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purplesapphire's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I also have to say I appreciated this version of a strong female MC and women in general. They were strong, vindictive, greedy, sly, soft, smart, kind, and feminine all in one without it being forced or badly written. They were just written as real people. Then you add the witch parts, and the ghouls parts and it makes for a great tale.
Graphic: Child death, Incest, and Death of parent
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Sexual assault and Toxic relationship
poetpenelopee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Confinement, Incest, Sexual assault, and Murder
powellki's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Blood, and Abandonment
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting
montereads's review against another edition
3.5
All the Murmuring Bones is a story of resilience and reclamation swathed in an eerie, gothic shroud. The novel draws up the weight of history, of story, of other people’s wants and follies and decisions, and Miren’s tale is about fighting for one’s freedom against these forces.
It has a slow start. Miren is a ghost of a character at first, but a quarter of the way through the book she shakes off the dust of a generations-long slumber and the plot picks up. I followed the story with interest, but I can’t say that it ever gripped me. The structure wasn’t particularly satisfying and the ending didn’t elicit much excitement from me because of this. Unfortunately, there were also subtle moments of fatphobia throughout that made me uncomfortable, and I’m not sure the novel succeeded in undermining the classism of the O’Malley’s, though it seemed to be trying.
With a lukewarm plot and a one-dimensional vision of freedom, what held my attention? Well, the atmosphere. While reading this, I pictured many of the places I visited in Scotland. In addition to the strong folktale elements, the feel of the landscape was grey, green, and damp, full of streams and cliffs and salt water and crumbling stone. I loved the haphazard inclusion of many different mythical creatures, the folk magic, the strange Victorian and sometimes almost steampunk glimpses we were given into the wider world. And it was satisfying to see, over and over again, how Miren could defy the expectations of the men around her.
I enjoyed and appreciated this book, though I had some criticisms. And it certainly wet my appetite for more mermaid books!
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Blood, Death of parent, and Murder
Moderate: Miscarriage and Sexual content
Minor: Incest and Sexual assault