Joe Ledger and the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) go up against two competing groups of geneticists. One side is creating exotic transgenic monsters and genetically enhanced mercenary armies; the other is using 21st century technology to continue the Nazi Master Race program begun by Josef Mengele. Both sides want to see the DMS destroyed, and they’ve drawn first blood. Neither side is prepared for Joe Ledger as he leads Echo Team to war under a black flag. – Goodreads Synopsis
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The Dragon Factory Review
To be honest, after reading what seems like all of Jonathan Maberry’s zombie works, I was a little nervous about this book. He’s been hit or miss with me, but definitely knocked it out of the ballpark with Patient Zero. But this? This wasn’t zombies. This was mad scientists and genetically engineered monsters. But… Ray Porter was narrating the audio book, and it was available through my library, so I had nothing to lose. So I crossed my fingers and started listening The Dragon Factory.
While I didn’t like it quite as much as Patient Zero, The Dragon Factory was pretty awesome. It follows the style of the first book, with everything taking place in a very short window of time. There’s flashbacks occasionally, to give you pieces of info to enhance the story. Ray Porter does an excellent job bringing all the characters to life once again. Even though I hate the Nazis running the Master Race Program, the way he read them was absolutely perfect. Its almost nonstop action, but during the minute lulls, Maberry tackles some of the issues surrounding genetic engineering and eugenics. Some of it you kind of have to just let slide, but the mental imagery can be so cool that you don’t really mind.
As for the other characters… Obviously, Joe’s still around, but I was happy to also see Bunny and Top make a reappearance. Then there’s Church. I feel like I shouldn’t like Church. Church is aloof, demanding, and a bit of an asshole. But, he’s a good guy. Truly a good guy. He runs the DMS with an iron fist, but he cares about each one of his people. He expects no less than their best, but he gives them every bit of support that they need. The character gets a bit more personal play time in this book, and it just solidifies this impression of him. I guess it’s not accurate to say I like Mr. Church, but if I need someone to cover my butt should TSHTF? Him. Definitely him.
Mayberry’s Joe Ledger series is proving itself to be one that keeps the reader on their toes, and makes unbelievable situations seem realistic. There are some kick-butt action scenes in here that you can visualize perfectly thanks to Maberry’s considerable talents. There’s also a scene that will have you mentally directing threats of extreme harm toward the author. I kind of knew it was coming, but I can’t believe he actually did it! On that note, I’m going to end the review, because if you want to find out the atrocity that Maberry committed at the end of The Dragon Factory … You’re going to have to read it yourself! (Here, it’s on Amazon. See how nice I am? Making it all easy for you. *cough*)
Book and Author Details
Title: The Dragon Factory | Series: Joe Ledger #2 | Author: Jonathan Maberry | Publisher: Blackstone Audio | Pub. Date: 2011-3-10 | Pages: 486 | Listening Length: 16 hours, 11 minutes | Narrator: Ray Porter | ASIN: B004QY0D7Q | Genre: Thriller | Language: English | Triggers: None | Rating: 4 out of 5 | Date Read: 2016-7-21 | Source: Library
