Thank you to NetGalley and Publishers for this copy

This is one of my favourite books ever and one of my favourite authors. Unique and outstanding i wont spoil it with an explanation buy it and dive in you’ll thank me for it once you start the book

Kathy, Ruth and Tommy were all students at the rather 'select' Hailsham school. Raised there from early childhood, their lives were free from outside influences and stress; in many ways it was an idyllic time. Now in her early thirties, Kathy reminisces about their years together, at Hailsham and afterwards, and the gradual realisation that their lives, and deaths, have been planned out for them.

This must be the fourth or fifth time I've read Never Let Me Go and it never fails to pull me in, to enfold me in its parallel world; one which seems so normal on the surface but is dark and dystopian underneath.

At different times, it strikes me in different ways. Sometimes it's a coming of age tale, A fairly normal one of childhood tiffs and squabbles, of 'queen bee' Ruth who must be humoured else she'll make everyone's lives a misery, of the obvious differences of being brought up in an institution, even if it's one as supportive as Hailsham, Sometimes, it's far more sinister - a chilling tale of human clones being bred to become organ donors. Or it can be nostalgic for the past, in which Hailsham represents a more caring world which no longer exists.

However it strikes me, Kathy's narrative plays out carefully, hinting at, but never outright declaring, the fate which awaits her, Ruth, Tommy and their classmates. Expressions such as 'donations' or 'completion' are bandied about as if both the children and the reader know what they fully entail; then the full enormity is revealed, and it's not quite a surprise, just a dreadful acknowledgement of what we'd suspected, but ignored, all along. That implicit acceptance leads to a far more chilling ending than if Kathy had raged against her circumstances throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Faber and Faber Ltd for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Never Let Me Go was such a pleasant surprise for me. I felt so emotionally engaged with this book from the very beginning and didn't want it to end, I wasn't ready to leave this world and I'm genuinely amazed that Kazuo Ishiguro never revisited this world (as far as I know)

Just from this book I've fallen in love with Ishiguro's writing style and will definitely be on the lookout for more of his books in the future. His writing is incredibly poetic and engaging, and his characters are incredibly deep and fleshed out as well as still having their own developing characteristics throughout the story, whilst keeping them vulnerable and human.

The world building in this book is incredible, with the story being set in a dystopian Britain I found it really engaging and believable due to the authors descriptions.

Kazuo Isiguro is a justifiably renowned author . "Never let me go" could only be written by someone, such as he, who is a master of projecting emotion and empathy through the written word. The story takes us through the lives of Ruth, Kathy and Jamie who are ever constant in the strong feelings they share for each other. Firstly, it supports them through their initial years at Hailsham residential facility and then on through their years at The Cottages. Moving out in the wider world, they separate into different roles as either "Donors" or "Carers" which means their paths cross less frequently. But the bond remains and although, on occasions it causes them heartbreak, their mutual empathy never lets them lose their love for each other. A perceptive novel which tests the boundaries of humanity

I’ve read this book twice now, once when it was first published and more recently through NetGalley. For me this is one of those novels that gets even better the second time around, as there is much more to it than its page-turning, intriguing dystopian plot. It is also a heartbreakingly moving coming-of-age novel with universal themes such as childhood and loss. It’s one of the most touching, beautifully written novels I’ve ever read and would give 6 stars if I could.

Completely out of my comfort zone - but strangely enjoyable!

Thirty-one year old Kath reminisces about her childhood and how it's all brought her to where she is now. We learn about her life up until now and the friends who have featured in her life.

This is my first novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. Sometimes, you get to the point of actually reading one of those novels which are labelled 'one day' in your mind! I wasn't quite sure what to expect but once I had begun, I found this to be simply compelling. It wouldn't have surprised me to find out this one was set in Gilead but, no, it definitely takes place in the U.K. which gives the story a sinister edge. Beautifully written, there is a simple truth to the characters and how they interact with each other. Totally believable - and all the creepier because of it! Very different to my usual type of novel but not one I'll forget in a hurry. If you enjoy something different, then this is one for you. I'm happy to give it four stars.

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

The characters are so well written in this story that you really feel like you know them. For me though this story was a bit slow and I was expecting more.

Not sure how I feel about this book really. There is no denying that the writing is powerful and the story will certainly stay with you long after the last chapter has ended. However, its entirely dystopian plot can leave you feeling quite drained.

A subversive work of art that both shocks, and delights within a dystopian narrative. The melancholy tone builds to a slow reveal, from a writer who never feels pushed to show his hand. A deliberate, functioning build up with emotional turns separates Never Let Me Go from many of its contemporary predeceases.

We’re All Different
The narrative is told from Kathy’s perspective, a clone growing up in an English boarding school known as Hailsham. Here the teachers are their guardians, and decide critical aspects of their lives, focusing on creative activities.

In the current day, Kathy is a carer looking for organ donors, which leads her to crossing paths with some of her former school friends. As conflicting feelings begin to rise, she must come to terms with her own imminent conclusion.

The title, Never Let Me Go is taken from a song by fictional singer, Judy Bridgewater. A cassette of her work becomes obsessed over by Kathy during the story’s narrative.

