The fifth volume of this fantasy series by one of the masters of French thrillers was released at the beginning of the month. Maxime Chattam continues to narrate the adventures of the Alliance of Three on this Other World that Earth has become in the second cycle, started with Entropia.
This new volume opens at a critical moment for the Pans – the child survivors of the Storm – a threat approaches, Entropia, a distillation of the excesses of the old world, from pollution and industrial machines to the Internet, a formidable destructive energy rushing towards Eden, the capital of the Pans.
Nothing seems able to slow down Entropia, its warriors, the Tormentors, fear neither the blades of swords nor the arrows of archers. Only a powerful positive energy might be able to overcome it. Hope lies in the second Heart of the Earth which is said to be in Europe.
But there has been no news from the old continent since the Storm, it’s impossible to know if it had the same consequences there, or even if it occurred.
With the help of the Kloropanphylles, the People of Gaia with green hair, they will build a gigantic ship to take a Pan delegation to Europe, among them, the Alliance of Three formed by Ambre, Matt, and Tobias.
After exploring America as the Other World, our heroes tackle Europe and what a good choice by Maxime Chattam because this volume, Oz, really brings a new breath to the series. With a saga, the risk is to get bogged down in a story with too many characters and become repetitive, Entropia left a slight sense of déjà vu, with the unpleasant feeling of thinking “oh no, everything starts over.” With this new opus, it’s impossible to think that for a second.
In Oz, the author distills his art of suspense in this new journey, bringing the darkness of his thrillers to make it the darkest volume, and it is certainly what makes it the best installment of the series because it moves away from references to become truly unique.
The Pans find themselves in a territory where everything seems even more desolate than at home, where tyranny reigns and where, to survive, they must have no scruples about killing. Very well written, Oz allows us to reconnect with endearing characters, Matt and Ambre whose relationship evolves in a lovely way, Tobias of course, Floyd, Tania, the large accompanying dogs who are characters in their own right. Even if Matt’s behavior is sometimes a bit exasperating, a bit too whiny, we would like him to be more self-assured, more confident, we tend to forget that he is only a teenager.
The descriptions of places, vehicles, notably the Life-Ship, are rendered so well that you feel like you’re there. It’s a leap into a parallel dimension where Maxime Chattam’s imagination constructs every detail.
But as the novel progresses, things seem to become more compromised, the Pans are beleaguered, deaths occur, and the suspense builds up to an incredible “cliffhanger” that will leave more than one reader on edge!
This initiation story oscillates between science fiction and fantasy to offer readers a glimpse of an Other World, should Earth ever awaken…
