Maze Runner Trilogy, Books 2 and 3

I will try to be super vague about these books by James Dashner since they are sequels to a book you probably haven't read and might want to. This review is mostly my feelings about the sequels and won't contain details. If you want to know what the series is about, read my review of The Maze Runner.

The Scorch Trials (Maze Runner #2)

I had a hard time getting into this sequel. The end of The Maze Runner bothered me a bit, perhaps because the answers to the riddles of the maze were not quite what I was looking for. And those answers are kind of what the second book is about, so I just wasn't as interested. Also, the book seems to meander around a bit without focus. I guess the first book didn't feel like it was meandering because it was mysteriously building up to the reveal. In this installment, Thomas and his buddies are still looking for answers, but their environment is less controlled; perhaps that is then reflected in the writing. I did really get into the end of the book, though, and that happened in The Maze Runner, too, despite the unsatisfactory answers. Dashner is particularly strong when his characters have a mission and goal, when everything is action-oriented. Everything moves quickly then, and the books are hard to put down at the end.

The Death Cure (Maze Runner #3)

Though The Maze Runner is still my favorite book of the trilogy, I enjoyed this last book more than The Scorch Trials. By this point, I knew more or less what the author's big picture was, so I was able to enjoy the journey a little more. There weren't as many surprises, maybe, but the action, Dashner's strong point, was good. If I rated The Maze Runner four out of five stars and The Scorch Trials three stars, you'd think I would rate this book four also. Sure, there are minor flaws in all three of the books. For instance, sometimes when the reader might have a question about something happening in the book, the author appears to address it, but sometimes it feels like an afterthought, like (and I'm clearly paraphrasing), "Thomas wondered why so-and-so did such-and-such," but that's all we get. The reader wondered. The author acknowledged that we were wondering by also making Thomas think about it a bit, but no real answer was given. Like I said, that's a minor flaw that might take you out of the action for a second but that doesn't ultimately matter. A bigger issue I had with the books is that Dashner kills off a lot of his characters (in all the books, not just this one), and though Thomas is particularly sensitive to a few of the deaths, there's a certain "Oh, well" feel about the rest. I understand why Thomas feels the way he does (he's on a mission, and there will be sacrifices), but I wish there was more commentary on the whole thing. (SPOILERS to the end of the paragraph.) By the end of this third book, Thomas has had enough. He feels most of the deaths have been for nothing, so we do get some commentary but nothing that really feels satisfactory. In fact, the end of this book is a big reason it gets only three stars from me. It feels a little cheap, like the author couldn't fix the problems he set up. The idea is: "We can't save the world, so let's scrap it." I guess it's a consistent philosophy throughout the books (I can't save those kids who just died, so I'll push on.), but again, it's not satisfactory.

A Final Note on the Series: At this point, I do not plan to read the prequel to the trilogy, The Kill Zone, which is about different characters. But The Maze Runner is still an attention grabber, and I do plan to see the movie, out in September. The setting itself is fascinating, and that's probably what attracted me most to these books. Unfortunately, that setting is almost exclusive to the first book.

Fracture

Fracture, by Megan Miranda, is a young adult novel with an interesting concept. Delaney is a normal girl, a friend of popular people but not quite popular herself, until the day she dies. Under freezing water for eleven minutes, she should have died...and did. But she came back, and she didn't just come back. She awoke from a coma without seeming to sustain any brain damage despite the bright, unnatural spots on her MRI that should have put her in a vegetative state. But Delaney knows she's not right. When people around her are close to death, she feels it. Her body shakes, and there's an irresistible pull toward the dying. What's more, a mysterious guy named Troy shares her ability to sense death, and Delaney is drawn to him, despite not knowing what kind of person he might really be.

I suggest this book be read by older teens. It's somewhat dark. Delaney feels sometimes that she never really came back from the dead, at least emotionally, and it puts a disturbing spin on the story. Mature concepts are discussed, such as whether a person close to death should be allowed to escape their misery early. It's kind of depressing...but still fascinating. I almost couldn't put it down.

