The Knife of Never Letting Go

** spoiler alert ** Very good book, I would have given it 5 stars, but Manchee died. 4 stars

Before I started reading this book I was sure I was going to love it because it had been so effusively recommended to me, but once I started reading I wasn't so sure. Here's the deal: Todd leaves in New World in a colony in another planet where people were infected by a germ that makes every man in the Prentisstown to hear each others thoughts and who also killed every woman. So, Todd was born in New World and from the start we are thrown into his world. It took me a while to really sympathize with Todd. From the start we can see Prentisstown is not what it looks like and as we began to doubt on the town we began to doubt on Todd. It probably took me longer than most to truly see Todd for who he was. He was not just a guy thrown into certain situations, but he really was naive of everything that was happening around him. And as the plot developed we could see more and more of the real Todd and his struggles and we can't help, but like him more and more. I really look forward to read the other books in this series.

stupid freaking cliff hanger.

My First Patrick Ness Book, Yes I properly should admit that I’m late getting to this series but after a friend raving about Ness and especially this series I knew I wanted to give it a go and I was honestly not disappointed with this one at all, In fact I flew through the book with it being all I could think about when I had put it down and just wanting to carry on, which to me is a sign of a good book!

This one tells the story of Todd, the last boy in Prentisstown, who will become a man on his 13th birthday. Prentisstown, though, is not your average town - everyone in the town is male and they can hear one another's thoughts (called "noise"). In a town like this, you'd think keeping a secret would be impossible. But we soon find out that noise can lie and that Prentisstown has some very dark secrets. What really happened to the women of Prentisstown? What lies on the other side of the swamp? And why is it so important that Todd, just one boy, reaches his birthday and becomes a man?

Whilst being built on some dark themes; especially for YA it has some fantastic characters that you just end up rooting for and wanting to keep pushing through. This does cover a LOT of underlying themes of dehumanization, colonization, slavery, racism, and sexism. And - as if that wasn't enough - it's a ridiculously addictive pageturner that demands you pick up the sequel immediately after (I'm warning you).

So for me it's time for Book 2!!!

i absolutely loved this book! However it was tough to get into; I wasn’t hooked right away. I enjoyed the suspense and I felt like I was going through this journey with Todd since I was just as clueless

What the hell was that ending 🙄🙄

stupid freaking cliff hanger.

The ending was really unexpected. I need the second book now !

A perfect blend of action and science-fiction with an intense plot that doesn't let you even think of putting the book down.

UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

WOW this book was really good. Very fast-paced and lots of action. I can't wait to finish the series! Just from reading the synopsis, I was enthralled by the interesting idea that I've never seen explored before. The style of writing was great and added to the story really well. Overall, I'm very glad that I chose to read this book!

I... I.. I'll get back to you once my thoughts are straight.

This feels like Maze Runner (which I read years ago, but I’m not sure which one was published first). Also it’s a bit like Lost, the TV show? I read without much context, I only knew all women had died, and men could hear each other’s thoughts. So... I was in for a lot of surprises. I feel like I will only truly like this book once I finish the series, because I need answers. If it ends like Lost, full of gaps and missing information, I will come back and change my review ti 1 star (kidding, I won’t... probably)

I have a feeling I would have liked this book a little more if we were living in different times. I just really wasn't that interested in a world with violent men. The book was fine. I struggled with the writing style a bit and didn't really like Todd much. I tend to have problems with stories where the main character isn't aware of something, so then the audience isn't aware of something, but it keeps being brought up by other characters. I find this annoying. Also, violence against animals always makes me upset!

