Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - The Sins on Their Bones

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The Sins on Their Bones by Laura R. Samotin

9 reviews

bear_ridge_tarot's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Once the Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo, Dimitri now suffers life in self-inflicted exile after losing the civil war against his now-estranged husband Alexey Balakin. Dimitri is grieving yes, but also plotting on how to stop the man he loves from using the sect of Holy Science to remake the world in dark and terrible ways. Alexey, power-hungry and furious over the betrayal, names himself acting Tzar and the chosen of the Lord.

All around him, Dimitri’s closest allies and friends watch him sink deeper into the muck of depression and heartbreak while they try to lift him back into the light of their love and support. This band of outcasts must craft an extraordinary plan to get close to the enemy in order to cause Alexey’s downfall. Vasily, Dimitri’s closest friend, must offer himself as the sacrifice. There is so much at stake in this book!

The Sins on Their Bones was given the label of a queer dark fantasy. It takes place in the fictional version of 19th-century Eastern Europe/Russia and has been seeped in East European Jewish mysticism, folklore, and traditions. It is a novel in three views, Dmitri, Alexey, and Vasily. A pair of ex-lovers, a set of closest friends, and the interactions between the three of them and their inner circles. It is a slow, creeping plot of deep dark desire and trauma shaping the world around them.

While there are plenty of things from the complex backstory and history of the world and characters, I didn’t find the starting point of the novel to be a problem. It is a very slow read, because the plot is moved forward in chinches, only to backtrack a bit on the next page. There are a number of sex scenes that don’t offer much to the storyline other than highlighting the fact that the main three characters are all twisted by their traumas and coping in unhealthy ways. But again, this didn’t detract from my liking of the book so much as it slowed the plot down. What I loved about this book was the immersion into the post-war world that Dimitri lives in. I could feel the swirling sadness and longing from him the moment he stepped onto the page. The distressing drive for power in Alexey was larger than life. The longing and courage of Vasily was a stab straight to the heart. The characters were so fully developed that I could easily fall in love or burn with hate for them.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGally, thank you! And this is my honest review. It is a four star rating for me, simply because the pacing is so slow and inconsistent that it took me too long to reach the end. It is a well-written, incredibly smutty, and highly funny book containing a world, magic system, villain, and hero, plus anti-hero that I could very well see myself reading another book about. The novel comes with major warning labels. It has a large portion told from the perspective of an abuser and it is not comfortable or easy to stomach. The violence and cruelty can be difficult to witness for others, so I do no recommend this book lightly. At the end though, this is a book of crawling out of the darkness and discovering the light, a book of hope.

Content Warnings

ofateaspoon's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed this book! It’s a story of healing from trauma and abuse, healing from loss of loved ones and loss of self, and it’s a story about redemption, and love, and faith in oneself and a higher power. The treble POV made it particularly interesting because though the villain is undoubtedly villainous, you also see his motivations and how very clearly *wrong* he is in his beliefs while not apologizing for him at all. On its face, it’s a dark fantasy novel with an Excellent found family, but at its core, it’s a story of self-forgiveness and resilience.

But all that said, definitely check your content warnings. This one is *dark* and could be very triggering to anyone who can’t (or shouldn’t) read about domestic violence, sexual assault, or body horror, among other things.

Content Warnings

snowwhitehatesapples's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Also on Snow White Hates Apples.

Set during the turbulent times after a Tzar loses the civil war to his husband, The Sins on Their Bones is an emotional and unflinching exploration of love, loss, pain, belonging, fear and healing. The story is told primarily through the perspectives of three people:

1) Dimitri, the righteous Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo who exiled himself after failing to kill Alexey who has betrayed his love and trust in so many different ways.
2) Alexey, the immortal acting Tzar who’s set on ruling the world after uniting the middle world of demons and the lower world of men via the Holy Science.
3) Vasily, Dimitri’s spymaster who’s willing to do anything to save his country and provide Dimitri the happiness and freedom he deserves.

