Silver in the Bone Book Review

 Silver in the Bone

by Alexandra Bracken

Release Date: April 4, 2023 

Genre: Fantasy

Age Range: YA

Series: Silver in the Bone

Goodreads Avg. Rating: 3.92 stars

Okay, from the first day, I wasn't very into the story. I wanted to like it a lot as it revolves around Arthurian legends. So I kept going.

This is an urban fantasy, somewhat. It does start in our world but then there is also Avalon. The majority of the book will take place on the isle of legend. Here the old magics are still following. There are fantastical creatures and of course, the priestesses that guard the isle. Most of the lore of the book comes from tales of Arthur and Avalon that were in the mortal realm. There are a few told by the priestesses. Thus we didn't get a lot of world-building for the book.

Magic in this series is pretty straightforward. Those that can see it are said to have the One Vision. Only priestesses or sorceresses can harness magic in the mortal world. They do so with a language of symbols. Thus once imbued those items can be used by others. Even others without the One Vision.

Tamsin Lark has spent her whole life afraid. For the last several years she's just been trying to hold everything together. Her brother Cabel has been cursed their whole life and is slowly losing more control of it. She is a very difficult person because of her childhood. This makes her see the worst in every situation. Still, she refuses to give up hope on finding a cure for Cabel.

Tamsin and Cabel are Hollowers, a guild around the world that hunts for magical artifacts (tomb raiders). This is a difficult job for Tamsin, as she does not have the One Vision, but for access to their stores of knowledge, she'll do anything. This means even taking the riskiest of jobs from the scariest sorceress. When tempted to find a ring that just might save her brother Tamsin agrees without realizing the full cost. She is not the only one searching, Emrys Dye is determined to stick to Tamsin until the ring is found. The path to the ring leads to legends and truths lost to time.

The last part of the book picked up a lot. However, the ending villain wasn't really that surprising. How the events played out was different though. There was a large level of devastation and heartbreak. The events almost ruined all the character growth Tamsin had managed. It is set up to have a sequel with larger stakes. Thus there wasn't a resolution to this book, like even a little one.

I almost didn't make it to the halfway point. This book had to be broken down to be able to get through. The story has promise and the myths it is based around are great. What was ruining the book for me was Tamsin herself. I get being cynical and distrustful because of past trauma. However, the way she was just didn't make me want to keep going. I'm not sure about the next book right now. To find out how this might end I could read it, maybe.

You can find this book from the below retailers:

Amazon     Barnes & Noble