A Door in the Woods

By James Dashner


Jimmy Fincher entered the dark woods on a day like any other. But what he sees there changes his perception of reality and sets off a chain of events that explodes in a torrent of suspense and excitement. An ancient legend come to life. A conspiracy of madmen. Strange portals to other worlds. Villains named everything from Raspy to Shadow Ka. And behind it all is the old wooden door, lying deep in the forest by Fincher’s home. There, the world will change forever.


This is James Dashner's first series (The 13th Reality, The Maze Runner) and I thought it sounded fun and it was a fairly light read at 171 pages. It features Jimmy Fincher of Georgia, a kid who is adventurous and loves to climb trees- and name them. Jimmy stumbles into a fight that he never wanted a part of, filled with world-hopping, cool new powers, strange and terrifying monsters, and mysteries galore. This book is age appropriate for middle school aged kids and is a fun read for boys. This is the first in a 3 book series, of which I intend to read and review, but so far I'm having fun with Jimmy (though it is at times immaturely written and kidish- it's his first book people!) so I'll let you know if Jimmy is worth your time in the near future.

The Death Cure

By James Dashner


Thomas knows that WICKED can’t be trusted. They stole his memories and locked him inside the Maze. They forced him to the brink of death by dropping him in the wilds of the Scorch. And they took the Gladers, his only friends, from him.
Now WICKED says that the time for lies is over. That they’ve collected all the data they can from the Trials and will rely on the Gladers, with full memories restored, to help them with their ultimate mission: to complete the blueprint for the cure for the flare. But Thomas must undergo one final test.
What WICKED doesn’t know, however, is that Thomas has already remembered far more than they think. And it’s enough to prove that he can’t believe a word of what WICKED says.
The time for lies IS over. And the truth is more dangerous than Thomas could ever have imagined.

Will anyone survive the death cure?


It is finished. Really? I was kinda hoping for a little more information...say Thomas' past. That was really the only drawback of this finale to The Maze Runner trilogy. Much like life, the story isn't all roses and doesn't really have a neatly packaged ending. If you read the first two books you'll know how awful life has been for Thomas and the other Gladers, the ones who are still alive anyway. This book brings to light the state of the world and how the people are dealing with the devastation of an incurable plague called the Flare. This book centers around Thomas' search for freedom and his need to make amends for all he has done to aid WICKED. Much comes to light and much goes to darkness.  The only disclaimer I have is that this book is still centered around violence; including references to cannibalism, assisted suicide, murder and loads of death and destruction. It can be disturbing. But, for me it wasn't nearly as bad as the second book in the series, which made me a little queasy. If violence and some gore don't bother you and you enjoy distopian books, this one is a well-written series. As for me, I'm glad I know what happens to Thomas and the others, even though there was lots of horror to go through to get there. I'll just warn you that it's truly violent.

The Scorch Trials (#2)

By James Dashner

Thomas and the rest of the group's escape from the Maze and the horrifying creatures called Grievers has proven to be short-lived because WICKED, the group behind it all, has another trial in store for them. Sun flares have destroyed most of the Earth, and a virus called the Flare has ravaged its population. Infected people turn into zombies called Cranks that attack and eat one other. The kids are told that they have the Flare but if they succeed in surviving the second trial, they will be cured. With few supplies, they must travel across 100 miles of hot and scorched land within two weeks to reach a safe house to receive the cure. When Teresa, Thomas's best friend and the only girl in the group, disappears, and he loses the ability to communicate telepathically with her, he and the other guys determine to find her. As they trek across the barren desert encountering crazed Cranks, the teens' loyalty to one another and the group is tested.

This is the second book in The Maze Runner trilogy. This series is tricky to review because it is so up in the air as to whether you really like it or not. There is a lot of violence and brutality in this series, as the characters go through a lot and death is rampant. Where the first book raised about a billion questions, reading the second one answered about 3 questions and posed four million more. It is a book that you are constantly asking What? Who? WHY?!! I'll say this for this dystopian series, it is a definate page turner. Lots of people don't care for it because of the violence, but I'm holding on saying a definite yes or no until the last book comes out in October. When I get my answers, then I'll either say "kudos to you Mr. Dashner." or I'll be crying in a corner saying, "Why did I put myself through this?" I'll let you all know!

This book is reminiscent of The Hunger Games and The Uglies series. So if you like these books, I'll bet you'll love this one.

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.

Holy cow. This book is...I don't know how to even describe it. Amazing. Horrifying. Unputdownable. I've been dying to read this and waiting for Christmas was nearly unbearable. I stayed up until 3 AM finishing it, simply because I honestly could not put it down. The book begins with Thomas waking up in the shaft, and you have to find your way along with him. No memories except for brief fuzzy images. He knows what pizza is, he knows what skyscrapers are, but he has no recollection of faces or names. Not even his own family. But when he finds out that the place they are being kept is a maze, and that every day the boys called Runners go out into the maze to find their way out, he wants more than anything to become a Runner too. But they must also face the Grievers, horrible monsters that are let loose in the maze at night, and sometimes during the day too. As Thomas tries to figure out why the maze seems so familiar, everyone is in an uproar when the girl comes...the first girl ever to come. And she has a message: "Everything is about to change." It took me a full two days to decide if I liked this book or not. It certainly had my emotions in turmoil. Especially since I wasn't expecting the gigantic cliffhanger at the end. I would've been so much happier without the epilogue. That's all I'm saying. This book reminded me a lot of how I felt the first time I read The Hunger Games, so if you like that book, I definately reccomend Dashner's new series. Wow.