Context:
Thomas wakes in a service elevator with no memories except his name. He's pulled into the world of The Glade, where other boys work to survive--and to find a way out of the Maze that surrounds them. The Maze is an ever-changing labyrinth teeming with Grievers--half animal, half machine, and completely terrifying. After Thomas joins the Glade, a girl arrives--the first girl ever. She bears a haunting message that will destroy the Glader's way of life.
My Thoughts:
I like creative dystopias. Sorry if this sounds disjointed, I'm writing tired because I really want to get this written tonight.
Firstly, I really like the way the author sets the scene. He's really good at scenery descriptions. He gets to the point without explicating every tiny flower and blade of grass. I have a hard time imagining scenery but I found imagining the Glade and Maze fairly easy.
His characters are fantastically vivid. Each character feels distinct and genuine. You really get emotionally involved in the characters. Also: Chuck. :(
I also like that Thomas and Teresa didn't turn into a love story. It's so typical of YA to turn even the dreariest situations into a love story. Though a romance between Thomas and Teresa was hinted at, it was also made very clear that they had far more important things to worry about. They could barely remember each other. So, I'm really glad there wasn't a played up romance between these two, because that would have broken the mystery and appeal of the world they live in.
I found the plot and story mostly enjoyable. I definitely didn't know what to expect--I really enjoyed the twists and turns the story took. The only things that detracted from it was just...sometimes it felt kind of...disjointed? I dunno, it feels like there's two different stories here. I would have liked it better if the first book ended with the Griever Hole. It leaves too many unanswered questions and kind of creates this weird blended story feeling that I'm not a big fan of. The Glade is a world away from the world they came from. Dashner does make up for it with the haunting letter at the end--I'm definitely interested to read the next book.
Oh and the Grievers were weird to me. I guess I see why they were scared of them, and maybe I'll get it when the movie comes out--but they honestly just didn't freak me out.
My Rating: 3/5
Overall, I really enjoyed the book. Most of my complaints are small, but a lot of the mark down is simply because the book just didn't grab me. It was a well-written, interesting story, but it didn't really get down deep for me. Maybe it's because it's following Kane & Abel, which is officially one of my new favorite books, and that's a tough act to follow. It didn't feel like a story I would revisit time after time, but Dashner is a great author and I hope to see more work from him.
No comments:
Post a Comment