Nos4a2

by Joe Hill

[leahrosereads]

I really need to make sure not to return books back to the library until after my review, so I can add in quotes that I wanted to use. Oh well.

NOS4A2 was honestly one of my favorite books I’ve read this year. It didn’t beat out The Night Circus, Vicious or either of Eliza Crewe’s novels, but boy was it excellent. Joe Hill is definitely becoming an author that I will be on the lookout for books from in the future, and I’m absolutely planning on buying this novel for my personal collection.


NOS4A2 follows Victoria (Vic) McQueen from childhood into adulthood and all of her screw ups in between. As a young girl, Vic receives a bike for her birthday, a Raleigh Tuff Burner. When something is lost and needs to be found, Vic uses this bike to gain access to the “Shorter Way Bridge” and they take her to the object so that it can be returned to its owner.

Neat huh? And as a young girl, Vic thought it was. However, as she got older, she began to think of this as make believe, and her journeys through the Shorter Way Bridge took its toll on her, physically and mentally.

At 17, an out of control Vic decides to go looking for trouble, and she finds it in the Charles Talent Manx - a man with a gift like hers who has been abducting children for years, taking them to Christmasland. They don’t leave, and he doesn’t age. It may be a win for him, but he’s stealing the souls and lives from these children, turning them into something else…

Luckily for her, she escapes on the back of a young man’s bike (Lou). Unfortunately, her staying that long through the Shorter Way Bridge took a toll on her mind that she never really recovers from.



I absolutely loved Vic as a character. As a young girl, I saw my adventurous self in her. I lived in a world of make believe, and I loved seeing that side of her. However, as she got older, I loved how well Joe Hill showed the damage to her psyche. This gift damaged her. And adult Vic was one messed up woman.

I also really loved Lou. He’s this overweight man-boy who’s geeky and fun and the complete opposite of Vic. He tries to love her, the best he knows how, and while they make a life together, and a child - Bruce Wayne, Vic never fully allows herself to be loved. I felt for Lou, but I admired what a wonderful person, father, and friend he was.

And then, there’s Charles Manx. The Big Bad of the story, and really, one of the creepier bad guys I’ve read this year. I got the chills when he spoke and how he acted, especially later in the book with Wayne.. He was just disturbing as hell.

There was a wide cast of secondary characters, from Bing - Manx’s...partner (but they’re not equals)...minion? He was creepier than Manx a lot of the time, and they made quite a disturbing pair.

Maggie Leigh - a librarian with a gift (though not quite like Vic and Manx’s). I loved her, and I was so sad seeing the gift of hers break her.

Bruce Wayne - of course, VIc and Lou’s son. He was this older-before-his-time kind of kid. But, with a mom as damaged as Vic, it worked without being a cliche. I was rooting for him so hard after he was taken by Manx and Bing

And finally, the last memorable character (to me) was FBI Agent Tabitha Hutt. She was like the female geek version of Lou, and while it took her a while to open her mind, she was able to. I think it was the geek in her that allowed it though.


Overall, I thought the writing was spectacular. There were some slow parts of NOS4A2, but overall it was either suspenseful or filled with action or interesting dialogue that kept me reading at a relatively fast pace.

There were parts of the story that while I understood why they needed to happen, I wish they hadn't. I just had my feels touched (especially near the end) pretty regularly. I may be a wimp when it comes to reading, and I do cry at pretty much any part of an emotional aspect of a novel, but this just hit me a little harder, because I was just completely on Vic’s side (even with all the mistakes she made).

Just some rough times for me at some parts of the book.


I definitely recommend checking this out! It may not have been my favorite novel by Joe Hill (his Locke & Key series just can't be removed from that top spot), but I definitely preferred this way over Heart Shaped Box, and while I really enjoyed Horns, I thought NOS4A2 was better.