The Library Ladies

Book: “The Bones Houses” by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Publishing Info: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, September 2019

Where Did I Get this Book: Edelweiss+

Book Description: Seventeen-year-old Aderyn (“Ryn”) only cares about two things: her family, and her family’s graveyard. And right now, both are in dire straits. Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren, which sits at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to the fae. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don’t always stay dead.

The risen corpses are known as “bone houses,” and legend says that they’re the result of a decades-old curse. When Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker with a mysterious past, arrives in town, the bone houses attack with new ferocity. What is it about Ellis that draws them near? And more importantly, how can they be stopped for good?

Together, Ellis and Ryn embark on a journey that will take them deep into the heart of the mountains, where they will have to face both the curse and the long-hidden truths about themselves.

Review: Given that it’s almost October and Halloween is coming up quickly, I thought it was time to keep my eyes out for a fantasy novel that I could point to when asked if I read anything spooky. I’m not up to Kate’s level of horror, but I thought that this mixture of what sounds like a zombie story and a fairytale would do the trick! And boy oh boy was I right! It’s really the best thing when you go into a book with zero expectations and end up with a huge hit on your hands!

Ever since her father disappeared, presumed dead, Ryn has taken up his mantle as the village grave digger, scraping by a meager existence for herself and brother and sister. She cares for them with the respect and peace they deserve, laying them to rest in the warm earth. And she, more than anyone else, is struck by the wrongness when the dead don’t stay that way and begin to roam free. Soon enough the risen dead become more than an occasional nuisance, and Ryn and a young map-maker, Ellis, embark on a dangerous trek through the dead-infested woods to track down the origins of an old curse hoping to give the bone houses the rest they finally deserve.

First things first, whomever wrote this book description did a very poor job. If you haven’t read it already, DON’T! Not only does it get several things wrong, it also spoils a decent-sized reveal that comes up in the book! Luckily for me, I hadn’t read it (or maybe did months ago when I requested an ARC of this book), so I was still surprised, but what were they thinking? Things like this really highlight how often the people writing these descriptions either didn’t read the entire book or skimmed through it so quickly that they didn’t even catch the fact that hey, some of these things are best left discovered by the readers and not blabbed about in your dang blurb! Anyways.

That out of the way, man I loved this book! In many ways it’s a re-imagining of “The Black Cauldron,” down to the precocious animal friend, though this time it’s a goat instead of a pig. The fairytale and quest of the story loosely tie to that tale, but are also unique enough in their own version to remain well and truly separate. It’s kind of like how closely/loosely “Uprooted” was to “Beauty and the Beast.” The barest hints are there, but it is mostly just its own fairytale.

I also loved the messages about family, grief, and wanted-ness at the heart of this story. Ryn’s occupation as a gravedigger isn’t just a passing trait to make her badass or something; it’s a real point of entrance into a larger discussion about how people process, or don’t process, grief. Through out the story, we see many different approaches to managing loss and the story does a lovely job of delving into the challenges of loving someone who will one day leave you. At its heart, we see that love can be both the greatest blessing but also the most painful of curses.

Ryn and Ellis were amazing lead characters as well. Ryn’s bravery and stubbornness were endearing and realistic in a way that is often lost in other YA leading ladies who are also, of course, brave and stubborn (since somehow those have become default traits for heroines in YA). These traits felt based in the story of her life up to the point at which the reader meets her, and we aren’t just told she is these things: we see it again and again, for better or worse. Ellis was also excellent. He deals with chronic pain and I appreciated the way this was handled and discussed. There are some excellent points made about the way he approaches his own life and the challenges of dealing with others and how they perceive him due to it. But this also doesn’t define his character, and his journey is one of self-discovery and sheer determination.

There is a romance in this story as well, though it, too, feels earned and is definitely a slow burn story. I particularly appreciated how when the characters first meet and then part ways, neither thinks anything more of it, each still rightly focused on their own lives and missions. No instalove to be found here.

Obviously, given the bone houses themselves, the story would definitely fall under the category of a darker fantasy story. I really liked how the “zombies,” essentially, were never just big bad monsters. There was always a tinge of sadness and “wrongness” that could be found there that made them feel like more than simple, disposable monsters. This darkness was also balanced out by some unexpectedly funny moments of dialogue that helped lift the story out of what could have been a rather gloomy place.

At its heart, this is a pretty simple, standalone fairytale fantasy story. But it does everything it needed to do and had a lot to say about the ties of love and the challenges of death. The characters were lovely, the adventure was fun, and the romance was sweet and understated. I definitely recommend this book for fans of “Uprooted” and “Sorcery of Thorns.”

Rating 9: A superb fairytale, deftly drawing upon “The Black Cauldron” to bring us an entirely fresh-feeling story of love and grief.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Bone Houses” is a new title, so it isn’t on many relevant Goodreads lists, but it should be one “Best Standalone Fantasy Books.”

