The Scorch Trials - James Dashner

And now I begin the second book in The Maze Runner series! Woot! I do recommend having the whole set on hand with these books. I would literally go insane if I had to wait for any length of time before I could begin reading the next one.

WORD OF WARNING! - Since I am beginning this book, the blurb will be posted below. It may be a good idea not to read the blurb if you haven't read The Maze Runner. It contains a few spoilers about how the last one ended :)

'Solving the Maze was supposed to be 

the end. No more puzzles. And no more

running. Thomas was sure that escaping

meant he would get his life back. But no

one knew what sort of life they were going

back to... 

Burned and baked, the earth is a wasteland, 

its' people driven mad by an infection known

as the Flare. 

Instead of freedom, Thomas must face

another trial. He must cross the Scorch to 

once again save himself and his friends...' 

I am legitimately excited about this!! The first book was constant and intense I couldn't stop reading. Hopefully this one gets straight into it like it did with The Maze Runner :)  

The Maze Runner - James Dashner - Completed

Well. That wasn't what I was expecting honestly. Throughout the whole book, I was unable to accurately guess what would happen in the end - this is a good thing. There are a lot of predictable books out there! This, is not one of them.
These books have been compared to the likes of The Hunger Games and the Divergent series. I can see why. It involves teens, Blood. Death. Bravery. Fear. The Government. Uncertainty. Confusion. There's also a pretty bad ass girl in each of them! So I can see this comparison. However, the story itself is quite different. I think the Government still has a bit to do with it (who else could have that kind of control), and it's still survival of the fittest - however, it seems slightly more apocalyptic almost. There is also the added factor that the teens involved actually have no idea why they're there, what they're doing, who they are, or who has done this to them, or why. So basically. Nothing is known. However, things are revealed throughout the book at a very good pace. It kept me reading, wanting to know more, but it also wasn't frustrating in the way that I was constantly learning new things and trying to figure it out myself alongside the characters. Putting puzzles together.
The writing is also different by Dashner. I would say Collins (author of The Hunger Games) wrote in a much more straightforward way - the concepts were simplified and the language was uncomplicated. In The Maze Runner however, the theories are a bit more complex, and so is the language. Being 19, I did like that about this book. It was by no means challenging, but I did appreciate the complexity of the novel.
I also find it thoroughly amusing that his name is Dashner.... DASHner. Haha, it's a book about running! ... I am easily amused. Don't judge me.
I would give this one a firm 4/5 - I really liked it. I was close to giving it 5, but I must admit, the ending (the big reveal about who put them in the maze and why) was almost disappointing. I am hoping more is explained in this next one that I shall begin momentarily :)

The Maze Runner - James Dashner

Finally! I have been wanting these books for such a long time! I just bought the box set of them yesterday and I am ridiculously excited to begin reading them - In fact, I have actually begun the first one, The Maze Runner, this morning.
I wanted to read these because The Maze Runner movie comes out this year, in just a couple of months in fact, which I am definitely going to go see (and not only because Dylan O'Brien is in it - although that has a lot to do with my initial interest ;))

'When the doors of the lift crank open, the 

only thing Thomas can remember is 

his first name. But he's not alone. He's

surrounded by boys who welcome him to the 

Glade, an encampment at the centre of a 

bizarre and terrible maze. 

Like Thomas, the Gladers don't know why 

or how they came to be there, or what's

happened to the word outside. All they know

is that every morning when the walls slide

back, they will risk everything to find out.'

It says on the front cover that this is a 'must for fans of The Hunger Games'. Which I definitely am. I am actually really happy that the dynamic of teen books has changed from the vampires and love triangles. It's less romanticized and more about kids our age, and young adults, being brave and independent and surviving. A lot of them have such strong female leads too which is lovely and refreshing :) 

The Maze Runner has been given some great reviews and I'm looking forward to venturing into the maze!!  

