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"Saying 'I notice you're a nerd' is like saying, 'Hey, I notice that you'd rather be intelligent than be stupid, that you'd rather be thoughtful than be vapid, that you believe that there are things that matter more than the arrest record of Lindsay Lohan. Why is that?' In fact, it seems to me that most contemporary insults are pretty lame. Even 'lame' is kind of lame. Saying 'You're lame' is like saying 'You walk with a limp.' Yeah, whatever, so does 50 Cent, and he's done all right for himself."— John Green

5.29.2019

BLOG TOUR --- The Bone Charmer by Breeana Shields [Review + Giveaway]





Title: The Bone Charmer
Authors(s): Breeana Shields
Publication Date: May 21, 2019
Edition: Hardcover, ebook; 400 pgs
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Source: Rockstar Book Tours
Buy: Amazon - Kindle - Barnes & Noble  - iBooks - Kobo The Book Depository
Disclaimer: I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own.










Tour Schedule




Week One:
5/21/2019- BookHounds YA- Excerpt
5/21/2019- Rhythmicbooktrovert- Review

5/22/2019- Smada's Book Smack- Review
5/22/2019- Jheartlovesbooks- Review

5/23/2019- The Pages In-Between- Review
5/23/2019- Two Chicks on Books- Excerpt

5/24/2019- A Dream Within A Dream- Excerpt
5/24/2019- Shelf-rated- Review 

 Week Two:
5/27/2019- Character Madness and Musings-Spotlight
5/27/2019- Lifestyle of Me- Review

5/28/2019- Some Books & Ramblings- Review
5/28/2019- Starlight-Reads- Review

5/29/2019- Eli to the nth- Review
5/29/2019- Book-Keeping- Review

5/30/2019- Jena Brown Writes- Review
5/30/2019- The Suburban Lifestyle- Review

5/31/2019- AURELIA LEO- Excerpt
5/31/2019- Confessions of a YA Reader-Excerpt


Week Three:
6/3/2019- Two Points of Interest- Review
6/3/2019- Savings in Seconds- Review





The Summary

"I was absolutely swept away by the world of The Bone Charmer." – Kendare Blake, #1 NYT Bestselling author of Three Dark Crowns

In Saskia’s world, bones are the source of all power. They tell the future, reveal the past, and expose secrets in the present. Each village has a designated seer who performs readings for the townsfolk, and in Midwood, the Bone Charmer is Saskia’s mother.

On the day of her kenning—a special bone reading that determines the apprenticeships of all seventeen-year-olds—Saskia’s worst fears come true. She receives an assignment to train as a Bone Charmer, like her mother, and even worse, a match-making reading that pairs her with Bram—a boy who has suspicious tattoos that hint of violence.

Saskia knows her mother saw multiple paths for her, yet chose one she knew Saskia wouldn’t want. Their argument leads to a fracture in one of the bones. Broken bones are always bad luck, but this particular set of bones have been infused with extra magic, and so the break has devastating consequences—Saskia’s future has split as well. Now she will live her two potential paths simultaneously. Only one future can survive. And Saskia’s life is in danger in both.


My Review

A unique magic system that governs all, and a tradition that dictates one's whole life, The Bone Charmer by Breeana Shields is one book that you won't want to put down.  We follow 17 year old Saskia, the daughter of her town's Bone Charmer, a position of great power as the Bone Charmer tells the people of their past, present, or future.  Saskia is coming up to her "kenning", the time that all 17 year olds in her world are told their fate through a bone reading.  And as Saskia is from a long line of Bone Charmers, she is revolting against her fate, begging the questions, can you change what has been pre-determined?

The magic system is the strongest part of the book, with everything in Saskia's world hinging on bones.  The bones of both animals and ancestors are used in everything from healing to breaking.  Those with the magic to utilize the bones are given the highest honor, while many without magic have jobs that help support the focus on bones.  But besides the oddity of utilizing bones for all magic, the author also makes the magic a commodity; those that are wealthy are able to afford the best ingredients for all bone magic, and those who are poor are often considered "leftovers", those who are either not able to afford a "kenning" or who's path is not clear.  This hierarchy makes the society even more believable because the magic comes with a price.

