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lizzieiself's review against another edition
4.0
I think I just love Seanan McGuire's writing.... I have never played Deadlands but this was still a lot of fun! I loved the monsters and I loved the ideas of what made a monster a monster in this novel.
amber_readsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
I really loved how the main characters were in a traveling circus. It allowed for some of the cool critters from the Deadlands RPG monster manual to be included. Overall, I really enjoyed this book. Annie is a strong, independent woman and that's always cool to read about in books. Tranquility was a favorite. Some parts were pretty cliché, but it didn't take away from the fun. Overall, I really liked this book a lot!
telegramsam's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent weird west, with a high degree of creepy. Great characters, though maybe starts a little slow. Very much a monster in the woods type of horror story. Seanan managed to make a redwood forest creepy.
Audio book narration was excellent!
Audio book narration was excellent!
joufancyhuh's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.0
Decent story but loses a lot of points for appropriating a Wendigo. I also would've liked to see more of the Oddities wagon brought up.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Cannibalism, Medical trauma, and Murder
Minor: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Blood, Medical content, and Pregnancy
luanam's review against another edition
4.0
The first part of this book was a bit slow before progressing into a singular Wild West Frankenfairytale, and not your Disney fairy tale either, but your darker, older tales, where the woods were alive with dark shadows whose teeth could drip blood and gore and where the monster may be the friendly human face beside you.
But before we get to these woods we do have a bit of a meandering journey and I do admit on occasion I had to restrain myself from hopping forwards with the need to quest onwards, just as Annie felt when listening to Hal's tale about The Clearing. However, as in the case of Hal's tale, there is a patina of details in McGuire's work that makes it worth your while to linger a moment or two, because what McGuire gets so right is her insights into humanity and how she seamlessly weaves these into her story. A couple of passages that I particularly liked were: i>"..The trouble with dividing the world into the Saved and the unsaved was that eventually you began to think that something must be wrong with those who had not been found worthy of salvation. There was no one kinder than a man of Deseret to one of his own, nor was there anyone crueler than that same man when faced with an outsider." & i>"I was always a person...The fact I was once for sale to the highest bidder did nothing to reduce my humanity, and that which is human is also complex. That is the cost of humanity."
One thing that cannot be missed, where McGuire's writing goes into the territory of exploring human nature, is how much representation matters and how socio/politics of injustice are not neglected. She does this not only consciously but also with awareness that that it may not make her popular with certain audiences. https://psmag.com/social-justice/have-you-ever-wondered-what-happened-to-wendy .
This inclusivity moreover is not done in a soap box manner that comes at the expense of plot or character development, instead you can see an author who positively writes diversity within her novels as her characters negotiate perilous plots the author throws them into.
Oh and oh!, when this book does pick up speed and the action begins, it was well worth the lead in. It is tautly written, flowing over different perspectives as actions and thoughts come together in a dance over who will emerge intact and at what cost. It sings.
But before we get to these woods we do have a bit of a meandering journey and I do admit on occasion I had to restrain myself from hopping forwards with the need to quest onwards, just as Annie felt when listening to Hal's tale about The Clearing. However, as in the case of Hal's tale, there is a patina of details in McGuire's work that makes it worth your while to linger a moment or two, because what McGuire gets so right is her insights into humanity and how she seamlessly weaves these into her story. A couple of passages that I particularly liked were: i>"..The trouble with dividing the world into the Saved and the unsaved was that eventually you began to think that something must be wrong with those who had not been found worthy of salvation. There was no one kinder than a man of Deseret to one of his own, nor was there anyone crueler than that same man when faced with an outsider." & i>"I was always a person...The fact I was once for sale to the highest bidder did nothing to reduce my humanity, and that which is human is also complex. That is the cost of humanity."
One thing that cannot be missed, where McGuire's writing goes into the territory of exploring human nature, is how much representation matters and how socio/politics of injustice are not neglected. She does this not only consciously but also with awareness that that it may not make her popular with certain audiences. https://psmag.com/social-justice/have-you-ever-wondered-what-happened-to-wendy .
This inclusivity moreover is not done in a soap box manner that comes at the expense of plot or character development, instead you can see an author who positively writes diversity within her novels as her characters negotiate perilous plots the author throws them into.
Oh and oh!, when this book does pick up speed and the action begins, it was well worth the lead in. It is tautly written, flowing over different perspectives as actions and thoughts come together in a dance over who will emerge intact and at what cost. It sings.
tigerb99's review against another edition
3.0
I love Seanan McGuire but I felt like this book was... overwritten? Very long time wandering in the woods...
jameseckman's review against another edition
2.0
An interesting concept, I found the beginning OK, but things felt rushed and forced at the end, like it was reaching a maximum page count. I also found the villains very two-dimensional, I guess this matches the RPG that this was derived from. It was also deadly serious, which with more sophisticated characters and plot would be good, but that's not the case here. McGuire has written a wide variety of books, many well done.
You should give this one a pass if you haven't read some of her other books.
You should give this one a pass if you haven't read some of her other books.
uncoveredwhimsy's review against another edition
4.0
I don't know what I was expecting. I picked this up because it was Seanan McGuire, but wasn't really expecting to love it. Which I absolutely did. This book is just as magical as anything else McGuire touches. I loved every bit of it.
alexcanread's review against another edition
3.0
I received an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review from NetGalley.
