Summary: Moose still lives on Alcatraz Island, and Natalie has been staying at the Esther P. Marinoff school and improving each day. Their father has been put on probation by somebody unknown because of the false allegation of drinking on the job. Natalie's coming home from school to visit the family soon, but they're worried that if she messes anything up, the father could be fired.
SPOILERS FROM THIS POINT ON!
Moose gets a note in his laundry from Al Capone, like before, that says Moose has to pay him back for getting Natalie into the Esther P. Marinoff. He tells Moose to get yellow flowers for his wife, who will be on a boat at 2:00 to Alcatraz. It sounds like a simple task, but it's the same day Moose has to visit Natalie. He devises a plan, but realizes that it would look suspicious to give a bunch of yellow flowers to Mae Capone, so he gives one flower to every woman on the boat (including Annie, his baseball-star friend). Darby Trixle, an officer who has it out for Moose, gets suspicious anyway, but his wife, who received one of the pretty flowers, calms him down. Natalie comes home and sets off the metal detector at the boat gate. The officers assumed it was a metal button, but when Moose checked, he was shocked to find a bar spreader to aid a prison escape in one of Natalie's socks. Moose's friends throw it into the ocean so that no criminals can get it, but Janet Trixle, the 6-year-old daughter of Darby Trixle, finds it when it washes up on the shore, and starts playing with it as a carnival toy. Even right under Darby's nose, he doesn't notice it. Natalie says that the bar spreader was given to her by Alcatraz 105, who she had been friends with before he was released. Moose didn't realize that this meant a prison break was being organized already, and then three prisoners made it out. They took some of the kids hostage, but Natalie, being extremely observant, noticed that the prisoners' guns were fake, and Moose was able to yell for help. The escaped prisoners were caught with help from their father, and Natalie gained a bit of respect from people who didn't like her before.
Plot: The plot is definitely more action-filled and intense than the first book in the series, and the plot is clear. I'm always a fan of plot twists in books, and this one's quite good. Plot score (40% of final score): 10/10.
Characters: Moose is much better in this book than in the last, and all the other characters hold steady. Some new characters have been introduced, but their personalities seem clear enough minus Seven Fingers and possibly Buddy Boy. Character score (30% of final score): 9/10.
Setting: Exactly the same as on my review of the previous book in the series, as the setting remains the same. Setting score (10% of final score): 10/10.
Mood/style: I feel like this is more intense than the last one and maybe slightly less realistic, but that's not necessarily a problem; just a different style. Mood/style score (20% of final score): 8/10, as it doesn't do anything to particularly stand out, but it's pretty good.
Overall score:
9.5/10
Please note that scores are rounded.
Scores calculated using Ben Eggleston's grade calculator.
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