A review by jarnbooks
The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This book was a rollercoaster. When I started, most of it just reminded me of Percy Jackson until the plot actually gets started around half way through. It had a bit of an identity issue but it ended strong. While the characters are pretty bland and mildly entertaining, the plot is surprisingly interesting. It started off weak but ended relatively strong and I’m excited to read the next book. Not for the characters but I just want to see what happens next. For a pretty average middle-grade book, I enjoyed this a lot.

The writing is very simplistic and the naming of characters and others are terrible. The villain is compelling and the motivations are made very clear from the moment you meet them. One thing that I didn’t like was that the “call to action”, the reason the characters are where they are, isn’t resolved here. It’s most likely resolved in the next book. It just makes me think that Evans didn’t know what to do and had a deadline so just submitted what he had. 

If you’re missing Percy Jackson and want something different yet familiar, give it a try. 
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