By: Neal Shusterman
Synopsis
A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery. Humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.
Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.
My Thoughts
I picked up this book based on a recommendation. The premise seemed unique and very interesting, so I decided to give it a try. I was not disappointed. The opening definitely grabs your attention and hangs on. There were enough twists to keep things moving. The ending was excellent and had me ready to pick up the second book.
The characters were fairly well done. Goddard was somewhat stereotypical for a villain, but that was ok as it worked for the plot. I enjoyed Citra’s spunk, and thought Rowan was very empathetic. As such, I felt invested in both of these characters and empathetic to the situation they found themselves in. Scythes Faraday and Curie were direct opposites of Goddard, and I liked them very much. As Faraday says in his journal on page 388, “For only the pain of empathy will keep us human.” I loved the themes of morality and compassion expressed in this book.
This novel definitely had me thinking about some things and asking myself some questions. When the world is a utopia, and there is no hardship, death, or pain, where do we find inspiration for art, literature, poetry, etc.? At that point the only thing left is love, and while valid and needed, would get boring. Thus the “plague of boredom” mentioned on page 101. When everything is perfect, nothing is special. So what inspires awe? Curie says on page 192, “Immortality has turned us all into cartoons.” Would utopia really be a utopia? However, the thought of being able to live long enough to read all the books on my TBR (which is ever growing) and learn all the things I want to learn is very appealing.
These are just my thoughts. What are yours?