Book Title: The Maze Runner
Author: James Dashner
Series: The Maze Runner #1
Series: The Maze Runner #1
Date Started: July 13th 2013
Date Completed: July 15th 2013
Genres: Mystery, Action, Adventure, Dystopian, Thriller, Romance
Rating: Four stars
Review:
Despite having given up on this book a while ago after getting through the first seventy or so pages, it turned out to be a surprisingly good read. I understand why I didn't like it to start with, since the beginning is fairly repetitive, but actually, after taking the time to really get into it, I really enjoyed the whole thing.
Thomas wakes up in the darkness without a single memory of who he is, where he comes from and what is happening. When the doors of the Box creak open, and numerous curious faces peer down at him, Thomas thinks he might be losing his mind. He's soon engulfed in life in the Glade, the centre of an endless maze that traps a group of teenage boys inside. But when an unconscious girl turns up in the same week, and supplies start to dwindle, it seems the boys might need to escape their prison sooner than they had thought.
I don't have a lot to say about the writing. It was okay, but not amazing.
It didn't exactly flow like most books I read, but it wasn't hard to read because of this either. It wasn't hard reading, but it wasn't dead easy either. It was a little bit in the middle, on all levels.
The reason I gave up on this book the first time is because it just didn't interest me and nothing really happened. Having read it again, I stick by that decision, but am glad I had a little more patience this time.
For the first hundred pages, the same thing happens pretty much again and again and again: Thomas gets taken somewhere to be shown the ropes; asks some typical questions; gets ignored; gets annoyed. It's just very repetitive, even though I accept that it might have been needed to show the Glader's reluctance to answer him.
Also, a lot of the seeds for the main plot are introduced in the first part of the book, yet nothing seems to happen to any of them. I think this was the main thing that drove me away last time: it seemed like loads of good things got introduced, were there for a couple of pages, and then just disappeared and sat in the corner for ages. It's easy to let yourself think nothing's going to happen to them.
Fortunately, this isn't the case. Once the plot actually kicks off, it's incredibly engaging and interesting. There's a real mystery, that we fully empathise with, since we know just as much as Thomas does as he goes through these experiences. It's based strongly on how the boys react to their situations, and the reactions are very realistic, which also credits the story.
The ending was very, very good. I did get spoiled, so the affect wasn't quite as much as it would have been, but it was still very thrilling and intense; I found it hard to put my book down.
And there's now another author I have reason to hate. Although, I felt a lot more detached from the story that I usually would in such a situation, considering how much I loved the character (spoilers).
Good cliffhanger too. It leaves a lot open for the next books, but also kind of closes off as well, so I wouldn't have to read the other books if I really didn't want to (I do though).
Considering this is a book about boys being boys, I thought all the characters were very individual and interesting for their own qualities and traits.
Thomas was alright as the main character, I just didn't see anything particularly special about him. I think he really is very brave, intelligent and a good person etc, but I think the reactions from the other boys were a little over exaggerated (it almost seems like certain parts of his personality have been edited out, and we're then only left with a half-Thomas).
Teresa annoyed me a little if I'm honest. There's nothing specifically bad about her; it just annoys me when female characters are all bold and strong in tongue and reputation, but then become really flimsy in actual situations. I've got nothing against a girl who isn't kick-ass; it just annoys me when we're told that a character is so strong and brave and against the stereotypical image of women, and then they turn out not to be.
Every story has to have a loveable character that's just innocent and cute. And The Maze Runner's is Chuck. I absolutely love him, and wished we could have learnt more about him, and got to see more of his and Thomas' relationship. It was also very good how Chuck was mentioned as annoying several times, since it got rid of the 'perfect' illusion that might have otherwise been present.
I found Gally the most interesting character, which is why I was really disappointed when he disappeared halfway through the book and had very little time for the reader to get to know him. I thought the tension and aggression he provided was exactly what was needed to create another plot, apart from the Maze hysteria, yet it wasn't used.
Newt, Minho and Alby were all good additions to the story, because they were needed. I really like Minho, as I think we're meant to, but his story was a bit all over the place: I thought he was a leader at one point; then Tom's best friend; then I thought he might be dead; and there were parts when I thought he was a complete coward etc etc. Maybe that was intended, but there you go. Alby confused me, and Newt was a good leader because he made mistakes a lot.
The pace was very inconsistent. The main problem is that something is always happening - but most of the time it told us very little about the characters or plot, so was pretty meaningless.
Like I've said, the beginning just repeats itself over and over, but things do start to pick up a bit after the first hundred pages or so. After that, a lot does happen, so the reader is very engaged with the story and what's happening.
In the last fifty pages, all hell broke loose and I could not stop reading. So much happened I hardly had time to fully realise and understand what was going on until afterwards. In a way, this could be seen as a bad thing after the extremely slow start to the novel: if the action had been spread out throughout the whole book, it's likely Dashner's creation would have really impressed me.
Despite what I may have inferred, I did actually really enjoy this book. It definitely has its flaws and continuity errors, but that doesn't stop it from having a really good plot and great characters. I just wish a little more detail had gone into a lot of things.
I would recommend The Maze Runner to anyone who likes action, adventure, a little bit of romance, dystopians, mystery and definitely thriller (bordering on horror; very Lord of the Flies).
