In this new trilogy set in the world of ‘Chaos Walking’, the children of New World are being haunted by reoccurring nightmares and a mysterious asteroid (that might be a spaceship) is on track to collide with the planet.
To make matters worse, brother’s Ben and Max (the biological and adopted children of Todd and Viola from the previous trilogy) are being stalked by a giant, flaming, skinless god, and nobody can explain why.
Once again, the central conceit of Noise, a kind of involuntary telepathy, is the most fascinating aspect of Ness’s worldbuilding. The author plays with gender in this story and uproots the typical binary of Noise only affecting men, and also introduces the consequences of living with the Noise ‘cure’ for over two decades, and the impact this has on older generations. Also, I loved the mentions of The Land (the Indigenous inhabitants) and exploring the environment of New World.
However, after just finishing the first trilogy, this book didn’t quite capture the magic of the originals. What I loved most about ‘Chaos Walking’ was how, despite being a YA book, it encompassed incredibly mature and challenging themes. Whereas Piper’s narrative feels much younger and more simplistic in tone, maybe written for a younger readership (this isn’t a bad thing, just different). Also, several plot points return from the original trilogy, such as a Noise cure and a zealous religious leader, but they are nowhere near as dark or compelling.
I’m still excited for the rest of the trilogy, but this book didn’t wow me as much as I’d hoped.
Reviewed by Rachel Denham-White
Age Guide 12+
Read our review of ‘Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody’ here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Patrick Ness (he/him) is the New York Times best-selling author of A Monster Calls (inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd), which won both the Carnegie Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal, was a Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist, and was made into a major motion picture for which he wrote the screenplay. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed and best-selling ‘Chaos Walking’ trilogy, More Than This, Release, Different for Boys, The Rest of Us Just Live Here, Burn, and his latest, ‘Chronicles of a Lizard Nobody.’ His many accolades include two Carnegie Medals, an Olivier Award, the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize, the Book Trust Teenage Prize, and the Costa Children’s Book Award. Patrick Ness lives in London.
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