Wow. I am so sorry. If anybody is still reading this and not given up hope!! I don't really have an excuse, I went on holiday and had lots of work, but recently I've not been doing much and I guess I've been getting lazy and haven't been bothered. BUT never fear, I'm back with gusto and ready to FINISH CROCODILE TEARS!! There are only three chapters left, but next is the final book in the Alex Rider series, so very excited for that one!
Ok, so heeeere we go...
Obviously, after that mahoosive break I didn't have the plot fresh in my mind, so it was like a bomb had dropped on me the minute I started reading. Some planes from the British govt. have been sent to bomb the fields containing the poisonous spores and we know from a few chapters ago that there is a likely chance that this will simply blow the spores into the air so they drift over to another field and the danger is still imminent. Horowitz's portrayal of authority (and a great many adult characters, for that matter) throughout the series has never been a positive one. I've often wondered if he's conveying some kind of anti-establishment sentiments, and then I was reading someone else's blog earlier today - someone who's reading The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman (http://markreads.net/reviews/) - and they were talking about how those books realy highlight that moment when children realise that adults lie. A lot. Sometimes it's genuinely for their own good, other times for malicious intent. The child realises that adults aren't all-knowing, that they do make mistakes and that they're not always good. Does this series highlight this as well? We all know how much MI6 have lied to Alex in the past to make him work for them, and now I'm thinking that Horowitz is more focusing on the relationship or comparison between child and adult rather than commenting on the corrupt workings of government.
The narrative skips quickly back to Alex, where we left him, climbing up a ladder after setting off a bomb that should destroy the dam and flood the field, hopefully killing all the spores. But of course, life is never simple for Alex Rider. As the Kikuyu tribesmn close in he has no way of escape and, again, I didn't know how he would get out of it. Dun dun duuuuun. And then he sees one climbing down the lader from above. So he's pretty much screwed. And then he thinks about his funeral and it doesn't bode well for him (despite the fact that I know there's another book to come...) Seriously things keep coming at him, it's like a neverending avalanche of awfulness that is threatening to engulf him and he's just managing to keep his head above it. Will things ever be good again???
When another Kikuyu man throws a spear at Alex he grabs it and throws it at the man climbing down the ladder, injuring him, and THEN his bomb goes off, ripping apart the foundations of the dam and giving way to the phenomenal amount of pressure from all that water. It smashes the men on the ground to pieces instantly, and the force of the explosion shakes the whole damn, leading the injured tribesman to fall to his death. Fortunately Alex manages to hang on, and slowly continues to climb to the top of the dam to safety. Thinking about everything Alex has been through it reaslly is amazing how he keeps up the strength to carry on. I mean, he spent the night barely sleeping in the anticipation of his looming torture, he was then suspended over some hungry crocodiles, after finally being rescued he has had to run three miles to the damn over rocky terrain, fix a bomb in the right place and THEN escape from this bunch of men trying to kill him. Makes me feel like the biggest slob on the planet when I get tired after one session in the gym...
So then the weakness to the dam the explosion caused means that it starts to collapse, letting more water spurt out violently, and Alex's safety is again put to question. Seriously, can one person's life be in danger this many times in one day?? So glad I'm not Alex right now! Then he sees an aeroplane flying towards him trailing a rope which he catches onto, realising the plane is being flown by his ally Rahim, and he is flown to safety. Phew!
What really interested me was the last page or so. The narrative switches from Alex back to the Prime Minister's office. It was said earlier that this is a new PM and he evident;y isn't very well informed about everything that Alex has done and doesn't understand the sacrifices he's made for them. This bit brings back what I said earlier about the contrast between children and adults in this series. Alex acts so much older than his age, and so often the adults act like petty children. We've seen so many political officials be so stubborn and arrogant that they just can't accept that Alex is an exceptional person. They have to believe that, in the words of Miss Trunchbull from Matilda, "I'm big and you're small, I'm right and you're wrong, and there's nothing you can do about it!"
In this case the PM has recieved feedback from his planes, saying that they couldn't find any fields in the specified area, only a lake. A lake. They'd obviously got there too late and seen the effects of Alex's work. Now the Prime Minister believes that one of two things happened: either MI6's information was inaccurate, or Alex Rider was lying.
OH MY GOSH THESE PEOPLE INFURIATE ME SO MUCH!!!!
WHY CAN'T YOU JUST CURL UP IN YOUR SOCK DRAWER AND NEVER COME OUT AGAIN? Seriously? Why are these people so obtuse? ARRRRGH. No adult EVER believes Alex. It's NOT FAIR.
What the PM goes on to say after that is interesting though and I wonder how it will affect the final book. He's thinking about bringing Alan Blunt into question because he has concerns with his judgement, wondering whether they need a new Head of MI6. Now I don't like Alan Blunt, but I know that he is good at his job. Would anyone be able to do it better? I don't know, but for certain it could mean huge things for Alex: would they use him again? If they didn't maybe it would be a good thing, but if they did then we could be looking at someone doesn't appreciate what he's done, isn't prepared to protect him and thinks of him as disposable as a used tissue. Something we have learned in this book is that Blunt DEFINITELY does care for Alex and wants to keep him safe. He really appreciates what Alex has done and knows that they cannot use him again. He's really developed from the cold, grey statue we once knew him as, and I bet this will come to be significant in the final book.
That very lengthy review should hopefully make up for the long silence! I will review the penultimate chapter tomorrow!!
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