Out of the three books of this trilogy, this one was the hardest one to get into. If you want to know my opinion about the previous book in the series ("Scorch Trials"), before reading about this one, you can find it here. This one was still an enjoyable read, but not as attention-grabbing as the other two. My main problem was the first 2/3 of the book, while the last 1/3 becomes quickly and vastly more interesting. I thought the pacing was a bit problematic and I had to skim read a bit at the beginning, but thankfully it got much better after the middle and up until the ending and it did not disappoint me at all.
Once more, the worldbuilding, setting, and scenery was very well done. The characters have definitely developed since the previous 2 books. They have changed and it is obvious in this book and until the end, they continue to change as a consequence of all the horrors that have happened to them. The action and suspense scenes were as always written perfectly.
****POSSIBLE SPOILERS AHEAD****
I loved the connection between Thomas and Brenda and how it slowly but steadily develops and unfolds. You get a few but strong interactions, the moments between them are not many but are evenly spread throughout the book and each one of them is strong enough on its own just as well as all of them combined together when you're finished. Their relationship felt natural and it made sense, so I was very happy they ended up together.
I also liked Teresa's character development even though we didn't get to see much of her in this book. Her death was sad but not as impactful as I think it should and could have been. It felt sudden and weird when it could have been a much stronger scene. I much preferred the movie version of Teresa's death, because in the movie it felt shocking, strong, and impactful, but also much more real and believable. Then again, in the book, it was much more of a sacrifice, while in the movie it was less of a sacrifice and more of an accident, but I still preferred the movie version better. On the other hand, I hated the romance between Thomas and Teresa in the movie. I understand that they had to work and develop an already existing romance, rather than start a new one with a less familiar character, but I still much prefer Thomas with Brenda than with Teresa so in this part I preferred the book.
The strongest moment in this book was beyond a doubt Newt's death. It was the most impactful, devastating, and heart-wrenching moment and it gave me tears. I kept thinking about it for a couple of days before reading on and I had to go back and reread it because that's how much I liked it. It was so sad and painful and it still shocked me even though I'd been spoiled about it and I knew it was coming. On the other hand, Newt's death in the movie was neither as powerful nor as sad and painful as it was in the book. Not even close. What I loved about the book version was that Newt's insanity was obvious, real, and very believable. In the book, he was completely paranoid with a few moments of sanity here and there, but in the movie, he was mostly sane with a few moments of slight madness. In the movie he wasn't completely lost and his death felt more like it had a physical cause, while in the book it's all about his mental decay and about how in this madness he had the sense to choose to die before he gets worse. The realization of his own situation and the despair he had and him begging his friend to free him from the pain; it's all so traumatic. Thomas' pain and remorse after he did it and how it all happened it was all so tragic. His final words to Thomas were heart-wrenching and strong! In the movie, it felt like they didn't give it as much attention as they should and as it deserved. It felt a bit strange and not nearly as sad and painful and it was really annoying because it felt like if they had rushed a little maybe he could have been saved!
I was really expecting Thomas' confession to Minho about Newt's death and I was a bit disappointed that it never happened and that Thomas decided to keep it a secret because I'd love to see them talk about it with all that this includes: they would get angry, they would fight, they would cry and in the end, they would probably forgive each other and understand.
Gally's comeback was also a strong and unexpected moment and I really liked that he came back and played his role on the outcome of the story. I felt sorry for what happened to him but also happy that he survived and changed and wanted to help. It was so nice that they made peace with Thomas.
The final battle and the escape was satisfying and left me feeling very well. The scene was action-packed and suspenseful. I really loved how Thomas finally killed the "rat-man", it was so satisfying! I really hated the guy and loved it when it happened. The ending overall leaves a bittersweet feeling as you see that they couldn't make a cure and save everyone, but at least they saved all the immunes and humankind still has a chance. The solution came from within WICKED which had been the cause for most of their problems and this was both ironic and meaningful and I loved it. The ending was bittersweet and contradictory and the outcome was better than I expected. It's not a typical happy ending but I liked it very much. Once more, I preferred the book version of the ending. The movie version didn't make as much sense to me, but still, it was done very well, it felt interesting enough and it was entertaining. It was beautifully shot and nicely directed but story-wise the book made much more sense.
****END OF SPOILER SECTION****
I'm not sure how to rate this book since I struggled for about the first half of the book, but I loved the second half and especially the ending. I definitely liked it in the end and the overall feeling was positive and kind of unexpected. The first half feels like 2* and the second half feels like 4*, so I'll have to rate it somewhere in the middle. I'm going to rate it 3,5* because overall I really enjoyed it and the general feeling was positive and in the end, this is the most important for me. I'm going to get on with the prequels since I really enjoyed the trilogy so far. I hope the other two books will be as good!
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