The Gathering by Michael Carroll Review

"The battle between superhero and villain escalates in this pulsepounding sequel!

Having thwarted Max Dalton's scheme to drain the world's superhumans of their powers, Colin Wagner has taken on the mantle of Titan and, with partner, Diamond, is using his newfound abilities to rid the London streets of crime. But our young heroes' lives are irrevocably changed when an unknown adversary leaks their secret identities to the world. Forced to flee to the United States with their friend Danny Cooper, who is coping with the loss of his arm and the dark prophecy surrounding his future, the trio must learn to master their powers and work together if their mysterious foe is to be defeated.

New heroes are introduced, old friends and enemies return, and life-changing choices will be made in this second installment of Michael Carroll's superhero saga that dares to ask the question: Will Quantum's Prophecy come to pass?" 

Now this is better. The sequel to the Awakening, The Gathering is a better tale than the woefully depressing book The Awakening. (Yeah remember me yelling at The Gathering for most of my review, well this is the happier side of this series.)

The Awakening is a fast paced book with tons of action, more than what's in the Gathering. It's a lot more satisfying than rolling eyes at the horrible plot of The Gathering. (Rolling eyes, after all hurts my mind after twitching all those muscles.) The Gathering should have been the first book of the superhero series, because this is way more awesome. 

The plot is obviously much better than The Gathering; it's less confusing and more fun. There's a stronger level of excitement here. With an kick-butts conflict and tormented characters, The Gathering is a fun ride to read. 

Then there's the ending. WOW. I love it. When everything goes so well, but the main character (Colin Wagner) has to make a big decision whether to save his best friend or save innocent lives. Every character has to make the "BIG decision" (ex: Percy Jackson giving Luke the knife, Percy Jackson deciding to fall with Annabeth [Yeah, Percy Jackson is a pretty good place to pick out examples]). 

Most of the characters didn't have big character changes (other than Colin and Danny). They seem to be normal and living, of course. 

Rating: Three out of Five