The Scorch Trials

Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

Appropriate for: Ages 13+

Genre: Young Adult Post-Apocalyptic Sci-Fi

Length: 368 pages

Year of Publication: 2010

(This book is a sequel to The Maze Runner.)

The maze was all a part of an experiment. Led by the organization WICKED, the “Maze Trials” were used by WICKED to study the reactions, brain waves, and thoughts of the Gladers as a way to find a cure to the Flare—a disease that ravages a world nearly destroyed by sun flares. But Thomas and the Gladers—they survived the maze. They were rescued from WICKED. They are safe. It just all seems too good to be true.

The morning after escaping the maze and being rescued from WICKED, Thomas and the twenty other surviving Gladers discover that it was all too good to be true. Their world starts to fall apart all over again. They wake up to a mass of crazy, zombie-like people who call themselves “Cranks” swarming at the dormitory windows. The dead bodies of the people who had rescued them from WICKED are hanging from the ceiling of the dorm’s common room. Only a short time later, both the Cranks and the dead bodies suddenly and inexplicably disappear without a trace. To top it all off, the only girl Glader, Teresa, is missing. In her dorm room is a teenage boy named Aris who claims to have also escaped from a maze and to have never heard of Teresa before. What’s going on? Has the world gone mad?

Soon, a mysterious man arrives and explains to the Gladers that the maze and their subsequent “rescue” were the first of many “trials” or “tests” to aid WICKED’s study of their brain functions in order to find a cure for the Flare. This highly contagious disease reduces people to animals, making them heartless and violent, and the man tells the Gladers that all of them are already infected with the virus—although the symptoms will not start appearing for a while yet. The next experiment needed to discover a cure is called the “Scorch Trials.” Thomas and the Gladers are transported to a desert-like area of the world. Their task is to cross one hundred miles of the treacherous land in two weeks. In return, WICKED promises them their lives and a cure for the Flare. Between them and their goal lies miles of burning sun and sand, confusion, betrayal, and a city filled with heartless, violent Cranks. Thomas and his friends continue their struggle for survival—now more dangerous than it ever was in the maze.

James Dashner’s sequel to The Maze Runner is another page-turning post-apocalyptic novel that is big on action, thrill, and danger but low on character and plot development and valuable themes. Although The Scorch Trials does not quite match its prequel in originality, it surpasses The Maze Runner in suspense and excitement. With this extra dose of suspense and excitement comes more language, violence, and gruesome descriptions.

As in the previous book, the Gladers continue to be well-versed in insults, often speaking to other characters in a very disrespectful manner, and they also continue to frequently utilize their own made-up cuss words. Unfortunately, the use of common expletives seems to go up a notch from the previous book. God’s name is also used in vain a number of times.

Even if the language is not actually much more offensive than the previous book, the violence and gruesome descriptions in The Scorch Trials certainly bring the PG-13 content in James Dashner’s novels to a new level. Since the new characters have left the controlled environment of the maze and are now in the “real world,” they must face the dangers and horrors of post-apocalyptic earth—including a new disease. Humans infected by the Flare disease slowly lose all compassion and become more and more brutal and violent as the disease eats away at their brains. This leads to a number of frightening and disturbing characters who play a big role in most of the more scary scenes. Dashner’s descriptions of these “Cranks” resemble the description of zombies. Some Cranks who have completely lost their minds talk about eating the body parts of other humans and also attack some of the main characters. In addition to this new element of the zombie-like creatures, Dashner introduces several other innovations to add to the excitement of the novel, such as a strange substance that encircles a victim’s head and decapitates the body and an oven-like desert that scorches its visitors. Among other things, a character is shot, several are struck by lightning, characters are drugged against their will, others are threatened at gun- and screwdriver-point, and another character stabs an enemy in the chest with a knife. Needless to say, the blood and gore of this second book make it even more scary than the previous book.

Unlike the previous book, The Scorch Trials has a bit of boy-girl content that is also cause for caution. Although there is nothing sexually explicit, a couple scenes contain kissing, and, in one scene, Thomas dances with a girl in a shady, bar-like place filled with people who are all partying to loud music. Dashner describes the two dancing with “their bodies pressed tightly together, clasping each other.” It’s not exactly a romantic scene, and that’s about as steamy as it gets, but it still something for parents to keep an eye out for.

In all, the second book of Dashner’s Maze Runner series is a quick, exciting, and easy read but contains enough objectionable content to make it out of the question for children and pre-teens. This book is not one to be avoided altogether, but parents of teens who are interested in this series should not hesitate to guide their children through the issues in the book as well as the occasional valuable lesson it presents. Although the book is not big on valuable themes, Dashner still promotes ideas such as perseverance and working as a team. The book can also spark some profitable discussions on what makes someone human—what gives people their humanity. Both Dashner’s protagonists and antagonists are fighting for the good of the human race, yet they have different views of what exactly “the good” is. The characters also present interesting views on the sanctity of human life. Parents should guide their teens through these issues, teaching them to not simply accept the concepts presented in books but to examine them from a Christian worldview. As a discussion-starter, this book does have its value. On the other hand, however, it might be a good call for potential audiences to simply wait for the movie and spend their time reading something more nutritious.