I will be totally honest and say that Deadlands: Boneyard is not my cup of tea. I am not familiar with the Deadlands RPG system that the books are based around, but I don’t think that affected my overall enjoyment of the book.
McGuire does weird well, and she seamlessly blends circuses, mad scientists, steampunk, and the wild, wild wilderness in Oregon. She builds a cohesive world and interesting characters. My issue is the plot.
There are no holes, dangling threads but boy is it slow to start. I’ve read a lot of McGuire’s writing (just about everything I can get my hands on) and a slow start isn’t atypical for her, but Deadlands: Boneyard was the first where I struggled with the slow start. McGuire spends the first four chapters of the book just setting the scene. It isn’t until part of the way through the fourth chapter does the plot start to finally take shape. Once it gets going, she builds and maintains tension with skill making Deadlands: Boneyard a perfect October, pre-Halloween read.
McGuire’s writing is lyrical and descriptive, though she does sometimes get lost in metaphorical descriptions it does make for a nice turn of phrase.
If the wild, weird West is your kind of thing, Deadlands: Boneyard will be your kind of book.
I will be totally honest and say that Deadlands: Boneyard is not my cup of tea. I am not familiar with the Deadlands RPG system that the books are based around, but I don’t think that affected my overall enjoyment of the book.
McGuire does weird well, and she seamlessly blends circuses, mad scientists, steampunk, and the wild, wild wilderness in Oregon. She builds a cohesive world and interesting characters. My issue is the plot.
There are no holes, dangling threads but boy is it slow to start. I’ve read a lot of McGuire’s writing (just about everything I can get my hands on) and a slow start isn’t atypical for her, but Deadlands: Boneyard was the first where I struggled with the slow start. McGuire spends the first four chapters of the book just setting the scene. It isn’t until part of the way through the fourth chapter does the plot start to finally take shape. Once it gets going, she builds and maintains tension with skill making Deadlands: Boneyard a perfect October, pre-Halloween read.
McGuire’s writing is lyrical and descriptive, though she does sometimes get lost in metaphorical descriptions it does make for a nice turn of phrase.
If the wild, weird West is your kind of thing, Deadlands: Boneyard will be your kind of book.
marziesreads's review against another edition
4.0
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 Stars
As I was telling my friend and fellow blogger SleepingKoala45, who blogs at Wishful Thinking, only yesterday, I'm just not much of a gamer. I find myself playing less and reading more as I um, get older. (insert grimace) So perhaps my taking up this book in the Deadlands book series, which is part of the Deadlands Weird West RPG (role-playing game) franchise seems to be a curious choice. Those of you who know me as a huge Seanan McGuire fan are probably unsurprised! However, I have to honestly say that this book just didn't grab me as much as some of her other work.
As mentioned, the book stems from a gaming franchise and since I don't play the game and I'm not much Weird West fan, it's reassuring that the book actually reads perfectly well as a standalone for those, like me, with no background in the game or the Weird West world. And, in addition to not being a Weird Wester (honestly, the West has never been my thing and I can barely even keep it together to stay with HBO's Westworld, and that's a show with great writing and excellent actors), I'm also not much of a carnie/circus/freak show fan or even much of a horror fan. So, you can see my problem here. But I am willing to follow this author off my well-beaten paths. I firmly believe that Seanan McGuire is simply incapable of writing a bad book. This just wasn't, perhaps, the best book for me. I'd have to say that Annie is an interesting character though not my favorite in this author's pantheon of Georgia Masons, Toby Dayes, Alice Healy-Prices, and Henry Marchens. That said, without giving too much away, the advent of Wendigos in the wild was rather exciting. While not a horror fan, I do enjoy folklore monsters and the Algonquin mythical cannibal creature is deliciously monstrous. Wendigos did not disappoint.
If you're a Weird West fan or a Deadlands player, this book will likely hit the spot!
3.5 Stars
As I was telling my friend and fellow blogger SleepingKoala45, who blogs at Wishful Thinking, only yesterday, I'm just not much of a gamer. I find myself playing less and reading more as I um, get older. (insert grimace) So perhaps my taking up this book in the Deadlands book series, which is part of the Deadlands Weird West RPG (role-playing game) franchise seems to be a curious choice. Those of you who know me as a huge Seanan McGuire fan are probably unsurprised! However, I have to honestly say that this book just didn't grab me as much as some of her other work.
As mentioned, the book stems from a gaming franchise and since I don't play the game and I'm not much Weird West fan, it's reassuring that the book actually reads perfectly well as a standalone for those, like me, with no background in the game or the Weird West world. And, in addition to not being a Weird Wester (honestly, the West has never been my thing and I can barely even keep it together to stay with HBO's Westworld, and that's a show with great writing and excellent actors), I'm also not much of a carnie/circus/freak show fan or even much of a horror fan. So, you can see my problem here. But I am willing to follow this author off my well-beaten paths. I firmly believe that Seanan McGuire is simply incapable of writing a bad book. This just wasn't, perhaps, the best book for me. I'd have to say that Annie is an interesting character though not my favorite in this author's pantheon of Georgia Masons, Toby Dayes, Alice Healy-Prices, and Henry Marchens. That said, without giving too much away, the advent of Wendigos in the wild was rather exciting. While not a horror fan, I do enjoy folklore monsters and the Algonquin mythical cannibal creature is deliciously monstrous. Wendigos did not disappoint.
If you're a Weird West fan or a Deadlands player, this book will likely hit the spot!