Imagine waking up one day in total darkness, unsure of where you are and unable to remember anything about yourself except your first name. You’re in a bizarre place devoid of adults called the Glade. The Glade is an enclosed structure with a jail, a graveyard, a slaughterhouse, living quarters, and gardens. And no way out. Outside the Glade is the Maze, and every day some of the kids — the Runners — venture into the labyrinth, trying to map the ever-changing pattern of walls in an attempt to find an exit from this hellish place. So far, no one has figured it out. And not all of the Runners return from their daily exertions, victims of the maniacal Grievers, part animal, part mechanical killing machines.
This is the first in what I think is going to be a trilogy. It is one of the nominees for the 2011-2012 Georgia Peach Award for Teens and one of the best so far.
There were so many things going on in this book that at first I had a hard time keeping track. That is often the case when an author has to spend time world building. I stuck with the book and I am glad that I did so. It really turned out well although the ending is definitely a cliff hanger.
This is a book that I would recommend to readers who like The Hunger Games or The Knife of Never Letting Go series.
Elaine Reads . . . constantly! 