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4.14 AVERAGE
4.14 AVERAGE
May Contain Spoilers
I love this series, and have been eagerly awaiting the final installment. Real Life kept getting in the way of reading my eArc, however, but I finally found a chunk of time to set aside to do nothing but read Etched in Bone. This was everything I had hoped for and more. I was left with happy tingles by the end, and getting there was an adventure with all of the residents of the Courtyard. When Meg encounters danger, she isn’t a passive victim, but instead takes control of her own rescue. She has grown a lot, and Simon, the growly Wolf, has also been changed from his interactions with the young blood prophet.
When Monty’s brother Cyrus arrives in Lakeside, he knows it will spell trouble. He asks Simon and the Others to not allow him into the Courtyard, but the Elders have other ideas. They want to see how a bad human affects the good humans, and they force Simon to allow Cyrus and his family to stay.
Cyrus and his family cause a ripple of unease and discontent through the Courtyard residents. I hated Cyrus – absolutely Hated. Him. If I had one complaint about this book, it is that the villain was too one-dimensional. Even his point of view was full of hateful thoughts and opinions of the other characters, as Cyrus only ever thinks of anyone but himself. He has no morals and his only motivations are taking what he wants from the suckers that surround him. I kept wishing Simon or Henry would just eat him and get it over with.
The relationships between the humans and the Others are the major focus of the novels. Meg has changed everyone, humans as well as Others. Before Meg’s arrival at Howling Good Reads, Simon saw humans as meat. After he gets to know Meg and her pack of exploding fluffballs, he begins to see them as something else. All of the Others begin to see the humans as something else, and while Meg will always hold the dearest spot in their hearts, they begin to care for the other humans interacting with the Courtyard as well. The strengthening of bonds is the heart of Etched in Bone. Despite adversity and a catalyst for conflict, the friendships that have been built over the previous novels are tested, and in the end, hold firm. While there was doubt that humans and Others would ever view each other with anything other than suspicion, the actions of one special human prove that there’s a common ground for everyone.
Grade: 5 stars
I love this series, and have been eagerly awaiting the final installment. Real Life kept getting in the way of reading my eArc, however, but I finally found a chunk of time to set aside to do nothing but read Etched in Bone. This was everything I had hoped for and more. I was left with happy tingles by the end, and getting there was an adventure with all of the residents of the Courtyard. When Meg encounters danger, she isn’t a passive victim, but instead takes control of her own rescue. She has grown a lot, and Simon, the growly Wolf, has also been changed from his interactions with the young blood prophet.
When Monty’s brother Cyrus arrives in Lakeside, he knows it will spell trouble. He asks Simon and the Others to not allow him into the Courtyard, but the Elders have other ideas. They want to see how a bad human affects the good humans, and they force Simon to allow Cyrus and his family to stay.
Cyrus and his family cause a ripple of unease and discontent through the Courtyard residents. I hated Cyrus – absolutely Hated. Him. If I had one complaint about this book, it is that the villain was too one-dimensional. Even his point of view was full of hateful thoughts and opinions of the other characters, as Cyrus only ever thinks of anyone but himself. He has no morals and his only motivations are taking what he wants from the suckers that surround him. I kept wishing Simon or Henry would just eat him and get it over with.
The relationships between the humans and the Others are the major focus of the novels. Meg has changed everyone, humans as well as Others. Before Meg’s arrival at Howling Good Reads, Simon saw humans as meat. After he gets to know Meg and her pack of exploding fluffballs, he begins to see them as something else. All of the Others begin to see the humans as something else, and while Meg will always hold the dearest spot in their hearts, they begin to care for the other humans interacting with the Courtyard as well. The strengthening of bonds is the heart of Etched in Bone. Despite adversity and a catalyst for conflict, the friendships that have been built over the previous novels are tested, and in the end, hold firm. While there was doubt that humans and Others would ever view each other with anything other than suspicion, the actions of one special human prove that there’s a common ground for everyone.
Grade: 5 stars
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Really liked this one, a bunch better than the last one. This stays mostly in Lakeside so we get a lot of our friends. A manipulative brother of Monty comes to Lakeside and although everyone knows he is bad business, he ends up causing trouble. It sounds strange so we are left wondering how long we are going to put up with him.
My main issue for this not being 5 stars is that putting up with him was just too long and since they were on to his manipulations, I didn't understand why he wouldn't change up, pull back and regroup. Instead he escalates and that just doesn't make sense. He is warned. If he is so good at manipulating, he should be able to have more skill but he ends up just being a bad person who is not very intelligent.
I loved all the interaction with the characters and seeing our Lakeside develop.
Spoiler
but the elder others want to study why some people are disruptive to normal humansMy main issue for this not being 5 stars is that putting up with him was just too long and since they were on to his manipulations, I didn't understand why he wouldn't change up, pull back and regroup. Instead he escalates and that just doesn't make sense. He is warned. If he is so good at manipulating, he should be able to have more skill but he ends up just being a bad person who is not very intelligent.
