I honestly have no idea how to summarise this book.
Every time I thought that I had a grasp on what was going on and the direction the book was going in, something super unexpected would ve introduced and I'd be back to square one!

It's 1956, and Sarah's dad hires a dragon to work on their farm (yes you read that correctly, a dragon). Upon the dragon's arrival, he brings a whole lotta drama with him. I'm talking prophecies, assassins, cults, conspiracy theories, and my personal favourite, parallel universes.

Now, I can understand why some may wonder how one book can cover such a vast number of topics, but I absolutely loved how Ness handled it all. Everything was so wonderfully odd, and there were multiple times when I had to reread sentences to make sure that I had read them correctly. On top of these big topics, Ness managed to tackle some huge social issues, e.g. racism, homophobia, and sexuality, in a really poignant manner.
For once I really liked all of the characters, which is something that doesn't happen often for me. They were all well fleshed out with their own stories, and no one felt like they had been written solely for the purpose of holding up another character. I particularly enjoyed the level of representation that this book offers - both racial and sexual.
My only gripe was the ending. It all finished very neatly, but it felt that things were rushed in order for it to end this way. I would've rather had a longer book and not so convenient ending!

If you're a fan of dragons or parallel universes then I'd highly recommend picking this one up. For those who aren't too sure, I encourage you to give it a try as it definitely took me by surprise!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

There is a lot going on in this book with multiple POVs to give more depth, but really ended up confusing me a little, especially when I had too long a break from the book. The characters are easily relatable and interesting. Patrick has been very inclusive (including all the 'isms' that accompany it) and we see a truer reflection of society (albeit with dragons in 1950s America) which makes it all the more welcoming.
I thought I knew what to expect, but I was wrong (the dragons drew me in and kept me there) and I'm still a little unsure how to go about explaining what the book is about exactly, so I'll let you discover it for yourselves. Like life, like society, there are flat moments, and there are exciting moments, but above all, there are dragons (le sigh).

Regretfully, I was unable to read and review this ARC as it wasn't available for Kindle. A shame, as I'm a huge Patrick Ness fan. I will happily review if a Kindle version is made available.

Pure brilliance, a gripping fantasy thriller from beginning to end. The fate of the world hinges on one ordinary girl... who doesn't yet know it, but her life is about to be thrown into chaos. An assassin winds his way towards her, intent on fulfilling the wishes of the leader of a religious cult. In a world where Dragons are seen as working slaves for humans, one comes to work on her father's farm... but what are his true intentions? Pieces of an intricate jigsaw puzzle grow into an ever changing picture of what comes to pass. I LOVED this book. If you have read any of Patrick Ness's books before, you will know to expect greatness. If you love fantasty YA, you will love this. If you love thrillers, you will love this. If you love incredible books, you have to read it.

Unfortunately I am no longer interested in reading and reviewing this book. Patrick Ness is an author I have certainly loved the work of but I don't think at the point in time this particular work is for me.

Ness in great form again, this in the same league and tone as “The Rest of Us Just Live Here”. If this doen’t make Carnegie shortlist next year I might have to eat my hat.

Dragons are for sale, but only to those poverty-stricken enough to have no other option than to accept their cheap rates for services and deal with their abhorred race. Sarah and her father own a farm and a rare blue dragon may be their only hope for keeping it. Soon, however, it seems this dragon has been sent to them to perform more than just the clearing of a few fields and may be the only hope for humanity’s salvation, in general.

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.

The more fantastical elements were certainly very unique in their conception but my more high-fantasy-loving-self struggled to fully invest in all that occurred, despite appreciating how it was constructed. This was certainly a strong and inventive novel, if not wholly the one for me.

Patrick Ness’ writing is always beautiful, I especially love how simple it is. I thought the concept of the book was extremely well executed and managed to be convincing without being confusing. The only part I wished there was more of were the characters. I felt like I didn’t know them as well as I could have, and some of their decisions would have had more of an impact if we’d spent longer with them before they got drawn into the larger plot.
Overall, excellently written and highly original!

Burn by Patrick Ness is a historical fantasy set in 1950's America. The country is still reeling from the aftermath of ww2 however there is one thing different about this world: dragons. This book is split perspective. We start by following a young girl who's dad has just hired a dragon to work on the farm. We also follow a young boy on mission for the Believers who worship the dragons. Although the dragons mainly keep to themselves.

This is my second Patrick Ness book and I have to say there is something about his writing that I find so captivating. This book leads you on a journey and then takes you to unexpected places. Beware it is not always comfortable, due to the time setting our characters face racist and homophobic comments. However it does feel that dragons could really exist is rural America. As if there nonexistent state in the real world is in fact unusual.

