BOOKS | Review: Bone Crier's Moon by Kathryn Purdie

Name: Bone Crier's Moon

Author: Kathryn Purdie

Publisher: Katherine Tegan Books

Date published: March 2020

Genre: Fiction, young adult, fantasy, romance

Pages: 453

Rating: 4/5

Bone ​Criers have a sacred duty. They alone can keep the dead from preying on the living. But their power to ferry the spirits of the dead into goddess Elara’s Night Heavens or Tyrus’s Underworld comes from sacrifice. The gods demand a promise of dedication. And that promise comes at the cost of the Bone Criers’ one true love.
Ailesse has been prepared since birth to become the matriarch of the Bone Criers, a mysterious famille of women who use strengths drawn from animal bones to ferry dead souls. But first she must complete her rite of passage and kill the boy she’s also destined to love.
Bastien’s father was slain by a Bone Crier and he’s been seeking revenge ever since. Yet when he finally captures one, his vengeance will have to wait. Ailesse’s ritual has begun and now their fates are entwined—in life and in death.
Sabine has never had the stomach for the Bone Criers’ work. But when her best friend Ailesse is taken captive, Sabine will do whatever it takes to save her, even if it means defying their traditions—and their matriarch—to break the bond between Ailesse and Bastien. Before they all die.

- From Goodreads.

The beginning of Bone Crier's Moon was a little cluncky, with all the exposition and explanation of the world and magic system that it needed to do. It was a lot to take in all at once and I was a little confused at first and had to read slowly to make sure I was remembering everything.

However, once I got into the book, I really loved Sabine and Ailesse's friendship, they were so sweet and joyful around each other, really cared for each other and would do anything for each other. They worried so much for when the other was in danger and I could really feel for their love for each other so strongly.

I really felt heartbroken for them when they were treated badly by Odiva. They both so badly wanted a caring mother, and she was so awful to them. My heart especially broke for Sabine, who was so often made to feel like she was not good enough. She was so sweet and had such a good heart, it hurt when people did not value that.

It was enjoyable to read the slow growth of romance between Ailesse and Bastien, how they gradually developed from truly hating each other and wanting to kill each other, to learning more about each other and their lives, until eventually they came to care about each other and love each other.

The plot was full of twists that I did not see coming and had plenty of action that kept me turning pages. Sometimes the pacing felt a little strange but overall I enjoyed the plot and found it engaging.

One of the characters introduced towards the end of the novel seemed very interesting and I look forward to seeing how their character develops and what their role will be in the sequel. In general I think I will enjoy the next book a lot more now that most of the explanation of the magic and the gods and how all that works is done and I will have a better understanding of everything at the start of the next one.

Overall, Bone Crier's Moon was a fun and thrilling book with characters that I really liked and became attached to. If you enjoyed Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin then I think you will really love this one too. I definitely did and I am excited to read the next book in the series, Bone Crier's Dawn.

UNBOXING | FairyLoot: A Different Kind of Magic - June 2020

I was very excited when I saw the description for FairyLoot's June box, the theme of A Different Kind of Magic, along with the hints as to what would be in the box, really had me intrigued, and the box definitely did not let me down! Here is everything that was in the box:

Alice in Wonderland tea strainer.

The Shadows Between Us pin, created by jezhawk.

The Starless Sea patch, designed by dustandpages.

The Bone Season socks, designed by FairyLoot.

Avatar: The Last Airbender elemental coasters designed by noverantale.

Art print by arz28, inspired by Blood Heir by Amelie Zhao.

Theme art spoiler card and bookmark, Fairyscoop newsletter, and character art by arz28 with author letter on the back.

A Darker Shade of Magic tarot cards.

Advanced exclusive edition of The Gilded Ones by Namina Forna with sprayed edges.

Signed edition of Forest of Souls by Lori M. Lee with an exclusive cover and artwork on the reverse of the dust jacket by arz28.

