The Maze Runner (Book 1) Read Free Books and Download eBooks
Book one in the blockbuster Maze Runner series that spawned a movie franchise and ushered in a worldwide phenomenon! And don’t miss The Fever Code, the highly-anticipated series conclusion that finally reveals the story of how the maze was built! 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. Outside the towering stone walls that surround them is a limitless, ever-changing maze. It’s the only way out—and no one’s ever made it through alive. Then a girl arrives. The first girl ever. And the message she delivers is terrifying: Remember. Survive. Run. The Maze Runner and Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials are now major motion pictures featuring the star of MTV's Teen Wolf, Dylan O’Brien; Kaya Scodelario; Aml Ameen; Will Poulter; and Thomas Brodie-Sangster. The third movie, Maze Runner: The Death Cure, will hit screens in 2018. Also look for James Dashner’s edge-of-your-seat MORTALITY DOCTRINE series! Praise for the Maze Runner series: A #1 New York Times Bestselling Series A USA Today Bestseller A Kirkus Reviews Best Teen Book of the Year An ALA-YASLA Best Fiction for Young Adults Book An ALA-YALSA Quick Pick “[A] mysterious survival saga that passionate fans describe as a fusion of Lord of the Flies, The Hunger Games, and Lost.” —EW.com “Wonderful action writing—fast-paced…but smart and well observed.” —Newsday “[A] nail-biting must-read.” —Seventeen.com “Breathless, cinematic action.” —Publishers Weekly “Heart pounding to the very last moment.” —Kirkus Reviews “Exclamation-worthy.” —Romantic Times “James Dashner’s illuminating prequel [The Kill Order] will thrill fans of this Maze Runner [series] and prove just as exciting for readers new to the series.” —Shelf Awareness, Starred “Take a deep breath before you start any James Dashner book.” —Deseret NewsFrom the Hardcover edition.
Lexile Measure: 770L (What's this?)
Series: The Maze Runner Series (Book 1)
Paperback: 375 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Press; Reprint edition (August 24, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385737955
ISBN-13: 978-0385737951
Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.8 x 8.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (7,523 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #1,002 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #3 in Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Social & Family Issues > Friendship #6 in Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure > Science Fiction #7 in Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Boys & Men
Age Range: 12 and up
Grade Level: 7 and up
This is a full analysis of the book, full spoilers included. You have been warned.[ALSO, if you choose to downvote my review saying it wasn't helpful, please tell me why in the comments. I welcome everyone's thoughts and opinions, but if you downvote a review of this size without commenting I will be under the assumption you simply downvote all negative reviews.]The story itself was interesting enough for the most part, but the pace was painfully slow and Dashner committed a few things you are not supposed to do in fictional writing, ever. I'm talking newbie mistakes here.The second largest thing that Dashner violated was the Show, Don't Tell rule. He almost assuredly does not understand this, as a lot of his descriptions are flatly told instead of explained. "Thomas felt sad." "Thomas snapped." Dashner does not do a good job showing us his world or his characters, instead just telling us how things are. This interweaves with my next points a bit and is explained in greater detail later.For my second point, marking the biggest mistake Dashner did with this story, he began the book with the White Room Syndrome. Much like the Show, Don't Tell rule, this is one thing that almost all writers know very deeply - do not start your story off with the white room syndrome.The white room syndrome is where your character suddenly wakes up in a completely unfamiliar setting and knows nothing about anything - his past, his name, people he knew, etc... This is cheap because it allows you to dodge any sort of actual development in the world, its characters or the relationships that the characters have. This book in particular suffered a lot because Dashner decided to go this way.
I do not typically write reviews, but I feel compelled to save you a few hours of your life. :)So many try to excuse this book's atrocious plot and character development by saying, "It's Young Adult". I'm 32 yrs old; I almost exclusively read books written for children/teens because most are written fairly fast-paced in order to keep the younger audience engaged, allowing the focus to be on the storytelling. I love storytelling. In other words, this is the time for the character and plot to shine. Harry Potter, the Hunger Games: here are two examples that have reached the masses. But there are many, many more.The Maze Runner ain't one of them. I finished the book because the premise had so much potential, and I wanted to find out what happened. For those of you who would argue that means the book was at least interesting enough to suck me in, so it must have been half-way decent, I say not if it NEVER delivered. At some point, I just felt past the point of no return and slogged through to the abysmal ending.By the way, many YA books fall apart at the end, giving the reader the feeling that the author was bored with the story, rushing to meet a deadline, or never had a good plot resolution lined up in the first place. Dasher's ending is a train wreck, feeling like he's pulling events out of his butt as the train picks up speed.I'd say Dashner's greatest flaw is telling the readers, instead of showing. He thinks we will swallow his nonsense because he said it was so. Examples: The Maze is compelling enough to make young boys run around exploring it for 2 years. These boys have above average intelligence. (That one really got me. What?? Compared to what, a chimp? That's an insult to chimps, imo.) Thomas is a hero genius everyman.
The Maze Runner (Maze Runner, Book One) (The Maze Runner Series) The Fever Code (Maze Runner, Book Five; Prequel) (The Maze Runner Series) The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin) (The Maze Runner Series) The Maze Runner: Maze Runner, Book 1 The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner, Book 1) The Maze Runner Series (Maze Runner) The Runner's Rule Book: Everything a Runner Needs to Know--And Then Some The Maze Runner (Book 1) The Death Cure (Maze Runner, Book Three) The Scorch Trials (Maze Runner, Book 2) The Death Cure: Maze Runner, Book 3 The Fever Code: Maze Runner, Book Five; Prequel The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book 4; Origin) The Death Cure (The Maze Runner, Book 3) The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, Book 2) Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials: The Official Graphic Novel Prelude Maze Craze: Magical Forest Mazes (Maze Craze Book) The Usborne Book of Maze Puzzles (Usborne Maze Fun) Minecraft: The Cube Maze (Book 1) (Minecraft Maze) Runner (Jane Whitefield Book 6)
