Erin: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

Hi Everyone!! I've got a review today of a book I'm super excited about!! The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon! As you may know, I met Samantha Shannon earlier this year when she was on tour for her new book, The Mime Order, the sequel to The Bone Season.  This was definitely a book I was really looking forward to and I am happy to report I was not disappointed!! Here's my full review below!! :D

From Goodreads:


The year is 2059.  Nineteen-year-old Paige Mahoney is working in the criminal underworld of Scion London, based at Seven Dials, employed by a man name Jaxon Hall.  Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people's minds.  For Paige is a dream walker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.

It is raining the day her life changes forever.  Attacked, drugged and kidnapped, Paige is transported to Oxford - a city kept secret for two hundred years, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race.  Paige is assigned to Warden, a Rephaite with mysterious motives.  He is her master.  Her trainer.  Her natural enemy.  But if Paige wants to regain her freedom she must allow herself to be nurtured in this prison where she is meant to die.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine and also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination.  Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.


Erin's Thoughts:

OMG GUYS!!!! I LOVE THIS BOOK!! I am so completely obsessed with it!! It's literally gotten so bad that I'm having a hard time reading anything else; I just want to keep reading and rereading The Bone Season!!!

The weird thing is...While I was reading the book, I was thinking to myself, "Oh yeah, it's pretty good" or "I'm really liking it." And same thing when I finished the book, I was like, "Oooh, I really enjoyed this book." But then literally -- I mean literally -- like five minutes later, I was suddenly like "OMG I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH I'M OBSESSED!"

I really don't know what happened between finishing the book and those five minutes, but wow, The Bone Season was definitely one of those books that snuck up on me and I didn't even realize how much I loved it!! Ever since I finished this book I haven't been able to think about anything else.  I've been thinking about it obsessively and I'm just totally in love with the world and story that Samantha Shannon has created.  Just WOW!

I love this story so so much! To be honest, I didn't really expect to like it that much.  I thought it would be an okay book, but not one that I would be waiting for on the edge of my seat for the next one to come out (mainly since it's classified as Adult Fiction, which I don't really read).

While it is considered an Adult book, it has a lot of YA crossover.  I can see why people might think it's YA, but it's definitely an Adult book.  The pace was a lot more relaxed than what you would see in a YA and the tone older. Again, seeing as I almost exclusively read YA, I had lower expectations (not cause I thought the book didn't sound good, but just because my previous experience with Adult books have been mediocre), but this was one of those instances where I was completely blown away. Total book hangover (seriously -- book hangover lasted a few weeks!!).

The Bone Season has one of the BEST slow-burn romances as well. I don't know about you guys, but I LOVE slow-burn romances.  And eeee!!!! I just loved it!! It was sooooo well-done!!!! It could also be classified as hate-to-love romance, as well, but for some reason, I never really saw it that way, so I don't really call it that... (I know, I'm weird :)) But either way hate-to-love romances are the best, so I'm good!! :D  I don't really want to say who the love interest is just because I feel like it could be a spoiler, but I will say this...OMG I love him so so much!! I'm completely obsessed with him! And for all the books I read, I don't tend to actually want the character for myself --- but this is an exception!! (Side note: Another exception would be Gansey from The Raven Cycle --OMG I would marry him if I could!!!).  So summary --- EPIC ROMANCE!!!

I'll admit, it is a bit dense with the information, which can be a bit overwhelming, especially the first chapter, where almost all of it was explaining the world and the rules -- it was kind of tough, but after that first chapter, it kind of shoots off from there and all the super fun stuff starts.  Even so, it did have a lot more explaining and telling than most books, but I was actually okay with it.  It's really clear that Samantha Shannon has a very clear grasp on her world and she has a certain vision for it -- so while there's a lot of information that gets thrown at you, it's not confusing or conflicting information (and also, there's a glossary and everything at the back if you need it -- though I picked up things fairly easily, I think).

The only other thing I noticed was that the movement of the characters got a little confusing for me.  So by that I mean, for example, Paige would be standing by the window and then suddenly she would be sitting on her bed.  I know authors don't have to explain every little detail about where their characters are (gosh, that'd be tedious!), but Samantha Shannon tends to be more sparse than most books  I've read.  Again, this wasn't really a big problem for me.  It's really just a matter of getting used to her writing style -- which I am really loving by the way!

This book is so unique! I've never read anything like it -- it's a mix of fantasy, science fiction, dystopia -- and ugh, I cannot get over it! While I understand that a lot of people might not like this book, it's seriously one of my favorite books EVER!!! Love it, love it, love it! (By the way, if you hadn't noticed yet, I'm going to be obsessive about this book a buttload, so be ready! :))

Rating:


Luckily, I had The Mime Order on me, so I was able to dive into it right after I finished The Bone Season!! OMG, I'm so in love with this series!!!

P.S. I totally agree with Samantha Shannon's opinion that Jaxon Hall should be played by Benedict Cumberbatch in the movie!  Seriously, I can't see anyone in that role besides him! He would be absolutely perfect! Absolutely perfect!!

Erin @The Romance Bookie :)

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