Burn

Product Information

Burn combines the best of Ness’ works - a world much like our own but with one fantastical aspect, characters you’ll love, and a storyline that will have you completely engrossed. I read Burn in a single sitting in a couple of hours, it’s that good. Ness has such a skill for seamlessly blending reality with more fantastical elements and yet maintaining the focus on real-world ambivalence with his running social commentary. Despite the plot being distinctly other-worldly this also opened up historical international conflicts as well as the sexism, racism, and homophobia rampant in this 1950's American setting. How Ness showcased and overcame this xenophobia was extraordinary and my favourite part of the book.

Burn by Patrick Ness – The Last Book On The Left Book Review: Burn by Patrick Ness – The Last Book On The Left

I’ve written nine books: 2 novels for adults ( The Crash of Hennington and The Crane Wife), 1 short story collection for adults ( Topics About Which I Know Nothing) and 10 novels for young adults ( The Knife of Never Letting Go, The Ask and the Answer, Monsters of Men, A Monster Calls, More Than This, The Rest of Us Just Live Here, Release, And the Ocean Was Our Sky, Burn and Different for Boys). Romance and relationships provide an emotional counterpoint to the action. Malcolm falls for a Guatemalan boy called Nelson, on the run from his bigoted parents. Sarah’s friendship with the blue dragon, Kasimir, is akin to that of the boy and the monster in Ness’s Carnegie-winning A Monster Calls, allowing the author to explore power in all its manifestations. The most interesting character is an FBI agent known as Woolf: her metamorphosis is a startling moment that hurls the book towards its climax.

My Thoughts and Feelings

You would think that the story would conclude when Malcolm reaches his target, but it doesn’t. This is only partway through and another storyline begins. There were certainly plenty of twists and I wasn’t expecting the book to change the direction the way it did. I have to admit that part of why I had such mixed feelings towards Burn was that it was one of my most anticipated reads of 2020. Ness has such a unique take on storytelling and injects a lot of creativity into his books. He did show some of his brilliance with his insightfulness into the human condition but I didn’t think that was enough to carry the rest of the book into four, let alone five stars from me.

Burn by Patrick Ness review – a fire-breathing adventure

The dragon, Kazimir, has more to him than meets the eye, though. Sarah can’t help but be curious about him, an animal who supposedly doesn’t have a soul, but who is seemingly intent on keeping her safe. Because the dragon knows something she doesn’t. He has arrived at the farm with a prophecy on his mind. A prophecy that involves a deadly assassin, a cult of dragon worshippers, two FBI agents in hot pursuit—and somehow, Sarah Dewhurst herself. Where Expectations Met Reality

I think this book could have worked with a higher word count. More time to establish the world-building, more space for the characters to develop, more room for the story to breathe and settle. Because this was one wild ride and I believe it might have given me a concussion. Sarah is a sweet young girl who has been brought up by her father alone on their farm since their mother died. To keep the farm and pay off the debts her father needs a bumper crop and harvest and to be able to afford this he hires a dragon. Combined with that is the fact that gay love, not straight love, is what causes the whole “change in the course of history” in this book. I know, it seems like a small thing, but after so many books where it’s straight love that saves the day, this feels like a breath of fresh air. The pacing of the story is on top of that really nice too. There is constantly something happening and the characters are constantly on the move. There is not one dull moment, the story never stands still, it also doesn't go in circles. And all the pieces of the puzzle also come really nicely together in the finale. If you're the kind of reader who enjoys a nice plot with loads of action this is totally the book for you.