Bone Criers have a sacred duty. They alone can keep the dead from preying on the living. But their power to ferry the spirits of the dead into goddess Elara’s Night Heavens or Tyrus’s Underworld comes from sacrifice. The gods demand a promise of dedication. And that promise comes at the cost of the Bone Criers’ one true love.
Ailesse has been prepared since birth to become the matriarch of the Bone Criers, a mysterious famille of women who use strengths drawn from animal bones to ferry dead souls. But first she must complete her rite of passage and kill the boy she’s also destined to love.
Bastien’s father was slain by a Bone Crier and he’s been seeking revenge ever since. Yet when he finally captures one, his vengeance will have to wait. Ailesse’s ritual has begun and now their fates are entwined—in life and in death.
Sabine has never had the stomach for the Bone Criers’ work. But when her best friend Ailesse is taken captive, Sabine will do whatever it takes to save her, even if it means defying their traditions—and their matriarch—to break the bond between Ailesse and Bastien. Before they all die
Jan’s Review
Wow this is a impressively weaved story that changes at every turn. At the crux of this story our main characters are Ailesse who is a bone crier who scared duty to help ferry the dead to heaven or hell essentially. Bastien who is determined along with his friends Jules and Marcel to avenge the deaths of their furthers who were taken by bone criers. In this world bone criers in our to become ferries of the dead they must lure their amores to a bridge and murder them within a year or they both their lives will be forfeit.
The magic around the bone criers is cringe worthy as they must kill animals and use their bones to give them graces. I felt that was a bit gross in parts and did add to the creepy factor of a bone crier’s right of passage. On top of that the mother has a whole lot of secrets about how all this works and she harbors those secrets to the harm of her daughter. I did wish at times that the directions that Sabine, Ailese best friend, was being given as she constantly is questioning what she needs to do to make things right again.
The descriptions of the battles against the dead both the chained and unchained was nerve racking and I really felt like i was in Sabine shoes as she try’s to carve not only her own path but to attempt to save the life her friend. I intrigued to see where the story goes and how everything will play out.
