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The Dragon Factory (Joe Ledger #2)

by Jonathan Maberry (Goodreads Author), Ray Porter

4.08 of 5 stars 4.08 · rating details · 2,599 ratings · 238 reviews

Joe Ledger and the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) go up against two competing groups of geneticists. One side is creating exotic transgenic monsters and genetically enhanced mercenary armies; the other is using 21st century technology to continue the Nazi Master Race program begun by Josef Mengele. Both sides want to see the DMS destroyed, and they've drawn first bl

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Published March 15th 2011 by Blackstone Audiobooks (first published March 2nd 2010)

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Aug 19, 2011 Lou rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: august-read-list

Joe Ledger and the DMS on another mission. This time it involves a neo-Nazi, eugenics, pathogen,twins and genetics. As the clock counts down to a deadly weapon being released the team is on the search for the source. The story is well researched with many military specifics. It's written well. I preferred Patient Zero the first Ledger book, when it comes to stories involving combat and espionage I tend to struggle in keeping interest. This is not a short read and just found myself wanting it to...more

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Jul 10, 2011 Jason rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2011, e-books

4.5 Stars Fun

"Die Vernichtungs Welle!"
"The Extinction Wave"

Joe Ledger is a very memorable protagonist, and as a result I found this book to be very enjoyable. This is my type of summer read. Book number 2 in the Joe Ledger series, this one is quite different from the first Patient Zero in that there are no zombies and there is new cast cast of baddies.

Like other Maberry novels this is an ACTION novel first, the horror, science fiction, and thriller elements all come in to add color and flair to...more

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May 07, 2010 Felicia A rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

There just aren't words to describe how brilliant Jonathan Maberry is. This book has thrills, chills, intrigue, DNA manipulation, secret underground labs, eugenics, diseases turned into viruses, Neanderthals, Nazis and Josef Mengele. WOW.

Once I started reading this book, I was disappointed to find out that it was not a sequel to Patient Zero, which was my original expectation. In the end, though, that made no difference. The main character, Joe Ledger, who fought off and successfully saved the w...more

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Mar 11, 2010 Jason (FNORDinc) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, arc, part-of-a-series, reviewed-on-fnordinc

A couple months back, i read Patient Zero, book one of Jonathan Maberry’s “Joe Ledger” novels. Because Patient Zero was so stinking good, The Dragon Factory arrived with a taint of wariness to it. I was fearful that book 2 of the Ledger series was going to disappoint.. i mean, how can a semi-secret military science team battle terrorists and genetically modified “zombies” in book one and still have enough spunk for a second book?

my fear was that the Ledger series blew its load after a 2 hour mar...more

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Apr 14, 2011 Molly Amory rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: nobody

Shelves: 2010, and, horror

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Second book of the Joe Ledger series, and regretfully, I find I've reached my lifetime limit of Joe Ledger. He was fun for the first book, but his perfection is getting a bit wearing.

More to the point, the storytelling is even more simplistic than the first outing - all the good guys are Good with a capital "G", and all the bad guys are mustache-twirlingly Evil with a capital "E". The more I read, the more my problem with the writing becomes the utter lack of any shades of grey; even torture be...more

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Feb 10, 2012 Dan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After deciding Patient Zero was just about good enough to make the sequel worthy of a read, I delved into this volume and was pleasantly surprised. It's essentially a "what would happen if Nazis had survived" as two evil genuises prepare to wipe out non-white races using genetically-modified viruses to create a new Aryan race. It's a scary thought and there were points in the history of the organisation where it was difficult to distinguish the fact from the fiction. A lot of the horrible ideas...more

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Dec 15, 2011 Nicole rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ok ok ok... When I read a book and love it I am always worried about the follow up. When I finished patient zero I really wanted more Joe Ledger, I had started the first book unaware that it was a series. I thought as I was reading through the first book that not only was I way into the action i think I was falling in love... I mean come on how cool would it be to have a boyfriend who could seriously pound anybody? So naturally I was concerned to move to the next book because it is not often tha...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Thee_ron_clark rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: action, other-horror

The Dragon Factory is Maberry's second novel featuring hero Joe Ledger and a new covert American government organization.

In this novel, some fanatical white supremacists plan to destroy the other races by mutating diseases that only affect certain races to make them communicable. Ledger and the DMS (the covert organization mentioned above) must race against the clock to stop this from happening. Stopping it becomes more difficult than it should be when powerful forces within the American govern...more

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Oct 18, 2010 Free Fall rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read this before the first book, Patient Zero. When reading the back summary, I got intrigued by the way it implied that there were several scores of terrorists for Joe Ledger to stop.

Then it turns out that all the terrorists were one big dysfunctional family, and I started losing interest.

