[review] The Maze Runner by James Dashner (2009)

Tags

book, book review, dystopian, maze, post-apocalyptic, puzzle, survival

The Maze Runner (2009)
by James Dashner
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: October 6th, 2009
Publisher: Random House; Delacorte Books for Young Adults
buy a copy via Amazon.
synopsis via Goodreads.

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 enclosed 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, open. Every night they are closed tight. And that every 30 days a new boy is delivered in the lift.

Thomas was expected. Only 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.

My Thoughts:
The Maze Runner thrives on the suspense and the fantastical setting. Just like Thomas, the protagonist, we are thrown into the Glade being just as (if not more) confused as him. The technology, the creatures, the absurdity of the situation was like a video game as we follow Thomas on his journey to solving it. The pace was fine, Dashner knows how to keep my attention with action. But one of the biggest issues are the characters: especially Thomas, who despite his bravery doesn’t seem like a smart guy; he only “solves” the whole thing by relying on past memories. However, The Maze Runner is comprised with many surprising elements that draw me into the story, keeping me reading to find out how the pieces fit together. An exciting (even if dark) story of a group of teenagers trying to solve their way out of a dire situation.

[Guest Post] K. Reed, Author of Dark Inheritance + GIVEAWAY

Tags

apocalypse, ebook, free, free book, giveaway, post-apocalyptic, regency romance, romance, zombie apocalypse, zombies

Today I’m lucky to feature K. Reed for a guest post on surviving a zombie apocalypse. Obviously I had to call in an expert since my zombie-surviving plan is to die my hair platinum blonde. So after you finish packing those AK-47s and building a bomb shelter, be sure to check out K. Reed‘s new post-apocalyptic regency romance, Dark Inheritance and enter the GIVEAWAY for an e-book copy.
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How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse. Or why I’d either be the first to die or that person you seek out for refuge.
by K.Reed

Let’s face it. Surviving an apocalypse (environmental, zombie, vampire, Cylon, whatever) isn’t exactly easy. No one is ever ready for The End. We go through our lives expecting tomorrow to be much the same as today. The recent power outage on the East Coast USA is a prime example. I was one of the many without power, people I work with still don’t have power.

We don’t like surviving without our comforts. Sure, we can say how prepared we are, but give people a weekend without TV, Internet, or lights, and see what happens! Let’s not even go to showers, hot water, flushing toilets, and coffee.

[review] The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa (2012)

Tags

apocalypse, blood, book, book review, books, fantasy, humor, paranormal, post-apocalyptic, vampires, zombies

Being a vampire turns you white…literally. (Because I can’t resist joining in on the why-is-this-white-girl-on-the-cover-when-the-main-character-is-Asian thing)

The Immortal Rules(2012)
by Julie Kagawa (blog.)
Hardcover Edition
Publication Date: Apr 24, 2012
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
purchase a copy via Amazon.
synopsis via Goodreads.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.
Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die… or become one of the monsters.
Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.
Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.But it isn’t easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.

My Thoughts:
Undeniably one of this years most anticipated YA releases, Julie Kagawa’s The Immortal Rules is a 500-page roller coaster, an heart-pounding thrill ride, that oddly doesn’t feel like 500 pages by the time you’re done. We are brought into a post-apocalyptic world where the undead live among the living and much of the living has been wiped out by a plague. Sword-wielding seventeen year old vampire, Allison Sekemoto, is determined lead a rebellion, to overthrow the vampire monarchy…until she becomes one of them herself. Allison knows how to be bold, but more importantly, how to slash a wild, rabid boar in half.

Throughout the novel, I kept wondering how it would work out: could vampires and humans coexist for vampires were once humans after all. Maybe vampires and humans were not so different after all. Humans (at least according to Allie) would not pause to sell out one of their own for survival anyway, so what’s so bad about a vampire taking a bit of blood for survival? And I don’t see how vampires can rule, when they can be killed so easily in the day; you basically have 12 hours of daylight to cut off their heads, or are vampire cities sealed so tight that UV rays can’t get through?