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literary_steph's review
3.0
"I exhale, and it comes out as a whistle. He blinks, but then a crooked smile tugs at his mouth. Oh, by the Deep, let the deck swallow me whole."
Crown of Bones is the first book in a new YA epic fantasy series that follows a group of friends and their journey from Baiseen to the Isle of Aku for the initiation trials.
Marcus is the heir to the throne of Baiseen, a green robe and he has selected his group of five to accompany him to Aku, where he hopes to earn his yellow robe. Ash, is his best friend and recorder. It has always been her dream to record Marcus’s initiation journey (meaning she has to record every detail. The good and the ugly). Of course their journey to Aku is far from simple. Along the way they meet Kaylin, a mysterious, handsome and shirtless sailor who guides Marcus & company to Aku. Ash is immediately smitten by him but thank goodness for Ash’s inner voice to keep her grounded. I don’t blame her, he has pan flute abs and call her lass… umm swoon. Back to their journey. It isn’t an easy one. Unexpected detours and dangers, from losing their horses and gear and almost drowning, yikes!
The story isn't without its faults but it is a solid debut. It’s told from quite a few points of views but the main ones are Ash and Marcus. The world is vast and the magic is very interesting. I also thought the romance was super cute and I constantly caught myself grinning. But I can see some people not like it because the attraction is pretty instant.
Overall it was fast paced, filled with adventure, bloody action scenes, intrigue, and magic. I also found the friendships done well and to be one of my favorite aspects from the book.
Crown of Bones is the first book in a new YA epic fantasy series that follows a group of friends and their journey from Baiseen to the Isle of Aku for the initiation trials.
Marcus is the heir to the throne of Baiseen, a green robe and he has selected his group of five to accompany him to Aku, where he hopes to earn his yellow robe. Ash, is his best friend and recorder. It has always been her dream to record Marcus’s initiation journey (meaning she has to record every detail. The good and the ugly). Of course their journey to Aku is far from simple. Along the way they meet Kaylin, a mysterious, handsome and shirtless sailor who guides Marcus & company to Aku. Ash is immediately smitten by him but thank goodness for Ash’s inner voice to keep her grounded. I don’t blame her, he has pan flute abs and call her lass… umm swoon. Back to their journey. It isn’t an easy one. Unexpected detours and dangers, from losing their horses and gear and almost drowning, yikes!
The story isn't without its faults but it is a solid debut. It’s told from quite a few points of views but the main ones are Ash and Marcus. The world is vast and the magic is very interesting. I also thought the romance was super cute and I constantly caught myself grinning. But I can see some people not like it because the attraction is pretty instant.
Overall it was fast paced, filled with adventure, bloody action scenes, intrigue, and magic. I also found the friendships done well and to be one of my favorite aspects from the book.
ameserole's review
2.0
I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I feel like one of those people who run marathons. Or compete in triathlon's. Which, I guess, is a weird thing to say because I'm comparing people exercising to me reading the Crown of Bones. Then again, I was exercising my brain in order to understand everything that was happening within this book. It is still weird to state such a thing.. but this book took me forever to complete and I just think it would take me forever to complete a marathon and such.
Back to the book, in the beginning the prologue definitely sucked me in. I just wanted to know more about phantoms and this entire world. Then I got to meet the characters and eh - they were okay. I honestly didn't care for the little romance bits and pieces.. or even the hints of betrayal. Heck, I will even admit that Ash definitely intrigued me.. but nothing really happened until the end of the book.
At least for her. She was just kind of in the background for most of this book and I'm just like.. 'Wait, aren't you a main character girl?' Besides her, you get to meet Marcus and Kaylin. Again, none of these characters really caught my attention. They had potential to do so but in the end nothing really happened.
In the end, it was an okay book with zero consequences. It's like something would happen and they would just go on with their lives. Then the ending was kind of interesting.. but I don't even know if I want to dive into the sequel because of the nothingness in this book. Maybe if there's some serious character growth..
I feel like one of those people who run marathons. Or compete in triathlon's. Which, I guess, is a weird thing to say because I'm comparing people exercising to me reading the Crown of Bones. Then again, I was exercising my brain in order to understand everything that was happening within this book. It is still weird to state such a thing.. but this book took me forever to complete and I just think it would take me forever to complete a marathon and such.
Back to the book, in the beginning the prologue definitely sucked me in. I just wanted to know more about phantoms and this entire world. Then I got to meet the characters and eh - they were okay. I honestly didn't care for the little romance bits and pieces.. or even the hints of betrayal. Heck, I will even admit that Ash definitely intrigued me.. but nothing really happened until the end of the book.
At least for her. She was just kind of in the background for most of this book and I'm just like.. 'Wait, aren't you a main character girl?' Besides her, you get to meet Marcus and Kaylin. Again, none of these characters really caught my attention. They had potential to do so but in the end nothing really happened.
In the end, it was an okay book with zero consequences. It's like something would happen and they would just go on with their lives. Then the ending was kind of interesting.. but I don't even know if I want to dive into the sequel because of the nothingness in this book. Maybe if there's some serious character growth..
bookishgenerations's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
pantsreads's review
4.0
johblogs's review
5.0
I love the worlds A.K. Wilder builds. I didn't want to finish it and certainly hope it is the beginning of a series.
verypeculiarpages's review
*ARC received from publisher. All opinions are my own.*
I’m not going to rate this considering that I barely skimmed the last 100 pages. This started out really promising! I thought the worldbuilding was unique and interesting and I liked both Ash and Marcus’ narrations. But the middle was just SO SLOW to the point that I couldn’t even care to continue reading. I didn’t like Kaylin’s narration and also wasn’t a fan of the Ash/Kaylin romance so that really took me out of it. Even once they made it to Aku I couldn’t find it in myself to be interested in the training or Ash’s sleuthing. Won’t be continuing on with the next book unfortunately.
I’m not going to rate this considering that I barely skimmed the last 100 pages. This started out really promising! I thought the worldbuilding was unique and interesting and I liked both Ash and Marcus’ narrations. But the middle was just SO SLOW to the point that I couldn’t even care to continue reading. I didn’t like Kaylin’s narration and also wasn’t a fan of the Ash/Kaylin romance so that really took me out of it. Even once they made it to Aku I couldn’t find it in myself to be interested in the training or Ash’s sleuthing. Won’t be continuing on with the next book unfortunately.
teaturtlesandbooks's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
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? Yes
4.0