On the positive side, there's a little romance (though much of it is frustrating), a decent ending (though still somewhat dark), and in-depth themes to think about. For instance, Delaney's mother escaped an abusive home life, and Delaney struggles with her mother's sometimes overbearing attempt to not be like her own parents. Fracture might make a good book club book for older teens.

There's some language, including the F-word, which I find especially inappropriate for teen books. But it sort of fits the tone of the book. Just use your discretion in recommending it to teen readers.

Three stars. Available in January 2012.

Amy & Roger's Epic Detour

I picked up this book because it featured a road trip, and my husband and I have been taking road trips about every other year since we got married. Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, by Morgan Matson, is a young adult novel already in hardcover but coming out in paperback in a few days, so I picked a good time to read it. It was another one of those that had been sitting on my shelf for awhile, and though I thought it would be interesting, it wasn't about shape-shifters or magic or the Apocalypse so I thought I wasn't in the mood for it. But my shelf is emptying, and my options were limited. I had to read something.

It ended up being pretty fun. Having traveled from Indiana to California and back over three weeks, it was intriguing to see another viewpoint of the trip. In the book, Amy and Roger go from California to Connecticut. They are supposed to get there in four days, following a very strict schedule Amy's mom sets for them. Amy's dad has died recently, her twin brother is in rehab, and her mom has moved them across the country. Amy finishes her junior year of high school in California on her own and then has to get the family car to Connecticut where her mom is already working. The problem is Amy doesn't drive anymore, not since the accident that killed her father. So, a college freshman friend of the family is recruited to drive for her.

But Roger and Amy decide the itinerary is too confining, and they set out on their own path, beginning a journey of healing, breaking free, and finding love.

The book incorporates black and white photos of some of the sights along the road, as well as receipts and other paper stubs that document the journey. For each state they travel through, Amy keeps a one-page journal, jotting down interesting facts like the state motto. There are also lists of each of the character's music playlists for the road with songs that mirror whatever state or mood they are going through. In some ways, it's like looking at a scrapbook of a trip you really want to take yourself. Traveling across the country is freeing and fun, but Matson, who has taken the trip three times herself, writes about two people who are suffering and need each other to get through the pain holding each of them back. That gives the story depth, and the back story of the characters is what drives them, literally, to each destination on the map. It's a clever interweaving of literal and figurative journeys.

There is one story premise, though, that I have to focus my two-bit word of caution on. I don't think it's the greatest idea in the world to put a guy and girl into a car alone together for a week. It's just asking for trouble, and sure enough, they end up in situations you should never find yourself in if you're trying to flee temptation and remain pure. In a few hotels, they not only share a room, but they share the bed, and finally, (SPOILER HERE) when they do fall in love, they spend their last night in the same room on purpose so they can have sex. The book doesn't give any details, keeping it PG, but it still sets a bad example.

I know it's only catering to the culture. I guess it's normal now for teens to have sex. I mean, it's what you do if you love someone, right? That's according to the culture, and I will never buy into it.

Here's how well I'm getting to know "young adult" fiction. I actually kind of expected it to happen eventually. It does so often in young adult fiction these days. But this book was particularly set up for it. I mean, seriously, any psychologist or even just a logical mind could tell you it was going to happen. Amy and Roger set off alone in a car together and then, right away, decided not to do what the mom wanted. Not a very smart mom, either, to put them in that situation. But real people, not just fictional characters, do things like this every day in the real world. They put themselves into situations that are begging for trouble. This one was one of the more obvious to me, and it irks me to see this kind of an example being put in front of young adults all the time under the guise of learning about yourself. There were a lot of good things Amy and Roger learned, but that shouldn't have been one of them.

I did appreciate one thing the book said about sex, although I was disappointed in the character for doing it. In a flashback, we learn that Amy went to her boyfriend after her father's funeral and had sex so that she wouldn't think about anything else. In the end, though, she realized what a mistake it was. She lost her virginity and ended up feeling completely vulnerable, the exact opposite of what she wanted to feel. There's a good lesson there.

Well, that's my rant. Other than the morality problem, I enjoyed the book and the journey it took me on. Makes me want to get on the road again myself soon.

Four stars for story, plot, and setting. Two stars for moral message.