Review: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

The Bone Season is a fantastic original.  Samantha Shannon has written an impressive first book and I look forward to reading more from this debut author.  Her writing was captivating and the world she created was complex and fascinating.  It was like learning a new language (don't worry, there's a glossary!), but once I understood what was going on, I was completely engrossed with the story, which was fresh and exciting.  It pushed all the right buttons and pulled all the right heartstrings.

Paige Mahoney is a clairvoyant in a world where clairvoyance is a crime.  Working for the syndicate, the criminal underworld, Paige uses her gift as a dreamwalker to spy for her boss Jaxon Hall.  When an accident leads to her arrest, Paige is taken to Sheol I only to find out that instead of a government prison, Sheol I is actually a city ruled by a race called the Rephaim who have been around for centuries and use voyants as soldiers.  Paige is assigned to Warden, her Rephaite keeper who will be responsible for housing and training her.  But as Paige realizes that Nashira, the Rephaim blood-sovereign (super scary lady), wants something more from her, she plots to escape back home to her syndicate gang and her life of crime that she feels so safe in. 

I loved Paige as a heroine.  She's proud but caring.  She's loyal and clever and incredibly strong.  I felt like I got along really well with her personality.  Her actions and dialogue never frustrated me and I trusted her instincts and motives.   Her vulnerability only endeared me to her more.  Paige is someone I could definitely connect with and I enjoyed spending time with and getting to know her.  I also really liked Warden's character.  He was definitely a difficult puzzle to solve and his calm exterior made it difficult for me to read him, but with each act of kindness and new piece of information that I found out about him, the more invested I became.  I began rooting for both characters who seemed to want opposite things.  Their dynamic was interesting and the way they progressed was intriguing.  Two words - tension and knife.

With all the hype going around about this book, I had high expectations and I am pleased to reveal that I was not disappointed.  It wasn't a fast read but I was very happy taking my time with it.  The Bone Season is an inventive story that reminded me what I love about fantasy - exploring new worlds and embracing other people's imaginations - the closest I'll ever come to dreamwalking.  

 

Review by @MaryMunar

 

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Author: Samantha Shannon - follow her on Twitter.
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release Date: August 20, 2013
Series: Yes
Genre: Fantasy

Pages: 480 pages