Summary: The Death Cure by James Dashner is the third book in the Maze Runner series. It follows Thomas and his friends as they escape the clutches of WICKED, the organization that has been conducting experiments on them to find a cure for the Flare, a deadly virus. The group faces various challenges as they attempt to uncover the truth and survive in a world ravaged by the disease. Thomas, grappling with loss and betrayal, ultimately learns that he and his friends were part of a series of trials to save humanity.
The Selection is the first book in Kiera Cass's young adult dystopian romance series. Set in a future post-apocalyptic America, now called Illéa. The story is about America Singer, a teenage girl from a lower caste who is chosen to compete in a competition to win the heart of Prince Maxon and become the next queen. However, society is rigidly divided into castes, and citizens have little choice in their futures. America is strong-willed, compassionate, and refuses to conform to the expectations placed upon her.
Thomas wakes up in a box with only his name in his memory. He discovers that he is in a “paradise” like world, with a bunch of other boys in a group called Gladers. They all live in the Glade, which is surrounded by a maze. In the maze are monsters called Grievers, bulbous creatures with spiky appendages designed to kill. The Gladers have all been trapped for two years, and Thomas might be their only key to escape the maze. When the first girl ever arrives in the Glade, and the Grievers start invading the Glade, Thomas and others lead the Gladers in a fight for freedom.
Thunderhead is the second book in the Scythe book series. This book specifically focuses on the Thunderhead, the big cloud-like technology that controls everything, and corruption within the Scythedom. Citra gleans using her compassionate methods and Rowan hunts down corrupt Scythes. Meanwhile, the Thunderhead is growing worried about the corruption, yet it can’t do anything about it due to its limitations.
Summary: Dark Age by Pierce Brown is the fifth book in the Red Rising series, continuing the story of Darrow, a lowborn revolutionary fighting against a tyrannical society ruled by a color-coded hierarchy. Set in a future where humanity has colonized the solar system, the story explores into themes of power, betrayal, and the consequences of war.
Summary: Want by Cindy Pon is a gripping cyberpunk thriller set in a future Taipei, where pollution and class disparity dominate society. The story follows Jason Zhou and his group of friends as they plot to take down Jin Corp, the company responsible for the environmental destruction and health disparities plaguing the city. To infiltrate the elite circles of Jin Corp, Zhou, and his friends undergo dangerous transformations and navigate a world of high-tech espionage and moral ambiguity.
Summary: 1984 follows Winston Smith, a party member living in the dystopian future of Oceania. Through Winston’s perspective, we learn the government has full control over everyone and everything. Led by Big Brother, the government not only controls what people experience, through government-made media and propaganda, but also controls the people themselves, through surveillance, language, and the absence of individuality.
Summary: After escaping the terrible maze trials, they ended up being rescued only to find themselves in another simulation, designed to rule out the weak kids in the lot. Thomas is confused on what to do next and doesn’t even know if he can trust his own friends in the process. Join them on the journey they will take filled with mysteries, hideous creatures, and some of the deepest and darkest secrets about the situation of humanity and what’s to come in this dystopian novel.
Legend follows June and Day, two teens living completely opposite lives. June is a prodigy, destined to be one of the most successful people in the Republic. Day is a criminal, the most-wanted criminal in the country. But when June’s brother died and Day became the main suspect their lives cross in unexpected ways.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury takes place in a dystopian future where books are outlawed and the government uses mass censorship and immersive entertainment to distract the people from the real problems. The book was written based on fears of the growth of mass media and the general attitude of the public at the time and envisioned a possible future if things kept going the way they were.
