Patrick Ness' new story is less fantastical than some of his previous work, the story of Adam Thorn, a gay 17 year old in rural America born to evangelical parents, struggling with his sexuality, getting over his ex-boyfriend and his work. Set across a single day, various major events intrude on his life that make it seem like his whole life is coming crashing down. At the same time however there is a risk that the actual world could be about to end, as the ghost of a murdered girl wanders the town looking for closure over her death, and if she doesn't receive it before sundown the whole universe will collapse! Ness mixes the personal, heartfelt tale of a closeted teenager with the fantastical story of the lost girl brilliantly, the stories intertwining and echoing each other before eventually culminating together. Ness writes the teenage voice in a way that feels realistic without being cringe-worthy and he deals with sexuality in a nuanced and compassionate way. This is really is top tier young adult fiction (and is definitely for 16+, no shortage of sex scenes in this!)

A dual narrative taking place over a day, Release explores sex and sexuality, shame and secrecy, and centres around letting go. The main character, Adam, is real and flawed as he fights his way through one day's tangled web of friends, family, God and a despicably abusive and manipulative boss. He works at releasing himself from the hold of an ex, a very real story line for anyone with a first love, and also begins to release himself from a father who tells Adam that he has "no idea how hard I work to love you." Wow! Meanwhile Katherine is dead and hunting down her killer to release her soul. It is a thread of magical realism that may not be for everyone and the link between the two narratives only truly became relevant as I considered the book for this review. It is a novel that gains flavour, and entices you to think, beyond the last page.

I'm not sure how I feel about Release. I was so excited to read it but have come away with a resounding feeling of disappointment. It is really two books in one which don't really fit together or overlap. I enjoyed Adam's story a lot more than the strange magical realism one. (I'm still not sure what it was really about.) If the story was simply Adam's then my rating would have been much higher and I would happily recommend it however the chapters regarding the faun and the queen take away from it and ultimately I did not enjoy the book as a whole.