Book Review: Michael Vey: Storm of Lightning

Michael Vey: Storm of Lightning by Richard Paul Evans

Recommended For: Ages 10 to Adult

Rating: PG 

The resistance movement has been compromised.

The Voice is in hiding.

Their families are missing.

Can the Electroclan pull together to defeat the Elgen once and for all?

My sisters and I have gone to the store to buy the Michael Vey books right when they came out after we read the first one from the library. And if you know our family and how we rarely buy any of our books new, you would realize how much we like this series. The Hunt for Jade Dragon, while still being a great book, felt like filler. I was expecting this book to pick up the pace some more. Instead, I got a big let-down and a set-up for the last two books. I'm hoping Richard Paul Evans will step up his game in the next book and make it better than even the first three.

Writing: 4/5

Richard Paul Evans isn't the greatest at deep point-of-view. He tries to make it deep POV in his books, but it isn't. However, the sentences flow well, and he has mildly good descriptions, though he's not so good at making the reader feel the character's pain. In short, his writing isn't the best you'll find out there, but it's certainly nothing to be sneezed at.

Setting: 4.75/5

This particular book is set mainly in modern United States and Mexico, with some in a very small country called Tuvalu out in the Philippines, which I'm honestly not sure exists outside of Michael Vey's world. (I could look it up, but I just had a bad experience Google-searching something and am not anxious to repeat it.) The setting seems pretty accurate, except for one character's comment about how it would be pretty hard going from Mexico to the US. It actually wasn't, but the characters' surety about the ease in which they got through being a trap by their enemy seemed pretty idiotic to me, especially since they had a really smart guy with them who would've known how hard it would be to travel from Mexico to the US. Other than that, though, the setting seemed pretty accurate.

Plot: 3.5/5

There...really wasn't one. There was enough of one not to make me throw the book out the window from boredom, but it really wasn't worth speaking of, and there wasn't even any climax! I'm serious, there was absolutely no climax, just a set-up for the next book. The plot certainly wasn't one of Richard Paul Evans' best works.

Characters: 5/5

While there weren't as many character moments as in the other books, I still found the characters to be the same ones I've known since Book One, which was a relief. I'm happy to be able to give at least one category all five stars.

In short, if you've read the first four Michael Vey books, you're in for a disappointment on this one, but you should still read it. Plus, I think Book Six is going to be really good. *fingers crossed!* Richard Paul Evans has promised a lot of action in the next one.