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.

Hmmm... I liked the last 100 pages of the book. There is 350...I know... Yikes! I feel this book was a really long prequel. The first one hundred pages of the book was setting up the world that the Gladers live in. There is a stringent order that all must follow to survive. It's a community. The biggest aspect of the book is the Maze - it's the puzzle, the clue, the biggest piece of the story.

These kids are sent, all boys to the Glade as they call it, once a month, on the same day. Tom shows up, but is quickly characterized as brave, smart, and observant - maybe a bit of a solver (of problems). Thomas quickly disrupts the order that Alby and Newt try to keep in place, but with each time Tom messes up the order, discoveries are made leading them to discover the mystery of the maze.

And a day after Tom shows up, a girl shows up! The first time EVER! And she, she's another piece to the puzzle and with her entrance to the story, Thomas discovers that he is a piece to the puzzle as well...

The epilogue was my favorite. I liked the tone of it and I think it introduces a great cliffhanger. It took me awhile to get into it, clearly, however - I am into it. I am not dying for The Scorch Trials but I am intrigued.

Some quick thoughts

There is a romance brewing... YES!

Making this a movie I believe

Oh Chuck....

It reminds of the Big Brother theory in a lot of ways...

There is a contest going on at Beyond Words for all my writing friends. An agent is asking for a two sentence pitch. It ends soon so head over there. Go... umm.. did you go? Go now.