Can a sequel outrun the maze it just escaped? This audiobook picks up immediately after Thomas and the Gladers get free, only to discover, in reviewer A Conrad's words, that their escape "marks the end of Phase One" rather than the end of anything resembling safety. James Dashner does not give his characters, or his listeners, much time to catch their breath before the next threat arrives.
Mark Deakins Narrates This Wasted Earth
James Dashner wastes no time here. Government and order have disintegrated, the earth is described as "a wasteland," and Cranks, people driven to murderous insanity by a disease called the Flare, roam the ruined cities hunting for their next victim. Thomas is left wondering whether the secret to real freedom is somewhere in his own mind or whether he will always be at the mercy of WICKED, the organization behind everything that has happened to him and the other Gladers since they first woke up in the maze. The synopsis is blunt about how far the world has fallen since that first book: order and government are gone entirely, and the people left roaming the wasteland are either hunting or being hunted, with very little middle ground offered to anyone caught between those two positions.
Reviewer J. lays out the plot in more detail than most, describing how WICKED sends the group through a desert where they meet a second group of Gladers, mostly girls this time, and encounter more people afflicted with the Flare along the way, eventually learning something about immunity that reshapes what the whole ordeal has actually been testing for. That reviewer flags the account with a spoiler warning up front, a fair signal to anyone trying to go in clean rather than knowing the twists ahead of time. Reading J.'s account alongside A Conrad's more restrained plot summary, the two together sketch out just how much narrative ground this second book covers compared to the first, moving the group from the confines of a single maze into an entire ravaged landscape.
From Movie Homework to Genuinely Addicted
Cshaf51's five-star review is the most enthusiastic entry here, admitting to reading the book originally just to prepare for the film adaptation starring Dylan O'Brien, and then getting pulled into the whole trilogy far more than expected, describing themselves as genuinely "addicted" by this point in the series. That reviewer calls this specific installment their favorite of the series so far, largely because the story "picks up immediately" from where The Maze Runner left off without making listeners wait for the action to restart. That reviewer's arc, from reading purely as movie homework to genuine investment across a full trilogy, is a useful signal for anyone approaching this series the same way, with an adaptation as the initial hook rather than the source material itself.
A Conrad's four-star review backs that momentum up from a more structural angle, walking through how WICKED's reveal that their escape only marks the end of "Phase One" escalates the stakes methodically, with more phases still to come, rather than just throwing chaos at the reader for its own sake. Reviewer Amazon Customer, posting from Brazil, adds a shorter but useful endorsement, calling this the rare sequel that is "relatively more even" than the book before it, with more fully developed characters and more of the backstory unveiled along the way. That same reviewer closes by calling it a "must-read book for those who love young-adult literature," a fairly specific endorsement that positions this squarely inside genre expectations rather than as a crossover title trying to reach beyond its natural audience.
A 4.4 That Flattens a More Mixed Picture
Not every reaction is unqualified. Gabriela's five-star review admits to enjoying the survival themes and the moral pressure the characters are put under, but singles out some of WICKED's explanations as genuinely confusing, a complaint that lines up with A Conrad's more measured "good sequel, but could be better" framing. Reviewer J. raises a related point from a different angle, noting the book "raises even more questions than the first one" resolves, which some listeners will read as momentum and others as a plotting weakness depending on temperament. Both reviewers' hesitations point at the same underlying issue: WICKED's institutional motives are kept deliberately opaque, a choice that builds mystery for some readers and frustration for others depending on how much clarity they need from a villain organization to stay invested.
The rating sits at 4.4 from 31 votes, and while five written reviews back it up on the page, the reactions among them range from unqualified enthusiasm to real reservations about the plotting, so the badge number alone flattens a more mixed picture than it suggests to anyone glancing at the star count without reading further.
Newcomers Should Start With The Maze Runner
This is squarely for listeners already partway through The Maze Runner series and ready to keep going, especially anyone who, like Cshaf51, found themselves more invested than expected once Thomas and the Gladers were out of the original maze and into something worse. The pacing rewards momentum rather than starting cold, and fans of the eventual film adaptation curious about how much the book diverges from what made it to screen will find plenty to compare.
Listeners who have not started with The Maze Runner should begin there instead, since this picks up directly where that book ends, and anyone who shares Gabriela and A Conrad's frustration with WICKED's confusing explanations may find that same complaint waiting here too, since the organization's motives stay deliberately murky through most of this installment.
Common Questions
How long is The Scorch Trials audiobook?
Ten hours and twenty-two minutes carry this sequel forward. Reviewer Cshaf51 praises how the story picks up immediately from where The Maze Runner ends, and that direct continuation is reflected in the pacing, since this audiobook does not spend much time re-establishing the world before pushing ahead.
Do I need to listen to The Maze Runner before this audiobook?
Yes. The synopsis and multiple reviews treat this as a direct continuation, following Thomas and the Gladers immediately after their escape from the maze. Reviewer A Conrad specifically frames it as the sequel to The Maze Runner, continuing that story rather than starting a new one.
Is this audiobook confusing to follow?
Some listeners think so, at least in parts. Reviewer Gabriela enjoyed the survival themes overall but found some of WICKED's explanations genuinely confusing, and reviewer A Conrad raises a related concern, calling it a good sequel, but one that could be better rather than an unqualified success.
Does this audiobook connect to the Maze Runner film adaptation?
Only indirectly, through listener motivation rather than content. Reviewer Cshaf51 mentions originally reading the book to prepare for the film adaptation, noting that Dylan O'Brien plays the lead character, though the audiobook itself is drawn from Dashner's original novel rather than the movie.