I loved all the interaction with the characters and seeing our Lakeside develop.
My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.
4.5 stars
This is one of my favorite series. I love the really dark aspects of the others in this series. If you’re not familiar with this series, the others are supernatural creatures that are less human than most of what you read in UF/PNR. These are animals that have mimicked humans, but really have no use for them. The think of humans a “monkeys”. That is until Meg Corbyn stumbled into their courtyard in the first book. Everything else, as they say, is history.
So, in the previous book, Namid’s teeth and claws put a stop to the Humans First and Last movement. The Lakeside Courtyard is trying to get things back into a sense of normalcy. More of the human and police packs have moved into the courtyard. Meg is working to tell prophecy with her cards instead of cutting.
The Elders are trying to decide which humans they should keep and which should be killed off to prevent another attack. When Monty’s con-artist brother shows up, the Elders make Simon let him stay so that they could study him. Simon tries to talk them out of it, but they don’t understand how a single human could cause more chaos than all the terra indigene, elementals and elders could handle.
Ending a series is a tough thing. I’ve read some really great books that end a series. I’ve also read some that left me disappointed and it taints the entire series. While this book was amazing, it didn’t really feel like an ending to a series to me. I felt like there could me more to this series. I don’t want to give the impression that I didn’t enjoy this book, I did, a LOT. It just didn’t feel like a series finale to me. It didn’t have the that wrap up, that I’m used to. Maybe I’ll feel better about the ending of this series after I read the first spinoff book and see where Ms. Bishop takes this world. You can bet that I will be all over her next book.
Narration
I’ve been listening to this series since book one. I’ve always enjoyed Alexandra Harris’s narration. I think she is the perfect voice for Meg. I also like her voices of all the other characters too. I think she does a great job with elementals and Elders. Growly, Simon. I don’t know that it could’ve been done better. I’ve not listened to her read any other books besides this series, but I would definitely grab anything with her as the narrator.
**I like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
4.5 stars
This is one of my favorite series. I love the really dark aspects of the others in this series. If you’re not familiar with this series, the others are supernatural creatures that are less human than most of what you read in UF/PNR. These are animals that have mimicked humans, but really have no use for them. The think of humans a “monkeys”. That is until Meg Corbyn stumbled into their courtyard in the first book. Everything else, as they say, is history.
So, in the previous book, Namid’s teeth and claws put a stop to the Humans First and Last movement. The Lakeside Courtyard is trying to get things back into a sense of normalcy. More of the human and police packs have moved into the courtyard. Meg is working to tell prophecy with her cards instead of cutting.
The Elders are trying to decide which humans they should keep and which should be killed off to prevent another attack. When Monty’s con-artist brother shows up, the Elders make Simon let him stay so that they could study him. Simon tries to talk them out of it, but they don’t understand how a single human could cause more chaos than all the terra indigene, elementals and elders could handle.
Ending a series is a tough thing. I’ve read some really great books that end a series. I’ve also read some that left me disappointed and it taints the entire series. While this book was amazing, it didn’t really feel like an ending to a series to me. I felt like there could me more to this series. I don’t want to give the impression that I didn’t enjoy this book, I did, a LOT. It just didn’t feel like a series finale to me. It didn’t have the that wrap up, that I’m used to. Maybe I’ll feel better about the ending of this series after I read the first spinoff book and see where Ms. Bishop takes this world. You can bet that I will be all over her next book.
Narration
I’ve been listening to this series since book one. I’ve always enjoyed Alexandra Harris’s narration. I think she is the perfect voice for Meg. I also like her voices of all the other characters too. I think she does a great job with elementals and Elders. Growly, Simon. I don’t know that it could’ve been done better. I’ve not listened to her read any other books besides this series, but I would definitely grab anything with her as the narrator.
**I like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
5 stars - I loved it!
We finally come to the end of Meg and Simon’s story! I am extremely glad that I waited to read this series until it was completely out because I would have gone crazy waiting for each installment. This has been a wild and fascinating world and I couldn’t put it down. I have spent the past week binging this series and I don’t regret it at all.
In this final book, we see a lot happening for the humans and terra indigene. The Elders are still watching and determining how many humans, if any at all, they will allow to live and everyone at Lakeside Courtyard is feeling the tension. They are focused on Cyrus James Montgomery, aka Jimmy, who is Lieutenant Montgomery’s brother. He is a con artist and see’s Lakeside as easy cash since his family already resides there. Jimmy was a toxic character and did a lot of damage in this book, but it also brought the humans and Others together in a new way.
Meg is finally settling into prophesying without cutting. She is still learning but her response isn’t always to cut now. She is becoming the role model the other cassandra sangue need. Simon is also changing by becoming more human in some aspects. After five books, Meg and Simon finally discuss mating and admit they want each other. I have loved their extremely slow building romance but I am so happy they finally admitted it. I would really love to see more books with these two in the future because I really want to see them as a strong mated couple running Lakeside.
