I think this is the last one? I hope this is the last one. This book took all the gains that were made in book 2 and retreated waaaaaay back behind the starting line. It’s the super stylized writing that gets me, the page after page of stunted, one-line paragraphs repeatedly truncated to show rapid action. I mean, sure, it helps the book move quickly, but it feels like reading a seizure. Again, this book picks up right where the previous one left off. A scout ship from the incoming settlers has landed, bringing with it heightened weaponry that could […]

Normally book 2 is where a series starts to lose its way, but not only is The Ask and the Answer as good as The Knife of Never Letting Go (oh god please better titles), it is so so much better. If the first book looks at altered history in isolated communities, this one is almost a psychological study in what humanity is capable of in the name of keeping your head down. This book, moreso than the first one, is what has me recommend the series only for more mature YA readers. There are some legitimately dark scenes of torture and […]

The review title is mostly in jest – if you’ve read my previous reviews, you know I love me some YA . In this case I’ve done myself a disservice because I’m reviewing it late and I’m most of the way through the second novel and they’re starting to blur together. I’m going to try to stick to The Knife of Never Letting Go (ugh, awful title). We start in a small village in a New World. Our narrator, Todd, is nearly 13 and his village of 146 people is entirely made up of men, and everyone can hear everyone else’s […]