THE BONEMAKER
by Sarah Beth Durst
Set in a world where bone magic is prevalent, The Bonemaker is the tale of a group of retired heroes who are once again called to save their homes. When the evil they once vanquished, or thought they’d vanquished, seems to have risen again, they start to gather, feeling responsible for saving their people as they’d done in their youth.
But they’re not at all the heroes they once were. One has started a family. Another has gone insane. One isn’t even alive anymore. And this time around, they don’t seem to be wanted to save the world, their very attempts to convince others of the danger failing in the shadow of this new threat.
This is a novel about being a hero at any age. It’s about second chances, about being true to ourselves, and about the power people have when they trust one another and appreciate their own differences.
The Bonemaker, despite its bone magic and necromancy and skeletons, is not written in a dark fantasy fashion. It has an upbeat sense to it that soothes over the deathly consequences of the rising evil. The action scenes are exciting without feeling grimdark, the conflicts and setting are wondrous and worrisome without being dire.
Durst creates an amazing world here, one with different layers of bone magic–constructs and talismans, prophecy and power–and monstrous creatures with giant bones. It’s a world you’ll enjoy traveling inside, with a great deal of potential within to imagine just how wide and intricate a place with this kind of magic can be.
I recommend The Bonemaker for anyone who likes action adventure fantasy with inventive worlds and satisfying endings. Anyone who likes found families who reconnect. This novel is like being hugged warmly with the reminder that evil can be vanquished, regardless the shape or size of that evil.
Marie Croke 