!!This review contains spoilers!! 
 I had a hard time deciding how to rate this book so it's something like 4.5 stars or so. It would have been five stars if the ending wasn't what it was - the kind that makes me want to throw the book out of the window! Argh, the feelings of failure and betrayal and the cliffhanger. 
 Now when I've got that out, I can say that I really enjoyed this book. The writing style was very different and really enjoyed it. I liked how the writing flowed and Todd and other from the New World had their own dialect. It was very interesting and as a person who's first language is not English, I was pleased to see that I had no problem understanding it. 
 I loved the backstory of how Prentisstown and the New World came to be. It was brutal but made sense in some twisted way. I have read a lot of dystopian but this still felt original. It was really fascinating to me that they were actually on a new planet, had been there for like 20 years and it was still dystopian. 
 The main character, Todd, was very flawed but that made him great. I didn't like him in the beginning but he went through a lot of character development and I ended up liking and respecting him. In the beginning he in no way seemed like a hero. Actually, he didn't seem like that in the end, but he clearly had the potential then. Then there was Viola who also developed very much through the story. I definitely enjoyed seeing them become friends. No instalove to be found here! Manchee was my favorite character. Yes, the dog. It's so rare to have a dog to be such a vital part of the story. Hell, he even talked! (view spoiler)[It's a shame I couldn't properly cry for him because I was on a plane when I read that part... (hide spoiler)] These three made an awesome trio. 
 The story itself was pretty simple - get from the place A to the place B. Of course that wasn't simple at all and there were many obstacles to get through. I found the reason Aaron (the man made of iron, I call him) kept on coming after them was really intriguing. I can't wait to see what will happen next, especially after THAT ENDING!