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effingunicorns's review against another edition
4.0
Whoever wrote the summary for this book needs to get off of BookTok, because the expectations I went in with were wildly misinformed. What you might think this book is about, based on the summary, cover, and available digital sample text: a young woman caught between the twin points of family drama and some manner of entanglement with mermaids, probably inherently connected, and all centered around the family's ancestral coastal home. Maybe like What Big Teeth, except with more marriage plots and fewer werewolves. What the book is actually about: the main character dodges all of that stuff early on to go traipsing into the countryside through a series of fairy tales and folklore, gets entangled in a whole other set of family drama, and finally addresses the issues she entered the story on almost as an afterthought.
It's not by any means a bad book--I love fairy tale bullshit, so I would've gone for it either way--but it's very much a different beast from what the available information would indicate, and I think people should be aware of that.
It's not by any means a bad book--I love fairy tale bullshit, so I would've gone for it either way--but it's very much a different beast from what the available information would indicate, and I think people should be aware of that.
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual content, Incest, and Domestic abuse
flyingwuzzle's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Kidnapping, Gore, Death of parent, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Slavery, Alcohol, Sexual content, Incest, Child death, Abandonment, Blood, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, and Physical abuse
lindsayflor_95's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Incest, and Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Death of parent, Incest, and Child death
xeniba's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
I found this verrrrry slow going and while it picked up near the end I found it very predictable. It’s one that interested me just enough to keep reading, but it could/should have been a DNF for me.
zenalth’s review captures pretty much exactly how I felt about this book.
zenalth’s review captures pretty much exactly how I felt about this book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder, Sexual content, and Physical abuse
arielkahn's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Sexual content
imaginaryalchemist's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is a dark, haunting fantasy story about family secrets and forging your own path.
I loved the stories within the story that helped unravel the mystery of Miren's family. (They're apparently all in a collection AG Slatter wrote, and I'd love to read it if I can get my hands on a copy.)
I love stories with magical and supernatural elements, so I enjoyed the inclusion of mythical and folkloric creatures. Mer feature very heavily in the story, and it also has creatures such as selkies and kelpies.
I also enjoyed the way the story's many mysteries unravelled. It kept me engaged. I wanted to see Miren solve them and learn all her family's secrets.
Slatter's prose drew me in immediately. It helped paint the picture of the world Miren lives in.
Overall I greatly enjoyed this book! I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in dark, gothic fantasy and folklore.
I loved the stories within the story that helped unravel the mystery of Miren's family. (They're apparently all in a collection AG Slatter wrote, and I'd love to read it if I can get my hands on a copy.)
I love stories with magical and supernatural elements, so I enjoyed the inclusion of mythical and folkloric creatures. Mer feature very heavily in the story, and it also has creatures such as selkies and kelpies.
I also enjoyed the way the story's many mysteries unravelled. It kept me engaged. I wanted to see Miren solve them and learn all her family's secrets.
Slatter's prose drew me in immediately. It helped paint the picture of the world Miren lives in.
Overall I greatly enjoyed this book! I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in dark, gothic fantasy and folklore.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest, Murder, and Child death
Minor: Domestic abuse and Sexual content
There are a couple scenes with sexual content but it doesn't get graphic. There are also mentions of the abuse Miren experiences at the hands of her cousin Aidan. There are, however, a lot of mentions of incest, child sacrifice, child death, and murder.briely's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, Death, and Murder
Minor: Domestic abuse, Incest, and Sexual content
montereads's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
3.5
Thanks to Netgalley for the eARC.
All the Murmuring Bones is a story of resilience and reclamation swathed in an eerie, gothic shroud. The novel draws up the weight of history, of story, of other people’s wants and follies and decisions, and Miren’s tale is about fighting for one’s freedom against these forces.
It has a slow start. Miren is a ghost of a character at first, but a quarter of the way through the book she shakes off the dust of a generations-long slumber and the plot picks up. I followed the story with interest, but I can’t say that it ever gripped me. The structure wasn’t particularly satisfying and the ending didn’t elicit much excitement from me because of this. Unfortunately, there were also subtle moments of fatphobia throughout that made me uncomfortable, and I’m not sure the novel succeeded in undermining the classism of the O’Malley’s, though it seemed to be trying.
With a lukewarm plot and a one-dimensional vision of freedom, what held my attention? Well, the atmosphere. While reading this, I pictured many of the places I visited in Scotland. In addition to the strong folktale elements, the feel of the landscape was grey, green, and damp, full of streams and cliffs and salt water and crumbling stone. I loved the haphazard inclusion of many different mythical creatures, the folk magic, the strange Victorian and sometimes almost steampunk glimpses we were given into the wider world. And it was satisfying to see, over and over again, how Miren could defy the expectations of the men around her.
