The Kill Order by James Dashner

Hello Book Lovers!!!

The next book I'll be reading will be the last book to do with The Maze Runner. The Kill Order by James Dashner is the prequel to The Maze Runner series and by the looks of the synopsis, we are introduced to completely new characters.

I think this is great as it's always nice to be introduced to new characters; I just hope I like them as much as the characters in The Maze Runner series!!!

From the synopsis I can see that in this story we follow two characters called Mark and Trina who have survived the sun flares that have devastated the Earth. But now they are out to save themselves and their friends from a contagious disease that is sending people crazy.

So it sounds very similar to The Maze Runner series but with different characters. Lets see how I find this one!!!

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

Roald Dahl - Short Story Collections

Hello Book Lovers!!!

In this post I would like to talk to you about what McDonalds' are now providing with their happy meals. I'm not being paid to say any of this and I've not been asked to talk about it, but I found it so fantastic what they are currently doing.

The National Literacy Trust have partnered up with McDonalds' to encourage more young people to read. It is very noticeable now that not enough young people are reading as technology is now a main element in most people's everyday lives and books have now taken a bit of a back seat for the younger generation.

In the edition in the image above, the book tells two short stories based on Roald Dahl's The BFG, and The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me. Both of these are well known Roald Dahl stories and so to give them to children in their happy meals will hopefully encourage them to read more. There are also other editions which the children can collect in their happy meals (I'm not encouraging unhealthy eating!!!), but I think this has to be one of the best things McDonalds have done in a very long time. 

As I'm a huge reader, I did of course read most of the Roald Dahl books when I was younger and they are just fantastic!!! I definitely think that Roald Dahl was a huge part of my reading when I was younger but his stories are still so memorable today.

If you have young children or you are just a big child yourself just like me, then why not pick up a happy meal every now and again and start collecting these short stories. Maybe more young people will be encouraged to read more and technology can for once take a back seat.

Now there are other ways to read books, not just in physical form, I just prefer physical form as I like reading traditionally. But for those of you and those with children who are crazy about technology, then there are also audiobooks and kindles (I don't particularly like either and would probably never buy a kindle) but they are great to encourage more people to read. They store thousands of books for all ages and the books on them are much cheaper than buying physical books (I don't like technology but I can still see the positives to it).

I hope that this post has encouraged some of you to help the younger generation especially to read more and if you have any thoughts on this, then feel free to leave them in the comments below.

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Death Cure by James Dashner - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished The Death Cure by James Dashner which means I've completed the trilogy!!! Woohoo!!! I think this trilogy conclusion was fantastic and probably my favourite book of the series. Although I've finished the trilogy, I obviously still need to read The Kill Order, the prequel to the series so I will be getting onto that next :) If you don't want to be spoiled then click here for my review of the first book in the series, The Maze Runner. I also have a review up of The Scorch Trials so click here to read that :)

The Death Cure, like I said above, is the finale to The Maze Runner trilogy. The characters have escaped the Scorch and now are on a mission to stop WICKED from finding a cure their way and helping the people that aren't immune to the Flare. Luckily for Thomas, he is immune and therefore does everything he can to save the human race from WICKED. The problem is, the final thing WICKED need to complete the cure is Thomas.

Early on, the groups get told from WICKED that they are able to remove the chip in their brains that give WICKED the control over them. This will also allow them to get their memories back that they had removed before entering the maze. However, not all of them decide they want this surgery and fight against WICKED to make sure they don't go through with it.

The groups decide to escape from WICKED and fly in a Berg (a kind of futuristic aircraft). They fly to Denver, a city where to Flare has been kept out of. Thomas ends up in trouble after he gets kidnapped and encouraged to rejoin the WICKED program.

Thomas manages however to reunite with the group and also is introduced to another group called The Right Arm. They are against WICKED and want to stop them just as much as the groups do join forces.

Thomas is asked to plant a jamming device in the WICKED headquarters which will deactivate their weapons, giving the group and The Right Arm chance at defeating them. This means that Thomas has to make WICKED believe he wants back into their program. Thomas finds out that WICKED now only want his brain for the final element to the cure but Thomas is saved by one of The Right Arm and is left with a note and a map showing all of the secret entrances and exists in WICKED'S headquarters. This helps him find the group again and they continue in their mission to stop WICKED.

Soon he realises that the people immune are now back in the maze meaning he has to go back there to save them. Unfortunately for Thomas, the maze and the headquarters are already being destroyed from the bombs.

Will Thomas and his friends ever be rid of WICKED, and how many lives have to end in the journey to do so?

I definitely think this was my favourite book in the series as by this point, I already had attachments to a lot of the characters and I had a clear image of the scenery in my head so I didn't need to think too hard about that.

