Set in 1950s America at a time when humans and dragons co-exist. We meet young Sarah Dewhurst and her father who is waiting for the arrival of a dragon that will help them on their farm, as they are much cheaper than people. The dragon, a Russian Blue named Kazimir is there though to protect Sarah and to save the world.

In Canada, a young teenage ‘Believer’ (Dragon worshippers) called Malcolm has been given orders by his goddess to head to America and to carry out an assassination on someone to stop a war.

FBI Agents Woolf and Dernovich have been given the task of finding the assassin and stopping him after he killed some of their men with the help of a dragon.

This is a cat and mouse chase like no other. Who has been misled and who is really trying to stop a war whether that be between men or men and dragons?

Told in two parts and the third person, Burn is told from various viewpoints. The plot plays out as three separate stories yet interweaves them when the time comes.

Sarah is a sweet young girl who has been brought up by her father alone on their farm since their mother died. To keep the farm and pay off the debts her father needs a bumper crop and harvest and to be able to afford this he hires a dragon.

Kazimir the dragon is a small Russian Blue, not many are seen and certainly not working on a farm. The book might be set in a fantasy world but the racism and bigotry of the 50s are certainly present and the locals don’t like a Blue being close by, he could be a Russian spy. The local police officer already doesn’t like the family as Sarah is of mixed race. He also has an issue with her best friend Jason who is of Japanese descent.

The plot moves along at a decent pace. You get to hear from Malcolm about his mission as he meets a young man on his journey and shares his thoughts and his body with him. You also see the bickering agents as they try to track Malcolm down, yet are always two steps behind him.

You would think that the story would conclude when Malcolm reaches his target, but it doesn’t. This is only partway through and another storyline begins. There were certainly plenty of twists and I wasn’t expecting the book to change the direction the way it did.

Patrick Ness writes unusual stories that are often just outside the real world. He plays with your mind and has you questioning everything you have read and learned as the book progresses. Some may not like this style but I adore weird, strange books that are not the norm, just like this one.