Futuristic Reality
Never Let Me Go is one of the best novels I’ve read in recent years. It’s about much more than a dystopian future – it’s about the predictability of death, along with the evils in everyday life. With the trivial persistence’s and the crushing defeats, the theme of malevolent runs deep.

There are similarities to Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America, which alters American politics to fit its narrative. However, Never Let Me Go begins by changing the very foundations of science. By imagining a world in which genetic cloning is commonplace, the once familiar grounds of 20th century England are transformed.

Whilst the story is dystopian and futuristic, there are no flying cars a la Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? The environments are distinctly unaffected by this new phenomenon.

'…there are people out there, like Madame, who don’t hate you or wish you any harm, but who nevertheless shudder at the very thought of you—of how you were brought into this world and why—and who dread the idea of your hand brushing against theirs.' - Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go

This shows the switching of perspectives used in the book to convert completely different opinions on a situation. On one side, the children are joyous and running around, on the other, Madame, who doesn’t want any interaction with them.

The changing of viewpoints is also employed to bring comedy value in certain bleak situations. It’s a reminder that we never quite know what another person is thinking; even less their motives. In the case above, it turns out that Madame is not afraid of the children, but fearful of getting too close to them on a more personal level.

Lost Property
Setting up vital moments, such as Norfolks’ lost property, is another of Ishiguro’s strengths. Casting Norfolk is where all mislaid items go, waiting for their original owner to pick them back up.

Later, when travelling through Norfolk, Kathy realises this isn’t the case. Consequently, this shatters her emotional intelligence; making her question everything else she thought she knew growing up.

Similarly, it’s in these moments that we have a chance to connect to the characters further.

'Memories, even your most precious ones, fade surprisingly quickly. But I don’t go along with that. The memories I value most, I don’t ever see them fading.' - Kazuo Ishiguro, Never Let Me Go

We’ve all been led to believe things as a child because it makes things easier, often for the parents involved – The Easter bunny / Santa Clause, or the way an ice-cream van only plays its music when it’s run out of ice-cream.

In this instance, we learn the truth; it’s only natural to question the trust that was previously formed.

Kathy, ever the unreliable narrator, is both subjective and contradicted. Only her perspective is told, however, other character’s dialogues suggest alternative truths. She frequently starts off talking about one memory, only to interrupt the flow by talking about another. This flittering of chronological order serves to reinforce her instability as a storyteller.

They also show how memory can become clouded, and often manipulated by its user. Viewing a past as either entirely negative or entirely positive is a defence mechanism, often used to shroud harsher times.

All of these points show how adept Ishiguro is as a writer. His characters all interact, learn and progress through life; passing over roadblocks and ravines, garnering bruises along the way.

Closing Thoughts
Ishiguro has created a versatile, yet grounded dystopian world that pushes science laws whilst still maintaining its sensibilities.

Characters are dimensional, the plot is twisting, and the pace is quick. There was never a moment that I didn’t want to read on and find out the end truth. If you enjoy a slow-building plot with diverse characters, then definitely check out Never Let Me Go. As I said earlier, this is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time; up there with Ask the Dust.

This is the first Ishiguro novel I’ve read, but certainly not my last. I have Buried Giants sitting on my shelf, and I’ve subsequently pre-ordered his upcoming book, Klara and the Sun (March 2nd 2021).

I revisited this book ahead of the much -anticipated publication of the Nobel Laureate's latest novel - Klara and The Sun.

The story is narrated by Kath – a “carer” looking after “donors”. Kath and the donors are clones – specially bred for organ donation – each donor goes through a series of donations – and normally complete (die) by the third or fourth donation.
Kath looks back on her childhood at Hailsham, her time as a young adult in the cottages and then her time as her carer – and through it all her three-part relationship with two others - Ruth and Tommy.

The style is very distinctive – reminiscent but often having to explain something else in order to get to the main point. Kath and the others “donors” are very sensitive to each other – to nuance and whether they have upset others.

Like The Time Traveler's Wife (but completely unlike My Sister's Keeper) this book isn’t really about its obvious subject – in this case cloning. Instead it is about: much deeper and universal issues - her childhood and innocence.

The donors were sheltered from their ultimate fate – they were often told things before they were old enough to properly understand so by the time they did understand the full implications of part of their fate it was something they already knew and had accepted deep down.

Very cleverly the book is in some ways in a similar style – there is no dramatic revelation rather it becomes obvious what is happening.

The donors retain their innocence – despite the fact they are having sex with each other – they see the outside world as a thing of danger and wonder (discussing what they might be when they are older – even though they are already young adults and even though they know in one sense that they will never be anything).

The book is also about passive acceptance of status – no-one appears to force the clones into their life (in fact it is not even clear that they can be identified in any way) but they accept their fate with their ambitions being limited to postponing their final death.

Another masterpiece from the master - and my anticipation for Klara and The Sun increases.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Faber & Faber for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was my first Ishiguro novel and as such, I didn’t know what to expect. What I found was an interesting mix of character study and social commentary.

