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vickybuka's review against another edition
4.0
This was a good one. I enjoyed the interweaving of the characters into a full ensemble. I also appreciated there were multiple facets of the characters. The world wasn't terribly well developed, but that there was room for growth. Also thought that the author had too much fun killing off characters at the end of the book. (Is that a spoiler? Sorry.) I have the next book in the series on my nightstand already. I'll be interested to see if some to the dangling story lines are tied up.
holtfan's review against another edition
2.0
I am a simple woman. Promise me a badass character who pretends to behave like a fool to hide their secret identity and I'm there. As my Dad recently pointed out, all my favorite characters vaguely resemble [b:The Scarlet Pimpernel|136116|The Scarlet Pimpernel|Emmuska Orczy|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1406764899l/136116._SX50_.jpg|750426].
Patricia Briggs name alone would have convinced me to read this one, but throw in that synopsis promising a young lord pretending to be a fool and...well, I'm there.
Unfortunately, this fell incredibly flat. And I know exactly where it lost me---the first chapter that switches POVs. (What was that, chapter 5? 6?) After creating a group of misfits headed off to do good deeds, it then throws in this pair of twins at court surrounded by overarching political intrigue. The band of misfits came with a pretty straightforward goal that I could get behind: win glory, take back the castle from evil uncle. But the twins didn't fit into that narrative and I never really captured the point of their existence. Except the story never does fully go back to that nice, straightforward narrative it promises. I lost sight of the end goal and never recaptured it. It meant that whatever the sacrifices, deal-making, and character arcs, I couldn't get behind it. I wasn't even sure who I was supposed to be rooting for half the time.
The book sets up this gang of unlikely misfits, grants them all scarring backstories, but then does not give any of them (except kind of the main character) any real screen time. I never particularly cared for any of them--there are simply too many. But the book really needs you to care about these characters to make any of the emotional punch in this story work.
So, overall I would say this was a disappointment. Lots of promise but never focused enough for me to get behind it.
And on top of the rambling plot and underdeveloped characters, there is this weird undercurrent of sexual abuse and darkness that made this one particularly hard to swallow. I thought initially that even if it ended up being a mediocre read, I could recommend it. But that undercurrent left it squarely a book I cannot recommend.
Patricia Briggs name alone would have convinced me to read this one, but throw in that synopsis promising a young lord pretending to be a fool and...well, I'm there.
Unfortunately, this fell incredibly flat. And I know exactly where it lost me---the first chapter that switches POVs. (What was that, chapter 5? 6?) After creating a group of misfits headed off to do good deeds, it then throws in this pair of twins at court surrounded by overarching political intrigue. The band of misfits came with a pretty straightforward goal that I could get behind: win glory, take back the castle from evil uncle. But the twins didn't fit into that narrative and I never really captured the point of their existence. Except the story never does fully go back to that nice, straightforward narrative it promises. I lost sight of the end goal and never recaptured it. It meant that whatever the sacrifices, deal-making, and character arcs, I couldn't get behind it. I wasn't even sure who I was supposed to be rooting for half the time.
The book sets up this gang of unlikely misfits, grants them all scarring backstories, but then does not give any of them (except kind of the main character) any real screen time. I never particularly cared for any of them--there are simply too many. But the book really needs you to care about these characters to make any of the emotional punch in this story work.
So, overall I would say this was a disappointment. Lots of promise but never focused enough for me to get behind it.
And on top of the rambling plot and underdeveloped characters, there is this weird undercurrent of sexual abuse and darkness that made this one particularly hard to swallow. I thought initially that even if it ended up being a mediocre read, I could recommend it. But that undercurrent left it squarely a book I cannot recommend.
docrobreads's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
ennakym's review against another edition
DNF - nothing in particular is wrong here, it just didn’t speak to me. I like other works of this author a lot more.
gentlemangamer's review against another edition
4.0
This is not a 5 star book as the library audiobook website indicated, but it was very good, and quite fun. I'm glad I listened to it.
elincoln's review against another edition
4.0
Written before the popularity of her Mercy Thompson and Alpha and Omega series, Dragon Bones is more in line with the medieval kingdom fantasy novels. The world contains references to magic, but for the most part it's not overt/in your face.
