This story is about a boy named Matt, who is the clone of a rich and powerful drug lord, El Patron. He is considered less than human by most people, but receives preferential treatment because of El Patron. The story follows Matt�s childhood and his quest to find out what the purpose of his life is.
The plot is internally consistent with the story�s fantasy. For instance, all of the eejits must obey orders at all times. There are no exceptions to this. The plot is extremely original and creative. Clones are created to serve as basically body part suppliers. There are human zombies, the eejits, forced to work as servants. These are not ideas commonly used in stories. The story itself is interesting. There is a lot of action, such as when El Patron dies and when Matt and his new friends escape from the orphan farm. The story has multiple climaxes, including Matt�s escape across the border and his eventual return to the country, Opium.
The setting is vividly described, which makes it easy for the reader to imagine the scenes. The descriptions of the endless poppy fields and the oasis are especially vivid. The story is set in a fictional country, Opium, which is between the United States and Mexico. The setting is important because of its remoteness. There are no police, nobody to stop El Patron, thus events take place that wouldn�t be allowed to happen had the story been set in the United States.
The characters are believable and readers can identify with Matt. He has faults, such as his jealous of Tom and his attempts to force Maria to like him. But he also has strengths, which include his kindness to others, such as when he helps the orphans escape. Characters are revealed through their actions, dialogue and narration. Both Matt and Maria show growth as the story progresses. They both become less selfish and more mature.
The themes of this story are that power is evil and the importance of friendship. These themes emerge naturally as the reader sees what happens to El Patron and how Matt would be dead if not for his friends. The language is appropriate. Some new slang terms are introduced, such as �eejit.� The author doesn�t provide an exact definition for this term, but she doesn�t need to. The reader will understand what it means by seeing how the characters use the term. The third person point of view is appropriate. The reader is allowed to see Matt�s thoughts, but no one else�s. There is an overall mood of both mystery and suspense. The reader doesn�t know why Matt was created and will want to keep reading to find out this reason.
This book not only tells a great story, but also provides readers with an important warning about how power can corrupt, and gives readers a look at some issues that affect human beings such as jealousy, selfishness, greed and loneliness. Both children and adults will enjoy this science fiction thriller.
