  | Full Text Reviews: School Library Journal - 12/01/2010 Gr 7 Up—This dystopian novel begins where The Maze Runner (Delacorte, 2009) ends. Thomas and the rest of the group's escape from the Maze and the horrifying creatures called Grievers has proven to be short-lived because WICKED, the group behind it all, has another trial in store for them. Sun flares have destroyed most of the Earth, and a virus called the Flare has ravaged its population. Infected people turn into zombies called Cranks that attack and eat one other. The kids are told that they have the Flare but if they succeed in surviving the second trial, they will be cured. With few supplies, they must travel across 100 miles of hot and scorched land within two weeks to reach a safe house to receive the cure. When Teresa, Thomas's best friend and the only girl in the group, disappears, and he loses the ability to communicate telepathically with her, he and the other guys determine to find her. As they trek across the barren desert encountering crazed Cranks, the teens' loyalty to one another and the group is tested. The fast-paced narrative and survival-of-the-fittest scenario is reminiscent of Suzanne Collins's The Hunger Games (Scholastic, 2008). Although these characters aren't quite as compelling and their made-up slang takes a little getting used to, each character's personality is distinct. The unresolved ending will leave readers impatiently waiting for the conclusion to the trilogy.—Sharon Rawlins, New Jersey State Library, Trenton - Copyright 2010 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Booklist - 01/01/2011 The exercise in withholding information begun in The Maze Runner (2009) continues. The boys who had their memories wiped before being dropped into a massive maze have escaped, but they now have to trek across a sunflare-blasted wasteland to get the cure to the insanity disease they’ve been infected with. The wickedly violent action and rush to figure out what’s actually going on help distract from a number of gaping plot holes. Fans will want this one, too, but know that Dashner still has an awful lot of explaining to do in the upcoming finale. - Copyright 2011 Booklist. Loading...
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