Scythe by Neal Shusterman

 

Citra and Rowan live in a dystopian world. A world where humans have conquered everything. Pain, suffering, war, disease, misery. They have even conquered death. Now the only ones who can kill are Scythes. Scythes are commanded to glean (kill) a certain number of people each year in order to keep the population under control. They have to go through a year of rigorous training learning the art of killing as an apprentice to an older Scythe. When Citra and Rowan get picked as apprentices to Honorable Scythe Faraday, (a role neither of them wants) they will have to master the art of killing, knowing the consequences if they don’t match up.

I loved reading Scythe. My favorite part was when Citra shoots the “unknown man” (don’t want to give any spoilers) in the leg and then discovers who he really is. I connected with the way that Scythe Curie and Scythe Faraday choose to glean. How they choose to do it honorably and are merciful.

I would recommend this book to older tweens and teens because it can be kind of gory at some parts but it is still such a good book. If you liked The Giver I think you will like this book a lot.

Review by Lorena M.