![]() ![]() ![]() With its clever premise, quick pace, and easy-to-champion characters, Wells's story is a fast, gripping read with a cliffhanger that will leave readers wanting more. There are plenty of "didn't see that coming" moments and no shortage of action or violence. Though Wells doesn't provide much detail about Benson's past, his honesty and determination to escape make him a compelling protagonist, and it's easy to get drawn into his fellow students' plights as well. Instead, he is trapped with roughly 70 other teens divided into three factions, with no teachers, no real classes, and no chance of escape at a school overseen by the mysterious and sinister "Iceman," who doles out punishments and awards points. Seventeen-year-old Benson Fisher, tired of foster homes, applies for a scholarship to Maxfield Academy in New Mexico, hoping for a fresh start. ![]() Robison lives in the Rocky Mountains in a house not too far from elk pastures. Throughout the story, Benson must wrestle with the notion of escaping the walls of Maxfield Academy and returning to what little of a life he previously had before. ![]() In a chilling, masterful debut, Wells gives the classic YA boarding school setting a Maze Runner twist, creating an academy of imprisoned teenagers who must fight to survive when the rules change daily, and the punishment for breaking those rules is death. Variant was a Publishers Weekly Best Book and a YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers. Wells raises an interesting question in Variant, one which is far more daunting to answer than one would imagine. ![]()
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