"An intriguing, page turner that picks up right where the first book left off and never lets the reader go." 5 Stars
Pros: The deception of some of the characters is truly gut wrenching, you want to believe that they're good then Ness just takes that theory and turns it on its head, it really keeps the suspense up/All the interwoven intricacies of each characters journey and how everything fits together perfectly
Cons: Mayor Prentiss, though undeniably evil, began to be a bit stereotypical villain at the end, monologuing, claiming that he and Todd would be great together, very Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker, "rule the galaxy together as Father and Son" feel, felt unoriginal and forced by the end of it.
Full Review:
Starting off right where The Knife of Never Letting Go leaves off, Todd wakes to find himself in New Prentisstown with David Prentiss as the new President. The man is all lies and smiles and Todd doesn't know what to do or if he can trust him but all his thoughts are on Viola. He agrees to do as Prentiss wants and goes to work rounding up Spackle that the people of Haven were keeping as servants.
Viola is alive and after healing from her wounds begins to get a sense of what's going on around her. She stays with Mistress Coyle and the other Healers and Apprentices in the House of Healing. President Prentiss has decreed that all women and men shall be separated for the time being until the cure for the Noise that the town managed to create works its way out of the men's systems. Viola spends her days working as an Apprentice to Mistress Coyle and knows she needs to find Todd and also find a way to contact the ships that are on course to the planet to warn them of the terrible situation they'll be landing in.
When Viola and another Apprentice, Madeline attempt to reach what Maddy thinks may be an old communications tower, they run into one of Prentiss' Sentries, who without provocation shoots Maddy dead. The day after Prentiss asks to see Viola and explains to her how terribly sorry he is and that the man who shot Maddy will be summarily executed as recompense. It's just as Viola is turning to embrace President Prentiss as he promises that she'll see Todd tomorrow night at dinner that Todd arrives at the Cathedral, coming to warn Prentiss that the Spackle have attacked because the other men were branding them like sheep in a herd.
The fact that Todd is hurt from having been attacked by the Spackle, though he was trying to help them as best he could, doesn't matter. All that matters is that he and Viola are there, together, after so long and they're both alive. He's obviously confused as to why Viola could possibly be hugging President Prentiss but it doesn't matter, not right now. They are reunited and President Prentiss takes Todd away and Viola goes back to the House of Healing to attend Maddy's Funeral.
She speaks with Mistress Coyle that night, learning that the woman first lived near the Ocean when her ship landed on New World. She had hopes and dreams and for awhile she held a position of power within the town of Haven. She keeps insisting that she sees so much of herself in Viola and that Viola could be a leader, as long as she remains true and stays on the right side. As Viola wakes the next day to find that Mistress Coyle and the other Healers have blown up a storeroom and vanished, she realizes that she's alone now and she has to figure out what side she's on.
The rest of the novel is a whirlwind of suspense, intrigue, constant betrayals and back stabbings that the reader is left floored as each chapter ends and a new one begins. Todd and Viola are again separated and Todd begins to work for Prentiss, doing horrible things in the name of "progress" and "order" and Viola becomes involved in the terrorist group led by Mistress Coyle called "The Answer." Todd, in his part, becomes intermixed in the counter group that Prentiss forms called "The Ask" and the reader is never quite sure whose side someone is on or who's going to betray the other.
It was a great, quick, fun, thrilling read and the ending left it at just the right amount of suspense to keep the reader wondering how in the world the third book will start and how, if possible, anyone will survive the coming storm.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who's read The Knife of Never Letting Go, who is a fan of Dystopian Sci-Fi and really, it's a great series, I think everyone should read it.
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