The Maze Runner

First and foremost, I must apologize for the lack of creativity in the title of this post. I couldn't come up with anything witty and clever, so I just stuck with the title of the book I'm going to be reviewing. And that's okay, because the book was simply spectacular!

The Maze Runner, by James Dashner, is a book I've seen floating around for a while. However, I just never really got around to reading it until now. Actually, what happened was that my friend and I had  sort of "book swap" thing where I'm letting her borrow a couple of my books and she's letting me borrow the entire Maze Runner trilogy. I swear I was practically going through withdrawal when I finished the first one on Friday night and realized I didn't have access to the rest of the series until Monday. That's how good it was.

Anyway, the main character in this novel is Thomas. He doesn't remember who he is or where he came from; just his own name. He's traveling upward at an amazing speed in a metal box. And when he emerges, he's welcomed by a group of boys all around his age. He's in the Glade--the home of the boys who are sent to the Maze. Thomas's arrival was to be expected. However, all of the order that the boys have worked so hard to establish crumbles with the arrival of the first girl. Can they figure out how to escape the Maze before it's too late?

Okay, so my summary didn't sound very good. Bear with me, I just got home from school and my brain is out of energy for the day. If you want a legitimately good summary, go look it up online or something. But trust me, it is really, really, really good! I give it five out of five stars, hands down.

Okay, that's all on the book now. For I have made an amazing discovery that has changed my life for the better! And I think it will change yours too. There's a website and an app called Wattpad. Guess what Wattpad is?

Free books.

Now, don't get too overexcited. These aren't books like you find in Barnes and Noble and stuff. They're a lot like free Kindle books in my opinion. Wattpad is a way to self-publish almost, except that you don't get paid. You just throw your book out there and hope people read it. Membership to Wattpad is free, so I highly suggest you join! And let me know if you publish something on there so that I can read it. Just to let you know, from now on I will be doing some reviews on books that I find on Wattpad too.

And in response to a comment I received: I really love posting on this blog, but it isn't my number one priority. Please forgive if I don't post as often as I should. I really am trying, but I'm in high school so you have to understand that a lot of the time I have piles of homework and other things to do. Thank you for taking this into consideration.

Okay, that's all for now.

The City of Fallen Expectations

So readers, I'm having mixed feelings. I'm frustrated. Annoyed. Irritated. Cassandra Clare can't decide if she's going to write a good series or not! I mean sheesh. The first book? Not very good. The second and the third? Blew me out of the park. I fell in love with the series. The fourth?

Ugh.

I mean, overall the plots were good. They interested me and kept me wanting to know more. But the ending killed it. I absolutely hated the ending. And there's not a lot of book endings that I feel that way about. I almost don't want to keep reading the rest of the series. (Don't worry, I will. If only for you guys.) Now, I can't fully explain my hatred without giving away some serious spoilers. But can I just say that solving a problem, and then ending the book by having the same character have to go through the same problem again in the next book is just kind of redundant? And another thing: Cant dead characters just stay dead? Please? Is that too much to ask?

Apparently it is.

So folks, if you're looking for a series where you absolutely fall in love with every single book, this isn't going to be the one you want.

But wait!

You and I are undoubtedly going to have very different opinions about what makes a book good or not. If you think this series sounds good, by all means read it.

And for those of you that just want to know what this book is about instead of hearing all of my pointless opinions about it,  here is a summary:

Clary is finally happy. She's finally started Shadowhunter training, and she and Jace can be a couple. It couldn't get any better, right? Well, it's not going to. When Jace starts pulling away from her for reasons she doesn't know, what will happen to their relationship?

Simon is having problems. He's now homeless and there are people dressed in gray trying to kill him. Plus he's dating two beautiful girls at the same time; who don't know about each other. When a surprisingly powerful figure offers him a deal, Simon has to make a choice that could mean securing his future or throwing it down the garbage.

Will Clary and Simon be able to solve their problems and defeat a new rising evil that no one is certain of? Or have the New York Shadowhunters finally met their match?

The City of Fallen Angels was a disappointment in my opinion, but maybe you'll like it. Check it out!