4/5 stars

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

Either the writing is getting better or I’m just getting used to it. The story is really fun as long as you don’t take it to seriously. One more book and then I’ll review the series.

******

I’ve been putting off The Maze Runner series….I wasn’t sure it would be worth my while. So many mixed reviews. A friend finally convinced me I needed to give it a try–so I did. Now I’m done. Was it worth my while? Yeah, I suppose it was. Will I recommend it to my kids? Yeah, I will. Was it fun? Definitely. Was it amazing? No way.

The series is driven entirely by a fantastically clever premise, and it’s one of those fun rides where you start off knowing nothing, but gradually learn bits of the puzzle as the books progress. The last bits of the story don’t become clear until the last page of the last book. Story-wise, The Maze Runner books are winners. They are fun and exciting and perfectly entertaining–as long as you don’t take them too seriously.

But that’s the problem. Sometimes the writing–especially the dialog–is so horrible it ruins the fun story. I’m talking fingernails on chalk board, tin foil on metal filing bad. And if you don’t know what happens when you bite onto tin foil with a metal filing then you’ll just have to trust me. It’s bad.

Bad enough to prevent me from recommending? Nope, especially for your tweens to teens who aren’t going to care about the lame writing!