The Maze Runner - James Dashner

This is a book that has been sitting on my nightstand for a while now. I thought the idea of the story was good, but it just never made it to the top of my pile. That is until Nadine read it and told me that it was amazing and that I had to. So as soon as I finished the book I was reading I pulled this one out and went at it. My first book of 2011 for my +11 in 2011 reading challenge, The Maze Runner by James Dashner.

Boy am I happy I did. What a great book. You begin just as much in the dark as the main character Thomas, as he wakes up in a dark cold elevator. Then being introduced to a strange and heavily structured society of teenage boys surrounded by an ominous maze through which Runners search everyday for an exit. The catch is that the walls move every night. Along with Thomas, you learn that one boy arrives a month, every month, as it has always been. Until one day the elevator brings forth the unthinkable.....a girl.

Jaki's review from Goodreads

Wow, this book was pretty friggin good. I was thinking the whole way through, trying to work out the maze too. The I read the last paragraph and .... pow. I need to get the second book, and quick!

Out now in hardcover, The Scorch Trials.

 

The Keeper

Well I have finished the first of the 61 books I plan on reading this year and it was truly terrifying. Recommended by a friend, The Keeper was promised to give me nightmares, and although I didn't have any of those (because I didn't read it before bed time), it was very scary.

The Keeper by Sarah Langan tells the story of the Marley sisters; Liz and Susan. Susan grows up to be that girl in town that everyone talks about, but no-one can look directly in the eye. She doesn't talk to anyone, has sex with many of the males in the small town of Bedford and everyone in the town has nightmares about her.

When a tragedy hits Bedford, the nightmares about Susan begin to come true.

If you enjoy a great horror and a bit of gore then this one is for you.

DO NOT READ THIS ONE IN THE DARK.

+11 for 2011

Well 2010 was a good year for me. I managed to complete my challenge for the year which was to read 50 books. Finishing the 50th book at lunch time on the 31st of December was pushing it though.

The fantastic blog and podcast Books on the Nightstand have issued a challenge to read +11 for 2011 which means I will be attempting to read 61 books this year.  To make it a bit more interesting I have decided to split the books I read into six groups of 10 with one left over just in case there is a book I read that doesn't fit into the categories.  These six groups are:

• 10 books borrowed (whether that is from friends or the library)
• 10 books from the shelf (books that have been sitting on my bookshelf but have not been read)
• 10 books made into movies
• 10 books purchased in 2011 (really a reason to buy more books - sorry Martin)
• 10 classics (so far my list for this category includes Little Women, Pride and Prejudice, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights)
• 10 reviewed books (I want to increase the amount of books I review for work)

At the moment I am reading "The Keeper" by Sarah Langan which I borrowed from a friend who warned me that it gave her nightmares.  That warning was warranted because I can't take it to bed with me because I'm a bit wuss!  Great story though.  A review will be coming once I have completed it.