Author: Patrick Ness
Series: Chaos Walking #2
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Publication Date: September 8, 2009
Genre: Science Fiction; Futuristic; Dystopia; Fiction; Young Adult
Pages: 528
Format: Hardback
Reaching the end of their tense and desperate
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, aimed at overthrowing the tyrannical government. Todd, meanwhile, faces
impossible choices when forced to join the mayor’s oppressive new regime. In
alternating narratives — Todd’s gritty and volatile; Viola’s calmer but equally
stubborn — 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?
Tom and Viola have been separated. On two different sides of the Mayor’s regime, they have no way of communicating with another or even knowing if the other is alive. As the Mayor patiently attempts to convince Tom to join him in building his empire, Viola is struggling to resist the powerful persuasion of The Answer, a rebel group that hopes to defeat Mayor Prentiss and his oppressive influence. While Tom and Viola both fight for the same ideals as the Answer, they cannot help but question the future that the Answer plans for Haven and its citizens. With the appearance of new enemies and a turbulent plot line, The Ask and the Answer will question everything that Viola and Tom have been fighting for. In a world where nothing is secret and morality and principles are a joke, Viola and Tom must single-handedly fight to save their world and destroy anyone that threatens its future.
Ness does many thing very well, but one thing that he definitely needs to work on are his conclusions. After I finish a book, I would like to move on with my life without breaking down and crying every five seconds because I have to wait a whole day to get its sequel, thank you. All I need is a little closure in life. Is that too much to ask? These endings are worse than the Hunger Games series. And that’s saying something.
I love the dynamic connection between Tom and Viola. I appreciate how honest their friendship is, and how much they care for one another. They provide a profound contrast against the horrible world that Ness has built around them. Despite all odds, their characters are strong and defiant.
This installment paves a very welcoming road to the third and final book of the Chaos Walking series. With a staggering number of wars to win and problems to solve that even the most capable of protagonists probably couldn’t even take on, I am excited to see how Ness ends his series. I am also hoping that this series actually does end, and I am not left with some mind-imploding cliff hanger. Fingers crossed!
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