Burn

by Patrick Ness

In 1956 Sarah Dewhurst's father shocks her by hiring a dragon to work the farm. The dragon is a smaller blue rather than the traditional larger reds, though even the reds are now scarce. When the blue dragon, Kazimir, unexpectedly saves Sarah and her friend Jason Inagawa from the attentions of the racist police deputy, Kelby, everything changes. Sarah is part of a prophecy and she must escape the clutches of Malcolm, an assassin from a Believer Cell, the dragon-worshiping cult. When Sarah, Malcolm and Kazimir eventually converge, they are thrown into another universe, where dragons seem never to have existed. Can they save this world and the one they left?

• ISBN10: 1406375500
• ISBN13: 9781406375503
• Publish Date: 7 May 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 11 November 2024
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Walker Books Ltd
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[mrs_mander_reads]

I love a good dragon book! The premise with this one is very interesting, and I enjoyed it.

[Joséphine]

Initial thoughts: The minute I had a chance to read a review copy of Burn, I jumped on it. I generally enjoy the postmodern approach Ness takes to storytelling but this round I couldn't quite build the same excitement for it. Yes, there were parts that I really liked but there also were considerable chunks that fell flat for me, which is why it took me months to finish Burn.

When I finished reading it a couple of days ago, I did so with ambivalence. I wasn't quite cheering about it being over but I also felt a tinge of emptiness, yet couldn't put my finger on why. Upon further reflection, I realised that was because even though there were a lot of elements to grapple with, I also felt that not much was happening for long stretches of the book. That paradox came about because even though Ness wove in a lot of tropes, few were developed enough for me to feel invested.

There were so many points of view to grapple with that didn't quite gel either. With such a fragmented story that resulted out of it, Burn lacked the pace to draw me in continuously. I had to make a concerted effort to remember to pick it up again to continue where I had left off.

Still, there were familiar flashes of brilliance in how Ness tackled the human condition, the idea of alternate realities and what could happen when they collide. It's for these that I found Burn a worthwhile read despite the chaos that marked Ness's latest novel.

[shannonmiz]

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

ME:  Eh I don't know if I like dragons, but it's Patrick Ness so let's try.

ME, AFTER: Wow so I love dragons and obviously Patrick Ness.

There is SO much that I loved about this book that I cannot even tell you for the sake of spoilers. Places I did not see things going. And like, it's seriously SO GREAT so can you just trust me? Awesome thanks. Here's what I can tell you:

• ►Alternate 1957. I mean, some things are very similar! We're in some kind of nuclear standoff with Russia, but President Aaron Burr is on the $20. And there are, you know, dragons. Who help out on farms, because of course they do. And cults that worship dragons, and people who don't like dragons, and you know, examples that humanity will clearly never change.
  

  "He was the thing the world had suffered from most in her four billion years of existence: a stupid man with power."

  
  


• ►The prophecy ends up being a real trip- both literally and figuratively. Literally for Malcolm, the young cult fellow who's supposed to be taking out Sarah, at the center of the prophecy, and figuratively for Sarah, her father, and her wonderful best-friend-with-benefits, Jason. Not only are they dealing with dwindling farm production and a new dragon, they're dealing with a very heavy dose of racist bullshit from the local police (holy relevancy), but now they've somehow found themselves at the epicenter of dragon cult prophecies.



• ►Okay I know this sounds completely bonkers, and it is, but in the best possible way. I promise it all makes sense when you read it! It isn't just weird for the sake of weirdness or anything. The world building is fabulous, and every single bit of what goes down is thought provoking and full of very timely and applicable messages.



• ►It is also just an incredible story with twists that I didn't see coming at all. Yeah, there's nothing more to say except I never wanted to put this book down and now I love it, the end.

Bottom Line: Patrick Ness strikes again, with a unique story so wholly and completely relevant while remaining wildly entertaining.