A review by abookishmagpie
A River of Golden Bones by A.K. Mulford

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious sad 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

4.0

I am always down for any type of Sleeping Beauty retelling or story inspired by it since it is my favorite Disney movie, and so I was all over this when I was told about it. I loved how diverse this book was in so many ways, especially the journey of gender expression that our main character Calla goes on throughout the novel and how well that lent to the other story lines. I found the romance to be well done, even if at times the fated mate thing was talked about more than I cared for, the characters had good chemistry that was apparent in more than just a physical sense. I do think that there could have been some editing around the middle and the start of the final act. It felt drawn out at times and, like some scenes added little to the book. Overall, though, I had a really enjoyable time reading this, and I am so happy I jumped it to the top of my TBR when I heard about it. Will for sure be keeping my eye out for the sequel.