I had seen all the comments that warn against spoilers for this one; ‘don’t read any reviews’, ‘don’t watch the movie trailer’... but really I don’t think the impact of this story is in the plot device they are warning against spoiling (I thought what is going on is pretty clear quite early on, and there is no ‘big reveal’ as such) but in the intricacies of innocence and memory, the impact of kindness and hope.

Now that I understand Ishiguro’s style I will look forward to reading more of his work, and I highly recommend this for anyone looking for an emotional tale of childhood and exploring the meaning of ethics and morality.

3.5 stars

Beautifully brilliant and poignant book. Written by an author who can only be described as a master of his craft. I read this in one sitting loving every moment and feeling a sense of loss after

Ishiguro writes as if the words flow straight from his head to the page, it appears effortless although I am certain it is not. It’s conversational, it’s wordy and full of tangents but not to its detriment.
Set in a seemingly ordinary English boarding school we watch our protagonists grow from children to adolescents. The more they learn about life outside, what they’ve learnt at school seems to fall apart. It’s a mystery without the angst. It’s also a love story without the cheese. I loved it for its uniqueness, it’s blurring of genre lines, I’ve never read anything close to it before.
Ishiguro makes comment on societal pressures, how the most vulnerable are treated and how civilised an alternate reality could be. an insightful and revealing read!

One of those books that should appear on ‘books you must read’ lists. Don’t read reviews about it just know that you should read it.

A book about memory, acceptance and friendship, Never Let Me Go tells the story of a 31 years-old woman as she reflects on her life. It is told from her perspective, in the first person, in a casual, chatty way, with phrases such as 'Like I said...' interspersed throughout, as any storyteller would. She describes herself as a 'carer' of people who have donated organs to others and now, after almost twelve years, she is giving up the job.

The title of the book comes from a song of the same name, which evokes memories of her idyllic childhood at a boarding school. It was there where she met her two closest friends and they shared their formative years. The usual features of growing up like bullying, hierarchy, mystery, friendship dynamics and fun were there, as well as lessons where art and creativity were encouraged. However, there are hints that this school is not like the others as are the children. There are clues that they don't quite understand and when they are eventually told what their purpose is, it is buried under sex education lessons, so the impact loses its edge. As one teacher (or 'guardians' as they are known) says, they were 'told and not told' so when the children work out what their fate is, they feel as if they already know.

This is quite an horrific story in two main ways. There is no gore and the characters move from childhood to adulthood without any sense of doom or depression. Their fate in itself is disturbing and terrifying and yet they accept it as their lot. In other books of this type (the idea of their purpose is not an original idea) the characters rebel in some way: here they don't. They know that their lives will be short and that's how it is.

The little drips of information condition the characters throughout their school days, just as people become accustomed to their place in the world in terms of social class, race and gender by the accepted social norms. The central character deals with the loss of her past life, the innocence and her friends, by the power of memory and the odd things that each of them remembers or forgets. A haunting and chilling book that leaves a little bruise. A very clever and apt title.

This was a reread for me and with each read you can pick up a different subtlety. I won’t go further in the story but it’s definitely a must read.

I wasn't a massive fan of Never Let Me Go. The way the narrator dipped in and out of her memories in a non-linear timeline was refreshing and made the story more believable, but there wasn't really any plot and it did get tiring after a while. I did like Kath and Tommy's relationship and the overwhelming tone of despair and hopelessness by the end, but I was waiting for a more impactful ending and the Hailsham reveal was disappointing and anti-climactic. It was an okay story but I was hoping to get more out of it.

Written in the first person narrative a haunting story of love and loss in a mysterious world where nothing is what it seems and no one reveals anything of themselves or the situation they share. A frightening haunting house called Hailsham, although whether a boarding school, orphanage or lock up facility is unclear. A place where material obligations are met without love or warmth, those in charge are called guardians and the young people donors. Classes are taught, lessons are learnt, friendships and fall outs fill the days which hold no resemblance to normal family life and are bereft of parents or siblings. No physical cruelty is ever carried out whilst an absence of any explanations to their place and purpose in life slowly begins to become clear to both protagonists and reader with a terrifying clarity and acceptance that is more frighteningly chilling than violence. This story is set in a world where science has moved at the fastest pace in history and where medical advancements have allowed miracles of science to be performed as if everyday occurrences. Where people recognise what is possible and accept or demand their right to become the recipients of this largesse as their right, the cost to others a grey area not to be tread. And finally written with both callous indifference and resonance of classic tragedy we move to a shocking conclusion where everything becomes clear and a snapshot of the bleak and selfish world we inhabit imprints as a nightmare. A well crafted, skilfully written story that lingers long after the conclusion and is well deserving of the accolades received. Many thanks to publisher, NetGalley and gifted author for this ARC.

Ordinary tale on the face of it, but far from it beneath the surface. Straightforward yet whimsical, bland yet terrifyingly close to a possible reality. Good, but not gripping. The ending was disappointing with more of a fizzle than a bang. 3 stars because of this.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the review copy. This is my honest and unbiased review.

The narrator's voice seemed to drone on and I wondered why was I reading this drudge voice taling about fairly ordinary adolescent scrimmages ... then the language of "donor" and 'carer'began to dawn on me and it became even more sort of grim. Sorry .. not for me!