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A review by literarypenguin
The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
If you are looking for an immersive character-driven plot or an intense new magic system then this book might be the right fit for you! The Bone Shard Daughter is the first book in a new fantasy series by Andrea Stewart. It takes you to a place called The Empire where new magic called Bone Shard Magic is used by the Emperor to construct animal-like constructs to handle his tasks while he hides behind the palace walls. His daughter Lin yearns to learn this magic from her father but is repeatably denied in favor of her foster brother Bayan. The only way she can begin to learn about this magic is to answer her father’s questions about her past and earn a new key. This is difficult for her because a sickness took her memories away and she can’t remember years of her life. Lin wants to find these lost memories but she may also find more than she ever thought she would. I have heard many good things about this book from multiple people and fantasy readers. They praised the fascinating magic system and the characters. When I finished the book my first thought was how much I wanted to pick up the second book and find out what happens next. I still had so many questions that needed answers! Fantasy is one of my favorite genres of books to read and this in my opinion is a great addition to the genre.
The book is written from multiple points of view with different characters in different places in the world. I think this writing worked very well for the book and allows the reader to get a different perspective of what’s going on in the world around them. Eventually, these characters’ points of view did come together with other characters and more things started to come into place. The pace didn’t drag at any point and flowed very well between POV. I loved how the author wrote scenes and described the towns, the people, and the food. As most of the towns were islands, the people relied a lot on fishing and trade. You could feel the difference between the people living in the lower class part of the island like the fishermen and the shopkeepers and the higher class people like the governors and the Emperor. The author wanted to establish a clear divide between how one side lived in comparison to the other. It also became a driving factor in parts of the story.
The plot revolved a lot around bone shard magic, a magic system in this world that involved using pieces of bone to make constructs. It also involves inscribing bone shards with commands so the constructs you build obey said commands. This system reminded me of coding and it was interesting to see that system being applied with magic. I think that was very clever and one of my favorite parts of the plot! Another big part of the plot was the rebellion forming among the lower class and the officials. How the people wanted to stop the use of bone shard magic as it caused the person whose bone shard was in use to slowly start to feel bouts of exhaustion leading to sickness and in most cases unexpected death. Because the story had multiple perspectives we got to see how this conflict effected those in the higher class and those who were in the lower class. That was one of the stories greatest strengths. Another strength was the mystery and how it kept you thinking until it was revealed. Some of the twists I genuinely didnt see coming!
The book follows five main perspectives. Lin, the Emperor's daughter who is desperately trying to win her father’s approval and prove to him that she is fit to rule in his place. Jovis, a smuggler who wants to find his wife but keeps finding himself in situations where people are in need of his help. Phalue, a governor's daughter who would do anything to be with the woman she loves. Ranami, a bookseller that wants to help make the world a better place to live in for her and people like her. And finally Sand, a mysterious character that lives on a island with others like her. Lin’s tenacity and relentless need to find out who she is and what she is capable of was offset by her need for approval and people too care and love her. Through her would could see just how high her father’s expectations were for her and how she realized she would never be able to reach them. She had to make her own expectations for herself and not what her father wanted for her. Jovis was such a delight of a character and Mephi is one of the best magical sidekicks ever! His love for his wife and his memories of her like when they first met to their marriage was so sweet! Jovis definitely had a wanting to save everybody complex and learning from his past you could see why. Phalue and Ranami were such a cute couple and seeing the little moments in their relationship added much more to their romance. They sort of reminded me of a Romeo and Juliet situation. They both came from different worlds but their love brought their worlds together. Sand well to be honest honest I cant say to much without giving too much away.
The worldbuilding was expansive and well detailed. From islands that floated and traveled along a route to seasons that would last for years. How each island was different with how the people lived. There was also a underlining threat of a ancient people returning to power that some feared and others welcomed. I loved the world and I could believe a world like this could exist outside of this book.
There were a lot of themes this book explored including inequality between classes, child abuse and placing unreasonably expectations on children and identity and finding out who you truly are. Lin finding out her identity and becoming her own person outside of her father’s shadow. Jovis finding the person he wants to be and learning to live without his wife. Phalue wanting to be more than her status and Ranami wanting happiness not just for people like her but for herself as well. Sand discovering more than just a routine. This book explores so many themes in a mature and well handled way.