I can't lie, I had been hoping for something else. As someone who loves Patrick Ness, I'd been hoping to fall in love with this book, and I didn't. This just wasn't it for me. Unfortunately. I felt like too much was happening all at once, there were too many perspectives for me, which made me unable to connect to the main characters.

Dragons, prophecies, war... this is something I would usually not pick up, but because it's written by Patrick Ness, it went straight on my "most anticipated" list. And oh my god, what a good book this was. I loved it!

When you think it's going in a direction that you expect, it veers off somewhere else entirely and keeps you hooked. SO GOOD.

The entire concept and plot of this book is undoubtably intriguing, from the very first page you are immersed in Ness' depiction of the 1950s, full of racism, homophobia, sexism and dragons. It's a surreal reimagining of our dark past and remind us very quickly that true monsters often adopt familiar faces.

The books opens draped in mystery and never fully emerges from its shroud of secrets, holding onto them until the very last few pages. Ness allows us to peek into his fascinating, richly built world through several voices. Each of these felt very distinctive and three-dimensional, though I wish I could've connected with some of them a little bit more.

At the heart of the book is a really interesting discussion of fate and being able to escape what seems inevitable. It cuts to the foundations of faith, legend and destiny, challenging each aspect in minute detail. I always love how thought-provoking Ness' work is and always in such different ways. He is truly a unique voice within the genre and never fails to provide original, challenging and sometimes bordering on bizarre works that utterly capture my imagination.

Trust me when I say you will not know where this book is going next. Initially I thought I had it sussed, only to be completely bamboozled by Ness' sheer imagination and creativity. Even before this, there were some really interesting narrative shifts and twists that I really enjoyed.

Some say the world will end in fire... dragons, destruction and desire.

Ness writes so beautifully. From the start of every novel, it is hard not to be quickly absorbed into the world he constructs in your mind. From other planets to this alternative 1957 in which dragons are an accepted part of the cosmos. There's a feel of 'The Rest of Us Just Live Here' in the premise of a familiar world with fantastical elements, and even 'Chaos Walking' with a new world that immediately feels as though it could be undisputed.

We start with a girl and her father, awaiting an 'employee', the dragon who will, for gold, assist with work on their farm, prevent it being taken from them for a few more months. Sarah's widowed father warns her against conversing with the dragon, he is without a soul, untrusting and untrustable. He did not want to resort to this, but needs must.

Kazamir though, seems to be drawn towards Sarah, even helping her when the local bigoted, unsavoury Deputy Sheriff targets her. And despite her father's warnings, Sarah is soon caught up with Kazamir, the assassin heading towards their small town, and a prophecy that signifies possible disaster.

Epic in scale, the story begins almost quietly, but takes in several characters and related arcs that suddenly build to a monumental confrontation. The story gripped me from the start, the time period and the resultant prejudices fitted nicely with the themes of dragons as subordinates.

Ness takes his characters without apology into danger, through twists and into uncertain places, and us with them. Totally engrossing, Kazamir and Sarah, among others, are creations you quickly become sympathetic towards. The assassin too takes a large role in proceedings and earns his place in your interest.

Just loved loved loved this dragon saga - the everyday, the period, the fantasy combined. Visual and exciting, human and world-encompassing, readers will love becoming immersed in Sarah and Kazamir's worlds.

Ness skillfully makes us feel that dragons really might exist, that the world outside the pages of this story might really contain such things he proclaims.

Highly recommended, to teens and adults alike. Ness crosses over easily between the genres, ages and interests.

With thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance reading copy.

I honestly had no idea what to expect going into this book. All I knew was there were dragons, and boy were there. It's safe to say that I loved this bizarro book; how could I not enjoy a book about a dragon cult set in my favourite area of the world, the Pacific Northwest?

It's best to go into this book knowing very little, to feel the full affect of this book's twists and reveals. But we follow Sarah who's dad is hiring a dragon to burn away the dead plants in their farm's fields. That's where the story starts but, my goodness, do things take TURNS

The pace and direction of this story take a massive turn around the middle, as the steaks are raised and...things get weirder. If you've read Chosen Ones it's a similar gear change to that book's twist, and I enjoyed them both massively

I really liked the characters but I didn't feel massively attached to any of them, but I think that's because the perspectives change quite often throughout. I did enjoy Sarah's perspective, and appreciated seeing the prejudice she had to deal with as a mixed race girl in 1950s America. Same with Jason, her Japanese boyfriend. We also have two sweet queer boys who need their own book imo

I'm not sure who to recommend this book to, as I've not enjoyed a Ness book before this one, but I also know that die-hard Ness fans loved this one too. So I guess everyone?! If you like weird shit, multiple perspectives, soft queer boys, and dragons then read this book

TW: racism, homophobic slurs, mention of cancer

It would be fair to say Patrick Ness ranks as one of my favourite authors ever. I’m not sure, in the almost ten years I’ve been reading his books, I’ve ever disliked a book he has written. And this book does not break that streak.