While part of a duology Dragon Bones can be read as a standalone novel. This is a huge plus for me as a fantasy reader as fantasy books tend to lend themselves to series that just keep going (looking at you Sword of Truth and Wheel of Time). It was a fairly easy read, though there are a few dark moments they are not delved into too deeply. I enjoyed the characters and was quite surprised by multiple twists that began occurring ~2/3 of the way through. These twists worked with the story, unlike others I've come across which seem to be there just for shock value.
While part of a duology Dragon Bones can be read as a standalone novel. This is a huge plus for me as a fantasy reader as fantasy books tend to lend themselves to series that just keep going (looking at you Sword of Truth and Wheel of Time). It was a fairly easy read, though there are a few dark moments they are not delved into too deeply. I enjoyed the characters and was quite surprised by multiple twists that began occurring ~2/3 of the way through. These twists worked with the story, unlike others I've come across which seem to be there just for shock value.
sionna's review against another edition
3.0
So... I really don't know how I feel about this book.
Over half the book was me thinking how much I did not want to read this book, but then I enjoyed the ending???
Let's talk about the problems I had first:
The world-building was really lacking. I wanted to know the history and how the magic system worked.
I was a little bored reading this, but I think it is because I would be confused or not drawn in -- yes, that is what it is. I wasn't hooked or dedicated to the book, but I wanted to be.
I really doesn't help this book that I was extremely distracted by the movies my fiance was watching and the continuous cramps I'm living through this week. Because of this, I knew I had to read the book to the end and gave it an extra .5 star making a full 3 stars. There is a lot of good nuggets to this book and here are some I liked:
This book is seriously character-driven. I do like this, but I need some balance with the world-building. That being said, the characters really are cool. There are a few I forgot about (the cousins) or I thought changed completely, but others that I could never forget about such as Ciarra, Ward, Oleg, and Pansy (hehehe).
Ward. Ward is awesome. I love how throughout the book he doesn't know who he is, but in the end he figures it out and has to come to terms with being who he is. I thought this was great to read. Also, he is slow-talking--a very different trait given to a MC.
Female representation. There are DIFFERENT types of females-- there are strong fighters (Stala and Thalia [?]), there are...is... well that one girl (I don't want to give anything away), and Ciarra who I feel is emotionally strong.
There is not too much action in this book, but the action and strategy that happens is interesting.
If you like high-fantasy and adventure books, then I think you should check this one out. I will be reading the sequel... eventually haha.
Don't forget.... Hurog means Dragon ;)
Over half the book was me thinking how much I did not want to read this book, but then I enjoyed the ending???
Let's talk about the problems I had first:
The world-building was really lacking. I wanted to know the history and how the magic system worked.
I was a little bored reading this, but I think it is because I would be confused or not drawn in -- yes, that is what it is. I wasn't hooked or dedicated to the book, but I wanted to be.
I really doesn't help this book that I was extremely distracted by the movies my fiance was watching and the continuous cramps I'm living through this week. Because of this, I knew I had to read the book to the end and gave it an extra .5 star making a full 3 stars. There is a lot of good nuggets to this book and here are some I liked:
This book is seriously character-driven. I do like this, but I need some balance with the world-building. That being said, the characters really are cool. There are a few I forgot about (the cousins) or I thought changed completely, but others that I could never forget about such as Ciarra, Ward, Oleg, and Pansy (hehehe).
Ward. Ward is awesome. I love how throughout the book he doesn't know who he is, but in the end he figures it out and has to come to terms with being who he is. I thought this was great to read. Also, he is slow-talking--a very different trait given to a MC.
Female representation. There are DIFFERENT types of females-- there are strong fighters (Stala and Thalia [?]), there are...is... well that one girl (I don't want to give anything away), and Ciarra who I feel is emotionally strong.
There is not too much action in this book, but the action and strategy that happens is interesting.
If you like high-fantasy and adventure books, then I think you should check this one out. I will be reading the sequel... eventually haha.
Don't forget.... Hurog means Dragon ;)