Book Review: The Maze Runner (Series)

A review by Sam

The Maze Runner Series, by James Dashner, is an amazing action-packed series. It’s a story centered around the main character, Thomas. He finds himself in an experiment with no memory of his past, and urges to get the truth and the why of their torture. Once escaping, they learn the tests were to create a cure to save humanity from a virus, which turns victims into mindless zombie-like people with a slow and painful death. Thomas and the other individuals go on journeys, struggles, and trials to avoid being hunted down for a potential cure they each hold in their blood. Dashner perfects the ability to keep readers on the edge of their seat as characters die, relationships form, danger approaches, and escape is impossible. You will not regret, nor forget, this story.

Personally I liked how the characters had to push forward as the struggles piled on, and the dilemma they faced. They could give themselves in and be tortured and killed to push their bodies to reveal the cure, or they could live their lives with the hundreds of others immune to the virus. Both sides were understandable and the conflict was very clear. I liked how the situations were always shifting, and through it, they always looked out for one another like a family. As a reader you also feel and make your own opinion of the confusing relationship between Thomas and Teresa. It adds the right amount of drama to the action, and keeps the story interesting. The main protagonist isn’t inherently evil, but she just wants a cure and will do whatever it takes to get her hands on it. She has solid dedication, but unfortunately no regard for the lives of the people she will obtain the cure from. It’s a justified villain, which I like, because both sides can be right and both sides can be wrong. 

The settings of the book were also very interesting. There were dry oceans, desolate cities that were left to ruin, and amazing cities guarded off from the world and heavily armed. One of my favorite settings was the hideout that the immune refugees stayed at, once freed from the train. They had their own source of electricity and were working on a ship to sail to an island, where they would be left alone from the scientists that wanted to torture and kill them for a cure. It was almost like a base they made entirely on their own. It was their hope to be free and eventually they would be, but it was a major turning point in their decision to be free. 

I suggest this book to anyone wanting to read a book with action and drama. The series even has a popular trilogy of movies that are most definitely worth watching. You will love the characters and the story. So many things happen and the conflicts and challenges are always exciting to visualize, which Dashner does a good job of doing. Again, this is a story you won’t regret and won’t forget. All 3 books in the series, plus some additional spin offs by Dashner, are available here, at the Green Forest Public Library. 

PS, it’s also a series of movies, if you don’t like books! Click here to check them out!