Joe Ledger remains amazingly competent - he can take out zombies, monsters, and anything you throw at him, apparently - and there's even an awkwardly budding romance between him and Grace Courtland, another...more

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Apr 29, 2010 Todd rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: thriller

Joe and the DMS are up against a new group of monsters and their “kids” in the second installment in Jonathan Maberry's series of Joe Ledger novels, The Dragon Factory. Picking up only weeks after Patient Zero, one of the most refreshing and captivating entries into the Zombie genre, Joe and the boys sniff out a doomsday plot on an unimaginable scale. The baddies are eerily insane in their pursuit of genocide, and the good guys are just as crazy about stopping them. What makes Maberry’s books so...more

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Mar 16, 2010 Schnaucl rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, library, read_2010, series, thriller, march

I really, really liked Patient Zero so I was eager to read this sequel.

To be honest, I was thinking it was four stars until I got to the end. The story was solid, I just have a lot of skepticism any time a book brings in Nazis. Too often writers use it as convenient shorthand for evil. You don't need to prove the bad guys are bad, they're Nazis! To his credit, Maberry does go to some lengths to prove that the bad guys are bad and even more to his credit he makes the point more than once that not...more I really, really liked Patient Zero so I was eager to read this sequel.

To be honest, I was thinking it was four stars until I got to the end. The story was solid, I just have a lot of skepticism any time a book brings in Nazis. Too often writers use it as convenient shorthand for evil. You don't need to prove the bad guys are bad, they're Nazis! To his credit, Maberry does go to some lengths to prove that the bad guys are bad and even more to his credit he makes the point more than once that not everyone in Germany in the 30s and 40s was a Nazi. I just couldn't help feeling like it might have had more impact if the antagonists had the same philosophies without calling themselves Nazis although that would have made other things highly problematic.

The basic (non-spoiler) premise is that the antagonists want to make hereditary diseases that affect only certain ethnic groups into communicable diseases with the idea that everyone who is not part of the Master Race would be wiped out. The problem is there's no real explanation for it. Hitler was famously part Jewish so they would have wiped him out, too, were he still alive. There's no discussion of that. No real discussion of what it would mean to have a Master Race. They're creating lesser races to serve them so it seems to me they're simply replacing one (to their eyes inferior) race with another. And the difference is the color of the skin? They acknowledge they're going to cause billions of deaths, but to what end? Does the human race need that much winnowing? It's not like they're concerned about overpopulation. It seems like a lot of work to do something just because they can. One of the main antagonists even acknowledges it's not like the surviving white people would band together afterward, more likely they'd turn to fighting amongst themselves after the world as they know it is ended. So...what's the point?

One of the main antagonists also acknowledges very early on that he's not entirely sane but I hope the motive isn't supposed to be simply he's insane so he doesn't need a logical motive. I just felt like I needed more. Clearly there was low tolerance for stupidity and incompetence but there needed to be a motivator there besides whites are superior (in the mind of the characters). This is where you run into the they're doing it because they're Nazis problem.

Having said all of that, Maberry does some really interesting things with genetics. Two of his antagonists create mythological animals for very rich buyers who want to hunt them or own them (for protection, for the cachet, etc). He also touches a little on the nature/nurture debate.

I continue to like Joe Ledger and his struggle to retain his humanity in the face of the horrible things he deals with day after day. Portraying that struggle is definitely one of Maberry's strengths.

I would have liked to see more of Rudy, Cobbler, and Grace, but perhaps next time.

Despite all my problems with the motivations of the antagonists, this is a good book. It's tightly plotted with a powerful ending that moved it from four to five stars.

I can't wait to read the next book.

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Apr 07, 2010 Merryish rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: nobody

Shelves: 2010, horror

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Mar 16, 2010 Brian Fitzpatrick rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Last year, I had the pleasure of reading Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry, which took the concept of a zombie plague and put it in the hands of a group of terrorists. Joe Ledger was the hero recruited to take on the shambling, infected dead and find a way to stop them as part of the Department of Military Sciences (DMS) – a super-secret group of highly-trained and resourceful individuals tasked to take out the threats the normal police or military forces of the United States can’t handle.

Now Mab...more

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Apr 12, 2013 Cat Case rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2013

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I found this equal parts boring and irritating. The cloning was ridic and the New Men story line seemed extraneous to the extreme, same with the Berserkers. The structure continues to be awful, but I think that's just how it will be since Maberry seems married to this format. Perhaps I am used to other kinds of writers who let loose with profanity and gross situations to provide realism but it Maberry continues to sanitize the dialogue and he wants us to believe that there dudes are the most vil...more I found this equal parts boring and irritating. The cloning was ridic and the New Men story line seemed extraneous to the extreme, same with the Berserkers. The structure continues to be awful, but I think that's just how it will be since Maberry seems married to this format. Perhaps I am used to other kinds of writers who let loose with profanity and gross situations to provide realism but it Maberry continues to sanitize the dialogue and he wants us to believe that there dudes are the most villainous villains ever except for how he never really took it to the point that they weren't mostly talk. Similar to the sanitized dialogue is the incest story line; I am okay with being vague for ANY OTHER reason that not wanting to actually tackle it, and that seems to be why Hecate/Paris wasn't really explored. Also, I have a hard time believing that Hecate would make the decisions that she did at the end of the novel. I mean, there's not a whole lot to support her ultimate choice other than self-preservation, but maybe that is enough for most readers?