Find “The Bones Houses” at your library using WorldCat!

Book: “The Girl the Sea Gave Back” by Adrienne Young

Publishing Info: Wednesday Books, September 2019

Where Did I Get this Book: NetGalley

Book Description: For as long as she can remember, Tova has lived among the Svell, the people who found her washed ashore as a child and use her for her gift as a Truthtongue. Her own home and clan are long-faded memories, but the sacred symbols and staves inked over every inch of her skin mark her as one who can cast the rune stones and see into the future. She has found a fragile place among those who fear her, but when two clans to the east bury their age-old blood feud and join together as one, her world is dangerously close to collapse.

For the first time in generations, the leaders of the Svell are divided. Should they maintain peace or go to war with the allied clans to protect their newfound power? And when their chieftain looks to Tova to cast the stones, she sets into motion a series of events that will not only change the landscape of the mainland forever but will give her something she believed she could never have again—a home.

Review: Here’s another example of a cover that has a model but is still super cool to look at. Notably, she’s wearing clothes appropriate to her character and it depicts a scene that seems to connect with the title and description pretty well. Always love to see that! But, cover aside, I really decided to check this book out based on my enjoyment of the author’s previous book, “Sky in the Deep.” As I mentioned in the Highlights post, it’s always exciting to find standalone fantasy novels. And when you have an author who chooses to write multiple standalones, but in the same world, it’s like getting your cake and eating it, too.

Tova’s remembered life began alone, cold on the sea. It’s only through fate, it seems, that her small craft washes up on shore and she is taken in by a people who are both mystified and wary of her mysterious origins and the power she possesses. As a young woman, she is drawn into a brewing conflict, both internal and external, as the Svell people debate the merits of war. With two of the major tribes having joined together, the Svell see this as their time to rise. But Tova sees darkness ahead. Will they listen to their own mystic, or is she, and the young warrior Halvard from the opposing tribe, doomed to be caught up in another round of warfare?

Sadly, this book wasn’t as much of a hit for me as the first one. I think there are a few factors, but first I want to talk about the things I did like. I was again pleased to return to this world that Young has created. The Viking-like mythology is still intriguing, as is the way of life and cultures that are described for the various clans. The writing itself is still solid and I think she did a good job balancing out introducing new characters and themes, while also giving readers a few peaks at what is going on with beloved characters and arcs from the first book.

All of that said, however, I just wasn’t able to connect with this story the way I was able to with the first. Part of this might come down to the dueling narrators. Having two narrators means that the author needs to balance two characters’ worth of story, emotional motivation, and overall arc with only half the page time that one alone would have. There are obviously benefits in getting to see various characters’ differing perspectives, but it’s still quite challenging. Here, I think both main characters suffered for the lack of full devotion to either.

Halvard, to some extent, was better served in the fact that I at least was familiar with him from the first book and had a bit more emotional investment right off the bat. Tova, however, the titular “girl the sea gave back” always felt a bit bland. Her backstory is intriguing, and her life growing up as a powerful mystic but one who is still seen as an outsider in the clan that has adopted her is compelling. But for some reason, I struggled to fully invest in her story. In the end, both main characters lack the spark that gave life to the main character from the first book.

The plot was also incredibly predictable. To some extent, the same could be said of “Sky in the Deep,” but I think there was enough of a personal arc of her discovery of her brother in the midst of her enemy’s camp and the slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance to keep the plot failings afloat. But, as discussed, with flat characters, the plot failings become much more apparent. Must of the story revolves around a discussion of fate and destiny. These themes can be compelling if taken apart and contrasted against free will and choice. But here they are simply wielded as clumsy explanations for why unlikely events occurred, hand-waving away coincidences one way and another.

“Destiny” also killed the romance of this story. For one, there was simply a lot less of one than there was in the first, which I personally found disappointing. But for two, what romance we were given was one meet-cute away from instalove, right down to the almost deadly brawl that somehow ends with a “connection.” With all of that destiny and intertwinedness to go around, the reader is never given a reason to root for these two, as we’ve been told from the start that it is simply meant to be. The characters don’t need to build up feelings for each other, they just know they’re there, even across time and space almost.

Overall, this was a very flat story for me. I struggled to find anything to connect to and by the end reading it felt more like a chore to get through. How disappointing, based on the strength of the first story and the fact that the author clearly has skills. In many ways, it almost feels like this would be the author’s first book, and that one the one she pulls out later in all of its more-polished glory. I’m not writing the author off completely, as I know she has good stories in her. This one just wasn’t one of them.

Rating 6: Fans of the first book should beware that this is in many ways “Sky in the Deep” lite.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Girl the Sea Gave Back” is, weirdly, on this Goodreads list: “Summery vibes.”

Find “The Girl the Sea Gave Back” at your library using WorldCat!