Scythe
The global smash-hit dystopian thriller series that's 'A true successor to The Hunger Games'
A stunning Collector's Edition of the New York Times bestseller, with a letter from the author.
"A true successor to The Hunger Games" Maggie Stiefvater, bestselling author of Shiver and The Raven Boys.
A TIME MAGAZINE BEST YA BOOK OF ALL TIME
What if death was the only thing left to control?
In the not-too-distant future, humans have cured hunger, disease, war, crime – even death. Now scythes are the only ones who can end a life – and they are commanded to do so to keep the size of the population under control.
Citra and Rowan are both chosen to be apprentices to a scythe – something neither of them wants. Forced together, they must perfect the skill of taking a life, competing against each other for just one scythe position. But then it becomes clear that the winning apprentice's first task will be to kill the loser...
The first book in the globally bestselling, award-winning series for fans of Suzanne Collins, Pierce Brown and Marie Lu.
Collect all the books in the series:
Scythe
Thunderhead
The Toll
Gleanings
PRE-ORDER RISING THUNDER NOW – OUT DECEMBER 2026!
Creators
Neal Shusterman is the New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty award-winning books for children, teens and adults. These include the acclaimed Arc of a Scythe series (Scythe, Thunderhead and The Toll), Dry and Roxy, as well as the Unwind dystology and Challenger Deep, which won a National Book Award. He also writes screenplays for film and television. Neal lives in Florida and has four children, all of whom are talented writers and artists themselves. Visit Neal at StoryMan.com or follow him on Twitter: @NealShusterman
Reviews
This powerful tale is guaranteed to make readers think deeply.
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
This first volume in an anticipated trilogy offers forbidden love, mass murders, cool philosophical musings, and a well-developed futuristic society—plenty to guarantee interest in the planned two followups.
BCCB (starred review)
Shusterman starts off this series in dramatic fashion as he creates an engrossing world that pulls readers in and refuses to let them go… A truly astounding, unputdownable read and a fast-paced beginning to an excellent sci-fi series. A must-have.
School Library Journal (starred review)
Elegant and elegiac, brooding but imbued with gallows humor, Shusterman’s dark tale thrusts realistic, likeable teens into a surreal situation and raises deep philosophic questions. A thoughtful and thrilling story of life, death, and meaning.
Kirkus (starred review)
Scythe owes an obvious debt to Unwind (2007) and its sequels, and this succeeds as a sort of shadow companion to Patrick Ness’ Chaos Walking trilogy: instead of exploring the ways in which men are monsters, this deals in what happens to men when there are no monsters. When our reach does not exceed our grasp, when comfort is more easily obtained than struggle, when our essential humanity doesn’t burn out but becomes slowly irrelevant, what becomes of us? Readers will find many things in these pages. Answers to such unsettling questions will not be among them.
Booklist (starred review)
