This book is in the same general vein as the Alex Rider series by Anthony Horowitz: a capable and resourceful teenage boy from England travels to some sort of exotic locale and faces a variety of dangers before saving the day. Lots of action and gadgets, and Gilman introduces a mystical element with the inclusion of African shamanism. If you are looking for high-stakes adventure and plenty of action it may be worth checking this book out, but you will also need to be able to overlook some aspects of the writing that I found distracting.Gilman is rather obviously accustomed to writing scripts for television shows. I counted at least fourteen distinct viewpoint characters while reading, and the book is just under 400 pages in length (American hardcover release). That makes for a lot of jumping around, even within scenes, and whenever it happens the story turns rather clunky. A television show is better designed for quick changes in viewpoint, and it can accommodate more viewpoints in a single episode than a novel can. (It did not help matters for me that some of the jumps seemed solely for the purpose of explaining why the adults in the story were keeping vital information from the teenagers, even when giving the teenagers that information would have vastly simplified matters for everyone involved. In other words, it felt very artificial as I was reading it.)It was also just as obvious to me that one of the goals of this story is to impart information in order to educate the readers about environmental and social issues. When information and issues are so obviously presented as such in a novel -- when the main purpose and goal is not to tell a good story -- I tend to resent it, since I was expecting a story and not a lecture or lesson. Including morals and information and serious discussion in a story isn't bad -- it's actually quite important -- but they don't have to be blatant, and it is probably better if they aren't. For one thing, slowing (or stopping) the story in order to explain something can contribute to clunky writing, and in an action/adventure/thriller type story you really don't want to put a high-speed chase on hold in order to describe the countryside. It tends to throw the reader out of the story.
Reviewed by Tasha for TeensReadToo.comMax Gordon is on the run. He was almost killed by an assassin, his dad has been kidnapped, and he only has one clue as to where he is. Still, he is determined to find him no matter what kind of danger faces him. With the one clue he is given, he figures out that his father is in the deserts of Namibia exploring a company that is about to hurt thousands of people. Those people know that Max's dad has found evidence against them and think that Max has knowledge of this evidence, as well. While he is on the mission to find his father, regardless of the evidence, the company is determined to kill Max. Max is aided with the help of Koga, a local bushmen, who has a very keen sense of the wild; Kallie van Reenen, a local girl who has a great knowledge of planes and the sky; and his best mate back in England. All three of these people form Max's support system as he embarks on the most grueling adventure imaginable, all in search of his father. Will Max be able to beat the odds and survive - or will his captors get the better of him? THE DEVIL'S BREATH is an action-packed book that any reader will find hard to put down. With every page turned, you don't know what's coming next, and you're on the edge of your seat. Throughout the book, you hear the story from different perspectives, whether it be the main story from Max, the antagonist's point of view, and even sometimes the story is heard from Max's two friends, who are helping him with his search to find his father. I thought that the use of alternating perspectives was interesting, but at times it got confusing because some of the characters sounded the same. While the author did a great job building up the book with lots of suspense, I did find parts of the story to be very predictable and not that interesting. Other parts of the book, though, definitely made up for this, and I found myself intrigued. At times the book got a bit violent, which I didn't think was necessary, but it may have been appreciated more by the male readership. Despite this fact, I think THE DEVIL'S BREATH would be a good read for all teens, and it was a good start to a potentially thrilling series.
What do You think about The Devil's Breath (2008)?
Fifteen year-old Max Gordon is nearly killed in an ambushed attack at his secluded private school in England. He receives a cryptic message from his dad, an environmental scientist, that says he is in danger in Namibia and that a powerful, madman is about to unleash a cruel plot that will harm the native people and destroy their habitat...all in the name of power and greed. Max knows he has to get to his father, who has more than likely been captured and tortured, to save his life. Traveling from England to Namibia is fraught with danger at every turn. He finally makes it, barely, but he is met by Kallie, a tough pilot his own age and !Koga, a native Bushman. The three work together, through perils all around, to stop the madman, save the environment, and rescue Max's dad. The Devil's Breath is full of action, adventure, and danger. Following Max's trail into the brutal, yet beautiful country is exciting and nail-biting. Anyone who likes the thrill of danger at-every-moment will love this race to save humanity.
—Jackie
I sincerely believe that this adventure story would work well for middle-school age boys. There are spies, intrigue, adventures in the African bush, evil plots, airplanes, etc. There is constant adventure and a pretty smart background plot with an evil-doer who is also trying to kill the main character's father.That being said, I really didn't care for this book. I thought the white-boy-coming-to-save-African-bushmen-who-have-foretold-his-coming-through-ancient-cave-drawing plot was a bit hard to swallow, not to mention insulting. I also found it hard to believe that the main character, Max, would so quickly garner the respect and friendship of his bushman companion in the search for his father. Max can't keep up, he can't start a fire, he can't find water, what exactly earns him the respect? !Koga has no reason to even stick with him, except....that's right, his coming was foretold to save his people. Ug.
—Brynn
I have mixed thoughts about this book. Let me start off that I had to put it on hold for a bit because I didn't have time to continue reading it (Life has its moments). The beginning of the book was very interesting but at the same time a bit dull. Max Gordon is a fifteen-year old boy who attends an all boy school called Dartmoor High, which is located in England. The story begins with an assassin following Max as he is running through the remote part of the school grounds during his spare time.The assassin is then killed in his attempt to kill Max. The school is near a Military training facility and the killer was caught in the middle of a shooting session. Max then learns that his father has gone missing in Namibia. He also starts to realize that someone wants him dead, but who? Max makes the decision to runaway and search for his Father in Africa in which a great and dangerous adventure lies before him.I found the whole adventure in Africa to be thrilling. I think Max is a good protagonist, especially for boys. He's headstrong, smart, and can handle situations well under pressure. The descriptions of the Namibia really brought the story to life. My only problem was that in certain parts of the story, there was more telling then showing. This made the story lag a bit and made it a bit difficult to continue reading.This was a good start in a series. I'm sure the other books will be as interesting as this one. If you're in the mood for an action packed read, then check this one out!
—Mevurah
