Book Review - The Maze Runner

The Maze Runner 

Author: James Dashner

Series: The Maze Runner #1 

Genres: Science Fiction, Action | Young Adult
Release Date:  6th October 2009
Publishers: Delacorte Press 

No. Pages: 374

Source: Borrowed

Rating: 

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If you ain’t scared, you ain’t human.

When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his name. He’s surrounded by strangers—boys whose memories are also gone.

Nice to meet ya, shank. Welcome to the Glade.

Outside the towering stone walls that surround the Glade is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive.

Everything is going to change.

Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying.

Remember. Survive. Run

So I've been wanting to read this book for a long time now, and when I heard that Dylan O'brien was going to be starting in the film version, I knew I had found the motivation to read it that I've been looking for. (I'm kinda in love with the dork haha).

The book starts of with Thomas arriving, without his memory or any clue as to how or why he is there. We learn pretty early on that for 2 years, everything has gone pretty smoothly and like clockwork, apart from being forced to run through a maze to find escape of course. Anyway like I said, everything has run like clockwork for 2 years. Once a month they get a new person arrive, once a week they get supplies at the same time every week. They don't ask questions anymore as their job is survival and finding a way out. That is until another new person arrives the day after Thomas, that would be strange enough if it wasn't for the fact that person is a girl. Since Thomas arrives he has the uneasy feeling like his been there before, but with nothing to back it up he puts it down to nothing other than deja vu, only as time goes on some of the other boys start saying they know him, that he has something to do with The Creators. Why should he believe them though? they are just delusional kids who have gone through the changing, something that happens after being stung by a griever right? only the girl who arrived on spoke one word before slipping into a coma, his name.

It's plain to see early on that Thomas has a bigger part to play than he knows, and while he is still trying to earn his stripes around the community its getting harder and harder to ignore. Faced with a massive maze that's constantly changing, life is pretty hard and when it seems like time is running out, desperation levels reach an all time high.

My thoughts

Like I said, this is a book I have been waiting a long time to read. And at first it didn't disappoint. I loved the characters, Thomas as a whole was a good character, a bit whiny for my liking but I guess if I woke up somewhere and didn't know how the hell I got there or who I was before I would be the same. Some of the sub character were also really interesting. My favourite out of the lot would have to have been Chuck and Minho. Chuck was a very shy boy of around 12 or 13 who was the first to befriend Thomas, he didn't have many friends and was the newbie until Thomas arrived, he didn't always make an impact in the book but was loyal from start to finish. Minho on the other hand was a Runner (the people who search the maze each day), something Thomas decided from day one he would be. And even though he never said much he was yet again someone who was loyal from the second he met Thomas, and I liked that. Teresa (the only girl) was on the other hand one character I couldn't get on with, but having only read the first book so far I'm trying to reserve my judgement. All in all the character in general were ok and I'd like to get to know them a bit more.

One thing I will say I didn't like about the book was the swearing. Now they weren't swearing really, they had made up words to represent them, but said at least one of them in almost ever sentence and I just found it very pointless. It was as if it was James Dashners way of making it kid friendly without completely taking the words away, if that makes any sense at all?. It reminded me a lot of The Hunger Games too, and at times was hard to fallow. But for the start of the series I suppose it could have been worse. :)

“Shouldn't someone give a pep talk or something?" Minho asked, pulling Thomas's attention away from Alby.
"Go ahead," Newt replied.
Minho nodded and faced the crowd. "Be careful," he said dryly. "Don't die.”