And, it’s a story that cuts deep and hard with its willingness to openly and deeply explore the effects of war, violence, death, abuse (emotional, physical and psychological), toxic relationships, trauma, human experimentation and more through life-like characters that will have you rooting or hating them. Every page is filled with emotion — the most vivid being desperation, grief, anger, greed and hope. The story is so alive, so dark and though I knew nothing about the Ashkenazi Jewish culture which inspired the world of the book, it didn’t hinder my understanding of it.

The Sins on Their Bones will sit in my mind for a long while. From the nuanced execution of the story and the complex characters to that painful yet realistic ending that has left me fervently hoping for the best despite knowing better, there is so much to ponder about here. If you’re a fan of Tokyo Ghoul and The Heroic Legend of Arslan , you’d love this book too.

Thank you so much Random House Canada and Wunderkind PR for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review! The Sins on Their Bones by Laura R. Samotin is available at all good bookstores.

Content Warnings

haylee_reads's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I enjoyed how atmospheric this book was. I am confused as to how it was marketed as a romantasy, because it’s not that… This book is dark, political fantasy. I wish we weren’t dropped in right after a big conflict happened, because I was really confused as to how we got where we were when the book started. I thought the queer and Jewish representation was well done. I did struggle with the pacing of this book, I genuinely felt like nothing happened for the longest time. This also isn’t really a love story, it’s full of abuse and toxic relationships. The overall idea was really interesting but I feel like if we got more backstory and more plot I would have enjoyed it more. Please please check the CW’s before reading this one. It’s a lot.

CWs: sexual violence, abusive relationships, blood & gore, trauma, sexual content, injury, war, torture, death, human experimentation

Thank you to LibroFM for the ALC.

Content Warnings

mollyelyn's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

"It's Alexey who was the idiot, to not know what he had. He was a man holding a diamond in his hand, ignoring the way that it sparkled in the light, thinking it was nothing more than glass."

The Sins on Their Bones is a haunting, beautiful story about love, power, and war. It follows Dimitri, who is the former Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo (a fictitious version of Russia), and is now in exile with his court after losing a war against his estranged husband. The events that led up to the war and the war itself all take place prior to the start of the book, and the characters we meet are broken and traumatised, with Dimitri dealing with PTSD and depression. The backstory and story details are slowly revealed to the reader throughout the book, and I did like the decision to do it this way, however these events could also have easily been a book of itself, as so much has happened prior to the book starting. I think for the story Samotin wished to tell, starting it where it is worked really well, as mental health and the recovery journey from physical and mental abuse are key themes of the novel.

The book is definitely slow-paced and character-driven, with not much action happening in the first half of the novel. This worked rather well, mainly due to the strong characterisation of the three narrators. The reader empathises heavily with Dimitri, as he deals with the loss of his husband to a force worse than death, and other narrator Vasily is charming, witty, and very tragic. What actually intrigued me the most about the book was how a third of the chapters are actually written from Alexey, the new Tzar and Dimitri’s abusive husband’s, perspective allowing readers to see how he justifies his twisted actions to himself. He is a truly wicked character, and I despised him instantly. He is a very well-crafted villain.

I found the writing really good, and felt really immersed in the story. I enjoyed the magic system and demons as well. The central romance between Vasily and Dimitri was really sweet and I loved seeing their support and love for each other.

Content Warnings

tonyaf's review

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I had no idea what to expect when I started The Sins On Their Bones by Laura R. Samotin. I saw that it was blurbed by several queer romantasy authors that I like, so I requested it from NetGalley on a whim and was happy to dive in. I’m so glad I did. It was not what I was expecting but it is an interesting and dark fantasy that I enjoyed discovering.

First of all, if there are things that could trigger you, be sure to read the content warnings before you start this book! This novel deals with some very heavy topics!

The Sins On Their Bones is inspired by Jewish mysticism and folklore and is a high fantasy set in a world similar to Eastern Europe in the 19th century. Dimitri Alexeyev, one of the main POV characters and a former Tszar, has recently lost a brutal civil war to his vicious and newly immortal ex-husband, Alexey Balakin.

