The Journal of Curious Letters

The Journal of Curious Letters
by James Dashner
The 13th Reality, book one

What if every time you made a choice that had a significant consequence, a new, alternate reality was created - the life that would've been had you made the other choice? What if those new realities were in danger? What if it fell to you to save all the realities? Atticus Higginbottom, a.k.a. Tick, is an average thirteen-year-old boy until the day a strange letter arrives in his mailbox. Postmarked from Alaska and cryptically signed with the initials "M.G.," the letter informs Tick that dangerous - perhaps even deadly - events have been set in motion that could result in the destruction of reality itself. M.G. promises to send Tick twelve riddles that will reveal on a certain day, at a certain time, at a certain place, something extraordinary will happen. Will Tick have the courage to follow the twelve clues M.G. sends to him? Will he be able to solve the riddles in time? Will Tick discover the life he was meant to live?
(description from Amazon.com)

Honestly, I almost didn't finish this book. I loved The Maze Runner, Dashner's YA dystopia out last year, and so when I got the chance to meet him at BEA this year in New York, I leapt at the chance. I had hoped that James Dashner would be signing The Scorch Trials, but instead he was signing the third book in The Thirteenth Reality series, The Blade of Shattered Hope.
Since I now own a signed copy, I really wanted to read the whole series.

However, when I started this book, it really dragged for me in the beginning. I had trouble with Tick's name, first off, and the setup for the 13 realities took too long for me. BUT...since I own the third book now, I was determined to keep going and get through it. In the end, I was glad that I kept reading. The second half of the book really picked up and there was lots of action, danger, and mystery.

The baddie is a really mean, weird, crazy baddie. Mistress Jane gave me chills at one point. Her minions (think kind of like the Wizard of Oz flying monkeys) were very inventive. The method of traveling between realities is cool and the different realities sound intriguing and fun.

Now that the world setup is done in the first book, I am way more excited to read the second book. I look forward to The Hunt for Dark Infinity.