Besides the actual story, the structure of this book is interesting as well.  Saskia, who is fighting so hard against what she knows her mother will choose for her, breaks one of the finger bones of her grandmother, used as a powerful ingredient in her kenning.  This causes her life to split into two paths: the one her mother wants---Saskia to train as a Bone Charmer and embrace her magic, and the one Saskia wants---a quiet life as a tutor, letting her magic die.  The reader gets to follow both Saskias, seeing the divergence and melding of each path.  This, as I mentioned earlier, calls into question Saskia's ability to change her fate.  Which path will be the ultimate victor, and what will that victory do to Saskia's soul?

While there is romance down both paths, ultimately we follow Saskia and her agency, trying to figure out her place, work against the danger down each path, and ultimately discover her true purpose.  Of course, this is the first book in what looks to be a series, if not at least a duology, so don't expect a nice ribbon-tied ending.  Saskia is just starting to learn who she is, and where she belongs, and I can't wait to read what happens next!

A great addition to the fantasy genre, you can pick up your own copy of The Bone Charmer by Breeana Shields, in stores now!

Final Rating



Excerpt

Chapter One

Tomorrow my future will be decided by my dead gran’s finger bones. It’s how my whole life has been determined—with bones and blood and snapping flames. When I was five days old, my mother dangled me over a stone basin that was heavy with the shoulder blades of an ox and pierced my heel with a sewing needle. I’m not sure how many drops of blood splashed into the basin. One? Two? Ten? It doesn’t matter. It was enough blood to infuse the bones with my essence. Enough blood to tell my mother anything she wanted to know about the next few
years of my life.
It’s always been a prickly thing between us, her insight and my ignorance. And the other way around, too. The bones can’t show her my heart.
I creep down the stairs toward the sharp scent of sage incense, a sure sign my mother is consulting the bones about one thing or another. It’s almost impossible to sneak up on her, but I can’t resist trying. Maybe if I know what she’s up to, I’ll have some hint about what the morning will bring.
The deep voice that resonates from below surprises me so much that I nearly forget to avoid the creaky fifth step. My mother isn’t alone—one of the townsfolk must have arrived for a last-minute reading before the kenning tomorrow. I sag against the wall, disappointed. I don’t care about knowing any future except my own.
Yet the sound of bone scraping against stone propels my feet forward. When I reach the bottom of the staircase, I peek around the corner.
My mother sits in the center of the room across from one of Midwood’s most prominent farmers, Mikkel Hemming. A stone basin rests on the floor between them, filled with a handful of animal bones that, from the looks of them, are probably cheaply prepared and not especially powerful. A casual reading then. Nothing like the ceremony and solemnity that always permeates the kenning. My mother isn’t even wearing her Bone Charmer robes.
“Thank you for seeing me on short notice,” Mikkel says.
“The moment I touched the soil this morning, I knew I better come see you. I’m worried it’s too wet for planting asparagus.”
“It’s no trouble at all,” my mother says. She pricks Mikkel’s index finger with a needle and squeezes a few drops of blood onto the bones. Then she uses a bit of flint and a stone to light a small fire in the basin.
The room tilts and I squeeze my eyes shut. Minutes seem to pass and then, beneath my closed eyelids, I see Mikkel at the door, his hat clutched in one hand. I startle as I hear his voice in my head, thanking my mother for her time. My eyes fly open, but to my horror my mother is still at the beginning of the reading—tipping the bones onto the rug in front of her.
My throat closes.
This hasn’t happened in years—this unsteadiness around the bones, as if the magic is like a dog on a lead, determined to reach me whether I want it or not.
And I don’t.

About the Author

Breeana Shields is an author of fantasy novels for teens including The Bone Charmer, Poison’s Kiss, and Poison’s Cage. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a BA in English.

When she’s not writing, Breeana loves reading, traveling, and playing board games with her extremely competitive family. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband, her three children, and two adorable, but spoiled dogs.





Giveaway

3 winners will receive a signed finished copy of THE BONE CHARMER, US Only.

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