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The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Brief synopsis (no spoilers):
A teenage boy wakes up in the center of a giant maze, populated by a bunch of other teenage boys. They have no memories of their lives outside the maze. They are organized and they have tasks for keeping the group alive, with the help of some supplies sent from some outside organization. There are machines in the maze as well- some purposed with watching the group, others purposed with killing its members. No one ever survives outside the maze's center overnight.

Category:
Young adult fiction

Why I chose this book:
Recommended by family

My personal opinion (the review):
I like the back story, I like the author's writing style, I like the general story, and I like that it's being made into a movie. I don't like the fact that the underlying antagonist plot is deception and mind games. I don't like it when major characters are killed. But I do like it when someone is able to do something that's never been done before- when norms are tested and found to be false. I also like special mental abilities in stories.

Warnings:
Language - some, but it's all euphemisms (the boys have made up their own vulgarity), so I didn't find it offensive
Violence - some, and it gets right to the boys' psyches, so if that bothers you...
"Adult" situations - none
Death - some, and some of it mildly graphic, some major characters die

Movie rating equivalent:
PG-13

Protagonist description:
Thomas is bright and a natural leader. There's far more to his story, and he knows it.

Point of view of story:
Third, heavily focused on the protagonist

Book length:
Medium-long. A bit longer than a week

Story flow:
Excellent, no slow parts at all

Grammar and spelling issues:
None

Character connection (no spoilers):
I wish more had been done with Teresa. She takes a back seat to Thomas in just about every scene. But she's going to be significant, I think.

For series:
Independent or integral (stand-alone or back story dependent):
First book, so unknown

Series review as a whole:
Great so far- high hopes!

If you only have time for one, read: (which one)
The Maze Runner (this one)

Comments

  1. I want to write a review of this one, too. I about threw the book across the room after reading that ending...I kinda want to finish the rest of the series before I write my reviews, though. He really should have just made it one long book rather than 3 small books if he wanted to end it that way :P

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