I really enjoyed The Maze Runner series
even though I didn’t connect with either Thomas or Teresa – that's a testament to
Dashner’s storytelling that I was willing to hang in, reading not only the
three books in the series, but the prequel too.
The Kill Order is set years before Thomas
and Teresa are sent to the maze. In fact, in this book they are both little
older than toddlers. The hero of this story is a seventeen-year-old boy named
Mark, helped by the “Old Bear”, an ex-soldier Alec. Mark, of course, has a love
interest, Trina.
The story opens moments after the sun
flares have destroyed most of the planet. From there, Dashner shows – in
graphic detail – how the population was infected with the Flare virus.
With that out the way, the plot is very
straightforward. Mark and Alec have to get from point A to point B and then
back to point A without being eaten alive by the ‘crazies’. This journey entailed
many fist fights, described in great detail. Mark even says that he’d had the
air knocked out of him about a hundred times in a couple of days. So, if you
like fast-paced crack, cut and thump, then this book is for you. Sadly, it
didn’t work so well for me.
So, what did I like?
I appreciated the descriptions of how the
virus eats away at the brain, driving decent people into rabid insanity. This
was not something Dashner could really describe in the books from Thomas’s POV.
But be warned, it makes for pretty horrific reading. It also explained why
Teresa was so adamant that WICKED was good. As can be expected, there are no
happy endings for most of the characters in this book.
Would I recommend The Kill Order?
If you really loved the series, then
definitely. It’s a good scene setter. But if you were lukewarm, then no, don’t
waste your time, because you’ll probably hate it.
My rating: 3 stars.
Cheers
Gwynneth
