The Ask and the Answer (with bonus short story): Chaos Walking: Book Two
The riveting Chaos Walking trilogy by two-time Carnegie Medalist Patrick Ness, reissued with compelling new covers--and a bonus short story in each book. "Grim and beautifully written. . . . Superb. . . . This is among the best YA science fiction novels of the year." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) Reaching the end of their flight in The Knife of Never Letting Go, Todd and Viola did not find healing and hope in Haven. They found instead their worst enemy, Mayor Prentiss, waiting to welcome them to New Prentisstown. There they are forced into separate lives: Todd to prison, and Viola to a house of healing where her wounds are treated. Soon Viola is swept into the ruthless activities of the Answer, while Todd faces impossible choices when forced to join the mayor's oppressive new regime. In alternating narratives the two struggle to reconcile their own dubious actions with their deepest beliefs. Torn by confusion and compromise, suspicion and betrayal, can their trust in each other possibly survive?
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Community Reviews
It was fun to pick up Todd's story from where The Knife of Never Letting go left off, although this second book didn’t quite have the same magic as the first, for me. The first half was a little slow-moving, but the second half really redeemed itself with plenty of action, excitment and unexpected plot developments. Patrick Ness doesn’t disappoint and continues with all the fun elements of his writing style that make the first book fun and unique. For example, I really love how the idea of “The Noise” is portrayed and typefaced. In this second installment, I salute the steadfastness of Todd and Viola’s relationship despite all their hardships and personal growth. Also, Mayor Prentiss is an awesome character. He was pretty terrifying in book one, but Ness takes him to a whole new level of badass in The Ask and The Answer. Some reviewers have commented that they find the deliberate bad spelling annoying and distracting, but I do not agree - it just helps to set the scene and amplifies Todd’s character. I am looking forward to reading the finale of this trilogy at some point. I was a little disappointed in the recent movie, which I watched while reading this book. It deviates heavily from the original story (based on book one), but it was still enjoyable and portrayed "Noise" particularly well.
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