The Angel Factory [Hardcover]

Terence Blacker (Author)

Book Description

THOMAS WISDOM HAS A GREAT LIFE.

He's popular at school. He gets good grades. He lives in a nice home. His parents are caring, wise, and supportive. His life is perfect. Almost too perfect.

When Thomas opens a secret file on his father's computer, he discovers that in his perfect world, nothing is what it seems -- not even himself. The truth -- if he is brave enough to face it -- can be found only in the place they call "The Angel Factory."

Terence Blacker's new novel is a mesmerizing story of good and evil, of trust and betrayal, of free will and control -- and of a boy who holds the destiny of humanity in his hands.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Aliens are among us and they are going to save us from ourselves. Whether we like it or not.

Only gradually revealing this familiar premise, Terence Blacker weaves a deliciously mysterious and suspenseful story about Thomas Wisdom, who--like Adam in Robert Cormier's classic I Am the Cheese and Jonas in Lois Lowry's The Giver--begins to notice little hints that there is a secret at the heart of his perfect family and ends by uncovering a worldwide conspiracy. Unlike Adam's mental-hospital prison and Jonah's regimented society, Thomas's world is ordinary and comfortable, and life with his nice parents and kind big sister is excellent. Except he has begun to wonder if his tooperfect family might be concealing something. "They're CIA agents!" concludes his outrageously geeky friend Gip, and proves it by finding a transmitter in the toilet tank and a mysterious page of numbers hidden in Thomas's father's computer files. Thomas is skeptical, until he goes with his family on holiday to California and has a strange quasireligious experience in the desert that shakes up his ideas about what's going on. And then another revelation about himself shocks him to the core. But Thomas, unlike Adam, has free will in the situation. Who are these beings who call themselves "angels"--his so-called father, mother, sister, other people in his life, even the dog? And how can Thomas fight against this pervasive niceness with its overbearing plans for humanity?

Despite a few pieces that don't quit fit, this jigsaw puzzle of a novel will entrance younger teens, science fiction fans or not. (Ages 10 to 14) --Patty Campbell

From Publishers Weekly

In this riveting futuristic tale, Blacker (Homebird) masterfully constructs an intriguing world of remarkable possibilities and chilling consequences that bears an eerie resemblance to the here and now. With the help of best friend Gip, 12-year-old Thomas Wisdom, a model son, breaks into a secret computer file and discovers that his whole life is a lie. His all-too-perfect mother and father are not his real parents. Nor are they CIA agents, as Gip suspects. They are angels sent to earth on a mission to save the planet from destruction. In order to accomplish their goal, they need Thomas's cooperation in their Project to save humankind: he must put his faith in something bigger than himself and give up his free will. While following Thomas on his quest to learn about his past and the angels' plan for him, readers enter a maze filled with changing configurations, perplexing crossroads and allegorical obstacles. Each suspenseful chapter brings Thomas closer to the truth and presents new philosophical questions regarding the sacrifice of individuality for the good of society, and what constitutes good and evil ("Those who aren't with us are against us," says his angel mother). Thomas has the power to change the course of humanity, but becoming an angel may be too high a price. Although the climax and rather abrupt resolution are less convincing than the young hero's struggle to make the right choices, this complex novel raises some thought-provoking questions. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing; 1st edition (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689851715
• ISBN-13: 978-0689851711
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,459,973 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Makes ya think, February 7, 2003

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Angel Factory (Hardcover)

"Angel Factory" is one of those rare SF stories that focuses less on actual SF elements than on things that actually make you think. It's far from flawless, but

Thomas Wisdom's family is nice. Too nice. His parents are models of patience, wisdom and kindness, and his sister is the idealized teen daughter (now dating a boringly perfect surfer). Somehow this all seems unnatural to Thomas, and soon he finds out why: His parents, his sister, his slightly nutty dog, and many other people across the world are humanlike alien constructions called "Angels," controlled by an immensely powerful intelligence from a far-off planet, sent to infiltrate human society and save us from ourselves. He himself is adopted, the son of a jaded but kindly ex-barmaid, and the only family member who is really human.

Thomas is at first willing to accept the angels and even help them, but his friend Gip is still suspicious. They uncover evidence that one of their teachers was killed for hacking into secret files about the angels, and Thomas begins to rebel against his parents and what they want for humanity. But who can he trust -- and will he be the next to mysteriously die if the angels think it's all for the best?

Terence Blacker raises a lot of questions in his novel. Is it better to give up free will for security? How much free will do we have? Do we need some bad mixed in with the good to be really, genuinely human? And should you not feel bad because that irritatingly perfect neighbor with the perfect kids might really be an angel? In the manner of Lois Lowry's "The Giver," he presents you with these questions without battering your head with them.

His writing style is pleasantly evocative, especially the soothing alien voice that tells Thomas what he should do. His angel characters are all quite flat, but that was probably intentional. Thomas is a lot more vivid, especially his growing paranoia and his hysterical response to learning that he was adopted. His buddy Gip is even more colorful, weird and X-filesian and harboring a secret of his own; Thomas's mother is a good foil to the perfect parents -- she's flawed and hardened, in a humiliating job, but she clearly cares about him.

The biggest problem is the ending. Blacker twists up a lot of sugarcoated, sinister threads and hints -- we see what the angels will do to protect their secret agenda, including murder of a few troublesome individuals. Basically, they are cold and ruthless underneath the "all-for-the-best" niceness. Yet it seems like he wasn't sure what to do in the final chapters, so wrapped it up in the most convenient way possible. Except it's also the most improbable way, short of having the pod people arrive for a showdown with the angels.

"Angel Factory" doesn't get quite as far as it clearly wishes it could, but it's a pretty good SF read. For people who liked "Giver," and "Dark Side of Nowhere."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It was fantastic!, November 12, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Angel Factory (Hardcover)

This was one of the best books I have ever read. You could never guess what is going to happen next. It keeps you wondering until the end. It never gets boring and is exciting all the way through. It makes you wonder about your world and if there are people like angels sent to help us.
I have read this book three times and I have recomended this book to others and they all loved it too.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A moving and highly recommended story of the future, September 5, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Angel Factory (Hardcover)

If aliens invaded Earth with the intention of saving humankind from its self-destructive traits, would humans accept the limits to freedom to destroy? Thomas Wisdom seems to have the perfect family life - until he discovers their real identities and his own key role in helping to save the planet from itself. His one friend can only help him if he betrays his family in The Angel Factory, a moving and highly recommended story of the future.