Wednesday 1 February 2017

ARC Review: The Bone Witch (The Bone Witch #1) by Rin Chupeco


I have mixed feelings about this book, actually. On one hand, I really loved the characters and it was really original and unique, both the plot and the change between present time and Tea’s past. On the other hand, the plot was pretty slow, which made it difficult to get into it.
Title: The Bone Witch
Author: Rin Chupeco
My rating: 3.5 hearts
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Pub. date: March 7th 2017
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
SynopsisWhen Tea accidentally resurrects her brother from the dead, she learns she is different from the other witches in her family. Her gift for necromancy means that she’s a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community. But Tea finds solace and guidance with an older, wiser bone witch, who takes Tea and her brother to another land for training.

In her new home, Tea puts all her energy into becoming an asha — one who can wield elemental magic. But dark forces are approaching quickly, and in the face of danger, Tea will have to overcome her obstacles…and make a powerful choice.

Memoirs of a Geisha meets The Name of the Wind in this brilliant new fantasy series by Rin Chupeco! (synopsis from Goodreads)

I love Tea.

   In the beginning, she made some pretty immature things, but I can forgive that, since she really was just a child. But otherwise, I think she dealt with everything pretty well, considering everything she went through. She had to leave her family when she was just a child, had to go to a place where a lot of people treated her badly and few people were actually nice to her. But you could really tell that she grew up, she learned to take care of herself and she changed a lot. I thought it was really interesting to read about her.

   I loved the rest of the characters, too.

   There were a lot of good characters in this book. I loved Mykaela, she was just so nice and sweet to Tea, and it hurt my heart to read about how she was affected by the raising and killing of the daeva. Kance was also a good character, I loved seeing how his and Tea’s relationship slowly evolved through her childhood. Althy was also a really sweet character, but also pretty badass, and I liked that. But my favorite might be Polaire. I didn’t get the best impression of her at first, but it didn’t take long until I really loved her. She’s fierce and protective, but she can also be almost sweet. I loved it.

   The plot was pretty slow, I felt it was focused a bit too much on Asha politics and life in Ankyo, and with the shifting between present and past, it could get a little slow at times, and it was hard to get into it. But once things started happening, it was impossible to put it away.

   The writing style was great!

   The writing was not only good, but I loved the changes between present and past. It built the mystery up in a nice way, so that, even if it got slow at times, I couldn’t stop reading. I had to know what happened that made Tea turn on the Asha, what could be so bad that she’d abandon all the people she’d come to love and care for in Ankyo.

   The ending broke my heart!

   I don’t know what to say to avoid spoiling anything, but it completely broke my heart. It ended in a cliffhanger, and I was seriously about to start crying because I don’t want to wait to read the next book! I need to know what happened that made things the way they turned out. The ending left way too many questions unanswered, but it worked well with the book, and it certainly made sure I’ll read the next book as soon as it hits the shelves.

   So, while the plot was a little slow and boring, the characters and the mystery and the need to understand made up for it, and it was so worth reading. I would definitely recommend this book!
Despite an unsettling resemblance to Japanese revenants, Rin always maintains her sense of hummus. Born and raised in Manila, Philippines, she keeps four pets: a dog, two birds, and a husband. Dances like the neighbors are watching.

She is represented by Rebecca Podos of the Helen Rees Agency. She is also fond of speaking in the third person, and may as well finish this short bio in this manner. While she does not always get to check her Goodreads page, she does answer questions posed to her here as promptly as she is able to.

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I receive some books from authors, publishers and third party sites (such as Netgalley). This does in no way affect my opinion, and all thoughts expressed on this blog are unbiased and my own. I do not get compensated in any way or form.