Review: The Maze Runner

 Book: The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Pages: 374 Pages

Publisher: Random House

Source: Bought

Synopsis: When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. He has no recollection of his parents, his home, or how he got where he is. His memory is black. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade, a large expanse enclosed by stone walls.
Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning, for as long as they could remember, the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night, they’ve closed tight. Every thirty days a new boy is delivered in the lift. And no one wants to be stuck in the maze after dark.
The Gladers were expecting Thomas’s arrival. But the next day, a girl arrives in the lift—the first girl ever to arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. The Gladers have always been convinced that if they can solve the maze that surrounds the Glade, they might be able to find their way home . . . wherever that may be. But it’s looking more and more as if the maze is unsolvable.
And something about the girl’s arrival is starting to make Thomas feel different. Something is telling him that he just might have some answers—if he can only find a way to retrieve the dark secrets locked within his own mind.

My Thoughts: The Maze Runner was NOT what I expected (in a good way). I thought it’d be a boring story about some kid who had to solve a maze, but it turned out to be way better than that!

Thomas (the main character) is a smart and loyal dude and I think I’d totally be in love with him if Teresa wasn’t around…rawr, I will beat you up Teresa! One thing I didn’t like about him was that his looks weren’t really described…all I saw in my head was some random guy (who was most of the time cute).  He was sometimes called ugly but the thing that made up for that was the way he never gave up on his friends. He wasn’t going to leave anyone who could survive behind.

The setting of The Maze Runner was pretty fascinating. Since this story is a dystopian, all these futuristic robot/animals lived in the maze and the boys who lived in the “safe” part got supplies and new people who came through an endless box. I liked how the Gladers made sort of a society to keep order in the Glade. The way they interacted with the setting was how I would think I would. They explored it and had runners (hence the book name The Maze Runner) try to map out the maze to find a way to escape.

James Dashner sure knows how to keep a person on the edge of their seat (or bed or couch). I laughed and cried with the characters (okay, maybe not cried…) and after I read the last page, I ran to my bookshelf and grabbed the second book (The Scorch Trials). This is definitely something I would recommend to just about everyone.

Writing: 10/10

Setting: 10/10

Characters: 8/10

Plot: 9/10

Cover: 10/10

Ending: 4/5

51/55= 93% A

-Danna