A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

Synopsis:
An unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor. 

At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting - he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth.

From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd - whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself - Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.
(Synopsis from Goodreads).

My Thoughts:
Patrick Ness is one of those authors that I've wanted to read his books for a long time now. I've heard such great things about them. In fact, as far as I can remember, I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk negatively about his books. I own quite a few of them, and recently decided to pick A Monster Calls and read it before I saw the movie. I'm so glad I did. It was such a great book. 

For the first twenty percent or so of the book, I was a little confused. I didn't understand what was going on. Then, once I was able to figure it out, I fell in love with the book. I thought the story was beautiful. It had a creepy vibe to it at times that I absolutely loved. It sucked me into the story, and wouldn't let me go. I thought Conor's was incredibly moving. Even with everything he was going through, he never gave up. If I was him, I probably would have. I loved the way A Monster Calls ended. I don't think Patrick Ness could have ended the book in a better way. The only complaint I have is that the illustrations were very underwhelming. That could be because I read the book on my Paperwhite, which can only be viewed in black and white. I haven't gotten ahold of the physical copy yet to see if it looks better in print.


A Monster Calls was a beautiful, moving book. It took such a sensitive topic and dealt with it in a  respectful way that really made the reader understand what Conor was going through. I can't wait to see the movie, and see if everything I loved about the book shines through. I also want to read more of Patrick Ness's books. I now own most of them, and will be making my way through all of them. I hope they are just as good as A Monster Calls, if not better.

I give A Monster Calls: 4/5.

Want to know more about the author?
Website: http://patrickness.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Patrick_Ness
Tumblr: http://patricknessbooks.tumblr.com/

I received this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. I was in no way compensated for this review.