Overall this was a really brilliant box, with a great amount of interesting items. I think my favourites were the tea strainer and the pin! I will be looking forward to reading both of the books that came inside this box, and it is especially exciting that we got an advanced edition of The Gilded Ones! If you also received this box, let me know which item you liked best, and if you have read either of the books let me know your thoughts down in the comments below.

If you would like to find out more about FairyLoot, you can visit their website here.

BOOKS | Review: The Dark Vault by V.E. Schwab

Name: The Dark Vault

Author: V.E. Schwab

Publisher: Titan Books

Date published: November 2018

Genre: Fiction, young adult, fantasy

Pages: 697

Rating: 5/5

This review contains vague and non-specific spoilers.

Imagine a place where the dead rest on shelves like books.
Each body has a story to tell, a life seen in pictures only Librarians can read. The dead are called Histories, and the vast realm in which they rest is the Archive.
Mackenzie Bishop’s grandfather first brought her here four years ago, when she was twelve years old, frightened but determined to prove herself. Now her grandfather is dead, and Mac has grown into what he once was: a ruthless Keeper, tasked with stopping often-violent Histories from waking up and getting out. Because of her job, she lies to the people she loves, and she knows fear for what it is: a useful tool for staying alive.

- From Goodreads.

The Dark Vault had incredible description and the writing style was so immersive, I could really picture each scene and feel like I was right inside it. It was very atmospheric. Sometimes the way the action was written was not that easy to follow, but mostly I understood what was happening. There were just a few moments where perhaps it could have been more clearly written.

There were lots of little details in the writing that really made the characters come alive and feel real to me. There were also some very amusing and humourous moments in the writing that gave Mackenzie's narrative voice a lot of personality.

At times Mackenzie was so relatable it hurt, as Schwab made painfully accurate observations about everyday life through her perspective. Mackenzie was very easy to root for, she had flaws but they were relatable and she was such a good person at heart and tried so hard to do well, I grew very attached to her. I really felt for her and worried about her when bad things happened, and wanted things to work out well for her.

Reading about the relationship between the main character and her family was very bittersweet. Mackenzie's relationship with her father was very heartwarming, they cared for each other so much and tried to show it despite the painful time they were going through. I also really loved Roland, he was such a wonderful character and it really warmed my heart how much he cared for Mackenzie too.

I loved the interactions between Mackenzie and Wesley, you could really feel the connection between them and what it meant to them. Meanwhile the story and connection between Owen and Mackenzie was so emotional and passionate in a strange way. I liked how Schwab contrasted Mackenzie's relationship with Owen and her relationship with Wesley. Owen seemed to be a metaphor for how letting yourself feel numb when dealing with grief or other difficult emotions is a bad coping mechanism. Wes showed her how to let herself feel things when people touched her without it overwhelming her, but Owen let her block it all out, and that ended up being a bad thing. Her relationship with Wes was much healthier than her relationship with Owen, and I liked how Shwab showed that.

Exposition and backstory was done through Mackenzie's memories, interspersed through the present narration in a way did not feel too overwhelming or like information was being dumped on you all at once. It made the story very enjoyable to read.

The first book's plot was very thrilling. I did not expect any of the plot twists, even though they were well set up. It tied up enough loose ends to be satisfying but also left some intriguing questions to set you up for the second book. The second book was also wrapped up in a satisfying way with a great conclusion that left room to imagine what might happen in the future of the world of the book. I was glad I read it as one whole book rather than the two separate ones because I think that worked well and it felt like one complete story rather than two.

I liked that the second book dealt with the trauma from the events of the first book. Mackenzie was so clearly effected and the author made sure to show her struggling with recovery, and made it clear that it was okay that she was affected badly by something bad happening to her, that it was okay to ask for help, and that it was not a flaw in her character that it was taking her time to overcome a traumatic event.

Overall I was really surprised by how much I came to love The Dark Vault. I grew attached to the characters, I found the plotlines exciting and the mysteries intriguing, and I found the premise to be unique and well executed. I would love to read more of Mackenzie's story if V.E. Schwab ever writes it.