The Bone Season (The Bone Season #1)
Summary:
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 named Jaxon Hall. Her job: to scout for information by breaking into people’s minds. For Paige is a dreamwalker, a clairvoyant and, in the world of Scion, she commits treason simply by breathing.
It is raining the day her life changes for ever. 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. (Summary and cover courtesy of goodreads.com)
Review:
This book had the setup of a young adult dystopian series that I would love, but somehow it fell a touch flat for me. The premise is quite complex and you have to be willing to commit for a bit before you’ll get your answers to the context of the world-building. The clairvoyant skills were intriguing and it’s always good to have a street-rat-making-it vibe, but once we got to Oxford, things slowed down. In Oxford Paige is stuck working for her captor and essentially decides to take on destruction of the institution.
I think the main problem is that the situation sounds too familiar and we’ve had this story told in a different way already. Another issue is around Paige’s interactions with Warden. I think we’re supposed to be questioning who to trust and who is going to make it, but I just got frustrated. I enjoyed the read, but I’m not sure I’ll be continuing with the series (particularly being projected at 7 books).
Warning: Contains repeated violence.
Rating: 4 stars!
Who should read it? Fans of dystopian fiction with a bit of a twist.
Want to read the whole series?
The Pale Dreamer (The Bone Season #0.5)
The Mime Order (The Bone Season #2)
The Song Rising (The Bone Season #3)
Untitled (The Bone Season #4-7)