Book Review: The Kill Order (The Maze Runner #4) by James Dashner

“If she tried to speak, it would all come out: Her pain, her fear. Her anger. Her tears. And then her efforts to be strong for the boy would have been for nought. So she kept it in, a dam against a raging river.”

The Kill Order is the fourth instalment in James Dashner‘s The Maze Runner series. Set before WICKED was formed, before the Glade was built and before Thomas entered the Maze, sun flares hit the earth and mankind fell to disease. The story follows Mark and Trina who were there when it happened. And they survived. But surviving the sun flares was easy compared to what came next. Now a disease of rage and lunacy races across the eastern United States, and there’s something suspicious about its origin. Worse yet, it’s mutating, and all evidence suggests that it will bring humanity to its knees. Mark and Trina are convinced there’s a way to save those left living from descending into madness, and they’re determined to find it.

My 2018 Reading Wrap-Up

Over the past couple of years, I have documented every film that I have watched and reviewed them all using Letterboxd. As a way to motivate myself to read more, I thought I would do the same for what books I have been reading, using Goodreads as a way to set myself a reading challenge every year.

After reading only 6 books last year, I kept my target low this year and set myself the goal of 10 books. However, I somehow managed to read 20 books this year, mostly due to reading a book a day on my honeymoon.

Here’s how my 2018 challenge went, with a short review and rating for each of the books that I read:

Weekly Sky Cinema Premieres (3rd – 9th December)

Since I don’t get to the cinema to see new releases that often anymore, this is my new weekly feature reviewing the latest releases on Sky Cinema Premiere (and in turn, Now TV). I will write a short review and rating for each of the films that I have watched and then give you the details for the ones that I didn’t get a chance to see.

This week’s feature sees the release of Bomb City, Holly Star, Western, A Gift For Christmas, The Maze Runner: The Death Cure, A Yeti Adventure, and In Darkness.

Book v Film: The Maze Runner – The Death Cure

“I watched as that kid died. In his last few seconds, there was pure terror in his eyes. You can’t do that. You can’t do that to a person. I don’t care what anybody tells me, I don’t care how many people go crazy and die, I don’t care if the whole shuck human race ends. Even if that was the only thing that had to happen to find the cure, I’d still be against it.”

Directed by Wes Ball, The Maze Runner: The Death Cure is the third and final film in the adaptations of James Dashner‘s series of Maze Runner novels. As Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) leads his group of escaped Gladers on their final and most dangerous mission yet – including Newt (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), Minho (Ki Hong Lee), Frypan (Dexter Darden), Brenda (Rosa Salazar) and Jorge (Giancarlo Esposito) – they must break into the legendary Last City, a WCKD-controlled labyrinth that may turn out to be the deadliest maze of all, on a mission to find a cure for a deadly disease known as “The Flare”. Anyone who makes it out alive will get answers to the questions the Gladers have been asking since they first arrived in the maze.

Film Review: The Maze Runner – The Death Cure

Directed by Wes Ball, The Maze Runner: The Death Cure is the third and final film in the adaptations of James Dashner‘s series of Maze Runner novels. As Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) leads his group of escaped Gladers on their final and most dangerous mission yet – including Newt (Thomas Brodie-Sangster), Minho (Ki Hong Lee), Frypan (Dexter Darden), Brenda (Rosa Salazar) and Jorge (Giancarlo Esposito) – they must break into the legendary Last City, a WCKD-controlled labyrinth that may turn out to be the deadliest maze of all, on a mission to find a cure for a deadly disease known as “The Flare”. Anyone who makes it out alive will get answers to the questions the Gladers have been asking since they first arrived in the maze.

Book Review: The Death Cure (The Maze Runner #3)

“I watched as that kid died. In his last few seconds, there was pure terror in his eyes. You can’t do that. You can’t do that to a person. I don’t care what anybody tells me, I don’t care how many people go crazy and die, I don’t care if the whole shuck human race ends. Even if that was the only thing that had to happen to find the cure, I’d still be against it.”

The Death Cure is a 2011 young adult dystopian novel written by James Dashner and is the third book published in his Maze Runner series. Picking up where The Scorch Trials left off, Thomas has beaten the Maze and survived the Scorch, but WCKD has taken everything from him. Now, he’ll risk anything to save his friends. But there’s one final test. Thomas remembers far more than they think, and it’s enough to prove that he can’t believe a word of what they say. But the truth will be terrifying and it could be what ends it all. The time for lies is over. Is there a cure for The Flare? And will the Gladers make it out alive one last time?

My 2015 Reading Wrap-Up

Over the past couple of years, I have documented every film that I have watched and reviewed them all using Letterboxd. As a way to motivate myself to read more, I thought I would do the same for what books I have been reading, using Goodreads as a way to set myself a reading challenge.

So, this year I set myself a challenge of reading 15 books. Here’s how my 2015 challenge went, with a short review and rating for each of the books:

Film Review: The Maze Runner – The Scorch Trials

The second book adaptation in James Dashner‘s The Maze Runner trilogy, The Scorch Trials, once again directed by Wes Ball, follows Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) and the rest of the Gladers moments after escaping the maze. Told that they are now being taken to safety, the truth quickly becomes apparent and it seems that the maze was only the beginning. Now, their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape that was once a major city, now scorched to the ground and consumed by a disease known as the Flare. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers take on WCKD’s vastly superior forces, only to uncover the shocking plans that WCKD has had planned for them all along.