At the story’s start, Dimitri is in hiding in the Free States with his closest friends and former members of his royal court: Vasily, his most trusted spy; Annika, who once led his army; Ladushka, his political advisor, and Mischa, his royal physician. Dimitri still harbors a lot of guilt (and other complicated feelings) about Alexey, the war, and the consequences of it. When Vasily brings word that Alexey is building an army to invade the Free States the group hatches a dangerous plan to finally defeat Dimitri’s monstrous ex.

The novel cycles through three POVs. Along with Dimitri, we also get chapters from Alexey and Vasily. All three POVs are engaging and each adds different things to the story. Jumping back and forth through their parts of the story moved the plot along steadily while also filling in the needed backstory. Vasily’s chapters, in particular, give a lot of clarity to the backstory which was one of the many reasons that his chapters quickly became my favorite.

The plot of this is fast-paced, dark, and full of religious and political themes. I also found it surprising and not predictable at all. Multiple moments shocked me and had me frantically flipping pages to see what would happen next.

The characters are also likable. Vasily, as I’ve already mentioned, is a fantastic character. Dimitri is sympathetic and has a nice arc of growth and healing. Alexey is a terrifying and well-written villain. Annika, Ladushka, and Mischa round out the main cast as dynamic characters with a lovely “found family” relationship (together with Dimitri and Vasily).

The Sins On Their Bones is a unique and very queer dark fantasy. I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys classic tales of good versus evil in their fantasy!

OTHER POINTS:

Alexey reminds me of The Darkling from the Shadow and Bone trilogy.
There may be a Doctor Who reference.
There is an asexual character and a non-binary character along with the many same-sex relationships that the book features.
The whole book is delightfully queer normative with most of the main characters and several side characters being casually queer. There’s no drama or trauma around their identities.
I also liked how the author wove Judaism into the world.
Did I mention how much I love Vasily?
The last 25% of the book is tense, action-packed, emotional, and surprising. It is almost impossible to put down!
The ending is satisfying while also setting up issues for a future sequel.

Content Warnings

peacheyprince's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I was fortunate to be able to read this as an ARC through netgalley, and for that, I am greatful. When I began reading this novel, I began writing down every thought I had to be able to compose this review. Straight away, I adored the art at the front of the copy, thinking about how I would buy them as prints, as well as the etchings on the chapter title pages. I love that the author has chosen to add content warnings before the beginning (and on StoryGraph). This is something that is all too overlooked in media today. Upon reading the words, I straight away fell in love with the imagery used within the writing, and if this was a physical copy I'd have been marking every few pages to return to. However, my attention to detail quickly fell away as I became entirely entranced within this novel.

The plot is captivating, almost from the start. I have seen other reviews, and I can understand how it may be slower for some people, but, in my opinion, this is down to a matter of one's personal likes, rather than writing skill. I loved the fact the plot picked up from the back-end of a major tragedy - it wrote into the characterisation of Dimitri, and it provided a backdrop to build the world around. But above all, I fell in love with the characters, quickly, and there may lie bias in how well a queer-normative world was built up (to even see this representation at all!), but the introduction of a non-binary character, with neutral pronouns, so casually, just existing, was truly beautiful to read, despite the affliction the plot is built upon.

From here on I may spoil some parts of the novel. I will try to be as ambiguous as possible, but please read on with concern if the novel is unread for you.

All the reveals within this novel, every single one, struck me, such as finding out what the illustrations in the front of the novel are, and how this so subtly, but so wonderfully, revealed the relations from Vasily towards Dimitri, for example. But also finding out what Alexey has done - I don't know if I can say all of it was a shock, as you gradually learn enough of his character to predict the actions he is capable of, but it was still done so well, and with care. There lies concern writing from the point of view of a manipulator, or a villain, and particularly with one of Alexey's demise, but I think the author has done this brilliantly. Firstly, even balancing all three perspectives was seamless, and there was no hitch or break in the story telling that you can sometimes find in multiple-pov novels. But even so, reading Alexey's pov in particular, you understand his thinking, you understood his motivations, so well that it wasn't question, and yet it was still obvious that he was the villain, the manipulator (with the author even explicitly using words such as this) without ruining the character of his point of view.

