When the lift opens, Thomas finds himself deposited in a community of young males called the Glade.  He can’t remember a thing besides his name, yet he gets little flashes of memories.  Are the memories his?  Was his mind erased?  Why do somethings about this community seem so familiar? Through talks with Alby and Chuck, Thomas learns that every month a new boy arrives in the lift knowing only his name.  Every morning the walls of their compound open to a maze and every evening they close.  In the maze are terrible creatures called Grievers. Boys stung by grievers go through a painful changing.  These boys claim to have seen Thomas before and they do not have a favorable opinion of him.  Eight maze runners enter the giant maze every morning and hope to return in the evening. As Thomas struggles to find his place in this community and retrieve his memories, he knows one thing for sure, he must become a maze runner.

This book is the first in a series.  Follow this book with The Scorch Trials and The Death Cure.  The Kill Order is a prequel to the series.  The Maze Runner is in production for a film.