When it comes to dinosaurs, you might think you've seen it all. But there's never been a dinosaur like Steve Cole's Z. Rex.
You're a thirteen-year-old boy on the run.
A massive, man-eating monster is on your tail.
An evil group with a plot to destroy humanity wants you both - dead or alive.
There's only one way out. You and the monster have to work together.
Z. Rex is a 2009 Science Fiction Young Adult book written by Steve Cole, who is also known for having written the Astrosaurs series.
Adam Adler is a 13-year-old boy whose father, Bill, is a scientist working for a reality program until he suddenly disappears, leaving Adam all alone in New Mexico, next thing he knows, he's being hunted down by his father's organization, Geneflow Solutions. In the midst of it all, Bill also comes face-to-face with a giant voracious monster, apparently a Tyrannosaurus who also develops an interest in Adam. However, as Geneflow aims to capture Adam and the T. rex, there comes an unexpected turn of events...
The boy and the dinosaur have to work together if they're ever going to survive.
Z. Rex is the first of a trilogy by Steve Cole known as The Hunting. It is followed by Z. Raptor in 2011 and the story is concluded with Z. Apocalypse in 2012.
This book contains examples of the following tropes:
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: In the climax, Bateman is left wounded by a tail swipe during the battle between Zed and the Y. Rex. During the entire commotion, Bateman, who has been antagonistic and confrontational since their first interaction, begs Adam and Dr. Adler to help, claiming that he would watch out of them. Dr. Adler is having none of it before the Y. Rex unceremoniously stomps him with its foot.
- Anti-Hero: Zed is a gigantic monster who brutally kills a couple of mercenaries, but it turns out that he is a failed experiment by Geneflow Solutions who want to put him down and Zed is only really led to Adam because he has Bill's brainwaves implemented into him, causing Zed to see Bill as a father and Adam as a brother. It's only real motivation throughout the book is to find Dr. Adler and protect Adam from Geneflow as well as wanting to be on it's own once all the commotion is through
- Asshole Victim:
- Dr. Mike Sedona tries to escape from the Fort Ponil cave after Zed had just killed off the invading Geneflow mercenaries led by Frank Bateman. Just before Sedona is able to grab a rocket launcher, he is killed by Zed who accidentally swung at Sedona with his own tail, breaking his neck. Adam is more horrified that Zed had killed somebody despite telling the dinosaur not to do so rather than the fact that Sedona was killed.
- In the climax, Bateman, who had been sadistically viciously stalking Adam throughout the book, and Jeff Hayden, who shamelessly sold out Dr. Adler and lured Adam into a false sense of security, are viciously killed off by the Y. rex and Zed respectively.
Bill Adler: (after seeing Bateman get stomped by the Y. rex) Good riddance. - Augmented Reality: Geneflow Solutions appears to be developing a reality program which Bill Adler happens to be putting in a lot of dedication towards and his son Adam is also an active participant in it's various versions, which he keeps testing until a final version is developed and ready for release. It is also in said reaity program where Bill created his brainwaves which he would implement into Zed, giving the dinosaur human-esque intelligence. That said, while Geneflow is dedicated to the virtual program, it's a cover for a more ulterior and insidious goal in mind.
- Ax-Crazy: The Y. rex is another Zenithsaurus that lacks the brainwaves that Dr. Adler implemented into Zed and, whilst retaining its intelligence, is more apparent in acting viciously and maliciously. It wastes no time in fighting and attempting to kill Zed and everyone else in Geneflow's facility the moment it is set free.
- Bait the Dog: Initially being set up as a supporting character, Jeff Hayden quickly reveals that he was on the side of Geneflow as their head jailer and promptly threatens Adam and his father by pointing a gun on the former.
- Big Bad: Much of why everything happens in the book is because of Dr. Samantha Josephs, a scientist who decided to work under Geneflow Solutions and was the one who funded for the creation of the Zenithsaurus Rex whilst covering it up under the guise of developing a virtual reality program. On top of that, her end-goal is to use her creations to destroy mankind so that her creations, with their enhanced intelligence and improved physiques, can inherit the earth in humanity's place.
- Big Brother Instinct: In a weird way or another; Zed is younger than Adam, due to its origin of having been genetically created and then growing rather quickly, but he's definitely bigger and considers himself to be Adam's brother. He will fiercely defend Adam from whatever threat they will come across.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing:
- Dr. Mike Sedona, a zoologist who had been monitoring Zed in Fort Ponil happens to be aligned with Geneflow Solutions and tries to get Adam and Zed to surrender, and this is after Sedona had been looking after he had been looking after Zed for days.
- Jeff Hayden is presented as a friend to Dr. Adler and seems to be very cooperative and friendly towards Adam when the latter had no other choice and decided to approach him for help and advice regarding Zed and Geneflow. Then it turns out that Hayden had been in league with Geneflow all along, much to Adam's shock and dismay.