Some of the moments in particular which got me, that I was present enough to stop and write down in my notes, include: the end of chapter 7, where I have written how happy I was, and how the author has already managed to create such strong connections to the characters; how i already was emotional with tears within the first one hundred pages of the book; and then a jump to the end of chapter 32, because I become so enhanced with the plot and characters, where, and i quote my own notes, 'i am screaming'; the transmission to the next chapter... it was captivating.

I think the only hinderance I held throughout the plot was in chapter 34, following Alexey and Ivan's following interactions, there is a sentence that reads on p. 336 immediately following the scene break, the illicit use of this word, made me believe a major plot point which, actually, never happened. Considering his character, this was entirely believable to me, and this may fully be a reflection of me finishing this novel late at night, because I went back and reread this paragraph when I realised. It did not dictate from the story, and nor did it ruin the unveiling of events in any way, but I wish to include it in an honest review. Nevertheless, for a debut novel, I have fallen in love, and I truly truly look forward to (what I hope will be!) the second instalment in this series. And finally, I admired the explanation at the end, and I respect the choice to include the further reading. This book was an easy five stars, no questions asked.

Content Warnings

atlastheninth's review

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dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I received a free ARC of this book and here's my honest review.

The author told me that if I like pain, I'll love this book and she was right. This was very painful and I loved every page.

I love the world building, the plot was good and I really love the characters. I cried and I'm very much looking forward to the next book. I don't know what else to tell you, I have no notes.

Be aware if you want to read this check the CW! Because this is a dark fantasy and deals with a lot of heavy topics, especially the domestic abuse (It features the POV of victim and abuser).

Content Warnings

beforeviolets's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

SHADOW AND BONE meets FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST but make it Jewish and about sexual trauma in this gorgeous and complex new queer, Jewish, dark fantasy (NOT a romantasy!).

Our story takes place in a post-war world, scattered with hefty debris of trauma and scars.
Dimitri, the self-exiled Tsar, is struggling as he copes with the loss of his husband, Alexey, in more ways than one. He's surrounded by his friends who all want to support and love him the best they can, but his violent past with Alexey makes it hard for him to accept tenderness.
Alexey is now the acting Tsar, furious at his husband's betrayal and hungry for power. With the help of the Holy Science, he intends to remake the world as he remade himself, as the Chosen One of the Lord, a vessel between realms.
Vasily watches Dimitri ache, determined to take down Alexey and provide Dimitri with the happiness and freedom he deserves. But in order to make that happen, he'll have to craft an elaborate plan. One that involves risking his life and getting incredibly close to the enemy.

This violent yet resilient story wonderfully explores the effects of trauma, especially from abusive relationships, and how we write our scars deep into the bones of our identity, carrying the blame of a fault that was not our own.

My only critique of this book is less of a critique, but more something that if I was editing this book, I would suggest as a way to elevate the narrative. The story begins in the aftermath of a war, with most of the present stakes and circumstances informed by a complex backstory. With that in mind, I wish information about what exactly occurred in the past was divulged slowly in small, intentional moments. This post-war environment could have had a stronger impact and helped with pacing if the audience had been kept stewing in obscurity for longer, gathering up the shattered pieces bit by bit to make a full picture. Especially if Alexey had been kept vague, with only hints at his POV up until a certain point in the story. It definitely would have allowed for a stronger balance of intrigue and drama.

But other than that, I really enjoyed this story and found it full of such vivid and nuanced commentary about trauma and abuse.

I don't recommend this book lightly, as I found myself often nauseous from the violence and gore or deeply upset by the graphic sexual abuse. A third of the narration is told from the mind of an abuser, and witnessing his cruelty in high definition is not the easiest feat, nor is that of witnessing the other characters sacrifice their all in the name of their country's freedom and safety. But if these contents are something you're able to handle, it really is all worth it in the end. I can't wait to see how the story continues in the sequel.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

CW: sexual violence, abusive relationship, blood & gore, violence, injury detail (graphic), body horror, human experimentation, trauma, sexual content, character death, gun violence, drug use, war (past), torture (mention), child death (mention), death of father (past), emesis, alcohol

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