Like Molly, I am pissed that Grace was fridged to enhance Joe's manpain quotient. I guess, Helen wasn't going the miles that her rape and suicide did in book one? I mean, how many women must Joe lose? He's getting into Sam Winchester territory. I am slightly mollified that Grace ends up the hero in the history books and all of that, but only slightly.

Honestly, what irritated me the most, but what I should have expected because it's a Maberry book and the dude/his publishers think continuity is an evil thing to be avoided, is that Grace is buried the USA to be "near her friends" and Joe says that she has no family in the UK, yadda yadda. No living family, true enough, but after the whole, huge back story about Grace's son dying and how that ended up defining her life until she became a solider... She's not going to be buried with her son? No small mention that Church will pull strings to have her son's body relocated so that Grace and Brian can be buried together? It seems all kinds of wrong, out of character, and dumps on Grace's backstory. Plus! In the next book, we find out that Grace was "like a daughter" to her boss at SAS/Barrier and yet he also seems to be okay that she's bured in the USA, seemingly at the bequest of her boyfriend of less than a week? (less)

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Apr 30, 2011 J.D. rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Joe Ledger and Echo Team are back, kicking ass and taking names, then checking the list of names and kicking everyone's ass again just to make sure. This time, Joe and the DMS (Department of Military Sciences) are up against not just one, but two teams of mad scientists monkeying around with the human genome. One group's literally making monsters; the other's winding up what they call the Extinction Clock for a multi-racial genocide that makes the Final Solution look puny.

This is another great,...more

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Oct 08, 2010 Paul rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After reading Patient Zero I was very keen to read more of Jonathan Maberry’s work. I really liked his idea of terrorists creating a pathogen that reanimates the dead and using them as a bio-weapon. Patient Zero whips along at a breakneck pace and I found the writing superb.

In its sequel, The Dragon Factory, Joe Ledger and Echo team are back. However, no zombies this time out. Instead, the team are in a race against time to stop a maniacal billionaire geneticist who has plans to reinvent the hum...more After reading Patient Zero I was very keen to read more of Jonathan Maberry’s work. I really liked his idea of terrorists creating a pathogen that reanimates the dead and using them as a bio-weapon. Patient Zero whips along at a breakneck pace and I found the writing superb.

In its sequel, The Dragon Factory, Joe Ledger and Echo team are back. However, no zombies this time out. Instead, the team are in a race against time to stop a maniacal billionaire geneticist who has plans to reinvent the human race. He has put together a globe spanning scheme called the Extinction Wave that targets only certain genetic groups.

When the story begins, none of Department of Military Science are aware of what’s going on. For a sizeable chunk of the novel they are largely ignorant of the scale of the threat they are facing. The characters were left fumbling around in the dark, and playing catch up all the way through, which adds some additional tension for the reader.

The billionaire, Cyrus Jakoby, makes a compelling villain. He is entirely single minded and the absolute embodiment of evil. I particularly enjoyed how Maberry interwove his back story around real world events. The origins of his plan dates back to the rise of the Nazis and World War II, and as his story develops the details of how he his tried to change the face of the world before begins to emerge.

Jakoby’s children, Paris and Hecate, also play a part in his grand scheme. As his children have grown, they have been treated by their father as ‘young gods’. They are the ideal he strives toward and this has made them just as twisted as he. His daughter, Hecate, ends up experimenting on herself in order to achieve her own take on perfection.

The controversial subject of human cloning is also touched upon and there is a nod towards the nature vs nurture debate. Jakoby and family also use their skill in genetic manipulation to create mythical beasts that they sell or hunt for profit.

Once again Maberry has delivered a tight, action packed story. There is an incident toward the end of the novel that will, without a doubt, completely change the motivations of Joe Ledger in the future. I look forward to seeing how the fallout from this will affect Joe and in turn, the rest of the team. It was also nice to see more small hints being dropped regarding the origins of the ever mysterious Mr Church, but he remains as much an enigma as he was in the first novel. I was slightly dubious of this approach in Patient Zero, but after completing The Dragon Factory I am keen to learn everything about him. Again I felt that the rest of Echo Team could have had a bit more screen time. They sound like potentially fascinating characters and I want to know their back stories and motivations.

As an aside, Maberry deserves an award for successfully grossing me out. His detailed description of how a genetically enhanced super-solider ripped the arms off an enemy and then beat them to death with their own appendages is very graphic, but also darkly funny.

This book is epic in scale and the locations used remind me of a Bond film, a character even remarks on the fact. I fully expected to see on the last page – JOE LEDGER WILL RETURN…..

When the next book is published I certainly will.(less)

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Oct 12, 2010 Mary Ford rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Initially when I first plunged eagerly into The Dragon Factory it was within hours after completing Patient Zero and I was (at the very very beginning) dismayed and disappointed that it wasn't another zombie book as I had expected.

