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worldsstrongestlibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
The second book in the fire sermon series was a little hard to get into in the beginning but was pretty enjoyable once it got going. Am I dying to read the final book in the trilogy? Not so much, but I will check it out when it comes along. A solid series but not enough twists and turns to take my breath away.
allaboutfrodo's review against another edition
4.0
The Map of Bones is the second book in Francesca Haig’s Fire Sermon trilogy. I didn’t like The Map of Bones as much as the first book, The Fire Sermon, but I’m giving it four stars since I can’t give it 3.5. The Map of Bones is easy to get into and easy to read, and it has a strong female lead. I will read the final book when it is published.
Still, The Map of Bones didn’t really pop for me. A surprise reveal toward the end seemed a bit pointless and dispassionate, as did the secret Zoe, an Alpha fighting for the Resistance, has been carrying. I have no emotional investment in the characters and I don’t sense any real commitment and feeling between them. Narrator Cass again makes some idiotic decisions, like insisting on burying an acquaintance found hanged even though her party is in an enormous hurry. The language is sometimes a little overwrought (“We trawled those dusty rooms for hours. Walls with a tracery of rust and damp. A baby’s skull the exact weight of a nightmare.” p. 275 of the digital advance reader copy)
I do recommend The Fire Sermon trilogy for those who enjoy dystopian fiction and strong female leads, and I look forward to seeing how the trilogy wraps up. I read a digital advance reader copy of The Map of Bones.
Postscript: One thing that bothered me was that while the book is called The Map of Bones, the phrase “maze of bones” was used over a dozen times in the book while “map of bones” was only used once. I found this very distracting. As I read a digital advance reader copy, maybe the text will be changed before the final book is printed (although I think The Maze of Bones would have been a better title, and the cover could still have used an Alpha symbol as the A and an Omega symbol as the O).
Still, The Map of Bones didn’t really pop for me. A surprise reveal toward the end seemed a bit pointless and dispassionate, as did the secret Zoe, an Alpha fighting for the Resistance, has been carrying. I have no emotional investment in the characters and I don’t sense any real commitment and feeling between them. Narrator Cass again makes some idiotic decisions, like insisting on burying an acquaintance found hanged even though her party is in an enormous hurry. The language is sometimes a little overwrought (“We trawled those dusty rooms for hours. Walls with a tracery of rust and damp. A baby’s skull the exact weight of a nightmare.” p. 275 of the digital advance reader copy)
I do recommend The Fire Sermon trilogy for those who enjoy dystopian fiction and strong female leads, and I look forward to seeing how the trilogy wraps up. I read a digital advance reader copy of The Map of Bones.
Postscript: One thing that bothered me was that while the book is called The Map of Bones, the phrase “maze of bones” was used over a dozen times in the book while “map of bones” was only used once. I found this very distracting. As I read a digital advance reader copy, maybe the text will be changed before the final book is printed (although I think The Maze of Bones would have been a better title, and the cover could still have used an Alpha symbol as the A and an Omega symbol as the O).
blakesea's review against another edition
4.0
I got this book as a review copy from Netgalley. So when I requested this book I thought it was the first on the series. Plus the concept of the story was super interesting. Well,I was disappointed when I read the first book. But this book was a lot better. It moved at faster pace than The Fire Sermon and I guess I was just more interested in what was going on in this book. This one has definitely got me excited to see what happens in the last book. I like Cass a lot more than I did in the first book. Seems to me that she's stopped being so naive when it comes to her twin Zach. She definitely grew a lot and also misjudged a lot. I guess I could relate to her more in this book than the other. Strange as that sounds. I'm glad I did decide to read this one after how much I disliked the first one.
justine_ao's review against another edition
4.0
Zach had been the steady point in my life. Not a force for good--I'd seen too much of what he'd done to believe that. But a force nonetheless. I knew there was no part of me that had not been shaped by him, or against him. And if I allowed myself to slip into madness, then I could neither stop him nor save him. It would all be over.
The Map of Bones picks up where [b:The Fire Sermon|18109771|The Fire Sermon (The Fire Sermon, #1)|Francesca Haig|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1435759323s/18109771.jpg|25433352] left off. The Island has been destroyed by the Council and the resistance is being systematically dismantled. Piper, Zoe and Cass are on the run following the deadly confrontation at the Silo.
Throughout the book, Cass continues to be plagued by her visions of the blast, but now also has to contend with an almost crippling case of survivor's guilt. Guilt over the deaths of the people at the Island; guilt over the actions of her twin Zach and all the pain he has caused; and especially guilt over Kip. Even as the three of them rejoin the struggling resistance and try to make make plans to move forward, it seems that there is no path that is not fraught with more violence and death.
