The Knife Of Never Letting Go - Patrick Ness

This book ends on a cliff-hanger. I think it’s important to say that first, because I hate books that are cliff-hangers. I want complete stories. Finished. Not a trilogy, not a second book that’s just filler. I’m struggling to think of a single story trilogy of books that is better than a single book would have been. So it was intensely disappointing to race through a fantastic book, only to find that the story was not finished and I need to get book two.

I should have been more wary of those dreaded words on the cover: book one.

But, up until the end, the book is great. Todd Hewitt is the last boy in Prentisstown. Everybody can hear each others thoughts, including animals. It’s called the Noise. In many ways it’s the well worn coming of age story, of a boy becoming a man, but it’s very well done: fast, emotional and with a great core SF idea. I’m not going to talk more about the plot, because much of the enjoyment of the novel is derived from the unknown.

I couldn’t put the book down.

However, there’s another negative apart from the ending. I felt manipulated. Every chapter had a cliff-hanger ending, I was squeezed through an emotional wringer in obvious ways and the mystery was withheld for too long. For a while I could deal with it, but about half way through the novel I was exhausted and then there was no relief.

So, mixed feelings: I loved reading it, couldn’t put it down, thought it was clever and interesting and emotional but ultimately I was left unsatisfied.