Plot Overview: Citra has been inducted into the Scythedom as Scythe Anastasia while Rowan takes up the mantle of the renegade Scythe Lucifer. Both youths are faced with the great corruption and conflict in the Scythedom. New age Scythes clash with old guard Scythes in ideology, and a disturbingly large number of Scythes derive a sadistic joy in taking lives and using their power and influence to surround themselves with opulence and luxury. Under the watchful “eye” of the Thunderhead AI, Citra tries to glean with mercy and Rowan partakes in vigilante justice, executing corrupt Scythes with flames. All the Thunderhead can do is watch the Scythes, who are not under its jurisdiction, tear each other apart and hope that they don’t drag the rest of humanity down with them. All it can do is put its faith in a pair of fledgling Scythes, a library archivist, a man who is legally dead, and a lonely young man that was practically raised by the Thunderhead itself to navigate assassination plots, political drama, and lost, legendary cities.

Critique: I found the story to be very interesting and suspenseful, and a very good continuation of the book’s predecessor, “Scythe”. I enjoyed seeing the continuation of the arcs of the characters and the moral quandaries of the original book.

The introduction to some of the new characters were a bit jarring for me, but they eventually “grew on me” as the book went on and I got the know them better.

Star Rating: 4.5/5

Plot Overview: Thunderhead, the second book in the spectacular Arc of a Scythe Trilogy, explores a futuristic world where all of mankind’s weaknesses have been eradicated, including natural death. Scythes scour the many different regions of the world and control population growth by their own means of killing. Thunderhead follows the perspective of Scythe Anastasia, a Junior Scythe working to protect the Scythedom from the irrational New Order of Scythes.

Critique: This book is an emotional rollercoaster, and Shusterman did an exceptional job of weaving seemingly minor pieces of the story into the astonishing bigger picture. Tears were shed, laughter was cast, but nothing prepared me for the end. I tore through its 512 pages in a matter of days.

Recommendation: I definitely recommend this book to other readers. Anyone who enjoys dystopian novels with themes of ethics, mortality, and such should read it.

Star Rating: 5/5