Although this part of the story was fantastic, it also left me heart broken in places as once again, characters I had become attached to ended up in danger, and in some cases, not making it any further.

I really felt like the ending to this book was written perfectly as the action was just none stop. The pace of the whole book was actually much better than The Scorch Trials I felt, which was perfect for a conclusion to a series.

Even though this was the final book, it did still leave you with unanswered questions at the end, which is kind of frustrating but means I now can't stop thinking about it so well done James Dashner for that!!!

I would definitely read this series again and I can't wait to see The Scorch Trials as I still haven't seen it. I also can't wait for The Death Cure to be released as a film as I think that will be amazing!!!

I would recommend this book to both YA and adult readers, especially all of you that enjoy dystopian books. If you liked The Hunger Games then I definitely think you would enjoy this book as it has similar themes.

Rating /5

4

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Death Cure by James Dashner

Hello Book Lovers!!!

The next book I'm going to be reading is of course The Death Cure by James Dashner, the third and final book in The Maze Runner Series (apart from the prequel, The Kill Order).

If this book is anything like the previous two, then I'm sure I'll really enjoying it. I'm hoping that is has the pace of the first book but even more character development from the second book :)

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished the second book in The Maze Runner Series by James Dashner, The Scorch Trials. I really enjoyed this book and I think the film is going to be fantastic so I can't wait to see that. If you haven't read The Scorch Trials or seen the film adaptation, if you don't want to be spoiled then click here to read my review on The Maze Runner, the first book in the series.

In The Scorch Trials we see the remaining characters try to survive in another world containing very little at all. The earth has become a wasteland and people have caught an infection known as the Flare that will eventually kill.

The characters face another trial where they have to cross the Scorch, facing creatures they have to fight off and another group of people that have faced the same events as themselves, but instead, they are all girls except one boy.

The characters set out to reach 'The Safe Place' so they can eventually find the cure to the Flare but of course face lots of obstacles on their way.

I really enjoyed this book like I said above but I didn't think it was as fast paced as the first book as I don't think it had as solid a storyline. Putting that aside, I did become even more attached to some of the characters and my opinions changed on some of the characters repeatedly throughout this book.

I also really enjoyed the descriptive writing as I felt I could really picture the locations clearly and that helped me understand the plot and not get lost at any point.

I definitely believe the film adaptation will be fantastic so I have high expectations for that. I really enjoyed the film adaptation to The Maze Runner as well so I'm looking forward to seeing The Scorch Trials.

As always, if you've read this book then let me know in the comments what you thought of it as I would love to hear your opinions on it :)

Rating /5

4

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Scorch Trials by James Dashner

Hello Book Lovers!!!

It's time to carry on with The Maze Runner Series by James Dashner!!! The next book is The Scorch Trials and I'm so excited to read this!!! I watched The Maze Runner film today and really enjoyed it although it did miss out quite a bit from the book. Either way it still worked fine :) 

But now it's time for The Scorch Trials!!! I can't wait!!! Just as the characters think they would be free once they escaped from the maze, they are faced with another huge challenge!!!

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

The Maze Runner by James Dashner - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished The Maze Runner by James Dashner and I thoroughly enjoyed it :) I now can't wait to watch the film tomorrow afternoon when I get back from work!!!

A lot of people already know what this book is about but for all of you that don't, then I'll give you a brief synopsis :)

The book begins with a boy called Thomas stuck in a dark lift, not understanding what is going on, how he got there, or where he's going. He ends up in a place called the Glade where a group of other boys welcome him. Thomas naturally has so many questions to ask as he wants to learn about what is going on, but the boys don't ever really give him any answers and Thomas gets very frustrated.

The boys start to suspect Thomas, thinking he knows more than he is letting on but Thomas just keeps telling them he has no idea about what's going on or even who he actually is. And then a girl turns up and things begin the change.

She turns up out of the lift with a message and the boys all want to know what the message means. Because of them thinking that Thomas has more information, they begin interrogating him for answers, but of course, Thomas doesn't remember anything to tell them.

Later on Thomas is shown through a window a huge maze. He begins to ask questions about what this place is and soon finds out about the Grievers. Creatures that appear to be out to kill the boys. But they only appear at night when the doors of the maze close.

During the story, the boys try to work out a way to get out of the Glade and the maze and find themselves being put into a great amount of danger when finally working out how they can escape.

I really enjoyed how fast paced this book was. Right from the very beginning, you are thrown straight into the plot; there is no messing around at the beginning like some books tend to do. I also grew very fond of some of the characters quickly which I always find is a good thing as it keeps me intrigued in the storyline.

As well as this, I really enjoyed the writing as it was descriptive and I felt I could imagine the scenery and characters pretty clearly. I like writers that do this as I think it makes the story even more intense.

