The Maze Runner by James Dashner

"When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. 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, open expanse surrounded 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 the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.

Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers. 

Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind."

I have seriously mixed feelings about this book. I didn't hate it, but didn't love it either.

Was this book entertaining? Yes, James Dashner really knows how to create a suspenseful plot. The entire idea of having a group of people stuck in a Maze while knowing nothing about who they are or where they are is pretty crazy. The book also kept a pretty great pace overall and never had a dull moment, so why didn't I enjoy it more?

First off, let's start off with characterization. For the exception of one or two characters, I was never able to develop a relationship to any of the characters. I understand that all the characters had their memories swiped, but a lot of the characters always seemed exactly the same. Most of the boys were only distinguishable through certain characteristics like long hair or big biceps. Thomas, our main character, was the only one who seemed to have a developed personality. The developed language was also really distracting at first. I understand a civilization will develop their own way of communicating, but their terms were pretty annoying to me. I was able to get past it after a while, but it never actually flowed for me.

Secondly, though I understood the maze was a pretty dangerous place because of the Grievers, I was never able to picture what an actual Griever looked like. All I got was a slug type of creatures with arms made of metal that also have retracting needles in their body. Oh and they also roll and climb somehow. Yeah alright, that's a little creepy but it's nothing that'll keep me up at night.

I can see why this book has received so much hype, but I think it could definitely use a bit more work. By the end I felt like I spent 300+ pages waiting for some type of answer but instead was just given a lot more questions. However, I will totally be picking up the following book because I'm completely intrigued by the story and seriously need a sense of closure. If that was Dashner's plan, kudos sir, kudos.

The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe

"It starts with an itch you just can't shake. Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat. A few days later, you'll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they’re old friends. Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in. 

And then you're dead. 
When a deadly virus begins to sweep through sixteen-year-old Kaelyn’s community, the government quarantines her island—no one can leave, and no one can come back. Those still healthy must fight for dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. 
As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest. Because how will she go on if there isn't? "

I think the idea of a virus suddenly attacking people may be one of the creepiest ideas ever. I know movies and some books have covered something similar before, but that's initially what attracted me to requesting this book. The setting of a small Canadian island was such an amazing setting to add to the creep factor of this story because of the seclusion it brings on. Though the book had a really slow almost painful start, I enjoyed how realistic the plot felt.

Kaelyn, our main girl, is written to be somewhat of a loner. I don't know if I'd say that I found her character to be all that believable, but I wished I had felt more of a connection to her. That was a main issue with the book for me; I never felt a great connection to any of the characters. I wanted to know more about the secondary characters and never got the chance. I know it'd be hard to do in the way the book was written, but I feel like it could've helped a bit. 

As I mentioned, the letter format this book has only a main character perspective so there's a lot left to understand throughout the book. I really hated that the relationship to Leo was never really explained. I also couldn't tell at points if she was writing a letter or diary, so that inconsistency somewhat distracted me at times. Though the way the story is written from the very beginning of the infections, is really amazing. It sort of reads like a horror movie. We're able to see how the virus begins to affect people and how the desperation in town sets in. 

Overall the idea was pretty good for a new type of story, but the beginning being so slow really put a damper on the rest of the book for me. I don't know if this book will have others to follow, but with the number of points yet to be resolved and sudden ending, the book wasn't anything I can get excited about to recommend you to read it. 

Book Notes: Matched by Ally Condie

"Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow."


Dystopian societies are always really fascinating to me, so when I came across this book I was super excited. I wanted to love this book so much, but after reading it I was left unfulfilled.  The story opened well and I liked the idea of being matched and all that, but everything else fell pretty flat for me. I kept questioning things in the book when I just couldn’t understand why some things weren’t allowed.

One of the biggest questions I have is, why couldn’t Cassia really understand writing or creating? They’re aware of the concepts of doing so, but they just don’t do it. I didn’t like that anyone never questioned anything before this point.

I felt like a lot of areas could’ve used more detail.  Story and character wise, stuff was left pretty underdeveloped for me. I understood that their society was very controlled, but they never explained what the sorting was all about. Was it numbers? Patterns? Pictures? The screens from The Matrix? I was also curious behind the idea of “Abberations”, but again there wasn’t much information behind why people were certain things. 

Okay, sure Cassia was decently developed, but I never had a good sense for who the guys were. I would start making my own developments for the guys because I had very little to go on. Everyone knew of the rebellions happening, but there wasn’t anyone who ever questioned it? Oh, and why can’t people go to each other’s homes?

There weren’t too many issues with Cassia for me. I didn’t really care for her or relate to her, but I also didn’t dislike her. She was just sort of there.  As far as her and her relationships go, I felt like she was kind of naïve in being careful at times. Like really, she’s surprised The Society knew stuff? Really? They watch her sleep, she really think they don’t see her everywhere else? Her relationships felt quick and I never really felt she was in love with a character even if she said she was.

The writing style was decent, however there were a number of instances where I felt Condie tried to be poetic and deep with Cassia, but failed to do so. Cassia wasn’t deep and thought provoking when trying to talk about the sky.  I’m sorry Cassia, you aren’t the first to daydream, I’m sure.

I’m sure I’ll eventually read the following books just to see what happens  in the storyline, but I’m in no rush to do so anytime soon.