Overall, this was another great addition to the series and a good ending. Yes there isn’t a lot of heavy romance but instead we get a wonderful and sweet slow building romance that is built on trust and understanding. I will totally be reading the spin-off series and all of Bishop’s other series now.
Trigger Warnings: death; gore; self-harm; toxic family; kidnapping; abuse; threat of rape;
Disappointing because the plot was similar to all the previous books and nothing happened in their relationship until the last page.
medium-paced
This was an interesting path to go after the last book. The prior one really upped the ante a lot and felt like the end... But this one showed that it's not only the big conflicts that matter. The hardest parts of the novel for me had to do with Jimmy. I just hated ever being in his head. Obviously, that's how you are supposed to feel, though. I'd also get really irritated at how stupid some humans were when antagonizing the terra indigine after the events of the last book... Sadly, I don't doubt some people really would be that way.
There's still plenty of humor and tension and the plot ends in a nice place.
As a side note, there was this brief mention of a panthergard and a human settling into one of the reclaimed areas... and I don't know if I'm forgetting something from an earlier book or if they will be explored later. I was intrigued, though.
There's still plenty of humor and tension and the plot ends in a nice place.
As a side note, there was this brief mention of a panthergard and a human settling into one of the reclaimed areas... and I don't know if I'm forgetting something from an earlier book or if they will be explored later. I was intrigued, though.
Etched in Bone is book five in The Others series. While this is the last Meg Corbyn story, it isn't the last in this world. We'll have a new leading character and town in the next installment which is set to release in 2018. I'm happy to report that this novel is focused a bit more on the Lakeside Courtyard compared to the previous book. That means we get more face time with our favorite cassandra sangue, Meg Corbyn and the Courtyard's leader, Simon Wolfgard.
We start off with the Lakeside Courtyard still recovering from the Elders attack in the previous book and the humans are trying to see if the terra indigene plan on letting them stay. Throughout this series Meg has changed how the terra indigene looks at humans, they're not just meat anymore. There's a very uneasy alliance happening but the order must be maintained. The Lakeside Courtyard is doing well compared to other towns but it still has its own issues. A good portion of the book is about Cyrus Montgomery aka Jimmy who comes into town to mooch and con his way into an easy life. He thinks because his family is there that he'll be able to get a free ride, he didn't count on the fact that the terra indigene will not tolerate his behavior.
The rest of the book we have Meg who is trying her best to figure out if the prophecy cards will work for the cassandra sangue girls that were rescued from compounds. It's looking promising since she's getting used to telling the future with them instead of having to cut herself. But when a future undecided prophecy continues to show up and Lieutenant Montgomery's brother Jimmy comes to town looking for handouts, trouble is sure to follow. If that isn't enough, the Elders decide now is a good time to go to Lakeside and get to know more about the humans. It's a bad situation all around and you don't need to wait long before drama unfolds.
Etched in Bone is an excellent conclusion to a series I adore. I'm hoping we get to see glimpses into Meg and Simon's life in the future books though since I will miss their characters. ABishop weaves an enthralling story and the series is a must read. For the readers wanting Meg and Simon in a relationship like I have this entire time, I can say don't get your hopes up too high. Meg is still trying to figure out her feelings for Simon and the duo are closer than ever but both are slow movers which is understandable. If you're a fan of Urban Fantasy with little to no romance I highly recommend this series, you'll get hooked from book one.
We start off with the Lakeside Courtyard still recovering from the Elders attack in the previous book and the humans are trying to see if the terra indigene plan on letting them stay. Throughout this series Meg has changed how the terra indigene looks at humans, they're not just meat anymore. There's a very uneasy alliance happening but the order must be maintained. The Lakeside Courtyard is doing well compared to other towns but it still has its own issues. A good portion of the book is about Cyrus Montgomery aka Jimmy who comes into town to mooch and con his way into an easy life. He thinks because his family is there that he'll be able to get a free ride, he didn't count on the fact that the terra indigene will not tolerate his behavior.
The rest of the book we have Meg who is trying her best to figure out if the prophecy cards will work for the cassandra sangue girls that were rescued from compounds. It's looking promising since she's getting used to telling the future with them instead of having to cut herself. But when a future undecided prophecy continues to show up and Lieutenant Montgomery's brother Jimmy comes to town looking for handouts, trouble is sure to follow. If that isn't enough, the Elders decide now is a good time to go to Lakeside and get to know more about the humans. It's a bad situation all around and you don't need to wait long before drama unfolds.
Etched in Bone is an excellent conclusion to a series I adore. I'm hoping we get to see glimpses into Meg and Simon's life in the future books though since I will miss their characters. ABishop weaves an enthralling story and the series is a must read. For the readers wanting Meg and Simon in a relationship like I have this entire time, I can say don't get your hopes up too high. Meg is still trying to figure out her feelings for Simon and the duo are closer than ever but both are slow movers which is understandable. If you're a fan of Urban Fantasy with little to no romance I highly recommend this series, you'll get hooked from book one.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes