Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman

Author: Neal Shusterman

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books

Publication Date: January 16, 2018

Pages: 504

Format: ARC

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Purchase Links: [Chapters/Indigo] [Amazon]

Goodreads Synopsis:

Rowan and Citra take opposite stances on the morality of the Scythedom, putting them at odds, in the second novel of the chilling New York Times bestselling series from Neal Shusterman, author of the Unwind dystology. Rowan has gone rogue, and has taken it upon himself to put the Scythedom through a trial by fire. Literally. In the year since Winter Conclave, he has gone off-grid, and has been striking out against corrupt scythes—not only in MidMerica, but across the entire continent. He is a dark folk hero now—“Scythe Lucifer”—a vigilante taking down corrupt scythes in flames. Citra, now a junior scythe under Scythe Curie, sees the corruption and wants to help change it from the inside out, but is thwarted at every turn, and threatened by the “new order” scythes. Realizing she cannot do this alone—or even with the help of Scythe Curie and Faraday, she does the unthinkable, and risks being “deadish” so she can communicate with the Thunderhead—the only being on earth wise enough to solve the dire problems of a perfect world. But will it help solve those problems, or simply watch as perfection goes into decline?

My Review:

* I received a copy of the book from the publisher for an honest review *

I honestly didn't think that Thunderhead could be better than Scythe, but it exceeded all my expectations! Scythe was mind blowing, and Thunderhead is explosive! This is the best book I have read in 2018 so far.

Thunderhead starts off almost a year after the events of Scythe. Citra is a junior scythe and is finding her footing within the scythedom but she does stir things up with the way she chooses to glean and her charismatic personality. Rowan is now being called Scythe Lucifer and has taken it upon himself to glean thoughts who aren't abiding by the schythedom rules thus making them unworthy of being a scythe. The scythdom has become more split into the new order and the old guard, which continues causing disorder. Both Citra and Rowans character development in Thunderhead was perfect. I loved seeing their progression and how they dealt with the challenging situations placed before them.

The pacing of the plot and the world building was extraordinary. The whole book is eventful without ever having a dull moment, but I must warn you that the last 100 pages keeps your heart rate pumping fast. I've never really read a book where I have no issues with it, usually I would have a small issue here and there nothing too harsh but in both Scythe and Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman I have none.

In Scythe we got journal entries of different scythes in between each chapter. In Thunderhead we got to see the thoughts of the Thunderhead in between each chapter. This let us understand what the Thunderhead really is and how it observes and acts. Not only do we get to see the thoughts of the characters but also the artificial intelligence that was created to basically control and maintain everything expect anything related to the scythedom.

Thunderhead made my hands shake! My heart beat a thousand miles per second and make me want to scream at everyone! If you haven't picked up the book yet go to your nearest bookstore right now and get it, you won't regret it. I'm still shocked about the turn of events. Thunderhead is so unpredictable and the twists that occur will just render you speechless and wanting more.

#Scythe #NealShusterman #5stars #YA #epic