Book Review | The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

Title: The Bone Houses

Author: Emily Lloyd-Jones

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Horror

Publication Date: September 24th, 2019

Page Count: 352

📚 Hello bookish friends!! It's time for a new book review! I recently read The Bone Houses which was a great read and I want to share my thoughts with you!

Book Review | The Bone Houses by Emily Lloyd-Jones

The Bone Houses follows seventeen-year-old Aderyn ("Ryn") Since the death of their parents, Ryn and her siblings have been scraping together a meager existence as gravediggers in the remote village of Colbren. The problem with being a gravedigger in Colbren, though, is that the dead don't always stay dead. The risen corpses are known as "bone houses," and legend says that they're the result of a decades-old curse. When Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker with a mysterious past, arrives in town, the bone houses attack with new ferocity. What is it that draws them near? And more importantly, how can they be stopped for good?

Review

This was an interesting read. It's creepy and spooky, and also quite magical—despite this being about zombies. The writing was wonderful, it flowed so well, was descriptive, but not overly so and the author did a great job in creating this magical world.

Even though at times the book was about a heavy topic (death) which to be honest is not something I enjoy reading about often, it still managed to be transformed into somewhat of a serene, peaceful book.

I enjoyed the dynamics between Ryn and Ellis and their encounters along the way to the mountains, there were many twists and turns that were enjoyable to read. Just to note that there isn't a lot of romance in the book and I did like the fact that Ryn's story and journey were not sidetracked or driven by falling in love and that it's just something that happened along the way.

Ryn and Ellis are both great characters that felt very relatable and real and I appreciated that we got both of their POVS. If there is one thing I wanted more was for them to be transformed more as characters, I feel like even though they went through this hard journey they stayed the same people they were at the start,  maybe they should have started at a different place in the beginning of the book for them to learn more things about themselves throughout 

Favorite Quotes 

“I grew up thinking monsters could be slain."

"Ah," he said. "And I grew up thinking people were the monsters.”

“Home was taste and smell and sensation. It was not a place."  

Conclusion 

Honestly, this was sweet. The characters and friendships were endearing. The ending was a little predictable but still good. A beautiful story about grief, loss, love, and moving on when loved ones pass.

RATING 4/5

      Please share with me in the comments if you read this book and what you thought about it.