The Best Maze Runner Order for New Readers and Die-Hard Fans

You’re standing in front of a bookstore shelf or scrolling through your e-reader, looking at James Dashner’s series, and honestly, it’s a mess. Not the writing—the timeline. If you pick up the first book and just keep going, you’re going to run into some serious spoilers for the prequels. But if you start with the prequels, the mystery of the Glade is basically ruined.

Figuring out the maze runner order isn't as simple as counting one through five.

Most people just grab The Maze Runner because it’s the one with Dylan O’Brien on the cover. That’s fair. It’s a great movie, and the book is even better. But then you finish the original trilogy and realize there’s a book about how the world ended, and another about how the Maze was built, and suddenly you’re wondering if you missed something vital. You didn't. You're just dealing with a series that expanded backwards.

Why Publication Order Usually Wins

If it’s your first time entering the Glade, don't overthink it. Read them in the order James Dashner actually wrote them. Why? Because the entire hook of the first book is that you know absolutely nothing. You’re just as confused and terrified as Thomas is when he wakes up in that rusty metal elevator.

If you read the prequels first, you know what WICKED is. You know why the sun flared. You know why these kids are being put through hell. It sucks the soul out of the mystery.

The Standard Reading List

1. The Maze Runner (2009): The one that started it all. Thomas wakes up in the Glade, surrounded by boys and a giant shifting maze.
2. The Scorch Trials (2010): Things get dusty. Very dusty. They escape the maze only to find the world is a giant desert filled with "Cranks" (basically zombies, but let's be real, they're zombies).
3. The Death Cure (2011): The "grand finale" of the main arc. This is where we find out if Thomas can actually save anyone, or if WICKED really is good.

After you finish those three, you’ve got a choice. You can stop, or you can go down the rabbit hole. If you choose the rabbit hole, you hit The Kill Order (2012) and then The Fever Code (2016).

The Kill Order is a weird one for a lot of fans. It takes place thirteen years before Thomas arrives in the Glade. It follows different characters—Mark and Trina—and shows the immediate aftermath of the solar flares. It’s grim. It’s violent. And honestly, it feels like a different genre entirely. But The Fever Code? That’s the gold mine. It shows Thomas and Teresa building the Maze. It bridges the gap between the apocalypse and the first book perfectly.

The Chronological Maze Runner Order: A Dangerous Path

Okay, so you’ve already read the books and you want to experience the story as a straight line. Or maybe you’re just a rebel who likes knowing everything before the protagonist does. Reading in chronological order changes the entire vibe of the series. It turns a mystery-thriller into a tragic epic.

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Here is how that timeline actually looks:

The Kill Order comes first. It’s the origin story of the Flare virus. You see the world fall apart in real-time. It’s chaotic. It explains how the government decided that a man-made plague was a "good" solution to overpopulation after the sun fried the planet.

The Fever Code follows right after. This is where you see a young Thomas and the other Gladers being raised by WICKED. You see the training, the brainwashing, and the construction of the Maze. Reading this second makes The Maze Runner feel much more heartbreaking because you know these kids were once friends.

The Maze Runner, The Scorch Trials, and The Death Cure follow as the meat of the story.

Finally, there is The Maze Cutter (2022) and The Godhead Complex (2023). These are part of a sequel trilogy set 73 years after the events of The Death Cure. They follow the descendants of the original survivors living on an island. It’s a bold move by Dashner, and it definitely feels different from the original books, but if you’re a completionist, they’re mandatory.

What Most People Get Wrong About the Prequels

There’s a common misconception that you need The Kill Order to understand the ending of the main trilogy. You don’t. In fact, some fans argue that The Kill Order is better read as a standalone story in the same universe rather than a "must-read" part of the Thomas saga.

The real "must-read" is The Fever Code.

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If you want to understand the maze runner order from a character perspective, The Fever Code is the missing link. It answers the questions that The Death Cure leaves hanging. How did Thomas and Teresa get so close to the creators? Why did they agree to go into the Maze? It’s arguably more important to the lore than the actual sequels.

Dealing with the Novellas and Extras

James Dashner didn’t just stop at five or seven books. There’s a lot of "extra" material floating around that can confuse your reading list.

• The Maze Runner Files: This is a short collection of classified documents, memos, and deleted emails from WICKED. It’s not a novel. Think of it as DLC for a video game. It’s cool if you’re obsessed with the lore, but skip it if you just want the story.
• Crank Palace: This is a novella that takes place during the events of The Death Cure. It follows Newt. If you know Newt’s fate, you know this book is going to be a tear-jerker. It’s short, focused, and fills in the gaps of what happened to him when he left the group.

A Quick Breakdown of Where to Fit Them

• Read The Maze Runner Files after the original trilogy.
• Read Crank Palace only after finishing The Death Cure. If you read it before, you’ll ruin one of the biggest emotional beats in the entire franchise.

The Movie vs. Book Disconnect

Let's get real for a second. The movies and the books are barely the same story after the first installment.

In the books, the Gladers have telepathic links. In the movies, they don't. In the books, the Scorch is a calculated trial with specific rules. In the movies, it’s a frantic survival dash. Because of this, the "order" for the movies is strictly 1-2-3. There are no movie versions of the prequels (yet), and at this point, it’s unlikely we’ll see them in the same style.

If you’re coming from the movies and want to start the books, start at book one. Don't skip it thinking you know the story. You don't. The ending of the first book is significantly different, and those changes ripple through the rest of the series.

The Nuance of E-E-A-T: Why Order Matters

Literary experts and seasoned YA reviewers often debate the "best" way to consume high-concept series like this. According to various threads on platforms like Goodreads and r/MazeRunner, the consensus leans heavily toward publication order for the first-time experience.

The reasoning is rooted in the "Mystery Box" narrative structure. James Dashner designed the series to be an information trickle. When you disrupt that trickle by reading the prequels first, you’re essentially looking at the blueprint of a house before you walk through the front door. You might know where the pipes are, but you’ve lost the sense of wonder (and terror) of the architecture.

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However, for a re-read? Chronological is the way to go. Seeing the transition from Mark’s world in The Kill Order to Thomas’s world in The Fever Code provides a sense of impending doom that the original publication order lacks.

Actionable Insights for Your Reading Journey

Ready to dive in? Here’s your game plan based on what kind of reader you are:

The Purist (Recommended)
Stick to the order they hit the shelves. It’s the way the author intended for the secrets to be revealed.

1. The Maze Runner
2. The Scorch Trials
3. The Death Cure
4. The Kill Order
5. The Fever Code
6. Crank Palace (Optional but recommended)
7. The Maze Cutter / The Godhead Complex

The Lore-Hunter
If you care more about world-building and history than the "shock" of a twist, go chronological.

1. The Kill Order
2. The Fever Code
3. The Maze Runner
4. The Scorch Trials
5. The Death Cure
6. Crank Palace
7. The Maze Cutter

The "I Only Care About Thomas" Path
Some people find the first prequel (The Kill Order) too detached since it doesn't feature the main cast. If that's you, try this:

1. Original Trilogy (1-3)
2. The Fever Code (Book 5)
3. Skip the rest.

Whatever path you choose, just remember: WICKED is good. Or is it? You'll have to read to find out. Start with the first book today—it's the only way to truly understand why a bunch of kids in a maze changed the world of YA fiction forever. Grab a copy of The Maze Runner, ignore the spoilers on TikTok, and get reading.