By Neil Shusterman

Published: 2016

AR level: 6.5

AR points: 17.0

Word count: 102433

I suggest 8th through 12th grade.

I wasn’t sure what to think about a book with an image of a reaper in red on the front cover. Yes, the artwork was glorious, but I tend to shy away from anything too horrific, especially anything graphic, and I didn’t know what to expect (Shusterman always leaves me guessing–an exceptional quality in any author!).

Well, well, well. What I found is not only a thrilling tale that will leave you breathless until the end (with star-crossed lovers that leave out the ooey gooey stuff), but a thought-provoking piece of writing that has value far beyond the high school age. Set your mind to reading this powerful novel, and you’ll be asking yourself all sorts of questions about life, death, and who should be running the show!

Description from B&N:

Two teens must learn the “art of killing” in this Printz Honor–winning book, the first in a chilling new series from Neal Shusterman, author of the New York Times bestselling Unwind dystology.

A world with no hunger, no disease, no war, no misery: humanity has conquered all those things, and has even conquered death. Now Scythes are the only ones who can end life—and they are commanded to do so, in order to keep the size of the population under control.

Citra and Rowan are chosen to apprentice to a scythe—a role that neither wants. These teens must master the “art” of taking life, knowing that the consequence of failure could mean losing their own.

Scythe is the first novel of a thrilling new series by National Book Award–winning author Neal Shusterman in which Citra and Rowan learn that a perfect world comes only with a heavy price.