More Than This Book Review

Title: More Than This
Author: Patrick Ness
Publisher: Walker Books
Rating: 4.75 stars

*Picture below*

Brief summary: Seth committed suicide alone in the sea. So when he wake's up in his childhood home he is scared and confused. In a cracked, deserted version of his old home town Seth has no one to talk to or ask for help. Is he in heaven, is he in hell ? Seth doesn't know but just when he thinks all hope is gone he sees a van and it's Driver . But who is this mysterious Driver, and will it give Seth answers for the silent town?

Thoughts in a sentence:
Kathy: Scary concept but really eye opening and spectacular.
Bee: Holds mystery and suspense throughout and leaves you wanting more.

Review: This book starts off slow paced, and is hard to understand and connect to at first. There are a lot of chapters where not much happens, so it lost some of my interest. However the whole idea of Seth being alone in this deserted town made me read on because I wanted to know why the town was like this and if it was the real world. After reading the whole book I appriciate the start more. I think that the slow pacing reflects how Seth is feeling and emphasies how much a human needs to survive, not only food and water but company. Without other people Seths life is solw and he has nothing to do in all his spare time.
Throughout the book we hear Seths voice and understand his way of thinking. In this world with so much uncertainty Seth expects something bad to happen whenever things have been going smoothly. I think this shows us that because he never had a relaxing childhood he was always on edge and expecting something bad to happen. The scary thing about this world is that whenever he thought something bad would happen, it did.
I think the idea of a world where everybody is living in a virtual reality is very realistic and easy to believe. I can see video games being made that for the "ultimate experience" allow you to become an actual part of the game. Humans would much rather live in a game where everything is easily avaliable and there is no crime or world problems, than live in the real world with poverty and hunger. Ness made the virtual reality seem like a genuine possiblity for the future and I think that would be a scary time to be alive.
This book really had me scared to read on beacuse you can sense the build up and there are some heart stopping scenes. The ending of this book was completly unexpected to me and I was left wanting to shout GIVE ME MORE. I am still in shock.
I cried after reflecting on this book because I feel it gave a really powerful message. The title of this book is 'More Than This' which I didnt fully understand until I read the book. Seth commits suicide because he feels he has nothing left and has no one worth living for, however there is always more than what there appears to be. The people you care about may have acted wrongly or in a hurtful way but that doesn't mean they don't still love you. Everyone is facing their own battles every single day, and need to be reminded that there is more than the pain and sadness. Remember the happy times, remember what it's like to laugh and have fun. Remember what it's like to live.
Seth overcomes a common struggle of feeling sad and alone howeber he realises if you come out of that bad space you'll realise the people that matter to you the most have always been there for you and they always will be. Seth realises this and that's why he makes his decision at the end of the book.
Even though this book is telling an action packed adventure I feel it's really exploring Seths life and helping him face the reality that he needed to all along. This has become one of my favourite novels. Thank you Ness.

You can tell us what you thought of this review on our twitter page @BathyBooks

May the odds be ever in your favour
Love Bathy xxx

P.s Comment with your opinion