- Bittersweet Ending: Adam is reunited with his father and they return to Edinburgh, Zed is free to roam wherever he wants, and Bateman, Jeff Hayden, and the Y. Rex are killed. However, Geneflow Solutions, and Samantha Josephs are still at large and are not yet done with their own goals, setting up the events for Z. Raptor.
- Deadpan Snarker: Adam has his moments time and again, if mainly to alleviate himself from the stress that he is going through finding his father whilst being chased by a terrorist organization and having to work with what is essentially a genetically enhanced Tyrannosaurus.
- Dinosaurs Are Dragons: Despite looking like a usual T. rex, Zed also seems to possess a pair of bat-like wings that it uses to fly, and is one of the many genetic modifications Geneflow applied to make its creation a more effective weapon. The book references the comparison between Zed and a soaring dragon at some points.
- Genius Bruiser: Zed may be a gigantic monster, but in no way is he a simple, animalistic brute. Instead, he is a very intelligent animal who can perform complex actions that no other animal can do, such as using computers, disarming bombs, starting fires, etc.
- Green and Mean: Not Zed, but rather it's more recent and vicious clone, the Y. rex, which is deliberately designed to be more feral and unfettered than it's predecessor as well as lacking in developing a close, personal bond due to not sharing any brainwaves with anyone in particular.
- The Heavy: Frank Bateman is the most active antagonist in the book, constantly hunting down Adam and Zed after their first encounter with one another with the intent of taking them over to Geneflow to showcase Adam the Y. Rex and having the newly cloned Zenithsaurus kill off Zed.
- Hulk Speak: Downplayed; Zed speaks in a basic and direct vocabulary, but shows itself to be very intelligent and thoughtful when it comes to understanding Adam and problem solving.
- It Can Think: Zed's enhanced intelligence means that it is more than capable of having complex thoughts and feelings, and because of this, it ends up defecting from Geneflow and seeks to work with Adam, whom it sees as a "brother" due to how the two of them happen to have the same brainwaves as one another. This is because when Bill tried to use the Think-Send Technology into Zed's brain, it happened to be based on the brainwaves of Bill's son, Adam, and as a result, Zed came to see Bill as a surrogate father as well.
- Minor Living Alone: Adam spends a good deal on his own because his father spends long times working on his virtual program project with Geneflow. This ends up being Played for Drama when Bill's prolonged absence whilst Adam is staying in Los Alamos, New Mexico has the latter worried about just how long he had been on his own, unbeknownst that Bill is actually kidnapped, and that's before Frank Bateman and his mercenary crew, and Zed suddenly become involved.
- Missing Mom: Adam's mother died prior to the events of the book, which furthers Adam's lonely nature and personality.
- Monumental Damage: The Y. rex destroys Edinburgh Castle, which Samantha Josephs later gloats to them was specifically intended as a diversion so they could capture Zed without attracting attention. Adam, for his part, is horrified and furious at the destruction of an ancient historical site for their own selfish ends.
- Nervous Wreck: Adam feels as if he's on edge the moment he becomes acquainted with Zed. To be fair, he's being chased by a terrorist organization who wants him, dead or alive, he's forced to work with supposedly a Tyrannosaurus rex, and given that he was once mentioned in the news, Adam feels as if everyone is seeing him with suspicion in New Mexico and he feels like anyone he knows in Edinburgh would not take him seriously if Adam tries to explain his situation.
- Non-Malicious Monster: Despite its feared reputation, Zed ultimately turns out to just be an animal who kills either out of self-defense or out of survival.
- Prehistoric Monster: Averted; Zed does viciously kill a couple of soldiers and some animals, but this is out of defending itself for the former and to provide dietary sustenance for itself for the latter. Due to sharing the same brainwaves as Adam, Zed is actually humanized to an extent and exhibits itself as having some un-animal-like characteristics that don't involve being a violent brute. Played straight with the Y. rex who is perpetually bloodhungry and wastes no time in attacking others.
- Shout-Out:
- Terrifying Tyrannosaur: Zed's genetic template is based on the Tyrannosaurus and is an incredibly strong and terrifying beast that is more than capable of wrecking and killing a group of soldiers when they're sent out to kill the dinosaur. In addition to having a fearsome look, Zed is also majestic in a sense, especially when it sprouts out its wings.
- T. Rexpy: Zed, as it turns out, is actually a Zenithsaurus Rex, an enhanced and more powerful version of Tyrannosaurus, which was used as its primary DNA template in an effort by Geneflow Solutions to create a superweapon capable of destroying mankind.
- Would Hurt a Child Jeff Hayden has absolutely no qualms about shooting Adam in the event that his captive father turned defiant towards Geneflow.Jeff Hayden: And if your dad causes me any further problems — you're dead.
