Book Review: The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2) by James Dashner

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BOOK review

Started on: 2.May.2014
Finished on: 5.May.2014

The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2) by James Dashner

Title : The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner, #2)
Author : James Dashner

Publisher : Delacorte Press
Pages : 361 Pages
Year of Publication : 2010

Price : $ 11.32 (www.bookdepository.com/)

Rating: 5/5
*for those who haven't read the first book, this review may contain spoiler.
Review for The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner, #1) here. 
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"Thomas had lived in fear and terror the past few weeks, but this was almost too much. To feel safe only to have that snatched away again."

After escaping from the Maze, Thomas and the Gladers who survived are rescued by a group of people. They were taken to a dorm, given food and place to sleep - where they thought they're finally safe and sound. However, they are awakened by the sounds of people outside the window: Cranks, people with horrible scars and sores, even slit on their faces. And when the Gladers got outside the room, the people who rescued them were already dead - their bodies hanging by the ceiling. Thomas then looked for Teresa, who's in a separate room - but found a boy named Aris instead. All of them started discovering the mark on their neck that identifies which group they belong to. Apparently, Aris was from Group B - who also went through the Maze trial, but with a group of girls. And on Thomas' neck, it says that he's a member of Group A and is to be killed by Group B.

"I know it sounds menacing, but it stands for World In Catastrophe, Killzone Experiment Department. Nothing menacing about it, despite what you may think. We exist for one purpose and one purpose only: to save the world from catastrophe."

After they devoured the food that suddenly appears, a man wearing a white suit sits behind a desk - which was protected by a barrier. He tells them about WICKED, and how the world is currently suffering from a deadly disease called The Flare (and the people who caught this disease are called Cranks). The man also said that all them had The Flare; and if they survive the next trial, they will be given the cure. Then he explained what they have to go through: The Scorch Trials. First thing in the morning, they have to go through a Flat Trans, find open air, and travel towards north for one hundred miles to find the safe haven; within two weeks time. If they don't make it, eventually they will be dead.

"Thomas felt his spirits lift, but immediately squashed them back down. Getting his hopes up was something he'd sworn never to do again. Not until all this was over."

The next day, they went through the Flat Trans and was welcomed by complete darkness - where they have to walk through it and survive. However, worse things waited ahead of them: the Scorch, which is an extremely hot wasteland that's completely dry and barren. But the hot and burning sun wasn't the only thing they need to be afraid of; because the next day, a storm is coming - but it isn't any ordinary storm. The wind and thunder threatened and even killed some of the Gladers. Their only refuge is an old town - where they meet a group of Cranks.

Their journey towards safe haven continued, and more than once Thomas had to face obstacles which endangered his life. Along the way, he also saw Teresa again; she warned him about something bad that's going to happen. However, Thomas started to lose his faith on her and feel betrayed because of what she did later on. But one thing for sure, they need to survive the trial, to be able to get the cure and to take revenge against WICKED.

"The Flare always wins in the end. You lose any chance of being rational, having common sense, having compassion. You lose your humanity."

image source: here. edited by me.

So much thrill in this book! YEAH! If The Maze Runner was intense, things gets a whole lot crazier in The Scorch Trials. I can probably say that the Maze was like game play compared to the Scorch. There's a lot more blood and gore this time. In the first book, the people are trying to figure out about the Maze; but this time they're trying to figure out more about WICKED (who put them in the Maze) and also try to pass the second trial. We get hints about WICKED, The Flare, and a bunch of stuffs - but still, nothing is clear. I definitely still have a lot of questions in mind left unanswered - thankfully Thomas is also dying to know those answers. Hopefully I will get the answers I need in the third and final book in this series. Really really can't wait to start reading The Death Cure!

The sequel is still written in the same format as the first book; using third person point of view, but it still focuses mostly on what Thomas is experiencing. And just like the first book, The Scorch Trials starts the story right away with all the dead people and scary-looking Cranks. I kind of get a glimpse of hint with the appearance of man in white suit (or Rat Man, as Minho called him) about WICKED and all the things they're doing. But of course, the book doesn't give it away that easily. The story continued with its' action-sequence; a lot of running around, people getting killed, and all that stuff. The crazy storm made me worry for Minho (my favorite character, btw, if you haven't know ;)), and I was so scared he would be killed ;____;. And every time Thomas is apart from Minho, I (again) was constantly worried about what happened to him. I don't know if I would be able to continue this series if Minho died. Well, I'm pretty much addicted to Minho - in an unhealthy way. Even though I love and thoroughly enjoyed this book, I have to admit that there's not much development in the story. This book just keeps throwing questions into my mind and still keep the answers hidden (which I'm hoping to see in the third and final book). Besides that, I also felt kind of weird with Thomas' love-lines; I think it was a little bit unnecessary and confusing? Or is it just me? (I won't talk too much about it, to avoid spoilers). But still, that doesn't stop me from giving this book a 5/5 star rating. The joy and thrill of reading this book is beyond amazing; time flies when I'm reading this book! And the endinggg! I literally don't know what to think anymore; the first two books shows conflicting ideas about WICKED; whether they're good or bad people for doing these trials. All I need now is answers from the third book!

I still haven't changed my mind about my favorite character, it's still Minho. I am a little bit sad because he doesn't show up much in the story (since he's separated several times from Thomas). But every time his name shows up, I get really happy and excited (yes, I am that addicted to him). I even smiled by myself several times because I totally adore Minho's dialogue in the book. Although Minho almost got them in trouble and was saved by Thomas' amazing persuasion skill, I still love him as the leader of the group. ♥♥ -- Now I'll set Minho aside and talk a little about Teresa (who's not my favorite character, btw). She's so confusing in this book, with all the betrayal thing - and somehow I cannot trust her anymore (just like Thomas). The series is so full of secrets, I can never be sure who's good or bad anymore. But I guess we'll find out soon in The Death Cure ;)

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Minho held his hands up, palms facing Newt. "Slim it nice and calm, brother. I didn't ask to be the shuck leader. You wanna cry all day about what's happened, fine. But that's not what a leader does. A leader figures out where to go and what to do after that's done."

Overall, this book is still action-packed and thrilling; I literally cannot stop reading and I keep wanting for more - because I have a mountain of questions in my head about the whole WICKED thing. As I've said earlier, I really hope The Death Cure will give me all the answers I need. At this point, I can say that I absolutely love The Maze Runner series! I know that a lot of people think this series is lacking in some ways (after I read some reviews in Goodreads) - but I personally really enjoy the flow of the story and the writing style. So if you're curious whether this book is good or not (because the ratings on Goodreads is a bit conflicting; some totally loved it, some don't), you should read it yourself and see if matches your preferences ;)

  by.stefaniesugia♥ .