I bought this book the other day when I visited the bookstore with my friends, I've never heard of this book before yesterday and I bought it completely blind not knowing anything other than the blurb in the back of the book. I thought it seemed interesting, and one of my friends thought so too. I read it as soon as I woke up and didn't stop reading because every page was literally a page turner, like it was just so intense and gripping and I couldn't stop, I started at around 10AM-ish and ended at around 2PM, and by the end of the book, I felt like I just went through that whole month with Todd and Viola. The book made me feel as if I were in their shoes, it felt like I was with them and therefore I was just devastated when they were, I was angry when they were, I was ecstatic when they were, etc. Only a few books have made me feel like that. I was on the verge of crying in some parts and sometimes I had to pause, not because I was tired, but because I had to compose myself from what just happened. (view spoiler)[ Like when Manchee died, I had to pause for a good 20 seconds and just stare out the window (hide spoiler)] or when (view spoiler)[ Viola got shot, I did the same thing (hide spoiler)] it was just so gripping, like I have no other words to describe it. It was such an incredible read I can't even fathom it into proper words. The main characters were well rounded and so easy to emphatize and sympathize with, even if they come off as annoying and stubborn sometimes, I understand why they're the way they are and I can't help but just want to hug these characters and give them a cup of hot chocolate. One problem I had with this was how two dimensional the main villain was aka Aaron, he was just mean and evil, it came off as unrealistic but nonetheless, the good characters were amazing. I loved them. The ending was a cliffhanger, which was frustrating and made me want to read more, which is the whole point, I'm sure, but whatever, it was such a punch to the gut and god, I hated that I loved how much that ending stomped on my organ systems. Okay, you won Sir Patrick Ness, I'm going to read the whole trilogy.

A pretty decent read. However personally I’m not gonna be rushing to read the rest of the series

This book felt like a kind of waste, a big disappointment. Once I got used to the "twixt"s and the misspellings of words, I didn't mind the book so much...but about half way in I began realize that I didn't really care so much about the characters or the crazy world the characters were fleeing from. The ending is a huge letdown and wholly unsatisfying and I hate that this is going to be a series of books because I feel like I wasted 400 pages of a book that was just okay only to have it be continued. Ugh.

3.5 this book was kinda full of surprises for me. wasn’t expecting to like it as much as i did. wasn’t expecting this to be a heavy read. this is a great book honestly. the only thing missing was good characterization. couldn’t get myself to feel connected to any of the characters. my favorite character was a dog— so that says a lot. didn’t really like the protagonist, and there were a lot of times where i got very frustrated because of him. however the writing style didn’t bother me as much as everyone else did, i know it was necessary for the main character’s pov. overall, i liked this book but i didn’t love it. but i will definitely go and read the next book.

Loved it

So I read books without as much as reading the back blurb. And this one… it’s not for me. I get that the grammar and misspellings are part of the general aesthetic, but it never stopped bothering me. Immensely. I wasn’t even sure what type of audience this is aimed at. Children? Teenagers? Young adults? I found that Todd’s characterisation lacked some sort credibility regarding his age. I want to know how the story continues, but not enough to actually read the sequels. Loved Manchee, though; speaking of characterisation!

A lot of my friends love this book, and Patrick Ness as well, but for me it was sadly not as impactful. For some reason, while I can certainly agree that Ness is a great writer, his writing leaves me personally feeling apathetic about the characters, and simply not caring that much about them. I read this a while ago, and the only part I remember feeling really impacted by was Manchee's death - he was literally my favourite character. Anyways, will not be continuing this series unfortunately :(. Todd and the girl (does she have a name?? If she does I forgot it.) simply don't interest me enough, and the genre of the plot and the way its executed are just not up my alley.

This book is, unexpectedly, GOOD. I didn't like it at first but by the third chapter, I was hooked. For some reason, the pacing of the book (the action, the challenges that Todd & Viola goes through) reminds me of the Hunger Games somewhat. The ending is a bit of a cliffhanger but I guess that's just the author's way of leading you to the second book of the trilogy which I DO intend to pick up sometime soon.

Very good book with great characters, but it took me a while to get into it. In the beginning, I thought the writing style was very annoying (it's not proper English, written like a country accent, and a lot of run on sentences) but once I got used to it the story was great.

An interesting concept especially with the world building. It was intense and dark at some points, but also had moments where it was deep and emotional. The 'alien' race that coinhabited the planet with them was really cool, with all the various cultural elements that the author added in. Having it switch perspectives to show both sides (the humans and the 'alien' race) so we could learn more about the world they inhabited from various perspectives.