pages, even when it was 2:30 in the morning!
November 1, 2011
I loved these books! They were so good, James Paterson is one of my favorite writers!There is alot of action and suspence which I really liked! Over all it was a great series to read!
Read
February 13, 2011sssssssssssooooooooooooooooo gggggggggooooooooooddddddddd !!!!!!!!!!!!
"so good !!!!!!!!!!!!"
"so good !!!!!!!!!!!!"
November 19, 2017
He should have stopped after book 5
February 24, 2018
Though the plot of these books is shallow... i thought they were incredibly enjoyable to read through!
August 5, 2021
I read the entire series but I didnt feel like adding them all bc there's a shit ton. But I enjoyed them a lot! I don't read Patterson typically but these were a great exception
December 22, 2022
Enjoyed the book as a kid. I especially liked that they literally had wings and needed to deal with the logistics of hiding them.
February 15, 2023
Earlier books are better. Great quick read.
April 28, 2024
This series is actually so badly written, but something about it captivated me IMMEDIATELY. Read all the books up to "Angel" in like a week or two.
October 27, 2017
Full of twists and turns, this action packed book series is one of the best series I've read. If you enjoy betrayal and heartbreaks this is the book for you! One of James Patterson's best book series yet!💗
September 7, 2014
The Maximum Ride series by James Patterson follows six kids: Max, Fang, Iggy, Gazzy, and Angel. These aren't just any kids, though. These kids can fly.
Raised in a horrible place called "the school" our six main characters were tested on for the first few years of their lives, until they were rescued by a man named Jeb, which resulted in them having wings. The School tried to create many different hybrids, but so far the avian hybrids were the only ones who were successful. Oh, and the Erasers: half wolf, half human, and hungry for the bird kids' blood.
Where the first book, Maximum Ride and the Angel Experiment, Angel has been kidnapped by the Erasers and taken back to the school. Max and the other kids have to try and save her, and on the way discover some interesting things about their past and their parents.
Over all, it's a good series, but has some major issues that I'll address below:
A more in-depth rant on how I feel about these books:
I've read James Patterson's entire Maximum Ride series multiple times. This is obviously just the five-book set, but I have read and enjoyed all eight books.
HOWEVER...
I really do think that this series could've ended after the fourth book, Maximum Ride: The Final Warning. Now, technically James Patterson broke this series up into two different series, the first one ending after the third book. This makes no sense at all to me, because where the third book ends is not a satisfying end to that chunk of the series, and really if anything the first one should've ended after book four, like I said earlier.
After The Final Warning, I really think that things started to go downhill. The fifth book, Max, for example, adds little to nothing to the series in my opinion. It isn't even necessary to the story, and I think that you could completely skip Max and not be at all confused in the next book. It pretty much seems like James Patterson took a very successful storyline and tried to draw it out as much as he could.
If you're planning on reading the Maximum Ride series but don't feel like sticking with it through eight books that gradually lose the excitement, I would recommend reading only the first four books. However, it is quite possible that, like me, you'll become extremely attached to our main characters after the first four books and want to continue with them for four more, which is another good way to go. Yes, the books lose some of the magic as you continue, but I can't blame you if you want the whole story because James Patterson is a phenomenal story teller and you will love all of these characters.
I gave these books three out of five stars, but the majority of the books really deserve five star ratings. I felt like I had to dock points, however, because of the ending of the series not satisfying me at all. If James Patterson is going to continue the story after having a perfectly acceptable ending in the fourth book, then the ending in the eighth book had better be an even better ending, and for me, it wasn't. Now they've just announced that James Patterson is releasing a NINTH book in the series, and I can't decide how I feel about that. Of course I plan on reading it, but I really hope that this is going to be the last book in the series. Yes, I love the characters and don't want my time with them to be over, but enough is enough. If the books in this series get into double digits, I don't think I will continue reading.
Raised in a horrible place called "the school" our six main characters were tested on for the first few years of their lives, until they were rescued by a man named Jeb, which resulted in them having wings. The School tried to create many different hybrids, but so far the avian hybrids were the only ones who were successful. Oh, and the Erasers: half wolf, half human, and hungry for the bird kids' blood.
Where the first book, Maximum Ride and the Angel Experiment, Angel has been kidnapped by the Erasers and taken back to the school. Max and the other kids have to try and save her, and on the way discover some interesting things about their past and their parents.
Over all, it's a good series, but has some major issues that I'll address below:
A more in-depth rant on how I feel about these books:
I've read James Patterson's entire Maximum Ride series multiple times. This is obviously just the five-book set, but I have read and enjoyed all eight books.
HOWEVER...
I really do think that this series could've ended after the fourth book, Maximum Ride: The Final Warning. Now, technically James Patterson broke this series up into two different series, the first one ending after the third book. This makes no sense at all to me, because where the third book ends is not a satisfying end to that chunk of the series, and really if anything the first one should've ended after book four, like I said earlier.
After The Final Warning, I really think that things started to go downhill. The fifth book, Max, for example, adds little to nothing to the series in my opinion. It isn't even necessary to the story, and I think that you could completely skip Max and not be at all confused in the next book. It pretty much seems like James Patterson took a very successful storyline and tried to draw it out as much as he could.
If you're planning on reading the Maximum Ride series but don't feel like sticking with it through eight books that gradually lose the excitement, I would recommend reading only the first four books. However, it is quite possible that, like me, you'll become extremely attached to our main characters after the first four books and want to continue with them for four more, which is another good way to go. Yes, the books lose some of the magic as you continue, but I can't blame you if you want the whole story because James Patterson is a phenomenal story teller and you will love all of these characters.
I gave these books three out of five stars, but the majority of the books really deserve five star ratings. I felt like I had to dock points, however, because of the ending of the series not satisfying me at all. If James Patterson is going to continue the story after having a perfectly acceptable ending in the fourth book, then the ending in the eighth book had better be an even better ending, and for me, it wasn't. Now they've just announced that James Patterson is releasing a NINTH book in the series, and I can't decide how I feel about that. Of course I plan on reading it, but I really hope that this is going to be the last book in the series. Yes, I love the characters and don't want my time with them to be over, but enough is enough. If the books in this series get into double digits, I don't think I will continue reading.
October 18, 2011
Maximum Ride, the fast-paced, fantasy James Patterson thriller. I read the books addictively over one spring break, around the time "Fang" came out. On average, I finished one a day. While I loved the books while I was reading them, I realized after that the series is inconsistant and that frustrated me, and still continues to.
I had to drag myself through the seventh book in the series, "Angel", and to hope to God Patterson wasn't lying when he said "The End of Maximum Ride" will actually be the last book, because he has changed his mind before.
The series focuses on a test-tube baby named Maximum Ride, or Max, who was injected with avian DNA, giving her wings and several special abilities. She's the leader of a rag-tag group of other winged children; Fang, her hot second-in-command and main love interest of the series, Iggy, who is blind and loves explosives, Nudge, the sweetheart that longs to be normal, Gasman, the eight-year-old cutie pie who also loes explosives, and Angel, the obnoxious, bratty, insane, and very, very annoying six-year-old. Eventually, this expands to include Total, a winged, talking dog, and Dylan, an annoying clone of some kid that was meant to be Max's perfect match.
The main inconsistencies? The first three books focus on finding and defeating a character called The Director, and when they find her, she says that she's Max's mom, and then it turns out that its not, which I found pointless and stupid. Then they don't really kill her, and yet she somehow mysteriously never disappears. In the next book, they have to fight the Uber Director, which is supposed to be the main conflict, yet the novel is full to the brim with global warming facts. The next books, Max and Fang, mostly focus on Max and Fang's romantic relationship, and Angel is just some pointless thing with an evil cult.
I was always very frustrated by the lack of of a main antagonist, and the fact that Max's hair color changes every book.
While I love the witty humor and characters, I hate how at some point someone ends up not being trusted, and the rest of them are just annoying.
Overall, not a very satisfying series.
I had to drag myself through the seventh book in the series, "Angel", and to hope to God Patterson wasn't lying when he said "The End of Maximum Ride" will actually be the last book, because he has changed his mind before.
The series focuses on a test-tube baby named Maximum Ride, or Max, who was injected with avian DNA, giving her wings and several special abilities. She's the leader of a rag-tag group of other winged children; Fang, her hot second-in-command and main love interest of the series, Iggy, who is blind and loves explosives, Nudge, the sweetheart that longs to be normal, Gasman, the eight-year-old cutie pie who also loes explosives, and Angel, the obnoxious, bratty, insane, and very, very annoying six-year-old. Eventually, this expands to include Total, a winged, talking dog, and Dylan, an annoying clone of some kid that was meant to be Max's perfect match.
The main inconsistencies? The first three books focus on finding and defeating a character called The Director, and when they find her, she says that she's Max's mom, and then it turns out that its not, which I found pointless and stupid. Then they don't really kill her, and yet she somehow mysteriously never disappears. In the next book, they have to fight the Uber Director, which is supposed to be the main conflict, yet the novel is full to the brim with global warming facts. The next books, Max and Fang, mostly focus on Max and Fang's romantic relationship, and Angel is just some pointless thing with an evil cult.
I was always very frustrated by the lack of of a main antagonist, and the fact that Max's hair color changes every book.
While I love the witty humor and characters, I hate how at some point someone ends up not being trusted, and the rest of them are just annoying.
Overall, not a very satisfying series.
September 25, 2011
The characters are interesting and the situation is fascinating, but the plot is too outlandish. Also by book #5 it turns into a treatise against *possible spoiler* global warning, which I found a trifle annoying.
Some of the stuff that bothered me:
-If they'd been away from the school for four years (two with Jeb, two without), then why would Angel remember it? She'd be only two when they left.
-Sometimes the kids' conversation is REALLY unbelievable, especially in book 4. Their knowledge of places like Paris rang untrue.
-It's weird reading references to today's culture like Harry Potter . It's legitimate but just makes a book seem less substantial to me when it includes references to popular culture.
Some children's books are well worth reading as adults; others are really marketed for a young audience. This book seems to fit the second situation. So while I did enjoy Max's wise-cracking, this isn't a book that moved or touched me.
Some of the stuff that bothered me:
-If they'd been away from the school for four years (two with Jeb, two without), then why would Angel remember it? She'd be only two when they left.
-Sometimes the kids' conversation is REALLY unbelievable, especially in book 4. Their knowledge of places like Paris rang untrue.
-It's weird reading references to today's culture like Harry Potter . It's legitimate but just makes a book seem less substantial to me when it includes references to popular culture.
Some children's books are well worth reading as adults; others are really marketed for a young audience. This book seems to fit the second situation. So while I did enjoy Max's wise-cracking, this isn't a book that moved or touched me.
September 6, 2014
The premise of this series sounded interesting. Evil scientists, kids beyond the ordinary, etc. Perhaps a bit cliche, but nonetheless, I decided to try it. The further I read, the more I came to realize just how cliche it was. Patterson's portrayal of the teenagers is awkward and unrealistic... As if he said, "Hey, kids are popular right now. I'll write a book about kids, even though I know nothing about them, and it'll be popular!" This theory worked.
Each book had, essentially, the same plot: being chased by new and dangerous mutants, discover something new (that everyone saw coming) and have an identity crisis over it, defeat the mutants, and move on, just to discover another race of new and dangerous mutants.
Each book had, essentially, the same plot: being chased by new and dangerous mutants, discover something new (that everyone saw coming) and have an identity crisis over it, defeat the mutants, and move on, just to discover another race of new and dangerous mutants.
December 28, 2014
I'm a science fiction fan and it has been a year ago since I first ran across this series in the library. I was surprised that I had not heard much about it in the hallways because usually when great books come out you usually hear everyone talking about it which is usually how I decide to read a book. Actually when I was young I always wanted to fly and my childish self still wants to be able to do it. This book fulfilled my wanting of flying because the way it was written seemed so real! Unfortunately, once I dug my head out of these books, I obviously couldn't fly which made me sort of depressed.
-Swiss Miss
P.S.- :D MAXIMUM RIDE FOREVER IS GOING TO COME OUT SOON! DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS? THE NINTH AND FINAL BOOK OF MAXIMUM RIDE!
-Swiss Miss
P.S.- :D MAXIMUM RIDE FOREVER IS GOING TO COME OUT SOON! DON'T KNOW WHAT IT IS? THE NINTH AND FINAL BOOK OF MAXIMUM RIDE!
November 29, 2015
If you could write a novel with the quintessence of a superhero movie, that book would be Maximum Ride. It's basically seat-of-the-pants, nonstop action, but you do really grow to care for the characters- most of them, that is. The first three books, I would definitely recommend, but after that it started to get a little TOO, well, weird. Though the original series finale, "Nevermore", featured one of the most disappointing endings I've read, James Patterson ("James Patterson") thankfully remedied this with an additional book that left me, and surely fans everywhere, much more satisfied.
November 26, 2012
Summary-
First 3 books- Mutant bird kids running from scary werewolf things! Fun!
Next few books- Mutant bird kids help kids in Africa and save penguins. What the $&@! just happened?
Last books- do not make any sense at all. Not consistent. None of the members of the flock are really focused on but Angel, Max, Fang, and Dylan. Too many plot holes. Does not compute.
Then, in the epilogue, Max says she dies and she's so lucky. It's sort of sweet. Then she's all like lol jk and I'm all like :/
The End!
First 3 books- Mutant bird kids running from scary werewolf things! Fun!
Next few books- Mutant bird kids help kids in Africa and save penguins. What the $&@! just happened?
Last books- do not make any sense at all. Not consistent. None of the members of the flock are really focused on but Angel, Max, Fang, and Dylan. Too many plot holes. Does not compute.
Then, in the epilogue, Max says she dies and she's so lucky. It's sort of sweet. Then she's all like lol jk and I'm all like :/
The End!
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