1) Outlander
Twenty-three years ago Diana Gabaldon published Outlander, a novel that was mostly historical fiction, but included some romance fantasy aspects, making it hard to place genre-wise. Now a bestselling series, the eighth novel was released this July, and Outlander was optioned for television last year.
The story begins with Claire Randall, a British Army nurse post-WWII on a trip with her husband in Scotland. Claire is mysteriously swept back to 1743 and her world is turned upside down putting her life is at risk. A headstrong woman, Claire’s attitude makes her a fantastic foil to Jamie Fraser, a young Scottish warrior with a strong sense of chivalry and honour.
What begins as a forced marriage quickly develops into a deep bond between the two. The television series premieres in Canada on August 24, 2014 on Starz network.
2) Gone Girl
On the morning of Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary, after preparing her annual treasure hunt for Nick, Amy goes missing. The novel by Gillian Flynn is set up with dual narratives of Nick in the present and entries from Amy’s diary over the past five years.
Gone Girl unravels the mystery, as opposed to solving it. With two chronically unreliable narrators, Flynn provides interesting twists, clues, and perfect planning. Directed by David Fincher, the film has a different structure from the novel and a reworked ending.
Ben Affleck stars as Nick, Rosamund Pike is Amy, and both castings feel spot on. The film is set to premiere at the New York Film Festival in September, with theatrical release on October 3, 2014.
3) Maze Runner
The novel begins with an incredibly intriguing, mysterious maze to be solved: mysterious deliveries of children, and evil monsters that come out at night. The reader is just as clueless as the characters, which makes for good suspense.
The first in a young adult (YA) series by James Dashner, Maze Runner begins with a young boy waking up in a lift with no memory. Thomas is led from the elevator by a group of boys, who welcome him to the Glade. None of them have memories from before they arrived, but every morning the stone doors surrounding the Glade open to a maze, and every night they close. They receive food deliveries, and every 30 days a new boy arrives, until the day after Thomas arrives. On Thomas’ first day in the Glade, a girl is sent up the lift bearing a message with dire consequences.
Wes Ball is directing and the still images released of the Glade match perfectly with my imagination. Theatrical release is set for September 19, 2014.
4) The Giver
An award-winning novel by Lois Lowry, The Giver was published in 1993. Jonas lives in a utopian society without pain, war, suffering, sickness, differences, or conflict. Every member has a specific role and Jonas is selected to be Receiver of Memory, who stores all the past memories of their society before Sameness. Jonas receives the memories from the Giver, and soon he understands the truth of his society’s past and realizes the power that is knowledge.
Jonas, only 16 years old, and the aging Giver must decide if they will continue the Sameness, or stand up and make a change. The movie comes out on August 15, 2014 and stars Jeff Bridges and Meryl Streep.
5) If I Stay
If I Stay by Gayle Forman follows the story of Mia who is in a coma following a catastrophic car accident. The teenager watches her friends and family visit her bedside, and she relives her memories. Ultimately, she has to decide if she wants to wake up and cope with the medical condition her life will entail, or slip away and die.
The movie is set for release on August 22, 2014 and Chloë Grace Moretz is starring as Mia. Directed by R.J. Cutler, the screenplay was written by the author Gayle Forman, who also published a sequel in 2011 titled Where She Went.