I felt more than ever the truth of what Zach had said on the road outside New Hobart. I was poison. He was right. Even to glimpse me now, a hooded figure in the snow, meant death. My journeys in the last few months had left a map of bones laid across the land. If I was a prophet, I foretold only death, and I fulfilled my own prophecies.
This is a very dark book in every sense. The post-nuclear apocalyptic setting; the senseless violence and casual indifference the Alphas visit upon the Omegas; and the deeply depressed Cass who simultaneously fights despair and potential madness from her visions. There isn't a lot of respite here. That said, I also got the sense that with The Map of Bones, now that the darkness has been revealed most starkly, Cass may be able to start to make her way through it. I'll have to wait for the final book to find out.
The Map of Bones picks up where [b:The Fire Sermon|18109771|The Fire Sermon (The Fire Sermon, #1)|Francesca Haig|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1435759323s/18109771.jpg|25433352] left off. The Island has been destroyed by the Council and the resistance is being systematically dismantled. Piper, Zoe and Cass are on the run following the deadly confrontation at the Silo.
Throughout the book, Cass continues to be plagued by her visions of the blast, but now also has to contend with an almost crippling case of survivor's guilt. Guilt over the deaths of the people at the Island; guilt over the actions of her twin Zach and all the pain he has caused; and especially guilt over Kip. Even as the three of them rejoin the struggling resistance and try to make make plans to move forward, it seems that there is no path that is not fraught with more violence and death.
I felt more than ever the truth of what Zach had said on the road outside New Hobart. I was poison. He was right. Even to glimpse me now, a hooded figure in the snow, meant death. My journeys in the last few months had left a map of bones laid across the land. If I was a prophet, I foretold only death, and I fulfilled my own prophecies.
This is a very dark book in every sense. The post-nuclear apocalyptic setting; the senseless violence and casual indifference the Alphas visit upon the Omegas; and the deeply depressed Cass who simultaneously fights despair and potential madness from her visions. There isn't a lot of respite here. That said, I also got the sense that with The Map of Bones, now that the darkness has been revealed most starkly, Cass may be able to start to make her way through it. I'll have to wait for the final book to find out.
verkruissen's review against another edition
4.0
This book was a wonderful follow up to The Fire Sermon. With the resistance scattered and potentially falling apart it's up to Cass, and her dwindling group of friends to find out if there really is an Elsewhere and to find out where the mysterious Ark is located.
I did find Cass' character to be a bit weak in this book. She shied away from having to kill and I understand that she finds that the fact that it kills that persons twin to be a conflict she cannot justify by killing someone. I still want her to get past that and realize that there has to be some sacrifice at times in order to achieve the outcome you want. Maybe she will realize this more in the next book. I found all the other characters developing nicely as you learn more about their past. Overall an excellent book in the series. I highly recommend it.
I did find Cass' character to be a bit weak in this book. She shied away from having to kill and I understand that she finds that the fact that it kills that persons twin to be a conflict she cannot justify by killing someone. I still want her to get past that and realize that there has to be some sacrifice at times in order to achieve the outcome you want. Maybe she will realize this more in the next book. I found all the other characters developing nicely as you learn more about their past. Overall an excellent book in the series. I highly recommend it.
caseythor's review against another edition
4.0
This was a fantastic follow up to The Fire Sermon, and picks up right after the devastating ending of the last book. Starting immediately with Cass trying to piece herself back together after unimaginable loss, and fight for survival.
Again Cass is on the run from her brother and Alpha's alike, facing the Omega Resistance and trying to fight for life where all are equal despite both sides of this conflict seeming to refuse to find a way to compromise.
My only disappointment with this book was that is was much slower paced than the previous and I found the sections where Cass discovers and reads through documents from Before (our time). It was a departure from the typical writing style and made this difficult to get through.
But nonetheless I was thoroughly loving the cast of characters that Cass has at her side, the progression of her understanding her powers and then then ending where she must confront what she has come to fear most - that Kip is not dead but is still just as much gone and out of her reach.
Again Cass is on the run from her brother and Alpha's alike, facing the Omega Resistance and trying to fight for life where all are equal despite both sides of this conflict seeming to refuse to find a way to compromise.
My only disappointment with this book was that is was much slower paced than the previous and I found the sections where Cass discovers and reads through documents from Before (our time). It was a departure from the typical writing style and made this difficult to get through.
But nonetheless I was thoroughly loving the cast of characters that Cass has at her side, the progression of her understanding her powers and then then ending where she must confront what she has come to fear most - that Kip is not dead but is still just as much gone and out of her reach.
aab0990's review against another edition
5.0
Often times with these dystopian trilogies the first book is excellent, the second book is ok, and the third book is a letdown. After finishing this second book in the series, I can only begin to wonder if Haig has broken that cycle. This book was wonderful and held my interest far more than the first book did. I read about 75% of the book in one sitting tonight and I only regret that I now need to wait until next Spring (at least) for the final book.