Bear with it: if it feels like the story is just going around in circles at the start, don't worry, things do start to be revealed and the plot progresses massively further on.
Image Source: http://www.robisonwells.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/uk_maze_runner.jpg
Despite having given up on this book a while ago after getting through the first seventy or so pages, it turned out to be a surprisingly good read. I understand why I didn't like it to start with, since the beginning is fairly repetitive, but actually, after taking the time to really get into it, I really enjoyed the whole thing.
Thomas wakes up in the darkness without a single memory of who he is, where he comes from and what is happening. When the doors of the Box creak open, and numerous curious faces peer down at him, Thomas thinks he might be losing his mind. He's soon engulfed in life in the Glade, the centre of an endless maze that traps a group of teenage boys inside. But when an unconscious girl turns up in the same week, and supplies start to dwindle, it seems the boys might need to escape their prison sooner than they had thought.
I don't have a lot to say about the writing. It was okay, but not amazing.
It didn't exactly flow like most books I read, but it wasn't hard to read because of this either. It wasn't hard reading, but it wasn't dead easy either. It was a little bit in the middle, on all levels.
The reason I gave up on this book the first time is because it just didn't interest me and nothing really happened. Having read it again, I stick by that decision, but am glad I had a little more patience this time.
For the first hundred pages, the same thing happens pretty much again and again and again: Thomas gets taken somewhere to be shown the ropes; asks some typical questions; gets ignored; gets annoyed. It's just very repetitive, even though I accept that it might have been needed to show the Glader's reluctance to answer him.
Also, a lot of the seeds for the main plot are introduced in the first part of the book, yet nothing seems to happen to any of them. I think this was the main thing that drove me away last time: it seemed like loads of good things got introduced, were there for a couple of pages, and then just disappeared and sat in the corner for ages. It's easy to let yourself think nothing's going to happen to them.
Fortunately, this isn't the case. Once the plot actually kicks off, it's incredibly engaging and interesting. There's a real mystery, that we fully empathise with, since we know just as much as Thomas does as he goes through these experiences. It's based strongly on how the boys react to their situations, and the reactions are very realistic, which also credits the story.
The ending was very, very good. I did get spoiled, so the affect wasn't quite as much as it would have been, but it was still very thrilling and intense; I found it hard to put my book down.
And there's now another author I have reason to hate. Although, I felt a lot more detached from the story that I usually would in such a situation, considering how much I loved the character (spoilers).
Good cliffhanger too. It leaves a lot open for the next books, but also kind of closes off as well, so I wouldn't have to read the other books if I really didn't want to (I do though).
Considering this is a book about boys being boys, I thought all the characters were very individual and interesting for their own qualities and traits.
Thomas was alright as the main character, I just didn't see anything particularly special about him. I think he really is very brave, intelligent and a good person etc, but I think the reactions from the other boys were a little over exaggerated (it almost seems like certain parts of his personality have been edited out, and we're then only left with a half-Thomas).
Teresa annoyed me a little if I'm honest. There's nothing specifically bad about her; it just annoys me when female characters are all bold and strong in tongue and reputation, but then become really flimsy in actual situations. I've got nothing against a girl who isn't kick-ass; it just annoys me when we're told that a character is so strong and brave and against the stereotypical image of women, and then they turn out not to be.
Every story has to have a loveable character that's just innocent and cute. And The Maze Runner's is Chuck. I absolutely love him, and wished we could have learnt more about him, and got to see more of his and Thomas' relationship. It was also very good how Chuck was mentioned as annoying several times, since it got rid of the 'perfect' illusion that might have otherwise been present.
I found Gally the most interesting character, which is why I was really disappointed when he disappeared halfway through the book and had very little time for the reader to get to know him. I thought the tension and aggression he provided was exactly what was needed to create another plot, apart from the Maze hysteria, yet it wasn't used.
Newt, Minho and Alby were all good additions to the story, because they were needed. I really like Minho, as I think we're meant to, but his story was a bit all over the place: I thought he was a leader at one point; then Tom's best friend; then I thought he might be dead; and there were parts when I thought he was a complete coward etc etc. Maybe that was intended, but there you go. Alby confused me, and Newt was a good leader because he made mistakes a lot.
The pace was very inconsistent. The main problem is that something is always happening - but most of the time it told us very little about the characters or plot, so was pretty meaningless.
Like I've said, the beginning just repeats itself over and over, but things do start to pick up a bit after the first hundred pages or so. After that, a lot does happen, so the reader is very engaged with the story and what's happening.
In the last fifty pages, all hell broke loose and I could not stop reading. So much happened I hardly had time to fully realise and understand what was going on until afterwards. In a way, this could be seen as a bad thing after the extremely slow start to the novel: if the action had been spread out throughout the whole book, it's likely Dashner's creation would have really impressed me.
Despite what I may have inferred, I did actually really enjoy this book. It definitely has its flaws and continuity errors, but that doesn't stop it from having a really good plot and great characters. I just wish a little more detail had gone into a lot of things.
I would recommend The Maze Runner to anyone who likes action, adventure, a little bit of romance, dystopians, mystery and definitely thriller (bordering on horror; very Lord of the Flies).
Bear with it: if it feels like the story is just going around in circles at the start, don't worry, things do start to be revealed and the plot progresses massively further on.
Image Source: http://www.robisonwells.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/uk_maze_runner.jpg
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