A couple of chapters from the end, something happens that I won't spoil but it absolutely broke my heart. I actually can't believe James Dashner did that!!! Why dude why?!?!? Yes, I'm not over that quite yet, and I don't know whether I ever will be!!!

I found that even though the girl was a main part of the storyline, she was never the only one being focussed on and I liked that. Instead of her being centre of attention all of the time, she was mostly brought into the story when Thomas was thinking about her, rather than her being physically there all of the time.

I'm definitely super excited about reading The Scorch Trials now and I can't wait to finish the series and see all of the films (when they are all out). For now, I can look forward to watching The Maze Runner tomorrow and The Scorch Trials whenever I get to the cinema!!!

Rating /5

4

If you've read this book/series, then leave in the comments below your opinions as it would be great to see if any of our opinions match.

I'll speak to you all very soon!!!

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx 

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've decided to get my head stuck into another series and this time it's The Maze Runner Series by James Dashner. I thought this would be a great series to read now as the second film is coming out very soon and I still haven't seen the first film so this needs to happen soon!!!

I really don't know much about this series at all so I'm going into it pretty blind but so many people love this series and the first film was also loved by many people.

Is this going to be another series which gives me all the feels?!?!? Let find out!!!

So as you've probably guessed, this is the first book in the series and then I will be continuing on with the second book, The Scorch Trials :)

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

Annie by Thomas Meehan - Review

Hello Book Lovers!!!

I've finished Annie by Thomas Meehan and I have to say I have a lot of thoughts on this book as it is quite a bit different to the film and I really didn't expect that!!! There are some parts I loved about the book that weren't included in the film and there were some bits in the film that I loved that unfortunately weren't included in the book. Anyway, lets get to it!!!

Annie is a little orphan girl who has spent most of her childhood growing up in a girls orphanage. Miss Hannigan, the owner of the orphanage is a nasty woman that treats the girls horribly. All Annie wants is to find her parents and get out of the orphanage.

After thinking about this properly, Annie realises she's never going to find her parents if she's stuck in the orphanage, so sneaks into the laundry basket the day it's due to be picked up. She escapes and finds herself on the streets of New York with no money, food etc.

After wandering the streets, she follows a guy who has been selling apples all day and finds a group of homeless people camping out under a bridge. She decides to stay with them but eventually gets caught by the police and taken back to the orphanage.

A young lady visits the orphanage who works for Oliver Warbucks, one of the richest men in the world and tells Miss Hannigan he would like to have an orphan stay with him over the Christmas period. Annie is the chosen orphan and when she arrives at Mr Warbucks' house she can't believe her eyes!!!

Annie and Mr Warbucks build a strong friendship and soon Mr Warbucks decides he wants to adopt Annie. But Annie tells him before he has chance to tell her the news, that she wants to find her parents. Mr Warbucks sends out a search party for Annie's parents and offers a $50,000 award for the finding of Annie's parents. Unfortunately only frauds come forward, including Miss Hannigan's brother and his friend/girlfriend, as they are only interested in the money.

Later on Annie discovers that her parents died just after she was taken to the orphanage. This upsets Annie greatly but after hearing about Mr Warbucks' offer to adopt her, she can't believe it. Miss Hannigan along with her brother and his friend/girlfriend get arrested and Mr Warbucks' makes sure the other orphans get adopted and live a happy life. 

As you can see, the book follows the storyline we all know and love, but there are a few differences, such as in the book we see the orphans in school and the trouble they have there. We also don't read about the famous scene in the film where Annie gets chased up the bridge. That isn't included in the book at all.

Overall I really enjoyed the book in terms of seeing Annie and the orphans in school and how they dealt with the bullying. I also liked the characters of the orphans and thought they were described really well. I knew which orphan was which as they were described well early on in the story.

I didn't however like how little they were in the book. I loved how much they were in the film and how they escaped to go looking for Annie when she got kidnapped by Miss Hannigan, her brother and his friend/girlfriend. As Annie didn't actually get kidnapped in the book, that whole section of the film wasn't written out and therefore the famous bridge scene didn't exist.

I would still definitely recommend this book as I really enjoyed the different take on the story, and it's a quick read so you can fly through it :)

Rating /5

4

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx

Annie by Thomas Meehan

Hello Book Lovers!!!

Lets start off the month with a story we have all heard of :) And that story is Annie by Thomas Meehan. It's a fabulous story but I've only ever seen the film, not read the book. I love the film so can't wait to read the book :) It won't take me long to read at all as it is a small book and the font is huge!!!

For all of you that have been living in a hole, Annie is an orphan girl who gets adopted by Oliver Warbucks, the richest man alive!!! I'll post a more in depth synopsis in my wrap up so keep your eyes open for that :)

Can I also just say, how cute is this cover!!! I love it :)

Happy Reading!!!

xHannahx