Title: The Road Of Bones
Author: Demi Winters
Original Pub. Date: June 27th 2023
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Format: eARC
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Pages: 500
GOODREADS | BARNES & NOBLE | LIBROFM | AMAZON
☆☆ARC PROVIDED BY PUBLISHER IN EXCHANGE FOR AN HONEST REVIEW☆☆
Silla Nordvig has only known what life on the run is like, she and her father travel from place to place picking up random jobs in the towns they pass through. They never stay long and although all of the reasons for their instability aren’t clear to Silla, she loves her father and will follow him wherever he goes. When Silla’s father is killed on the road, his last dying words urge Silla to seek out a shield-house in Kopa. This would require Silla to travel through the thousand mile stretch known as the Road Of Bones where if the war bands don’t kill her, the dark creatures in the woods will. Scared and out of options, Silla spots a supply wagon stationed in town and decides to hitch a ride unbeknownst to its owner. She just so happens to have chosen the wagon that belongs to the fearsome mercenaries known as the Bloodaxe Crew. It doesn’t take long for her to be discovered by their leader Rey aka Axe Eyes and his most trusted right hand man Jonas aka the Wolf. She asks Rey if the crew would allow her to tag along for a ride to Kopa and in exchange she will cook all of their meals. Rey agrees after much convincing on the one condition that she never lie to him, it is the one thing he deems unforgivable. Silla does not disclose that she is being hunted down by Queen Signe of Íseldure or that the reason is her magic. Silla is considered Galdra and in this world, the King rounds up and kills Galdra. His wife the Queen on the other hand has a hidden operation where she collects the most rare of the Galdra as part of her personal assassins. The Road Of Bones is a 500 page character driven journey + Viking romance that primarily focuses on the camaraderie between the members of the Bloodaxe Crew.
If you enjoy slow burn character driven stories set on a journey to a final destination, The Road Of Bones is one not to miss. The pay off is absolutely worth it and the time taken to weave this story makes all the sense by the end. The world building is excellent and while the magic system admittedly could’ve used a bit more defining, it does seem promising we will get that in the second installment of this duology. Our main character Silla is presented as being mostly green in experience with just about everything. She spends most of her time apologizing for her inexperience but the women (true stars) of the Bloodaxe Crew take her under their wing and begin training her on self defense. We see drug addiction depicted by way of leaves Silla ingests in order to feel well and prevent migraines. There is a deeper exploration of the dependency on these leaves between Silla and Rey who had a brother addicted to them as well. The crew members are three dimensional and have turned their misfortunes into strengths, down to their broody and mysterious leader Rey. It all makes for an odd pairing between Silla and the crew but nonetheless they take a liking to her and feel the need to protect her. Making things a bit more interesting are Silla’s romantic feelings and trysts with one of the crew members. This was the first time I didn’t agree with a shipped romance and walked away feeling pretty good about my intuition. The last 100 pages unraveled some eye opening revelations that had me grasping for Kingdom Of Claw which mercifully is now out in the wild! Not sure how I’m going to fill the void these characters are sure to leave me with but I highly recommend if you enjoy getting emotionally invested in fictional characters.
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