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Never Ending by Martyn Bedford - review

Written By Unknown on Saturday, March 1, 2014 | 10:25 AM


'I have already suggested it to one of my friends and plan on suggesting it to even more!'


When Shiv is on holiday in Kyritos, Greece, something happened... Something that has haunted Shiv ever since and has made her feel sick with guilt. No therapist her parents have sent her to has helped. And now she's being sent off to the Korsakoff Clinic for 60 days. She doesn't know why they bother. Nothing anyone says or does is ever going to make her forget how her brother, Declan, died or the fact that it was her fault.


I really enjoyed Never Ending. I loved the way it was first a chapter about being in Kyritos and then a chapter about being in the Clinic. It kept alternating and that was great. It made it have a lovely lead in to how Declan died and I love that in books.


You found yourself desperate to know what had happened to Declan at the same time as dreading knowing what happened to him. You wanted to know because it had been leading up to it throughout the whole book but you also didn't want to know because you knew whatever it was, it was going to be horrible.


Never Ending made me realise that we bicker with our siblings day after day, and find them really annoying, and we can get really angry with them and sometimes you don't agree and that causes a massive argument. But you have a relationship with your siblings that you will never have with anyone else, ever. Never Ending teaches you that no matter how annoying your brothers and/or sisters get, no time with them is ever enough. You sometimes wish they would leave you alone but really you should always be pleased to see them because you never know when you might never be able to see them again. Your relationship with your bothers and/or sisters is irreplaceable, priceless.


Never Ending had a bit of romance jammed in with all of the misery and that I liked. I love a bit of romance, even in a book that is supposed to be a sad book. Romance really adds to the book and makes it more enjoyable! I liked the fact that the chapters about being in Kyritos were what happened before Declan died so it added a bit of joy in with all the not-so-joyful bits.


I do have a few criticisms, though. Criticism number one would be that sometimes it seemed like it was told from the point of view of Shiv and sometimes it seemed to be told from the point of view of an onlooker. That really got on my nerves at the start but you stopped noticing it as much the further through the book you got.


Criticism number two: I didn't feel like there was enough main characters. I know it was mainly a book about Shiv being at the Clinic and then flashbacks of the holiday, but I felt like when it was the Clinic chapters there seemed to stop really being any main characters except Shiv. Then when it was the holiday chapters there were more characters that were mentioned a lot, so I think more characters would have improved the book.


Criticism number three would be that, when you found out how Declan died, that was the end of the flashback chapters. But I didn't just want to know how Declan died, I wanted to know what happened after that. I kept hoping there was going to be a chapter of what happened after Declan died, but there never was, it was just all Clinic chapters after that. And I felt like it wasn't quite as satisfying as it could have been if Martyn Bedford had just added in one last flashback chapter explaining what had happened after the death.


But although I did have a few criticisms I did really enjoy Never Ending. I just think it could have been improved but it's very rare to find a book that couldn't be improved. I would definitely read it again! And I would highly suggest reading it. I have already suggested it to one of my friends and plan on suggesting it to even more. And even though I criticised it I was still desperate to finish it and couldn't put it down! I think Martyn Bedford in total made a very good book! I definitely hope to read more books by Martyn. 4 stars.


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