Maxwell Bones

Character Analysis

Maxwell is the second guitarist for the band the Dead Elvises, and he's an Everliving like Cole. He's dating Meredith from Nikki's school—at least, he is before the Feed. He seems pretty reckless, like when he's on a rafting trip with Nikki and the band, and faced with dangerous rapids says, "We'll be fine" (14.145). Because nothing says fine quite like dangerous rapids.

At the same time, though, Maxwell seems more cautious than Cole, since after the rafting accident, he cautions Cole against taking away Nikki's pain. He objects, saying, "But the exposure" (18.115). Cole overrides him, though, and snacks on Nikki anyway.

After the Feed, Maxwell does the dirty work of bringing hopelessly depressed people to the Shop-n-Go to send them to the Everneath. Nikki watches him disappear both an old man and a desperate-looking woman. It looks super-shady to Nikki when he escorts in the "staggering" (14.38) woman and then holds out "a small white object in the palm of his hand" (14.47). And it is shady: Taking the pill makes her shimmer and disappear. We're getting the impression that Maxwell will do whatever it takes to get the job done.