readingtheend's review
4.0
a linked book in the Liminal People series that felt quite disconnected from the rest of the series BUT was also my favorite in the series so far and left me really eager for the final book. Chabi is a terrific character, and I loved her determination and rage.
roxanamalinachirila's review against another edition
3.0
This is the second book I've read by Ayize Jama-Everett, and all I could remember was really liking the last one - but not much of what happens in it, even if it felt memorable at the time. Still, you can't judge a book by its predecessors.
"The Entropy of Bones" is written in a lovely style - it feels real and a bit unreal at the same time, it draws you into its world and it makes you believe that the "entropy of bones" really is a thing, even if it sounds silly outside the book's world.
It's about this half-Mongolian, half-black, young, mute woman who discovers early on that she has a Voice she can use to communicate telepathically with people, who don't even realize she isn't talking physically. When she moves out of mute school, because nobody can remember why she was there in the first place, her mother tells her she should learn how to fight, to protect herself in public school. So she goes a bit overboard and finds an Indian (I think?) martial arts master who teaches her how to be super-lethal.
It all makes more sense than any summary would suggest.
At the same time, "The Entropy of Bones" left me dissatisfied and it's a bit difficult to pinpoint the exact cause. Is it all the over-the-top, bone-destroying violence? Hmm, not really, I can accept that. Is it the world, the plot, the characters? I'm not sure. Nothing rings especially false, but the beginning seemed to promise a lot more than the whole delivered, leaving me with a vague taste of disappointment.
"The Entropy of Bones" is written in a lovely style - it feels real and a bit unreal at the same time, it draws you into its world and it makes you believe that the "entropy of bones" really is a thing, even if it sounds silly outside the book's world.
It's about this half-Mongolian, half-black, young, mute woman who discovers early on that she has a Voice she can use to communicate telepathically with people, who don't even realize she isn't talking physically. When she moves out of mute school, because nobody can remember why she was there in the first place, her mother tells her she should learn how to fight, to protect herself in public school. So she goes a bit overboard and finds an Indian (I think?) martial arts master who teaches her how to be super-lethal.
It all makes more sense than any summary would suggest.
At the same time, "The Entropy of Bones" left me dissatisfied and it's a bit difficult to pinpoint the exact cause. Is it all the over-the-top, bone-destroying violence? Hmm, not really, I can accept that. Is it the world, the plot, the characters? I'm not sure. Nothing rings especially false, but the beginning seemed to promise a lot more than the whole delivered, leaving me with a vague taste of disappointment.
quietdomino's review against another edition
3.0
If Buffy were ultraviolent, mixed, and lived on a houseboat in Marin.
nomiddlename's review against another edition
4.0
Another good one, that I didn't realise was set in the same universe as The Liminal People to begin with. Provides some neat little backstories for some of the characters you meet in that book, but it's an action-packed self-contained story of its own.
sarabz's review against another edition
3.0
Great action writing, lots of fun to read. And I enjoyed learning more about the universe of the liminals. I had trouble getting into the story, though, in the first part of the book - chapters were split between Chabi's past and the present of the action, and the I think the past part where she was in training interrupted the flow of the other story. Not that I wasn't interested in her training and her relationship with Narayana. But once the chapters were all in the present, I couldn't put the book down.
abookishtype's review against another edition
3.0
I’m glad I read The Liminal War only a few months ago. The plot of The Entropy of Bones, by Ayize Jama-Everett, is so closely entwined with The Liminal War that they ought to be read back-to-back. In fact, it’s going to be tricky to write about this book without giving away spoilers for both parts of the series...
Read my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from Edelweiss for review consideration.
Read my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from Edelweiss for review consideration.
badcatsass77's review against another edition
5.0
what a fantastic read. suspenseful, enigmatic, and thoroughly engrossing. I loved the characters, the theory behind the plot, and especially the ending. an excellent pick for any scifi lovers who like strong female characters. i highly recommend this book!
solarpunkwitch's review
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
brownbetty's review
4.0
If you went into 'urban fantasy' hoping for something very different than what you found, this might be what you were looking for.
This is a story that feels very urban, rides the line between sf and fantasy, and brings you some memorable characters, of whom very few are white.
It's also a little unsatisfying in its ending? But you can't have everything.
This is a story that feels very urban, rides the line between sf and fantasy, and brings you some memorable characters, of whom very few are white.
It's also a little unsatisfying in its ending? But you can't have everything.