The Scorch Trials (The Maze Runner #2) by James Dashner

I recently found The Scorch Trials on Playaway at my local library.  I loved the narration on the Playaway version of The Maze Runner and was glad to be able to listen to The Scorch Trials as well.  Here's the cover and Goodreads blurb:

The second book in the New York Times bestselling Maze Runner series—The Scorch Trials is a modern classic for fans of The Hunger Games and Divergent.

Solving the Maze was supposed to be the end. No more puzzles. No more variables. And no more running. Thomas was sure that escape meant he and the Gladers would get their lives back. But no one really knew what sort of life they were going back to.

In the Maze, life was easy. They had food, and shelter, and safety . . . until Teresa triggered the end. In the world outside the Maze, however, the end was triggered long ago.

Burned by sun flares and baked by a new, brutal climate, the earth is a wasteland. Government has disintegrated—and with it, order—and now Cranks, people covered in festering wounds and driven to murderous insanity by the infectious disease known as the Flare, roam the crumbling cities hunting for their next victim . . . and meal.

The Gladers are far from finished with running. Instead of freedom, they find themselves faced with another trial. They must cross the Scorch, the most burned-out section of the world, and arrive at a safe haven in two weeks. And WICKED has made sure to adjust the variables and stack the odds against them.

Thomas can only wonder—does he hold the secret of freedom somewhere in his mind? Or will he forever be at the mercy of WICKED?

Again in this recording, the voices are amazing.  Minho has a distinct voice and Newt has a beautiful accent.  Just lovely.  I really found it hard to make it through this book in points because the betrayal that Tom feels is palpable.  It's painful for the reader/listener.  I came away from the book beyond worried for the final book.  You feel the distrust for WICKED that Thomas feels.  The land of the scorch is an insane wasteland that pushes Thomas beyond his breaking point.  He loses Teresa and any faith that he had in her during his trip across the Scorch.  All he has left is his new friendship with Brenda and the Gladers.  He has nothing else.  He can't trust WICKED or Teresa.  He has minimal interaction with the girls of Group B but from his limited experience with them, he knows that they can be reasoned with.  It will be interesting to see how Dashner manages to pull it all together in the final book.  There are just so many loose ends to tie up and so much that the reader doesn't understand.

You can find out more about the Maze Runner movie on the official website.  You can find out more about author James Dashner and his other works on his website.  You can also Friend him on Facebook or Follow him on Twitter.  Click here to add The Scorch Trials to your Goodreads.  I give The Scorch Trials 4 Fairies for an amazing read that tore me apart from beginning to end!