Children of Icarus

Gr 7 Up—In the city of Daedalum, each year on Fallen Day, children ages 10 to 16 are candidates to be Icarii: to enter the labyrinth, find the way to Alyssia, and become angels. The nameless 16-year-old narrator and her best friend Clara await their last Fallen Day anxiously. They are both chosen, but once they are inside the maze, things are not what they expected. A team of warriors, past Icarii who call themselves Fates, rescue the narrator from a multitude of other threats. She is at first accepted, then loses favor with the Fates, and is cast out into the maze to die. A mysterious woman known as the Executioner saves her and teaches her how to survive. While the story shows echoes of James Dashner, Suzanne Collins, and even Veronica Roth, the result is not greater than the sum of these parts. There is plenty of action but also plenty of questions and not many explanations. The narrator's helplessness grows old, and her transition to capable defender seems unbelievable.