All the men and women are once again separated including Todd and Viola. Haven has been claimed and renamed New Prentiss Town and quickly becomes that of a police state of horrors under its new ruler and his army. Now newly self appointed President Prentiss flexes his control over the pair of teens as well as the rest of New World’s remaining population. No, THE ASK AND THE ANSWER (Chaos Walking #2) is a much slower story that is all about mind tricks, as Viola and Todd struggle under the thumb of their old enemy Mayor Prentiss. Unfortunately not the fast paced thrill ride of a read that THE KNIFE OF NEVER LETTING GO was. 1017 is a new character that I hope we hear more from in Chaos Walking. The book is filled with lots of surprises. The story got very intense and every time I thought everything was going to be alright, something would happen to change that.

After chapter 16 I found it very hard to stop listening. Towards the end there is a very long scene which goes on like William Shatner in Star Trek. The slow start is probably why I liked the first book just a little bit better. The book starts out just a little bit slow and doesn't really hit stride until chapter 16.

Both characters do some terrible things, you could even compare Todd to a guard at a concentration camp. Our main characters get caught up in opposite sides of a war. Both sides feel they are fighting for the right cause and they somehow justify torture and killing. I have always wondered about wars and why people fight for certain sides and how they do some of the terrible things they do.

To me that is what stories are all about, otherwise it is just lecturing. While most Sci-Fi books talk about how bad war is, PN shows us through the story.

Todd and Viola are growing up fast and they are finding out that life is not black and white. Females read more then men, so I believe that is why Hunger games has been more popular. I have read the first two books in the Hunger series and I like this series just a little better. Just imagine a world where you can hear the thoughts of every man. This is the second book in the Chaos Walking series, if you have not read 'The Knife of Never Letting Go' you must start there.

The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness