dominish_books's review against another edition
4.0
This final book was pretty much action-packed most of the way through, after what was a slower start compared to the previous book. It was a little confusing in some parts, but in many ways it’s quite a confusing world. I still had a really good time with it though and there was a lot of emotion in the pages.
I thoroughly enjoyed the overall journey through this world, with the bone ships and arkeesians, and all of the weird and wonderful creatures and plant life and so forth. The main unspoken premise of this being a world without trees is a really interesting concept, and I like how it’s not mentioned at all because there’s no need to mention trees in a world where trees don’t exist – they’re just conspicuous by their absence.
The story is good, the characters are good, and I loved the way that the very start of The Bone Ships is revisited here so the series comes full circle, in a very satisfying way.
I thoroughly enjoyed the overall journey through this world, with the bone ships and arkeesians, and all of the weird and wonderful creatures and plant life and so forth. The main unspoken premise of this being a world without trees is a really interesting concept, and I like how it’s not mentioned at all because there’s no need to mention trees in a world where trees don’t exist – they’re just conspicuous by their absence.
The story is good, the characters are good, and I loved the way that the very start of The Bone Ships is revisited here so the series comes full circle, in a very satisfying way.
jan2bratt's review against another edition
5.0
Wow, what a fantastic finish to this trilogy! I listened to the audio books and the narrator, Jude Owusu, was fantastic. This was the most fascinating world building I have read in a long time and I loved it all. I shall have to buy the physical books and read the story again. If you like fantasy naval stories, don't hesitate to read this series. Many memorable well fleshed out characters throughout. Laughing and crying from me throughout also. Loved it.
nina_bloodsworn's review
5.0
oh wow ! what an ending to the Trilogy.
this book was an emotional rollercoaster.
And thank you for making me cry, Mr Barker! it was a pleasure to be on board with you.
"That is where we all go, he thought, that is all we are. A brief light in the darkness, destined to be swallowed up by the sea."
this book was an emotional rollercoaster.
And thank you for making me cry, Mr Barker! it was a pleasure to be on board with you.
"That is where we all go, he thought, that is all we are. A brief light in the darkness, destined to be swallowed up by the sea."
theinquisitxor's review against another edition
4.0
I stand by everything I've said in my reviews of The Bone Ships and Call of the Bone Ships: this series is fantastic and one of the best trilogies I've read in a while. Between this and the Greenbone Saga, my expectations for fantasy are much higher.
I stand by saying that this series has some of the best world building and character work I have encountered and I wish these books got as much attention as they deserve! This was a satisfying conclusion, and it lives up the the stakes that the first two books set. I can't say too much in this review without having spoilers, but if you are at all interested in detailed worldbuilding, nautical settings, sea dragons, and politics, definitely pick this series up!
I stand by saying that this series has some of the best world building and character work I have encountered and I wish these books got as much attention as they deserve! This was a satisfying conclusion, and it lives up the the stakes that the first two books set. I can't say too much in this review without having spoilers, but if you are at all interested in detailed worldbuilding, nautical settings, sea dragons, and politics, definitely pick this series up!
queenterribletimy's review
5.0
This review was originally posted on Queen's Book Asylum with my choice of song.
I received an eARC from Orbit via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
*this quote is from the ARC, subject to change in the final version of the book.
Oh boy, where do I even start with this review? The Bone Ship’s Wake is the third and last book in The Tide Child trilogy by RJ Barker. This is one of the few series that I kept up with over the past 3 years and I have that bittersweet feeling of saying goodbye to this world and these characters I grew to love so much. A series that jumped Barker on my favorite authors’ list, and whose books I’ll keep an eye out for in the future because apparently, I enjoy being tortured by him.
Now, before I get to the point, a fair warning: this review might contain spoilers for the previous books in the trilogy, so proceed with caution! I’ll try to keep it as spoiler-free as possible, but since we are talking about a third book, it can still happen.
The Bone Ship’s Wake picks the plot up about a year after the events in the Call of the Bone Ships. Joron is determined to cause as much havoc for the Hundred Isles as he can in order to get back Mease. He builds up a reputation as the fearsome Black Pirate, leading the black fleet with the help of old friends such as Shipwife Brekir, and his loyal crew Cwell, Farys, Mevans, Solemn Muffaz, Gavith, Barlay, Garriya, Alerin and of course the Gullaime. Keyshans are rising even more frequently, and it looks like the war is unavoidable and comes ever nearer as the song grows in Joron. And with the war comes hard decisions, sorrow, blood and death. The Bone Ship’s Wake has all that and so much more.
I’d rather not say much about the plot, this is something you have to experience for yourselves. I’m only going to say that all of the characters are coming a long way, both in this book and in the trilogy as a whole. We get to witness how legends are born, but we also get to see how hard it is to live up to those expectations. You can’t help but feel empowered by these characters as they are coming over their own flaws, their doubts, their demons, their disabilities, never letting those stop them from reaching their goals and dreams. Changing the world around them one painful step at a time. I love how the relationships were developed between the characters, especially those Joron built with Mease, with Cwell, and the Guillaime. Who forever will remain my favorite character of this trilogy, no questions about that. We learn what the titles Caller and Windseer really mean in this installment. Which I found particularly interesting.
The Bone Ship’s Wake holds quite a few surprises for its reader, some of them you’ll never see coming. I found the first 30% or so a bit slow which was instantly forgotten after a rather thrilling and heart-racing sequence and from that point on the pace never let down. Or more like, there was a much better balance between quiet and often dreadful moments and breathtaking action. From the 60% mark, I could barely put the book down. It’s been a long time since a book captured me so thoroughly that I forgot about everything else and just eat up all the pages. I could easily imagine being right there with the Tide Child crew, feeling the cool breeze on my face mixed with freezing saltwater, facing whatever was coming. Because as they say:
The Bone Ship’s Wake being the last book of a trilogy, I went into it with a dreading feeling. I mean, if you’ve read the first two books then you know that Barker does not pull his punches. I was fully prepared to be broken apart piece by piece throughout the book. What I did not expect was the emotional reaction it brought out of me. Like… holy shit. I raged, I feared, I hoped and I cried. For the record, I almost never cry over books. Tear up, yes, cry, no. One of my GR updates at 33%: “I’m quite sure RJ will rip my heart out, trod on it and put it back all twisted and bruised by the time I’ll finish reading this book…” Dear reader, I was not wrong with that prediction. And for this, I’m going to award the EMOTIONAL PANDA NEEDED stamp to The Bone Ship’s Wake as a warning for anyone brave enough to trade these dark and dangerous waters the Tide Child rides on.
The Tide Child trilogy got a thrilling, heart-wrenching, and overall most deserving ending in The Bone Ship’s Wake. One that’s going to take me quite a while to get over. I can’t even recommend it highly enough because it just deserves all the praises. If you are into audiobooks, I wouldn’t miss out on Jude Owosu‘s narration, who brings this series into life in a way that will give you goosebumps and chills all over. It’s a match even the Hag, the Mother and the Maiden would approve of. If you’ve been waiting to start this series, I’d urge you to get on board as this is an adventure you wouldn’t want to miss out on.
I received an eARC from Orbit via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
“You know, Caller, life is loss, and much has been taken from you: Dinyl, your leg, your song and your shipwife. And if you think you can dilute your pain in blood you are wrong. Blood will only feed it.”*
*this quote is from the ARC, subject to change in the final version of the book.
Oh boy, where do I even start with this review? The Bone Ship’s Wake is the third and last book in The Tide Child trilogy by RJ Barker. This is one of the few series that I kept up with over the past 3 years and I have that bittersweet feeling of saying goodbye to this world and these characters I grew to love so much. A series that jumped Barker on my favorite authors’ list, and whose books I’ll keep an eye out for in the future because apparently, I enjoy being tortured by him.
Now, before I get to the point, a fair warning: this review might contain spoilers for the previous books in the trilogy, so proceed with caution! I’ll try to keep it as spoiler-free as possible, but since we are talking about a third book, it can still happen.
The Bone Ship’s Wake picks the plot up about a year after the events in the Call of the Bone Ships. Joron is determined to cause as much havoc for the Hundred Isles as he can in order to get back Mease. He builds up a reputation as the fearsome Black Pirate, leading the black fleet with the help of old friends such as Shipwife Brekir, and his loyal crew Cwell, Farys, Mevans, Solemn Muffaz, Gavith, Barlay, Garriya, Alerin and of course the Gullaime. Keyshans are rising even more frequently, and it looks like the war is unavoidable and comes ever nearer as the song grows in Joron. And with the war comes hard decisions, sorrow, blood and death. The Bone Ship’s Wake has all that and so much more.
