More Than This

Patrick Ness

Sep 2013 · Candlewick Press

About this ebook

From two-time Carnegie Medal winner Patrick Ness comes an enthralling and provocative new novel chronicling the life — or perhaps afterlife — of a teen trapped in a crumbling, abandoned world.

A boy named Seth drowns, desperate and alone in his final moments, losing his life as the pounding sea claims him. But then he wakes. He is naked, thirsty, starving. But alive. How is that possible? He remembers dying, his bones breaking, his skull dashed upon the rocks. So how is he here? And where is this place? It looks like the suburban English town where he lived as a child, before an unthinkable tragedy happened and his family moved to America. But the neighborhood around his old house is overgrown, covered in dust, and completely abandoned. What’s going on? And why is it that whenever he closes his eyes, he falls prey to vivid, agonizing memories that seem more real than the world around him? Seth begins a search for answers, hoping that he might not be alone, that this might not be the hell he fears it to be, that there might be more than just this. . . .

Ratings and reviews

I loved The Knife of Never Letting Go, and could not wait to read more by this author. This story did not live up to my expectations. It started out very creative and promising but deteriorated into a repetitive loop reminiscent of Terminator 2, but not nearly as good, About 2/3rds through, it had me rolling my eyes and wishing that it would be over so I could start reading something better. On top of that, it had an abrupt and unresolved ending. It was disappointing. However, I highly recommend “The Knife of Never Letting Go”, which is fantastic!

This would be a good read for a teenager who is struggling with life's complexities and layers. As an adult it was not mind blowing and a little hard to not speed through to find out the ending which ended up being disappointing. Also kind of Matrix-y. But again, I can see a teenager really liking this book.

This is one of those that constantly builds on itself, from a simple "waking up in a foreign land" story to transform to a tale that constantly surprises with revelations and twists abound. The only small complaint I have is I wish I got to know more about certain predictions in the story, but it overall is very cohesive, tightly plotted, and surprisingly emotional.

About the author

Patrick Ness is the author of the critically acclaimed and best-selling Chaos Walking trilogy, as well as the Carnegie Medal–winning A Monster Calls, inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd. Among the numerous awards he has received are the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize, the Booktrust Teenage Prize, and the Costa Children’s Book Award. Born in Virginia, he lives in London.