That initial dismay fled quickly as I once again fell in love with Jonathan Maberry's intricate globally expansive conspiracy plot and his quirky, real and believable characters. Admittedly some of the science went way over my head but I never actually felt lost, I jus...more

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Jun 05, 2010 Giovanni Gelati rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

First off I must come clean about a few things in regard to Mr. Maberry & his work. He was nice enough to add me as a friend on Facebook and allow me into his world as we do there. Originally I was just interested in one facet of his work as the sci –fi /paranormal posts were not on the radar yet. His work with Marvel Comics and the graphic novels were all that was on my mind. The other work he has done, the novels that have earned him multiple Bram Stoker Awards – Patient Zero, The Pine Dee...more
First off I must come clean about a few things in regard to Mr. Maberry & his work. He was nice enough to add me as a friend on Facebook and allow me into his world as we do there. Originally I was just interested in one facet of his work as the sci –fi /paranormal posts were not on the radar yet. His work with Marvel Comics and the graphic novels were all that was on my mind. The other work he has done, the novels that have earned him multiple Bram Stoker Awards – Patient Zero, The Pine Deep trilogy (Ghost Road Blues, Dead Man’s Song, & Bad Moon Rising), The Wolfman, Zombie CSU, & They Bite- really weren’t on my list of novels to read. What a mistake on my part, I know for many of you I am not imparting something new, the quality of his writing is amazing.

The Dragon Factory is Maberry’s second Joe Ledger vehicle. The first is Patient Zero, and trust me I plan to get that ASAP. The Dragon Factory was a great surprise to me; I enjoyed every page of it and I fell in love with Joe Ledger. Finding new novels to read, another avenue to go to is great, and this is definitely one here.

The story revolves around the now running Doomsday clock. The bad guys have ties to WWII Nazis. They are trying to release deadly viruses & diseases among the worlds “mud people”, those of us that are not white, literally killing not just thousands or millions, but billions of people. They also genetically engineer super soldiers and transgenic monsters. Joe Ledger and his crew at the Department of Military Sciences are the only ones that have time to stand in the way.

If you have a checklist of things you enjoy in a novel, then you can check off the following things: Action- there is plenty of it from page one to 486, excellent dialogue, great plot, good villains, characters that you can grow to care about, superior execution and conclusion of storyline. Did I miss anything? No & neither did Jonathan Maberry in this novel. I think this would be a very neat movie. Put this in your Goodreads –to read- list at the very least. Check it out.

What are you reading today? Check us out and become our friend on Facebook. Go to Goodreads and become our friend there and suggest books for us to read and post on. You can also follow us on Twitter and visit us on Book Blogs. Thanks for stopping by today; we will see you tomorrow. Have a great day.

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Apr 17, 2013 Rob rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Okay, look: I realize Jonathan Maberry is only a step up from Patterson and Grisham and (shudder) Sparks, but it's an important step also occupied by people like John Sandford and Dennis Lehane, a step that includes quality writing, intelligent plotting, believable characters, and, crucially, humor. Maberry's Joe Ledger series deals with a covert government entity called the Department of Military Sciences – sort of Homeland Security if Homeland Security fought zombies. This is the second book i...more

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Aug 27, 2012 Blood Rose Books rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the second book in Jonathan Maberry's Joe Ledger series. While there is not too much of a reference back to the first book, the first book, Patient Zero, does set up the characters and relationship and how Joe becomes involved with the DMS (plus it is a great read) that you may feel the need to read it first.

Joe Ledge and the DMS (Department of Military Science) are being hit on different fronts and one of them is their own government. Someone inside the United States government wants to...more This is the second book in Jonathan Maberry's Joe Ledger series. While there is not too much of a reference back to the first book, the first book, Patient Zero, does set up the characters and relationship and how Joe becomes involved with the DMS (plus it is a great read) that you may feel the need to read it first.

Joe Ledge and the DMS (Department of Military Science) are being hit on different fronts and one of them is their own government. Someone inside the United States government wants to dismantle and take control of Mindreader and is willing to go to any lengths to get it. If that was not enough, there is a mysterious email sent to the DMS that show creatures that are of myth and fantasy but seems very real on video. Additionally, there are red flags being set off all over the world as diseases that were thought to be extinct growing in rapid numbers, but only affecting people of certain race and color. Little does Joe and his Echo team know that there is a count down to the end of the world, and there is nothing that can be done once the clock hits zero. Joe, Echo team and DMS resources are spread thin as they try to unravel all the mysteries surround the attacks as well as protect the world from extinction and that some old points of views about the people of the world, never really do die.