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.

Probably the best thing about this book, as with most Patrick Ness books, is the characters. They are a particularly varied cast in this one, from a Russian Blue dragon, to a religious assassin who finds love and thus changes the course of history. It honestly feels the most creative of Ness’ books in that respect.

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.

All of which means that you should definitely pick this book up. You won’t regret it.

The protected PDF format does not work on my Kindle - MOBI required.

A shame, as I always enjoy Patrick Ness.

Title – Burn

Author – Patrick Ness

Genre – YA Fantasy

Release Date – 2nd June 2020

Patrick Ness has always been one of those authors about whom I have heard a lot but never got around reading his work. I finally got my hands on this upcoming release which talks about Dragons and how we sorely missed them. Here is my take on this promising novel.

In a world where Dragons are a pretty common sight, they are still shunned by humans to wastelands. Sarah Dewhurst and her father takes help of a blue dragon to work on their farm. Kazimir, the dragon is more than what meets the eye as he assists Sarah in getting rid of a bully. An assassin is in search of the dragon so that he could fulfill a prophecy about the girl who will be present at right place on right time.

Being my first Patrick Ness novel, I wasn’t sure what to expect out of this book, but I was pretty surprised with how seamlessly the story is being written. The readers are instantly transported to a land of Dragons and shows us how magic realism can co-exist with our world without it being too unrealistic.

Though, I do have certain complaints with the book. It just doesn’t satisfy the entire storytelling experience. There could be so much that could have been included in the novel and yet the author skimmed through most of it. The story which is set in 1957 around the time when Cold War was at peak, does not either explore the history deeply.

For anyone thinking whether to pick this one up, I would say if you are looking for a light read that is pretty much easy to go, this novel will surely keep you hooked. Though there are better novels with dragons in it, this one is still pretty much seamless in involving them.

My Ratings – 🌟🌟🌟💫 (3.5 stars out of 5)

I'll admit, I have not read much Patrick Ness, but I have sold enough of his books to know that you cannot pigeon-hole his novels. I did not know anything about this book when I requested it, except that it featured dragons. What I wasn't expecting was that said dragons would be co-existing with humans in 1950's America. I don't really want to say anymore about the plot, as I think the story has more power if you don't know what to expect. I found it an exciting and thought provoking read.

I honestly don't know what to do with this book. Finished it yesterday and just couldn't make my mind up about it. It's definitely a Patrick Ness novel in all its originality and weirdness. It reminds me of Release in that two separate stories are being told in one book. And of course, it's gay, even though the blurb might not make it seems that way. My problem, I think, was that there was a disconnect.

I'll try and explain why but I can't guarantee that I'll do a good job. The first thing that properly irritated me were the many POVs. There are at least 12. That's a lot for such a short book. The plot was all over the place and I got really annoyed when I was thrown out of a storyline that had me really invested. I see why Ness did it, but I'm convinced he could have pulled it off with only half as many POVs. You would think that the characters suffered from these very short episodes that we stayed with them, but they were very well-drawn and had the necessary depth to make me care for them (some more than others of course). What did suffer though were the relationships between them, particularly newly established ones that advanced way too quickly. That holds especially true for the gay romance, which failed to convince me.

Now, on the one hand this book is genius. There are very unexpected twists and I've not read anything like it before. It's like one of those film trailers that show you what the story is and make you super curious so you go and watch it in theatres just to find out that you didn't even know the half of it - there's so much more to the film than what was shown in the trailer and your mind is blown (I'm thinking of Kingsman - The Secret Service here). It just didn't work so well here. The fast pace threw me off and when I reached the 50% mark I kept thinking What the fuck is going on? I'm not going to say anything else here because that would spoil everything for you. It got even weirder when that one main character kissed that other minor character. He just kind of lost me there and I really don't understand how that was necessary. If you've read the book you know exactly what scene I'm talking about. Kinda random, kinda pointless.

One last thing I want to mention is the representation: the two main characters are a Black biracial girl and a white gay boy. There's also a Japanese-American love interest and a Guatemalan-American love interest. This book is set in the 1950's and although there might be dragons in this alternate world, racism and homophobia still exist. Overall I believe the representation was good but bear in mind that I'm not an OwnVoices reviewer when it comes to the POC characters. Also, expect xenophobic, racist and homophobic violence, abuse and slurs.

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.

This is Patrick Ness at his finest. I say this as someone who doesn’t really like fantasy but who does like good writing. This book is beautiful and poetic and true and also has its fantastical setting grounded in a pretty solid science foundation, very much in the vein of Phillip Pullman. Plausible and very much relatable, I loved it.