I enjoyed and appreciated this book, though I had some criticisms. And it certainly wet my appetite for more mermaid books!
All the Murmuring Bones is a story of resilience and reclamation swathed in an eerie, gothic shroud. The novel draws up the weight of history, of story, of other people’s wants and follies and decisions, and Miren’s tale is about fighting for one’s freedom against these forces.
It has a slow start. Miren is a ghost of a character at first, but a quarter of the way through the book she shakes off the dust of a generations-long slumber and the plot picks up. I followed the story with interest, but I can’t say that it ever gripped me. The structure wasn’t particularly satisfying and the ending didn’t elicit much excitement from me because of this. Unfortunately, there were also subtle moments of fatphobia throughout that made me uncomfortable, and I’m not sure the novel succeeded in undermining the classism of the O’Malley’s, though it seemed to be trying.
With a lukewarm plot and a one-dimensional vision of freedom, what held my attention? Well, the atmosphere. While reading this, I pictured many of the places I visited in Scotland. In addition to the strong folktale elements, the feel of the landscape was grey, green, and damp, full of streams and cliffs and salt water and crumbling stone. I loved the haphazard inclusion of many different mythical creatures, the folk magic, the strange Victorian and sometimes almost steampunk glimpses we were given into the wider world. And it was satisfying to see, over and over again, how Miren could defy the expectations of the men around her.
I enjoyed and appreciated this book, though I had some criticisms. And it certainly wet my appetite for more mermaid books!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Sexism
Moderate: Miscarriage and Sexual content
Minor: Incest and Sexual assault
aliyyah's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
4.0
“They cannot burn every single woman, tempting though it might be.”
This was such an interesting read!
All the Murmuring Bones is about a girl named Miren, who belongs to a family that once prospered because of a deal struck with the Mer. Over the years, however, the family has become unable to keep up their end of the bargain and have fallen into decline. Miren’s grandmother is determined to restore their glory, even at the price of her granddaughter’s freedom but Miren is determined to choose her own path in life.
I loved the plot of this book. It genuinely read like a fairytale and I highly enjoyed the way the story was told. I really liked the little secrets about Miren’s family and their history that were uncovered throughout the story as well, as it added another level of intrigue to the novel.
While we meet many characters in this book, its main focus is on our protagonist, Miren. We follow her journey throughout the novel, watching as she deals with whatever obstacle is thrown her way. I really enjoyed reading about Miren. She’s clever, determined and constantly underestimated by those around her. I love the way she takes control of her life and does whatever is necessary in order to be free. I also liked that, despite growing up starved for love and affection, she still ensures to be kind to everyone around her.
The writing, unfortunately, fell a little flat to me. One thing that I loved, however was the creatures that are scattered throughout this book. We meet Mer, Kelpies and ghosts and witches and spell craft are also constantly mentioned. This created such a magical setting and I wish we had seen more of this element. The world building fell short to me, especially as I could never even pinpoint what exact time period we were in so certain things kept pulling me out of the story. It just felt extremely surface level. In addition, as much as I loved Mirren, I still felt unable to truly connect with her and there were times in the book where I had to really push through.
Overall though, I really liked the vibes of this one and I’d certainly recommend it to fans of fairytales.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Titan Books, for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!
This was such an interesting read!
All the Murmuring Bones is about a girl named Miren, who belongs to a family that once prospered because of a deal struck with the Mer. Over the years, however, the family has become unable to keep up their end of the bargain and have fallen into decline. Miren’s grandmother is determined to restore their glory, even at the price of her granddaughter’s freedom but Miren is determined to choose her own path in life.
I loved the plot of this book. It genuinely read like a fairytale and I highly enjoyed the way the story was told. I really liked the little secrets about Miren’s family and their history that were uncovered throughout the story as well, as it added another level of intrigue to the novel.
While we meet many characters in this book, its main focus is on our protagonist, Miren. We follow her journey throughout the novel, watching as she deals with whatever obstacle is thrown her way. I really enjoyed reading about Miren. She’s clever, determined and constantly underestimated by those around her. I love the way she takes control of her life and does whatever is necessary in order to be free. I also liked that, despite growing up starved for love and affection, she still ensures to be kind to everyone around her.
The writing, unfortunately, fell a little flat to me. One thing that I loved, however was the creatures that are scattered throughout this book. We meet Mer, Kelpies and ghosts and witches and spell craft are also constantly mentioned. This created such a magical setting and I wish we had seen more of this element. The world building fell short to me, especially as I could never even pinpoint what exact time period we were in so certain things kept pulling me out of the story. It just felt extremely surface level. In addition, as much as I loved Mirren, I still felt unable to truly connect with her and there were times in the book where I had to really push through.
Overall though, I really liked the vibes of this one and I’d certainly recommend it to fans of fairytales.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Titan Books, for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Grief, Incest, Misogyny, and Sexual content
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