Hitting the second book, it truly dawned on me just how much I relish this series. I adored it. My friends and I would share copies, and I would diligently underline my favorite jokes, adding annotations and doodles. We were eager to buy the latest installment on the release day. I vividly remember precisely where I was in Barnes and Noble when I first read the fourth book and the shine started to fade. But now, we're on book two, which perhaps was always my favorite.
Maximum Ride is indeed fun, yet the second book is still part of the gradual descent into the literary insanity that characterizes this series. As a result, the plot points begin to get increasingly sillier, and even more plot threads are completely dropped. In fact, I would love to keep a count of the things that are introduced without any explanation, but it would be extremely challenging. Some elements do resurface, but most do not. The pace is as lightning quick and heavily episodic as before, a nonsensical odyssey with a couple of surprisingly good aspects. As much as I loathe the bait and switch narrative and the way unexplained events drive the plot, I truly enjoy the Flock and the book as a whole. I'm not a fan of the overly sarcastic lead voice in adult fiction, but for a teen, Max's sass is surprisingly enjoyable. There are jokes that I liked, and the way the characters behave is quite fitting for a group of messy mutant children. I desired the best for them, and I felt genuine emotions both then and now for their predicaments. Golly!