Book v Film: The Maze Runner – The Scorch Trials

“He didn’t care about the others anymore. The chaos around him seemed to syphon away his humanity, turn him into an animal. All he wanted was to survive, make it to that building, get inside. Live. Gain another day.”

The second book adaptation in James Dashner‘s The Maze Runner trilogy, The Scorch Trials, once again directed by Wes Ball, follows Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) and the rest of the Gladers moments after escaping the maze. Told that they are now being taken to safety, the truth quickly becomes apparent and it seems that the maze was only the beginning. Now, their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape that was once a major city, now scorched to the ground and consumed by a disease known as the Flare. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers take on WCKD’s vastly superior forces, only to uncover the shocking plans that WCKD has had planned for them all along.

Book Review: The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner #2)

“He didn’t care about the others anymore. The chaos around him seemed to syphon away his humanity, turn him into an animal. All he wanted was to survive, make it to that building, get inside. Live. Gain another day.”

The second book in James Dashner‘s The Maze Runner trilogy, The Scorch Trials, originally published in 2010, follows Thomas and the rest of the Gladers after their escape from the maze in the The Maze Runner. On being told that the Gladers are being taken to safety, the truth quickly becomes apparent that the maze was only the beginning. As the Gladers search for clues about the mysterious and powerful organisation known as WCKD, their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape that was once a major city, now scorched to the ground and consumed by a disease known as the Flare. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers take on WCKD, only to uncover the shocking plans that WCKD has had planned for them all along.

You Should Be Reading: The Maze Runner – The Scorch Trials

“He didn’t care about the others anymore. The chaos around him seemed to siphon away his humanity, turn him into an animal. All he wanted was to survive, make it to that building, get inside. Live. Gain another day.”

The second book in James Dashner‘s The Maze Runner trilogy, The Scorch Trials follows Thomas and the rest of the Gladers through their next chapter. After escaping the maze, the Gladers are told that they are now being taken to safety. But the truth quickly becomes apparent, and as the Gladers search for clues about the mysterious and powerful organisation known as WCKD, it seems that the maze was only the beginning. Now, their journey takes them to the Scorch, a desolate landscape that was once a major city, now scorched to the ground and consumed by a disease known as the Flare. Teaming up with resistance fighters, the Gladers uncover the shocking plans that WCKD has had planned for them all along.

Adapted once again by Wes Ball, the second film adaptation, The Scorch Trials, is set to be released at the beginning of September.

Book v Film: The Maze Runner

“Are they changed because they want to go back to their old life, or is it because they’re so depressed at realising their old life was no better than what we have now?”

Based on James Dashner‘s 2009 book, The Maze Runner is the first in a trilogy of novels, directed by Wes Ball, that begins in a post-apocalyptic setting known as the Glade. When Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) wakes up with no memory apart from his name, he soon realises that he has been trapped in a gigantic maze with a group of other boys. By piecing together fragments of his past with clues that come back to him in his sleep, Thomas begins to uncover his true purpose, as well as the possibility of an escape. But is there an exit to be found? And is the world outside even one worth returning to?

Film Review: The Maze Runner

Based on James Dashner‘s 2009 book, The Maze Runner is the first in a trilogy of novels, directed by Wes Ball, that begins in a post-apocalyptic setting known as the Glade. When Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) wakes up with no memory apart from his name, he soon realises that he has been trapped in a gigantic maze with a group of other boys. By piecing together fragments of his past with clues that come back to him in his sleep, Thomas begins to uncover his true purpose, as well as the possibility of an escape. But is there an exit to be found? And is the world outside even one worth returning to?

You Should Be Reading: The Maze Runner

“Are they changed because they want to go back to their old life, or is it because they’re so depressed at realising their old life was no better than what we have now?”

We’ve all been impressed by the recently popular young adult dystopian franchises of the past few years including the likes of The Hunger Games and Divergent, but now we have a new franchise to throw into the mix – The Maze Runner.

Originally published in 2009 and written by James Dashner, The Maze Runner is the first in a trilogy of books that follows a group of boys who wake up in a place known as the Glade with no memories apart from their names. When the last of the boys, Thomas, joins the group, he soon realises that the Glade is actually a gigantic maze and that the boys not only have to survive on their own, but they have to figure a way out. By piecing together fragments of his past with clues that come back to him in his sleep, Thomas begins to uncover his true purpose, as well as the possibility of a way to escape. But is there even an exit to be found? And is the world outside even one worth returning to?

Directed by Wes Ball, the film adaptation is set to be released on 10th October.

Book Review: The Maze Runner (The Maze Runner #1)

“Are they changed because they want to go back to their old life, or is it because they’re so depressed at realizing their old life was no better than what we have now?”

The first book in James Dashner‘s young adult dystopian trilogy of novels, The Maze Runner, originally published in 2009, follows a group of boys who wake up in a place known as the Glade with no memories apart from their names. When the last of the boys, Thomas, joins the group, he soon realises that the Glade is actually a gigantic maze and that the boys not only have to survive on their own, but they have to figure a way out. By piecing together fragments of his past with clues that come back to him in his sleep, Thomas begins to uncover his true purpose, as well as the possibility of a way to escape. But is there even an exit to be found? And is the world outside even one worth returning to?

The Rise of Young Adult Dystopias

(Written for the Gloucestershire Citizen/Echo)

An undesirable community or society set in the future – that’s the easiest way of explaining what a dystopia is. But what would you consider the best in its genre? The classic that is George Orwell’s 1984? Or the recent young adult franchises taking on the genre, including Suzanne Collin’s The Hunger Games?