What I hope people take away from this is this book can look intimidating and the multiple perspectives can be a bit much at first but once you get past that this book is worth reading! It is a great addition to the fantasy genre and a great debut to a series. I hope i can read the second book very soon and then read the third when it releases next year. If your a fantasy lover or want to explore a new magic system or even if you want fully fleshed out characters you should give this book a read!
The book is written from multiple points of view with different characters in different places in the world. I think this writing worked very well for the book and allows the reader to get a different perspective of what’s going on in the world around them. Eventually, these characters’ points of view did come together with other characters and more things started to come into place. The pace didn’t drag at any point and flowed very well between POV. I loved how the author wrote scenes and described the towns, the people, and the food. As most of the towns were islands, the people relied a lot on fishing and trade. You could feel the difference between the people living in the lower class part of the island like the fishermen and the shopkeepers and the higher class people like the governors and the Emperor. The author wanted to establish a clear divide between how one side lived in comparison to the other. It also became a driving factor in parts of the story.
The plot revolved a lot around bone shard magic, a magic system in this world that involved using pieces of bone to make constructs. It also involves inscribing bone shards with commands so the constructs you build obey said commands. This system reminded me of coding and it was interesting to see that system being applied with magic. I think that was very clever and one of my favorite parts of the plot! Another big part of the plot was the rebellion forming among the lower class and the officials. How the people wanted to stop the use of bone shard magic as it caused the person whose bone shard was in use to slowly start to feel bouts of exhaustion leading to sickness and in most cases unexpected death. Because the story had multiple perspectives we got to see how this conflict effected those in the higher class and those who were in the lower class. That was one of the stories greatest strengths. Another strength was the mystery and how it kept you thinking until it was revealed. Some of the twists I genuinely didnt see coming!
The book follows five main perspectives. Lin, the Emperor's daughter who is desperately trying to win her father’s approval and prove to him that she is fit to rule in his place. Jovis, a smuggler who wants to find his wife but keeps finding himself in situations where people are in need of his help. Phalue, a governor's daughter who would do anything to be with the woman she loves. Ranami, a bookseller that wants to help make the world a better place to live in for her and people like her. And finally Sand, a mysterious character that lives on a island with others like her. Lin’s tenacity and relentless need to find out who she is and what she is capable of was offset by her need for approval and people too care and love her. Through her would could see just how high her father’s expectations were for her and how she realized she would never be able to reach them. She had to make her own expectations for herself and not what her father wanted for her. Jovis was such a delight of a character and Mephi is one of the best magical sidekicks ever! His love for his wife and his memories of her like when they first met to their marriage was so sweet! Jovis definitely had a wanting to save everybody complex and learning from his past you could see why. Phalue and Ranami were such a cute couple and seeing the little moments in their relationship added much more to their romance. They sort of reminded me of a Romeo and Juliet situation. They both came from different worlds but their love brought their worlds together. Sand well to be honest honest I cant say to much without giving too much away.
The worldbuilding was expansive and well detailed. From islands that floated and traveled along a route to seasons that would last for years. How each island was different with how the people lived. There was also a underlining threat of a ancient people returning to power that some feared and others welcomed. I loved the world and I could believe a world like this could exist outside of this book.
There were a lot of themes this book explored including inequality between classes, child abuse and placing unreasonably expectations on children and identity and finding out who you truly are. Lin finding out her identity and becoming her own person outside of her father’s shadow. Jovis finding the person he wants to be and learning to live without his wife. Phalue wanting to be more than her status and Ranami wanting happiness not just for people like her but for herself as well. Sand discovering more than just a routine. This book explores so many themes in a mature and well handled way.
What I hope people take away from this is this book can look intimidating and the multiple perspectives can be a bit much at first but once you get past that this book is worth reading! It is a great addition to the fantasy genre and a great debut to a series. I hope i can read the second book very soon and then read the third when it releases next year. If your a fantasy lover or want to explore a new magic system or even if you want fully fleshed out characters you should give this book a read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Body horror
Minor: Racism