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The Kill Order by James Dashner

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Brief synopsis (no spoilers):
In the rest of the series, a great deal of effort goes into describing the Flare and its effects on people. But the solar flares are only mentioned in passing. This book talks much more about those, giving the history of how they affected humanity.

 Category:
Young Adult Fiction

Why I chose this book:
Next in the series (prequel)

 My personal opinion (the review):
I liked this book as much as I liked the first one in the series, The Maze Runner. Death was far more abundant in this book (which is saying something), but the majority of it comes about through natural causes- the millions that were killed by the solar flares and the aftereffects. So those deaths feel... easier to stomach, I guess. Definitely a great book, but I'm not planning on purchasing it. Borrowing from the library is good enough for me.

Warnings:
Language - almost none
Violence - fairly common, not very graphic, some "intense" (scary) situations
"Adult" situations - none
Death - abundant, including of major characters (don't get attached)

Movie rating equivalent:
PG-14 (might need that extra year)

 Protagonist description:
Mark is a teenage boy that has to grow up very, very quickly. He pretty much ends up an experienced soldier by the end of the book (spanning a few months)

 Point of view of story:
Third, focused on Mark

 Book length:
Medium-long - about a week

 Story flow:
Great, no slow parts

 Grammar and spelling issues:
None

 Character connection (no spoilers):
None

For series:
Independent or integral (stand-alone or back story dependent):
The Kill Order is mostly independent

 Series review as a whole:
Very good. With it set in the future, it has to get a little "weird" or disconnected from reality, but it's not completely unbelievable like the Hunger Games series. The last 2 books should have been combined. This one (The Kill Order) is presented like a prequel, which makes it seem optional, but I found it to be very helpful for answering lingering questions

 If you only have time for one, read: (which one)
The Maze Runner. This one (The Kill Order) is a close second

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