I am a big fan of this series, so do not worry if you liked the first book in this series and are worried about the second one living up Patient Zero, I think that Maberry has succeeded in writing an awesome second book for this series. I love that Maberry continually has you questioning whether what is happening within the story could be real, could be happening on some level right now, within this novel that is the development of super-bugs with specific targets as well as combining the DNA of different animals to create new creature or Hybrids. As human have always been fascinated with creating and destroying everything around them, I think that theses were perfect topics for Maberry to explore and you get the real creepy/scary feeling when you read the information that he has amasses for this novel, you questions what is really being done behind all those closed doors around the world. I really appreciated that you can tell that Maberry has done his research on genetics for this book, as he is able to explain the creation of the creatures within this story. Maberry, knows how to weave a interesting story that is not over whelmed by the action (although there is quite a bit of action in this novel, I think there is more than the first book). The Joe Ledger series are for those who like their action reads, and maybe want to try something out with a sci-fi mix to it, as Maberry has succeeded on melding the two together, basically flawlessly.

I really love the development of Joe's character within this novel as well as his relationship with Grace. I think that it was smart for Maberry to introduce something good into Joe's life, so that everything is not the dark, that consumes him. There are some big events within this book that I know will define Joe as a character in future novels, so if you also liked Joe as a character in the first, just watch out in this one. I also liked the introduction to Eighty-Two (yes that is his name). It was just a very interesting perspective to have especially when the voice if that of a child. I do wonder if Maberry will continue to have Eighty-Two within the books as I could see him being a fixture within the DMS.

I like that Maberry is not afraid to let his main character get hurt, both physical and mentally and the mentally part is what makes Joe who he is and his ability to be the best at his job. Maberry also does a good job of letting those around him get hurt as well, and you never really know which individual on Joe's team is going to survive (well except for Church, I would like to see the day where Church actually gets to be part of the action). This really adds to the suspense and even though people may get attached to certain characters, that suspense is what makes Maberry's books more interesting and more real as we all know not everyone can survive a battle (especially in this book as there are some very unique genetically modified creatures/humans/species).

This book does have several point of views, but I found that the majority of the chapters were focused around Joe voice. However, if you dislike having different points of view within the book you read then you will probably not want to pick this one up. That said you will be missing out a great if you choose not to pick this up.

I'm a big fan of Maberry and his Joe Ledger series, I cannot wait to get my hands on the next book in this series. Maberry's seamless way of making everything within his story appear real, will always keep me coming back for more and maybe just keep a better eye on the headlines, as things like this really could come true. The Joe Ledger series are for those who really enjoy their action adventure novels, with enough suspense and twists and turns to always keep the reader guessing.

Enjoy!!!(less)

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Jul 17, 2010 Joyce added it · review of another edition

Shelves: librarybook

One of the marks of a great storyteller is how many absurdly over-the-top elements s/he can throw in and still keep you turning the pages in guilty bliss. By that standard, Maberry has the goods: conspiracies involving the Vice President of the USA, evil albino twins, Spetsnaz mercenaries, weaponized viruses, and hints of cryptozoology -- and that's just the first hundred pages! There is barely one single believable person, emotion, or action in this thing and yet it motivated me to spend extra...more

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Apr 12, 2010 Todd rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When I heard through the grapevine that this would be the last Joe Ledger novel, I went into it dreading the outcome. I have finished the novel and while the story is good and entertaining; there were a few missed things here and there. One thing I do have to say about Dragon Factory is that the opening paragraph sucks you in; hook, line, and sinker. Your first thoughts if a fan of the series will be, where is this going? Or more importantly where has this poor bastard been?

I loved The Twins; bu...more When I heard through the grapevine that this would be the last Joe Ledger novel, I went into it dreading the outcome. I have finished the novel and while the story is good and entertaining; there were a few missed things here and there. One thing I do have to say about Dragon Factory is that the opening paragraph sucks you in; hook, line, and sinker. Your first thoughts if a fan of the series will be, where is this going? Or more importantly where has this poor bastard been?

I loved The Twins; but only up to a point. I am trying to do a spoiler free review here, but I want to say when push comes to shove the twins are not what I expected or wanted them to be. The "main", while unique before a final revelation of things is deliciously creepy, violent, and unique. I had my suspicions about him but I was let down when I found out that my guess was correct. At least it wasn't Hitler, for that would have been too cliché and Mr. Maberry is anything but an author who relies on a cliché.

Once again utilizing the first and third person omnipresent perspectives, the book does good justice in explaining everything and the why, when the time is right. One thing that I enjoyed with this book a bit more than Patient Zero was actually knowing what drives the villains to do what they are. Even if the exact reasons are only hinted at, you have a feel of who these characters are and why they are doing something. Nothing I hate more is this: There are times when villains or bad guys just do something and your left questioning why they did that. One thing that bothers me even in Dean Koontz and other suspense books are villains that are not fully fleshed out and explored. By the end of the book the readers will know exactly what Maberry wants them to know. While once again Mr. Church is a mystery more of his past is revealed for the readers whom are interested. I would honestly like to see a book or two just telling his life story to the point where he becomes the Director of the DMS.

