The Angel Factory

Written by Terence Blacker

A book for readers in grades 5 and up reviewed by Jose

    

Terence Blacker’s The Angel Factory is about Thomas Wisdom, a boy who was raised in a seemingly perfect family in England. In addition to loving parents, he also has an older sister.

Thomas begins to question if his family life is too good to be true. He somewhat complains to his best friend Gip about how perfect his family is and wishes that they would berate him for doing something wrong.

After Thomas explains his parents’ strange behavior (such as how they go to the bathroom at the same time every morning), he and Gip, who suspects Thomas’ parents might be in the CIA, decide to hack into Thomas’ dad's computer. Thomas discovers that his family is not his real family. He was adopted, and he soon discovers his adoptive family’s motives.

I liked The Angel Factory because I found Thomas and the other characters compelling to read about. There are a lot of twists throughout the story that I found enjoyable and shocking. Everything that Thomas knew may not be as it seems, and I liked reading his reactions to the plot’s revelations. Overall, I would say that this book is worth reading.