In the future everyone is immortal and an omnipresence that started out as your everyday computer cloud, now known as the Thunderhead oversees all and has created a perfect world, where no one wants for anything. The only thing the Thunderhead does not control is the Scythedom. In order to control population, scythes (socially sanctioned killers), select people for gleaning. There are very few ways a person can die in this futuristic society, except if you are gleaned by a scythe, then you are permanently dead. Scythes undergo rigorous training and must adhere to a moral code. Scythe Farady selects 2 teenagers as apprentices and they are set in a mortal competition together. Rowan and Citra must set aside their feelings for each other and fight for their lives. To make things worse, corruption seems to be running amuck in the Scythedome. And things are changing in a big way.
Neal Shusterman captivates his audience with a plot that moves forward at a fast pace, with a lot of twists and turns to keep the reader interested. At times you’ll be rooting for one character, and then by the next chapter you’re championing another. The story, the characters, and the settings are all enough to keep the reader wanting more. It is highly recommended that you not only read this book, but as soon as you’re done you check out its sequel Thunderhead.