The novel sucks you in as stated earlier but it is the frantic and got to finish the book that I loved about it. I love action and horror novels, and when expertly spliced together like this one has been, it makes it a joy to read. The action once again is bone crunching. When Joe is describing a violent action you are not reading it passivly, your feeling the connection of the blow, feeling the pain sometimes when he or his enemies do. While I've never broken a bone nor been stabbed or shot; Maberry is able to describe such pains as if he has lived them all. Patient Zero was wonderful for the amount of realism transferred from the writing on the pages to your mind. What you read you saw clearly and there were no fuzzy moments like in other action novels, even by masters like David Morrell.

The few issues I've had with the book are not because of writing ability but because of where the story is going. If Maberry decides to write another story in this wonderful universe... How far will Joe go? The man we met in Patient Zero is not the man you meet in the beginning of The Dragon Factory... He goes through hell and doesn't seem to come back out of it. When you come to a true hero like Ledger, who is just an ordinary man doing an extraordinary job, how far are you willing to follow him? Roland from the Dark Tower series is a perfect example: he started off as a man on a quest for revenge that mutated into a different man by the end of the series. Change and a journey for heroes are what they are about, but if the hero becomes a villain; eventually (not saying he does or he will),is he still a hero to you? The reason I love Joe is because of his humanity and incapability to understand why or how someone could do the things he's faced. He is one of the more important characters in the action horror genre because of this.

Without spoiling the story; there will be dark times ahead. Dark times are fine if there is even the remotest hint of light at the end of the tunnel, and there wasn't here. While I know why authors can and do things like this to their characters; especially since I've put my own into very tough or dark situations myself; I have a plan. I hope that any more books in this series are just as good, but Ledger has already had a rough life, and I hope somehow his life gets better eventually.

When an author makes a universe that is rich with ideas for possible future story lines and even different series in said universe I love it. Maberry if he decides to end a rich universe with this book in the series should note that he is leaving a world that has thousands of pages left to explore the villains, heroes and the everyday folk who inhabit this world. I guess my largest problem with the ending of Dragon Factory is I feel as if the world will not be the same, that the world Maberry has created has already been washed out and put to pasture so to speak. It saddens me to see series ending if there is more life in them, and there have been times where I've wanted to beg the authors of said places "If your ending this world, can I please explore it more somehow?"... And while the back of the book said that Sony Pictures had optioned this series for a TV show... There is no telling of when or if even this will materialize. I hope it does and it doesn't take the world that I've enjoyed and make it into something I cannot recognize as Joe Ledger.

While I had personal issues with this novel, I still enjoyed it. The story is great and the pace is just right for all that is going on. Not once was I bored or skipping paragraphs like I have been lately in some books. Once captivated this book held me to the end, and I miss that with most books outside of specific authors or series. (less)

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Apr 11, 2010 Patrick rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The next Joe Ledger's story, The Dragon Factory, is the second installment. It seemed a lot of time had passed from the first to the second and Ledger is having a relationship with a killer angel by the name of Grace.

The story is a very fast paced thriller, filled with every concievable nightmares. Despite the violence, it is a very moralistic in terms of black and white. In it, the main characters are racing against the doomday clock and the residues of Nazi's evil cloned from the original evi...more

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Feb 05, 2013 Phillip Brooks rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pulpy, but entertaining.
The plots keep escalating into more and more ridiculous territory. And Joe Ledger isn't much of a cipher. He's too inhuman. The characteristics that make him the best soldier in the world also make him a pretty boring character. You know he's going to go all Wolverine, he'll save the day, and he'll deal with any failures after the job gets done.
He supposedly has all these scars from the death of Helen and from Grace, but his reactions seem "tacked on" to make him seem mo...more

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Mar 16, 2013 Prospero rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As an audiobook, The Dragon Factory was mindless, entertaining ear-candy - which happened to be exactly what I was after. As an e-book or actual book I wouldn't have had the patience for it, with the impossibly heroic feats of arms of the good guys and the cartoonishly telegraphed antics and scheming of the bad guys. The Dragon Factory actually featured a villain so like Doctor Evil from the Mike Meyers movies that I couldn't help but picture the Doctor Evil character in every scene that the vil...more

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Sep 25, 2011 Thierry Nguyen rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So its predecessor, Patient Zero, is a big guilty pleasure of mine because it's "24 against zombies." There was a good mix of overly badass (even for a Mary Sue) main character doing crazy Jack Bauer-style stuff along with zombie movie tropes. This time, there's a bit too much "normal"; while the villains have the capability of creating outlandish obstacles for the heroes to overcome, there isn't as much fantastical stuff this time. Mostly talk about villain scheme without much actual execution,...more

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Feb 01, 2010 ♦Jennifer♦ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: My dad and brother, fans of 24, fans of Jason Borne

Shelves: read-in-2010, first-reads

Won on first reads.

If Jason Borne and 24 had a baby it would be The Dragon Factory. I would say that that's the simplest way to describe this book.

Joe ledger is part of the DMS(Department of Military Sciences), a secret organization that helps to protect the United states against threats of the scientific variety. Run by a mystery man, named Church, who loves vanilla wafers. The DMS is desperately needed in order to protect against the Cabal.

