Zoo by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

All over the world, brutal attacks by animals are crippling entire cities. Jackson Oz, a young biologist, watches the escalating events with an increasing sense of dread. When he witnesses a coordinated lion ambush in Africa, the enormity of the violence ahead becomes terrifyingly clear.
Zoo is my first James Patterson book that I have read. With his record of having his books on the New York Times Bestseller list for more weeks than any other author, I was thinking that there must be something great about his writing.
So was I disappointed?
No and yes.
The story was great. It was inventive, and definitely kept you wanting to know what was going to happen next. While reading, I could see the images of crippling cities, and the swarms of animals running through the streets, attacking every human that they saw. I had never read anything like it, so I was definitely kept reading. Sadly, however, that is the only thing that really kept me from stopping.
The characters weren’t as three-dimensional as I would have liked. Oz, the main character, wasn’t very easy to sympathize with. If he was, the book would have been a lot better. I didn’t really care if he lived or was torn apart by a vicious chimp piece by piece. To me, he served like a camera. You see through his eyes, but you don’t really connect with him.
The thing that really annoyed me was the excessive swearing in the book. Almost every chapter had at least one s-word. There were some f-bombs thrown in there as well. Now, I am willing to let some swearing pass if it serves a purpose to the story, but the swearing in this book did not. There really seemed to be no purpose but to have it there.
So, since I already answered whether or not I liked the book, you might be asking if I will read anymore books by world-wide famous author, James Patterson. I am not sure. Maybe. Zoo ended with a hint that it could have been the beginning of a series, so if I am right that more books will follow, I may read them. And I may read Patterson’s Maximum Ride series, a series for young adults. And what about Patterson’s other books such as his series about one of the most well-known crime characters in the literary world, Alex Cross? I doubt it.

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review from the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are mine.