Shusterman, N: Scythe Arc of a Scythe 1

This book made me think a lot. It is one of the best dystopian books I’ve read and made me sit on the edge of my seat for almost every page. But it is also paradox, isn't it? Death not existing should be exciting. A good thing, right? It shouldn't create an even more unfair and corrupt society. It shouldn't make you more scared, because we created an even more gruesome ending. “Scythe” shows you what humanity should be about in a way, that will make you turn the pages faster than you’d ever think. /// Dieses Buch hat mich sehr zum Nachdenken angeregt. Es ist eines der besten dystopischen Bücher, die ich je gelesen habe, und hat mich die gesamte Zeit am Rande meines Platzes mit den Charakteren bangen lassen. Aber es ist auch sehr paradox, oder nicht? Dass der Tod nicht mehr existiert, sollte eigentlich aufregend sein. Eine gute Sache, richtig? Es sollte keine noch korruptere und unfaire Gesellschaft erschaffen. Es sollte einem nicht noch mehr Angst einflößen, weil wir ein weitaus schlimmeres Ende geschaffen haben. „Scythe“ zeigt einem, worum es bei Menschlichkeit eigentlich gehen sollte, und lässt einen dabei die Seiten schneller umblättern, als man für möglich hält.

In a time where humanity has overcome death through medicine and technology, there needs to be order to preserve humanity from overpopulation ... and it’s the Scythe’s job to kill people. Unique, creative and captivating! I had such a good time reading this!

What if humanity could cheat death and no one would have to die anymore? Scythe explores this theme and does it very well. The so called "Scythes" in this world must kill people to avoid overpopulation. We follow 2 apprentices on their way to become Scythes themselves. Therfore the question is "Who deserves to live and who deserves to die?". I really, really, really, REALLY loved this book! My eyes were glued to every page because Neal Shustermann created such a unique premise for a dystopian novel. After finishing the book weeks ago I still think regularly about it.

Set in a dystopian reality not too far from ours, the world is ruled by a friendly but protective AI called the "Thunderhead". Every mortal problem has been eradicated – including mortality itself. Now the so-called Scythes decide who dies and who doesn't. The story follows Citra and Rowan, two young scythe-apprentices, who have to compete against eachother for a single scythe position. Scythe is the perfect novel for every dystopia-lover. It has a kind of Hunger-Games-ish touch to it and the story itself, although hard to comprehend at some points, captivates the reader from page one. The dystopia is quite subtle in the beginning, but starts to unfold throughout the book. The concept of the world is a little confusing and hard to grasp at times, especially at the start, but it is very much worth it to power through!