The Cabal is a group of Nazi's who believe in the pe...more Won on first reads.

If Jason Borne and 24 had a baby it would be The Dragon Factory. I would say that that's the simplest way to describe this book.

Joe ledger is part of the DMS(Department of Military Sciences), a secret organization that helps to protect the United states against threats of the scientific variety. Run by a mystery man, named Church, who loves vanilla wafers. The DMS is desperately needed in order to protect against the Cabal.

The Cabal is a group of Nazi's who believe in the perfect race. They have figured out a way to make genetic diseases specific to race communicable through the water supply. And now it is up to the Joe Ledger and the DMS to stop them.

Nearly 500 pages, this book took me a while to finish. But I would by no means say that should be a deterrent.

There was a lot of gun fire, flash bangs, and Russians. I liked the team of Joe, Top, and Bunny. They worked well together and it was fun to imagine the way that the three of them could take out whole hoards of enemies.

Church was a perfect man behind the scenes. He remained mysterious throughout the book, but was perfect at coordinating everything. Using the knowledge that he was able to get from MindReader, in order to get cooperation from some government officials.

Now, I've read a lot of books. With a lot of 'bad guy' characters. But the leader of the Cabal, Cyrus Jakoby, was just plain evil. Sprinkle in a whole lot of crazy, and you've got yourself an evil scientist that you just love to hate. Every page just revealed more and more of his evil plan. Until finally I just wanted nothing more than for someone to kill his ass.

The genetic creations were perhaps the most interesting. Everything from Unicorns to Dragons were created by genetic manipulation. Even neanderthals were resurrected. And to top it all off, Cyrus makes a whole lot of clones of himself.

Overall, this was an action-packed read that I would definitely recommend to anybody with a little testosterone in their system. I'm not saying that women won't like this,(points to self as example A)but this is almost certainly something that I think more guys will appreciate.(less)

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Apr 11, 2010 Rachel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Fans of Patient Zero

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I really loved this book. It's an action packed, fast paced good time. The Dragon Factory is the second Joe Ledger book, the first being Patient Zero. Instead of chasing after zombies, this time the DMS is chasing after a familial group trying to eradicate the world through eugenics and a genetically engineered series of plagues. It's a really interesting premise for a thriller, kind of Jason Bourne meets The Island of Dr. Moreau. Or Indian Jones with better science. I am a fan of Patient Zero a...more I really loved this book. It's an action packed, fast paced good time. The Dragon Factory is the second Joe Ledger book, the first being Patient Zero. Instead of chasing after zombies, this time the DMS is chasing after a familial group trying to eradicate the world through eugenics and a genetically engineered series of plagues. It's a really interesting premise for a thriller, kind of Jason Bourne meets The Island of Dr. Moreau. Or Indian Jones with better science. I am a fan of Patient Zero and I think what makes these books worth my time is the characters and how real they are. They're not really stock action hero characters that you don't care if they live or die as long as it's exciting. Joe Ledger seems like a guy who could just go nuts at any moment but is also really methodical and efficient when tracking the bad guys. I wish we could learn a little more about the other guys on the Echo Team because sometimes they come off as interchangeable smartasses. The one team member we learn a little bit more about is Grace Courtland who has formed a deeper relationship with Ledger eventually leading to the utterance of the dreaded "L" word. I actually found the expansion of this relationship real as opposed to a simple thriller, "we're-in-a-tense-situation, let's-have-lots-of-hot-sex" relationship. It seemed like Joe might get some stability in his life, until the job intervenes. My favorite character in this book has to be Hecate, the daughter of the evil scientist out to destroy the world. She and her twin brother, Paris, have a bit of a cat and mouse game going with their father. They're both messing with the same science but for slightly different reasons. Hecate is the stronger of the two twins and a total bad ass. I think she scared me the most because she was obviously crazy but really intelligent. I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants a fast-paced read with interesting characters that is 100% engrossing and you will not want to put it down!(less)

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May 21, 2013 Laurel rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I wish this author had either followed the main character in first person or followed several characters in third person but not both. In The Dragon Factory, Maberry switches back and forth with many, many interludes starring throw away characters. It made the first half of the book quite slow. Once the action rolled with few interruptions, the book picked up pace into the action thriller it's meant to be.

A few other problems: Maberry's attempt at deeper characterization fell a bit short; there...more

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Dec 07, 2011 Ray Palen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Jonathan Maberry, like Simon Clark and Dan Simmons, began his career as predominantly a 'horror' writer but has since proven an uncanny ability to cross genre lines and sucessfully create highly readable tales in multiple genres.

THE DRAGON FACTORY is the 2nd book in the Joe Ledger - Department of Military Sciences series (soon to be TV show). This might be the wildest and most difficult to describe novel in the series as there is so much going on. Particulary, the unbelievable genetic experiment...more

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About Jonathan Maberry

JONATHAN MABERRY is a New York Times best-selling and multiple Bram Stoker Award-winning horror and thriller author, magazine feature writer, playwright, content creator and writing teacher/lecturer. His books have been sold to more than a dozen countries.

