Book Review: The Cage by Megan Shepherd

The Cage (The Cage #1) by Megan Shepherd
Genre: Young Adult (Science Fiction/Romance)
Date Published: May 26, 2015
Publisher: Balzer+Bray/HarperCollins

The Maze Runner meets Scott Westerfeld in this gripping new series about teens held captive in a human zoo by an otherworldly race. From Megan Shepherd, the acclaimed author of The Madman's Daughter trilogy.

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

Four other teenagers have also been taken: a beautiful model, a tattooed smuggler, a secretive genius, and an army brat who seems to know too much about Cora's past. None of them have a clue as to what happened, and all of them have secrets. As the unlikely group struggles for leadership, they slowly start to trust each other. But when their mysterious jailer—a handsome young guard called Cassian—appears, they realize that their captivity is more terrifying than they could ever imagine: Their captors aren't from Earth. And they have taken the five teenagers for an otherworldly zoo—where the exhibits are humans.

As a forbidden attraction develops between Cora and Cassian, she realizes that her best chance of escape might be in the arms of her own jailer—though that would mean leaving the others behind. Can Cora manage to save herself and her companions? And if so . . . what world lies beyond the walls of their cage?

The Cage by Megan Shepherd is the first book in The Cage series. After reading The Madman's Daughter Trilogy by this author, I HAD to read The Cage once I saw that she wrote it too. This wasn't your usual alien story. Once these people get put in their "habitat", life almost becomes like some sort of competition, and you see their true natures come out. For some, it may not be their true nature, but they change anyway. You get perspectives from many of the characters so you can see first hand how they progressively adapt to captivity without really even knowing it. It made it more believable. Adapting was the easier way of surviving this situation. Of course, I loved Cora for not settling for easy. Her character had some strength to her. I thought this might be a love triangle, but now that I know a little more about how Cora feels, I'm not sure that it will be, and while I like Lucky, I'm very intrigued by Cassian. I'd love to see things from his perspective at some point.

Check out book two!

Check out my reviews on Megan Shepherd's The Madman's Daughter Series!

Megan Shepherd was "born" into the book world, growing up in her parents' independent bookstore in Western North Carolina. She is the author of THE MADMAN'S DAUGHTER trilogy (Balzer+Bray/2013), and THE CAGE trilogy (Balzer+Bray/2015). When Megan is not writing, she can usually be found horseback riding, day dreaming at coffee shops, or hiking in the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains. She is represented by Josh Adams at Adams Literary.

To learn more about Megan Shepherd and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.