“Did the pain of growing ever really stop? Or did you simply become used to the stress and hurt and strain of every day until it became normal to you? A background buzz of constant worry cut through with moments of transcendent joy, or terrifying fear?”
I’d rather not say much about the plot, this is something you have to experience for yourselves. I’m only going to say that all of the characters are coming a long way, both in this book and in the trilogy as a whole. We get to witness how legends are born, but we also get to see how hard it is to live up to those expectations. You can’t help but feel empowered by these characters as they are coming over their own flaws, their doubts, their demons, their disabilities, never letting those stop them from reaching their goals and dreams. Changing the world around them one painful step at a time. I love how the relationships were developed between the characters, especially those Joron built with Mease, with Cwell, and the Guillaime. Who forever will remain my favorite character of this trilogy, no questions about that. We learn what the titles Caller and Windseer really mean in this installment. Which I found particularly interesting.
The Bone Ship’s Wake holds quite a few surprises for its reader, some of them you’ll never see coming. I found the first 30% or so a bit slow which was instantly forgotten after a rather thrilling and heart-racing sequence and from that point on the pace never let down. Or more like, there was a much better balance between quiet and often dreadful moments and breathtaking action. From the 60% mark, I could barely put the book down. It’s been a long time since a book captured me so thoroughly that I forgot about everything else and just eat up all the pages. I could easily imagine being right there with the Tide Child crew, feeling the cool breeze on my face mixed with freezing saltwater, facing whatever was coming. Because as they say:
“We are all here to die, only the day is undecided.”
The Bone Ship’s Wake being the last book of a trilogy, I went into it with a dreading feeling. I mean, if you’ve read the first two books then you know that Barker does not pull his punches. I was fully prepared to be broken apart piece by piece throughout the book. What I did not expect was the emotional reaction it brought out of me. Like… holy shit. I raged, I feared, I hoped and I cried. For the record, I almost never cry over books. Tear up, yes, cry, no. One of my GR updates at 33%: “I’m quite sure RJ will rip my heart out, trod on it and put it back all twisted and bruised by the time I’ll finish reading this book…” Dear reader, I was not wrong with that prediction. And for this, I’m going to award the EMOTIONAL PANDA NEEDED stamp to The Bone Ship’s Wake as a warning for anyone brave enough to trade these dark and dangerous waters the Tide Child rides on.
The Tide Child trilogy got a thrilling, heart-wrenching, and overall most deserving ending in The Bone Ship’s Wake. One that’s going to take me quite a while to get over. I can’t even recommend it highly enough because it just deserves all the praises. If you are into audiobooks, I wouldn’t miss out on Jude Owosu‘s narration, who brings this series into life in a way that will give you goosebumps and chills all over. It’s a match even the Hag, the Mother and the Maiden would approve of. If you’ve been waiting to start this series, I’d urge you to get on board as this is an adventure you wouldn’t want to miss out on.
janettedv's review
5.0
The Bone Ship’s Wake is the final part of the Tide Child Trilogy and it is a brilliant end to what I felt was a great and inventive fantasy trilogy. Joron Twiner has to try and rescue his shipwife, Lucky Meas but he has to contend with treachery on all sides. There are very few people that he can trust and he even doubts them at times. This book returns us to the place where the whole story started but Joron is definitely no longer the same person. Many of the characters from the early part of the saga reappear and issues are resolved. However, R J Barker is not an author who is kind to his characters and none of them escape unscathed.
I love the world of the Tide Child although it is a very dark world where hardship and injustice are the normal state of affairs. We see very few characters who lead an easy life. But despite the hardships, there is still love and friendship. The relationship between Joron and the Gullaime is one of the book’s highlights and I love how the role played by the Gullaime is gradually revealed.
This is definitely the third part of a trilogy and I think that it would be hard to read without having read the first two
Huge thanks to Net Galley and Little Brown Book Group for letting me read an advance copy of this book.
I love the world of the Tide Child although it is a very dark world where hardship and injustice are the normal state of affairs. We see very few characters who lead an easy life. But despite the hardships, there is still love and friendship. The relationship between Joron and the Gullaime is one of the book’s highlights and I love how the role played by the Gullaime is gradually revealed.
This is definitely the third part of a trilogy and I think that it would be hard to read without having read the first two
Huge thanks to Net Galley and Little Brown Book Group for letting me read an advance copy of this book.
anja12345's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
rbrent's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0