| “ | Oh, Michael, you're so cute. I'm so in love with you. (Laughs) So you're all kissy with my pathetic sister? | „ |
| ~ Tara mocking Michael |
| “ | You can keep pecking in the dirt, Taylor. But I'm not a chicken. I'm an eagle. | „ |
| ~ Tara to Taylor |
Tara is the tertiary antagonist of the Michael Vey book series by Richard Paul Evens. She is one of Hatch's Glows and twin sister to secondary protagonist Taylor Ridley. She has the power to manipulate electrical signals in the brain to create confusion, hallucinations, influence emotions, and cause brief memory loss. She works with the Elgen Corporation.
Past
Tara's past is revealed in the first book in the series, The Prisoner of Cell 25. She was one of the 17 children accidentally granted electrical powers upon birth by a malfunctioning experimental machine. Her adopted parents were killed in a house fire when she was five (she believes the fire was accidental, though it was really started by Hatch and the Elgen). She was taken in by Hatch and raised to believe that her and the other Glows are a greater species than humans.
Story
The Prisoner of Cell 25
After Taylor is abducted by the Elgen, Tara greets her and serves as her guide through the life of a Glow. She takes Taylor shopping and to concerts, all under Hatch's orders to make Taylor more comfortable. However, when Taylor disobeys Hatch's order to "reboot" a motorcycle stuntman during his stunt, Tara takes over and does it for her, making the cyclist crash and presumably die. Hatch then throws Taylor in a dungeon called "Purgatory" with other disobedient Glows and punishes Tara.
When Taylor's boyfriend Michael arrives to free Taylor and the other rebel Glows, he is captured and thrown in the dreaded Cell 25 for 26 days, during which he is mentally tortured by Tara. He is only able to make it through the distant aid of ally Abigail, who stabilizes his mental and physical wounds.
When Michael and his allies escape, Tara uses her emotional manipulation to try to stop the group from succeeding. Taylor mentally fights her off, and Tara flees.
Rise of the Elgen
Tara returns to support Hatch, even when the Elgen board does not. She openly expresses her hatred for the rouge Glows (who have joined to form the Electroclan).
After Michael is captured, Tara goes into his cell, posing as Taylor, to emotionally torture him by saying she never cared about him and that she was working with Hatch all along. Hatch later comes to taunt Michael, and Michael reveals that, somehow, he knew that it was Tara and not Taylor. Tara and the other Glows come in to taunt Michael before his execution, but Michael verbally fends them off.
During his attempted execution, Michael escapes and attacks Hatch and the Glows in the observation booth with a lightning ball. Tara jumps out of the way and escapes.
Battle of the Ampere
Tara helps Hatch take over the Ampere and overthrow the Elgen board. She makes some window washers believe that the boat was filled with cobras, causing them to jump overboard. She is also ordered by Hatch to dispose of some Elgen guards. The Ampere is later destroyed by the Electroclan.
Hunt for Jade Dragon
After the destruction of the Ampere, Tara and the others take up residence on the Faraday. At a mall in Beverly Hills, she displays her powers to create hallucinations by making several people see a man as what they feared most. When a boy insults Tara, Torstyn microwaves his brain. Tara and the other glows do nothing to stop him or help the boy.
Tara later helps Hatch defeat Schema in Switzerland.
Tara later switches places with Taylor (who is captured) and aids in the Electroclan's capture. She then makes Michael believe he is seeing his deceased father, when it is really Hatch. Michael divulges information regarding the resistance. She is defeated and temporarily tortured by a reformed Nichelle before escaping.
Storm of Lightning
In Storm of Lightning, Tara aids Hatch in conquering the small island nation of Tuvalu and enslaving its people.
Quentin later decides to overthrow Hatch and take over the Elgen. Tara, who is in love with Quentin and loyal to him, reluctantly agrees and aids Quentin in freeing his friend Welch. However, Hatch discovers them and has them all arrested. Tara is sentenced to death.
Fall of Hades
Tara appears as Hatch's prisoner in Fall of Hades. She and Torstyn are sentenced to be fed to rats. However, Michael and the Electroclan rescue them as well as Quentin and she reluctantly joins them.
Michael Vey 7
Tara will most likely appear in the currently unnamed seventh book as a hero or anti-hero.
Personalty
Tara is a spoiled brat that enjoys shopping as a main hobby. She believes that she is greater that humans due to her abilities, and will not hesitate to harm them. However, she genuinely cares for her fellow Glows (excluding the Electroclan), and sees them as family. She follows leaders blindly as long as she gets something out of it.
Appearance
Tara is the identical twin of Taylor, who is described as having long light brown hair and deep brown eyes. She is very attractive to most men who see her.
Trivia
- She is implied to have a romantic relationship with Quentin.
- She can also manipulate the minds of some animals.
- Her powers inspired Cell 25.
- Her powers were the basis and cause for creation of a helmet that can block her and Taylor's power.
 Villains
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Glows Elgen Corporation Others | ||