When the Wind Blows

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It's a hit!

This is the first adult book I have read by James Patterson, having previously read the first two books in the 'Maximum Ride' young adult series. ... (show more)

This is the first adult book I have read by James Patterson, having previously read the first two books in the 'Maximum Ride' young adult series. 'When the Wind Blows' is the same idea as the Maximum ride series but they are not connected (as I previously thought).

I found it hard to put 'When the Wind Blows' down because it was so exciting, you did not know what was going to happen next. An interesting read because what happens in the book is currently happening within science over the world, the book highlights the lengths that people will go to, to get what they want.

The characters are well written, Frannie, the main character was easy to like because she was so realistic.

An interesting read. (show less)

 

 

by Facebook User

No, it's a flop!

I read this book because it says it was a best seller, and the author is supposed to be one of the best at suspense. With those expectations I was ... (show more)

I read this book because it says it was a best seller, and the author is supposed to be one of the best at suspense. With those expectations I was disappointed. The author relies on gimmicks - like ultra short chapters to make it seem like you're reading faster. Each chapter is 1 or 2 pages with at least one blank page between, so what looks like a 400 page books is really only a 250 page short novel. One chapter is literally a cliff-hanger.

The plot's sort of a rehash of H.G. Wells' Island Of Dr. Moreau, borrowing a bit from X-Men comic books. The mutants are all children who can fly, and they're severely persecuted by their keepers, so perhaps what makes the book appealing to other readers is the suspense derived from the endangered children angle, another cheap gimmick.

The villains are all one-dimensional stereotypes, blindly abandoning all their principles and humanity to profit off the children. I could point out numerous flaws in style as well - but that's not the point; you could find flaws in better books too. The point is the book is overrated for hack writing of less quality than many old pulp magazines I've read. Even the love scenes are corny and seem like one of those cheap romance novels ("My arms were high and tight around his neck. He pulled me against him and I felt him, all of him, against my thigh . . ."). The author also doesn't seem to understand the geography & terrain of the area he's writing about (for example, a small Sony TV won't receive Denver channels in Gunnison National Forrest, certainly not well enough to recognize faces in long shots as the author describes), and has some weird ideas of horror ("Chain link fence and concertina wire and guard dogs in the middle of the woods were scary enough, but to see the words "U.S. Government" attached to "Trespassers Will Be Shot" made me ill."). Much more like this is topped off with a liberal dose of hypocrisy: "The arrogance and amorality of the scientists working here affronted everything I believed in. I wanted to find one of 'them' and strangle the person with my bare hands."

This is the last time I'll buy a book because it says "best seller." If you want to read a well-written sci-fi suspense novel in which the protagonist is a child prodigy, I recommend The Fourth 'R' by George O. Smith - Also known as The Brain Machine. (show less)

 

 

by Roger Christenson

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  I was intrigued bythis book, to put it mildly. I found that having read the Maximum Ride series, this book was not all it was cracked up to be and I found it rather disppointing actually. I think that the entire plot was lacking and it was annoying that they gave the male character the name "Kit" which I kept thinking was the name of a kitten or of one of the children. I found the characters tedious and not very deeply thought out and the story was a repepat totally of the first cou... (show more)

  I was intrigued bythis book, to put it mildly. I found that having read the Maximum Ride series, this book was not all it was cracked up to be and I found it rather disppointing actually. I think that the entire plot was lacking and it was annoying that they gave the male character the name "Kit" which I kept thinking was the name of a kitten or of one of the children. I found the characters tedious and not very deeply thought out and the story was a repepat totally of the first couple of Maximum Ride books. I think that this is one of the worse James Patterson books and even if you don't like this one, you should not be put off. Normally, he is a brilliant writer, but this book does not showcase his talent at all. The story was dull enough for it to keep me reading it for 10 days, whereas a normal Patterson book keeps me busyt two days at most - and that is when I have other things I'm doing on those days. To sum up, not a great book - his others are much better.

  Rating: *** (show less)

   

   

  by Robert Hill on Aug 05, 2009 at 08:06PM

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  James Patterson writes very easy to read thrillers - a good holiday read. However he is at his best when he is writing crime thrillers and involving his reader in a twisting 'who dunnit' story. This book is based on a future genetic research project being hidden from society and involving experimenting ruthlessly on humans. The premise is so far fetched as to need an opening page from the author trying to convince the reader that the science fiction element of this story is an achievable real... (show more)

  James Patterson writes very easy to read thrillers - a good holiday read. However he is at his best when he is writing crime thrillers and involving his reader in a twisting 'who dunnit' story. This book is based on a future genetic research project being hidden from society and involving experimenting ruthlessly on humans. The premise is so far fetched as to need an opening page from the author trying to convince the reader that the science fiction element of this story is an achievable reality in the near future. This is so far from the truth as to sow immediate doubts in the mind of most readers. Consequently, whilst it is easy to trip along and read the story the whole essence of the tale is in the main just plain silly. The ideas don't convince and the book falls down on the need to suspend belief into a realm of disbelief. The author frequently marvels at the abilities of the genetically modified children in the book but as a reader I was unable to share his marvel, being too preoccupied with the farcical nature of the book.
  To sum up - if this is the first Jame Patterson book you have read and you agree with my review, don't let this one book put you off the author. Many of his other books are great. (show less)

   

   

  by Philip Rolt on May 03, 2009 at 09:06PM

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