No Place Like Oz (Dorothy Must Die 0.5) - Danielle Paige - Complete

Well. That actually clears up a few things from Dorothy Must Die. This was a short book - which is good. It just gave me some background knowledge into how Oz became how it is represented in Dorothy Must Die. I think this is a good read for anyone reading the Dorothy Must Die series. It is only available in digital form, but I got it from iBooks for 3$, and it's very much worth that much pocket change.
There is actually another prequel coming out November of this year, which I am excited for. It's named, The Witch Must Burn. Again, I do believe it's only available in digital form, but hopefully it will quench my thirst of this twisted tale until March next year when The Wicked Will Rise comes out (the second in the Dorothy Must Die series).
Something I love about these books is the cover art. I know the golden rule is one 'must not judge a book by its cover', but come on, if that rule were supposed to be followed, books would have plain brown paper covers. The front covers of these books are just so beautiful and imaginative. It really gives one a picture of what the books are about.
Anyway, I would give this one a 3/5. I liked it. I would recommend it to anyone reading this main series, it's very interesting to see the background story of how Oz came to be. I love this concept a lot. And I am sure I will enjoy reading the rest of the main and prequel series :)

The Scarlet Letter - Nathaniel Hawthorne - Complete

I have been listening to this book for the last couple of weeks and I honestly couldn't tell you whether I liked it or not. I think I would have to read it again. There are a couple reasons for this - One being that I continued to fall asleep super quickly so the timer set for fifteen minutes lead to me missing ten minutes of the book every time :P Second, the audio version I got wasn't that great and it seemed like chapters were skipped and repeated. It even said 'end of novel' when there was supposedly 7 chapters left :S Third, I didn't really get into the book itself. It's one that I would probably like to give another shot at one point, but I'm not rushing to the store to pick up a copy. But it's a classic I wanted to get off my to-read list!
I would give it 2.5/5 for what I heard of it.

No Place Like Oz - Danielle Paige (Dorothy Must Die 0.5)

The next Dorothy Must Die won't be out until next year, so I thought to get my fix of this twisted world, I would read the prequel! There is also another book coming out this year in the series, The Witch Must Burn, which is 1.5 in the series.
I was very intrigued with this series because I love the Wizard of Oz story, and I love it when someone takes a story like that and twists it into something creepy and weird. Plus, the cover was completely awesome and caught my eye.
I do believe this prequel is from the perspective and focus of Dorothy herself - her story of how she got back to Oz after leaving to go back to Kansas. It may give a little bit of insight into the character of Dorothy and I am excited to see how the writing style of Paige transforms throughout the series and development of the characters.

'After returning to Kansas, Dorothy Gale has realised that the dreary 

fields of Kansas don't compare to the vibrant landscapes of Oz. And 

although she's happy to be reunited with Aunt Em, she misses her friends

from the yellow brick road. But most of all, Dorothy misses the fame and 

the adventure. In Kansas she's just another Prairie girl, but in Oz she was 

a hero. So Dorothy is willing to do anything to get back, because there

really is no place like Oz. But returning to the land she left comes at a 

price, and after Dorothy is through with it, Oz will never be the same.' 

Dorothy Must Die - Danielle Paige - Complete

I did quite enjoy this book. I find twisted familiar stories entertaining most of the time. I like it when an author takes something like The Wizard of Oz and manipulates it into something completely different, however, still keeping some of the infamous familiarities we know and love from the original.
This book has some annoyances, however, I do think a lot of which can be blamed on the inexperience of the writer. I do believe this is her first  book, if I am not mistaken. Usually when an author writes a series like this, one can see the improvements in the writing and character and plot development as the series progresses. So I am excited to see where the book goes from here.
I did really like it. I found some phrases repetitive; Amy said 'I don't even know who you are, why would I help you?' Or the like several times. There was also a weird twist in the end which was both confusing and made the previous over half of the book seem almost irrelevant - as the whole mission and her alliances change.
However, the writer kept me interested, and I will be purchasing and reading the following books in the series to see what happens! I definitely found the creepy, twisted characters and events pretty awesome and intriguing, refreshing and exciting.
I gave this one 4/5
I am going to begin reading the prequel, because I think that's the only other one out at the moment in this series. I will have to wait a while for the others!