The Cage (The Cage # 1) - Megan Shepherd
Book Synopsis: The Maze Runner meets Scott Westerfeld in this gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race. From Megan Shepherd, the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughter trilogy.
When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.
Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.
As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?
This was the first book that I've read about alien abduction, and I enjoyed every minute of it.
It really isn't the typical story you'd expect from this kind of novel, it was so much better.
The characters really came to life and brought fresh air to this dull foreign planet run by their captors the Kindred. Cora, Lucky, Leon, Rolf, Nok, and Mali have all been summoned to this strange place to be the new exhibits in this twisted world.
Yes, zoo animals, in a cage, for all the Kindreds to enjoy. But, is this too good to be true?
Cora Mason is also the main character and she is desperate to get back to earth, her real home, if there is even an earth to come back to.
Lies, scandal, and trust are the strongest themes in the book and who can you rely on in this sort of environment?
Ripped from their homes, these six teenagers have to follow three rules to survive:
1) Remain healthy and sleep.
2) Complete the puzzles.
3) Reproduce?!
There's no chance that Cora and the others could ever play by the rules, or face extinction and removal...
I can't wait to finish reading the sequel that I just started today.
Rating: ★★★★★