Good character developments, smart twists, and creative solutions. Longer than the first two books, and favours action of humour, which felt slightly less engaging.

Refer to review of book 1. More of the same, with excellent middle-in-a-trilogy structure. Still fun, still sly, still pacy and full of surprisingly insightful and/or emotional commentary on people and our world. Great consistency and easy to read - got it down in one sitting. Highly recommended series for middle schoolers, and I'd say it's pretty appropriate for MG readers in mid to upper elementary as well. Romance is mild - on/off dating and a bit of kissing, and any violence is handled in a humorous way.

Hilarious middle school adventure. This is billed as YA, but I've rarely come across titles targeted toward that younger demographic. Reads more like Middle Grade, plus a bit of kissing. Which is a great thing - it's fun, pacy, and confronts some challenging stuff without turning too dark.

Clever sciency mystery, shady cultish shadow organizations, a bunch of kids trying to figure out if they're going to be friends, enemies, or date. Great for boy readers as well, which is a good balance against all the uber-romancy paranormal and fantasy releases every year. Fits well alongside DJ MacHale's Pendragon series, but more of a light comedy feel, less tense thriller action. Some deeper stuff thematically, and meaningful statements and characterizations are applied in a way that doesn't interrupt the flow of story.

Bei uns im Laden war heute so wenig los, dass ich mir das Buch aus dem Regal griff und anfing zu lesen. Über 200 Seiten während der Arbeit ... es war wirklich total tote Hose. ;)

Den ersten Teil fand ich witziger. Klar, die Bücher kannst du leicht lesen, die laufen runter wie Öl. Aber hier fehlt mir der bissig-böse Witz. Der ist noch vorhanden, jedoch nicht so stark. Liegt vielleicht auch daran, dass die Idee nicht mehr neu ist. Bei Reihen oft der Fall. Anfangs fesselt dich das Neue, dann müssen Figuren und Plot greifen. Das tun sie nicht in dem Maße, als dass ich auf die Fortsetzungen fiebern würde. 

Ich möchte schon wissen, was es mit den Accelerati auf sich hat und wie alles ausgeht.  Kaufen würde ich mir den Band aber nicht. (Wie gut, dass ich im Buchhandel arbeite ;P)

This is the first book in a new series, The Accelerati Trilogy, published by Disney Book Group, so you already know one thing about it before you start. The mother is going to die. In this case, the mother is dead before the story starts, so, Phew, got that out of the way! I was disappointed that Neal Shusterman, who wowed me with the Unwind series, would follow the script here.

But this story had a lot of plots we’ve seen before: grieving family, new kids in town, strange things happening in the old house they’ve moved into. Nick is the main character who, even at 14, still has his feet firmly planted in innocence. He is almost too good to be true; so yes, that is what I liked about him. The story has plenty of action and intrigue, an appealing, oddball cast of characters, and even a little bit of romance, but it is not a PG-13 read. It’s smart and funny, but it isn’t dangerous, and I mean that in the best possible way. This is the kind of story I would expect a 10-14 year old to enjoy, even if they are reading other books that are a bit more mature. I felt like it was a refreshing break from some of the more complex trilogies my kids are into, a new old-fashioned kind of book.

There are typical friendship troubles and mild family problems, but the real story revolves around an attic filled with crazy gadgets that may have been invented by Nikola Tesla. The gadgets themselves remind me a little of Origami Yoda, with his wise and surprising answers to the kids’ most heartfelt questions. In this case, it’s a See ‘n’ Say that finishes your sentences with the truth. Who wouldn’t want one of those, right? There are all sorts of devices here that hide their true purpose within ordinary objects. But there is also something special about this story that makes the world seem like a kinder, gentler place. The bad things that happen are really not so bad, and even the bad things get better fairly quickly. I’m getting a little tired of all those heavy-duty, life or death books aimed at middle grade readers; this is the kind of book they were meant to read. It’s fun, it’s intelligently written, and there is a sense of magic throughout its pages. And, (almost) nobody else dies but the poor, never-had-a-chance mother.