The Knife of Never Letting Go

Imagine a world where everyone can hear your thoughts. There is no privacy, no secrets, and no way of hiding what you're thinking.

It wasn't always this way for the people of Prentisstown. At one time it was only the men whose thoughts invaded the air. Women's thoughts were silent but the women and girls died years ago, decimated by a deadly virus leaving the men of Prentisstown alone with the Noise of their thoughts.

Or so it seemed to Todd Hewitt, the last boy in Prentisstown. As the only boy left, Todd is usually alone with no one to hang out with but his dog Manchee (whose thoughts he can also hear). Then one day Todd and Manchee are walking in the swamp and stumble upon the impossible -- a pocket of silence. Stunned Todd searches for the source since he knows there is only one creature that doesn't make Noise -- a girl.

When Todd discovers Viola Eade hiding in the swamp, he knows that the men of Prentisstown have lied to him. There are still women and girls alive in the world. But he soon discovers that this is the least of their lies. They have been hiding a secret so awful it sends Todd and Viola fleeing through the countryside desperate to reach the next settlement before the army of Prentisstown tracks them down. Because Mayor Prentiss and his men will do anything to silence the boy. But how do you run from someone who can hear your every thought?

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness is the best teen book I've read since the Hunger Games trilogy. It is that good. It takes a little bit to figure out what is going on with the Noise, but then the book races along and is heart-stopping as Todd and Viola race from danger (and into danger and out of danger and into danger ...).

I liked how the author slowly unravels the puzzle of the history of Prentisstown and Todd's family. I also liked the characters of Todd and Viola, especially Todd who really struggles with his life and how things have turned out.

Unfortunately, The Knife of Never Letting Go ends in a cliff hanger, but the good news is that the other two books of the trilogy, The Ask and the Answer, and Monsters of Men are already out so you can jump right into the next one.