The Maze Runner: Review

Title: The Maze RunnerAuthor: James Dashner
Release Date: October 2009
Published By: Delacorte Press
Pages: 379
Goodreads Rating: 3.95 stars
Review: Thomas wakes up in a bizarre, adult-less place known as the Glade, his memory completely blank except for his first name. The Glade is a small enclosed structure with a few buildings, but it's what lies outside it that's the most frightening: the Maze. And in the Maze are the Runners, those who try to figure a way out. For two years, life in the Glade had taken on a regularity. But when Thomas arrives, everything changes.

Although I heard so many great things about THE MAZE RUNNER and had such high expectations, I was still completely blown away by how much pure awesomeness was packed between the pages. This book was an adventure and mystery rolled in one, fast-paced, exciting, and full of twists and turns. I was sucked in from the first to last page, and the action never let up enough for me to comfortably put the book down.

Sometimes with adventure or mystery novels such as this one, the main character is horribly under-developed, but I was pleased to find that this was not the case for this book. Thomas was a three-dimensional character with an actual personality so that I find myself caring for him and rooting him on. Rather than being an "everyman" character, he was courageous and self-sacrificing, his own person.

In THE MAZE RUNNER, James Dashner weaves a thrilling dystopian with horror, mystery, and adventure at every twist and turn. This fast-paced book hooks you right in and makes for a quick but exciting read that will satisfy fans of the genre. Having read this, I definitely plan to pick up the sequel, THE SCORCH TRIALS, and I can't wait until I do.

5 stars