His novels include the Pine Deep Trilogy: GHOST ROAD BLUES (Pinnacle books; winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel in 2006), DEAD...more JONATHAN MABERRY is a New York Times best-selling and multiple Bram Stoker Award-winning horror and thriller author, magazine feature writer, playwright, content creator and writing teacher/lecturer. His books have been sold to more than a dozen countries.

His novels include the Pine Deep Trilogy: GHOST ROAD BLUES (Pinnacle books; winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel in 2006), DEAD MAN’S SONG (2007) and BAD MOON RISING (2008); the Joe Ledger series of action thrillers from St. Martin’s Griffin: PATIENT ZERO (2009, winner of the Black Quill and a Bram Stoker Award finalist for Best Novel), THE DRAGON FACTORY (2010; now available), THE KING OF PLAGUES (March 2011), ASSASSIN’S CODE (March 2012), EXTINCTION MACHINE (2013); THE WOLFMAN (NY Times bestseller from Tor, based on the Universal Pictures film starring Benecio Del Toro, Emily Blunt and Sir Anthony Hopkins; winner of the Scribe Award for Best Adaptation); the forthcoming standalone zombie thriller DEAD OF NIGHT (Oct 25 2011); and the Benny Imura series of Young Adult dystopian zombie thrillers from Simon & Schuster: ROT & RUIN (2011; named in Booklist’s Ten Best Horror Novels for Young Adults, a Bram Stoker and Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Award finalist; winner of the Cybils Award, the Eva Perry Mock Printz medal, Dead Letter Best Novel Award, and four Melinda Awards), DUST & DECAY (Aug 30 2011), FLESH & BONE (2012) and FIRE & ASH (21013).

Jonathan was an expert on the History Channel documentary on zombies scheduled to air October 26.

His nonfiction works include: VAMPIRE UNIVERSE (Citadel Press, 2006), THE CRYPTOPEDIA (Citadel, 2007 –winner of the Bram Stoker Award for Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction; co-authored by David F. Kramer), ZOMBIE CSU: The Forensics of the Living Dead (Winner of the Hinzman and Black Quill Awards and nominated for a Stoker Award; 2008), THEY BITE! (2009 co-authored by David F. Kramer), WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE (2010; Bram Stoker nominee; co-authored by Janice Gable Bashman), and THE VAMPIRE SLAYERS FIELD GUIDE TO THE UNDEAD (2001, written under the pen name of Shane MacDougall).

He writes a variety of projects for Marvel Comics involving CAPTAIN AMERICA, BLACK PANTHER, DOOMWAR, WOLVERINE, DEADPOOL, THE X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR, the NY Times bestselling MARVEL ZOMBIES RETURN, MARVEL UNIVERSE vs THE PUNISHER and MARVEL UNIVERSE vs WOLVERINE. All of Jonathan’s comic book collections are released as Graphic Novel collections within a month or two of individual comic publication.

Recent short stories include “Pegleg and Paddy Save the World” (HISTORY IS DEAD, Permuted Press 2007), “Doctor Nine” (KILLERS, Swimming Kangaroo Press, 2008; and reprinted in THE STORIES (in) BETWEEN Edited by Greg Schauer, Jeanne B. Benzel, and W.H. Horner. Fantasist Enterprises, 2009), “Sherlock Holmes and the Adventure of the Greenbrier Ghost” (LEGENDS OF THE MOUNTAIN STATE 2, Bloodletting Books, 2008), “Clean Sweeps” (AND SO IT BEGINS, Dark Quest Books, 2008), “Family Business” (THE NEW DEAD, St. Martin’s Press, 2010), “Like Part of the Family” (NEW BLOOD edited by Patrick Thomas and Diane Raetz, Padwolf Press, 2010), “Zero Tolerance” (THE LIVING DEAD 2, Night Shade Books), “Flint and Steel” (GI JOE: COBRA WARS, 2011), “Saint John”(THE MONSTER’S CORNER, 2011, St. Martin’s), “The Death Song of Dwar Guntha” (Under the Moons of Mars: New Adventures on Barsoom, 2012, Simon & Schuster), and “The Wind Through the Fence” (an original e-story available for all e-readers). His essay, “Take Me To Your Leader” will be included in the nonfiction book, TRIUMPH OF THE LIVING DEAD: Robert Kirkman's Zombie Epic on Page and Screen edited by James Lowder (BenBella Books/Smart Pop, 2011).

All of Jonathan’s novels are available on audio, including the audio-only collection, JOE LEDGER: THE MISSING FILES (Blackstone), which includes the short stories “Countdown”, “Ze(less)

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“Okay," I said slowly, "but what the hell would you mate a horse with to get a unicorn, because I don't see horses and narwhales doing the dirty boogie.” — 1 person liked it

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