Scythe

Now, although this is technically three books, the trilogy has to be read together. Otherwise, the themes are incomplete in my opinion. Having read each book back to back, cover to cover, the story of death and humanity’s incapability of dealing with it in wholesome fashions is brilliantly articulated by Neal Shusterman.

As I have personally delved into the dystopian genre due to my own creative endeavors, I always like to see another author’s take on the genre. Not only does this world extrapolate the possibilities of death being conquered, but it battles with the question of how involved should… show more.

Scythe is chock-full of ideas. Although this is a YA, young and old readers will find plenty to ponder while reading the story and long after.

The Thunderhead is an AI that rules humanity. Instead of trying to wipe out humans or make their lives miserable, it has created a utopia. But there is a catch. To keep the human population within the current caring capacity of the Thunderhead, a few people a year must die. This task is carried out by Scythedom, a human-run organization outside the Thunderhead’s purview.

The story follows two apprentice Scythes as they navigate their… show more.

Prepare yourself for a future where death no longer exists. In the world of Scythe, humanity is now governed by a computer system so advanced that poverty, illness, and mortality no longer plague the human race. Instead, a group of people known as Scythes decides who lives and who dies in an attempt at population control. 

Enter Citra…a young woman with a good head on her shoulders. She boldly accepts the opportunity to be trained as a scythe. Citra must decide just what kind of executioner she wants to be and if she has what it takes to judge the… show more.

Scythe is a gripping story filled with philosophical themes and characters that will make you feel like you’ve just met some new amazing friends. I read Scythe after having read a ton of cliché and stereotypical YA dystopian novels, so the depth this book had surprised me so much that it engrained itself into my mind forever. Not only does this book answer questions about human nature, but it also asks you questions—and they’re so well formulated that I stayed awake a whole night thinking about them. And the characters…let’s say that never in my life had I been so… show more.

Citra and Rowan, two ordinary kids in a post-mortal world, are thrown for a loop when they’re recruited as apprentices to a scythe. What’s a scythe, you ask? Well, in this world, it’s a lot more than a farming instrument. In this dystopian society in which people don’t die, a scythe’s job is to select the unlucky few who must be sacrificed in the name of controlling the world’s population. As Citra and Rowan adjust to the scythe lifestyle and begin to form a bond (a very compelling “will they/won’t they” relationship that spans this YA series), they’re blindsided yet… show more.

Scythe has some of the most fantastic world-building in a dystopian that I’ve read. The story is told by switching back and forth between two main characters, one male, Rowan, and one female, Citra, which adds depth to the story without getting too confusing. *I’m looking at you Six of Crows.*

Society has reached the point where no one dies from natural causes anymore, and people can live indefinitely. Scythes have been tasked with killing people at random to keep the population somewhat in check. When Citra and Rowan are selected to study and learn under a famous scythe,… show more.