Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25

(Warning: Spoilers!) 

Hello! 

I’m Miriam Arend and I'm writing to tell you about a book I just finished, The Prisoner of Cell 25. This book was written by Richard Paul Evans and is the first book in the Michael Vey series. If I had to give it a rating, I would give this book ☆☆☆☆☆ stars! 
The plot starts out simply, with Michael and his mom living in Idaho. He goes to a normal school with his best friend, Ostin. But unlike the other students at his high school, Michael has a power: his body is filled with electricity that he can release at any time. Michael has always had to hide his power, but when a group of older boys corner him, Michael is so sick of being bullied he sends electric shocks through all of them. A passing cheerleader, Taylor, notices what happened and later confesses that she has similar powers. Michael, Taylor, and Ostin meet up to discuss their powers, and stumble across a group known as the Elgen. However, their time is limited, as Michael’s mother and Taylor are soon kidnapped by the Elgen. Michael and Ostin must hitch a ride with their arch enemies to Pasadena, California, in order to save their friends. They find them at Elgen Academy, which is less academy and more a headquarters laboratory for “Glows,” the term for electric children and teens like Michael and Taylor. Michael soon discovers that the “academy” is only a cover for Dr. C. J. Hatch to train his Glows to attempt world domination. 
Similar to many other popular young adult series, such as Percy Jackson or Harry Potter, Evans sets up the plot in a good-vs-evil match-up, with a small group of teen protagonists who possess special powers fighting against a large group of cruel antagonists. However, unlike some other series, the line between this good and evil is sometimes faint and often crossed in his later books. For example, Evans portrays the Glows working for Dr Hatch as unaware of what they are doing, but Michael succeeds in showing one of them what the “real world” is really like and what Hatch has done to him. 
Even though Glows have powers that we don’t, I think most people would be able to relate to at least one of them. I liked this book because none of the characters are completely evil or completely good, which made them much more realistic and appealing. I would recommend this book to someone looking for a young adult sci fi/fantasy book. 
The Prisoner of Cell 25 is the first book in a 7-book series. I just finished the second and third books, Rise of the Elgen and Battle of the Ampere, and would definitely recommend both. You can find the correct book order for the series at http://michaelvey.com/, and you can check all the books out from the Urbana or Champaign libraries.

Comments

  1. AnuprovaSeptember 6, 2019 at 5:44 PM

    This is a great book review! I like your summary of the book, as it gives me a very good idea about the plot of the story. I am a fan of stories where ordinary people discover extraordinary powers (like you said, Harry Potter and Percy Jackson), so I will be sure to check out this book!

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  2. Vraj P.September 8, 2019 at 9:15 AM

    I have read this series before, and I very much enjoyed it. Your summary captures all the main points perfectly. I agree with the five-star rating you gave the book. I liked the way you explained how there is no definite "good and evil" in the book, and how you related the series to other stories that have similar character traits. Reading your review makes me want to reread the series, and I hope to do so soon.

    ReplyDelete
  3. NickSeptember 11, 2019 at 11:50 AM

    Based on your review, this sounds like a really interesting book and the plot being similar to that of Percy Jackson or Harry Potter gives it even more potential. I also agree with your positive statement on books with powerful characters that the reader can relate to and how they make for a solid connection with the character. This connection connection could be the reason someone reads an entire 7 book series so it's really important and it sounds like this book did a good job at having multiple characters so that more people can relate. I will definitely check the first book in the series out and maybe even all 7.

    ReplyDelete
  4. SafaNovember 8, 2019 at 7:01 AM

    I haven't read this series before but based on your review, I might read it. I really like how you describe the plot and the extraordinary powers of the characters. One thing I did like was how you mentioned that there is no specific "good or evil" characters. I tend to prefer books where characters are slightly more realistic and aren't completely perfect. Hope to find a chance to read this book soon!

    ReplyDelete

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