The Rest of Us Just Live Here

Title: The Rest of Us Just Live Here
Author: Patrick Ness
Genre: YA Contemporary Fantasy
Pages: 317
Rating: 3.5 Stars
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Mike is not the chosen one. Neither is his sister Mel, or his friends Jared or Henna. Not his mom, not his dad, not his cat, nor his other sister. They all just live and exist in the shadows of the real chosen ones. This time, like all other times, it's the Indie kids. The ones set apart from everyone else. They're the real chosen ones.

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This book is okay. It has an interesting concept and all, but I didn't find the actual story to be all that captivating. Plus, I didn't really like the way Patrick Ness blends fantasy and realism together. This was the first Patrick Ness book for me, and I wasn't expecting the line between fantasy and realism to be so definite. I feel like fantasy has a sort of ambiance to it, and it shouldn't be able to be turned off and on so easily.

So perhaps my problem with this book is merely Patrick Ness' writing style. Maybe you like it, maybe you don't, however, I feel this was not the only fault in this novel.

The plot wasn't all that interesting. I mean, I guess it was a unique idea and all, but I just wasn't all that overwhelmed with the story. It was a rather boring plot line filled with rather boring characters. However, while we're on the topic of the characters, I did find the representation of mental illness to be very nice. I don't come across many YA books that feature a main character with a mental illness, and this story has two. You see a truthful, accurate representation of anorexia and OCD in this book, and I think it's something you don't come across that often in YA.  That being said, the actual personalities of the characters were bland, and the story was predictable and dull at many points.

So would I actually recommend this? If you're a fan of Ness, then chances are you'll like this. If you haven't read any of his books, I suppose you should give it a try. It's has a very unique style, and despite not liking, I'm glad I read it.