First sentence: Before the day he was abandoned, Max Tilt thought life was pretty much perfect.
Premise/plot: When Max’s mom gets sick, his parents leave him in the care of his older cousin, Alex, as they seek treatment out of town. The two (Max and Alex) soon discover that the parents have been horribly irresponsible. The electricity is turned off the second day, I think! The eviction notice has been served and is due to take effect within a week maybe two. Instead of contacting the parents (either Max or Alex’s), the two decide that by selling the contents of the home online and perhaps getting a part-time job they should be able to get the bills paid and stay in the home. One of the items they list brings trouble to their door! The item is an empty trunk that belonged to Jules Verne, THE Jules Verne. The two set out on a quest when they find a hidden text by Verne, the bad guys are never far behind. In fact, they end up keeping close company with the villains for most of the book. Can they best them by the end and get their hands on the lost manuscript?
My thoughts: I liked the premise of this one. Max and Alex are descendants of Jules Verne. They have inherited some of his things and discover a secret, hidden, mystery text. The descendants of Captain Nemo (or descendant) know about this mystery letter/manuscript and have been hunting for it. The two must battle it out in the book. Both claim that they want to save the world.
You have to suspend ALL your disbelief if you want to enjoy this one. It isn’t unusual for this sub genre. In fact it reminds me a bit of The Magician’s Nephew by C.S. Lewis. Two kids without much—if any—adult support set out to save the world. But it wasn’t the adventure quest that had me stumbling. It was the parents leaving Max in such a horrible position. How could they knowingly leave their son knowing that the electric bill is overdue?! Knowing that other utilities will soon follow?! Knowing that the family will be evicted in a few weeks?! It sounds like they are skipping town and abandoning Max. How could they not know about their unpaid bills?! How could they leave knowing?!
Perhaps they expected Alex to take Max home with her?!
I also wondered how the two made it to New York City since both had no money....
But the book did keep me reading. I have plans to read the second book in the series.
© 2019 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
2 comments:
This sounds amazing! Although, definitely have to suspend disbelief lol. Still, it sounds like an awesome adventure story. Great review!
Always love the adventure genre..Check out mine too..
The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
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