The Bone Season (The Bone Season, #1)

by Samantha Shannon

The New York Times bestselling first novel in the Bone Season series, an epic fantasy about a young woman fighting to use her powers and stay alive in an England entirely different from our own.

In 2059, Scion has taken over most of the world's cities, promising safety for all the citizens it deems worthy and wiping out clairvoyants wherever it can find them.

Paige Mahoney, though, is a clairvoyant--and a criminal just for existing. Paige is determined to fight Scion's power, and as part of the Seven Seals, Paige has found a use for her powers: she scouts for information by breaking into others' minds as they dream.

But when Paige is captured and arrested, she encounters a power more sinister even than Scion. The voyant prison is a separate city, controlled by a powerful, otherworldly race. These creatures, the Rephaim, value the voyants highly-as soldiers in their army.

Paige is assigned to a Rephaite keeper, Warden, who will be in charge of her care and training. He is her master. Her natural enemy. But if she wants to regain her freedom, Paige will have to learn something of his mind and his own mysterious motives.

The Bone Season introduces a compelling heroine-a young woman learning to harness her powers in a world where everything has been taken from her. It also introduces an extraordinary young writer, with huge ambition and a teeming imagination. Samantha Shannon has created a bold new reality in this riveting debut.

• ISBN13: 9781632868480
• Publish Date: 7 February 2017 (first published 20 June 2013)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 24 August 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
• Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic USA
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 560
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

Even though I really liked it, The Bone Season was a little all-over-the-place for me.

Paige Mahoney’s gift is fascinating – the ability to step outside of herself and move her spirit not only in the world, but into others. While this is definitely one of those “the main character has this rare and magnificent power!” tropes, I didn’t mind it so much, because she wasn’t the only one. In The Bone Season, Samantha Shannon introduces her reader to a world where “unnatural” people have incredible psychic and spiritual abilities… whether it’s simple and common like reading tarot, the the rare ability to read someone’s memories. There are so many abilities and rules to them, I’d be lying if I said I remembered them all. This is one of those book where… unless you’re taking notes… sometimes it’s best to just go with the flow.

The Bone Season bounces back and forth between the present – Bone Season XX in occupied Oxford – and Paige’s past. Flashbacks come from all parts of her history, whether it’s acquisitions for her job, or the Molly Riots in Ireland. They serve to build the world, explaining why it is the way it is and how Paige ended up with the Seven Seals and who her coworkers are. They’re interesting, but it gives the book a scattered feel. Between the flashbacks and the jump-forwards in the main timeline, I had a little trouble keeping track of time.

Please don’t think that I disliked The Bone Season. Honestly, I really liked it for its entertainment value. It’s just some of the technical aspects that throw me.

There are a lot of characters to keep track of – there’s Paige’s Seven Seals crew, her friends in Oxford, the Rephs, and the various people in her history. There are a few shoutouts to her cousin Finn who doesn’t seem important at this stage at all, expect for sentimental value on Paige’s part. Of course, this is a seven book series. Only three books are currently out, so as often happens, things will likely be resolved in The Mime Order and so forth.

The powers and the world in this alt-history/dystopian future are fascinating. The characters have a lot of potential, but we still barely know them. I am honestly looking forward to seeing where this goes. I wish I had more to say than a simple “I liked it, but it was a lot”… but I’m afraid that’s all I had. It was fascinating and drew me in every time I sat down to read it. But I feel like I missed so much that it’s definitely something I’d like to reread a little more closely.

[mary]

I did actually come to enjoy this book. However I consider it a more dystopian science fiction with a little fantasy thrown in. Shannon does a good job creating this world and creating complete characters that are sympathetic and as real as they can be.

The main character is Paige Mahoney is a young woman living in the underground of Scion London in the year 2059. Scion is the security force that runs London, and wants to start running other parts of the world as well. Paige works with an underground criminal group known as The Seven Seals. Paige is a rare type of clairvoyant, a dreamwalker; she can break into other's minds steal information and control their minds. All types of voyants are illegal, and just by being she is committing a crime.

Paige is arrested and learns that captured voyants go to Oxford, a prison city erased from the map but run by a new race of beings, the Rephaim. They value the voyants as servants and soldiers in their army. Paige is assigned to Warden, a high placed Rephaim who is her enemy, or is he? Paige must learn to trust in herself, her keeper, and those around her. She must learn to harness her power if there is any hope of escape and of a different world.

[Stephanie]

D U D E. This was wicked cool. I wish that I had more time this week to read and gobble it up faster. Next one, please!

A note: the first 30 or so pages are rough to get through. There is a ton of info dumping and slang that I didn't understand but the glossary provided is full of spoiler-y type things (so really, only viable after you read the book or slightly halfway through.) But if you can muster through those first bits, the rest of the book is totally worth the initial frustration and confusion.

[Leigha]

Clairvoyant Paige Mahoney is taken prisoner in the first book to an epic adult fantasy series.

My feelings are a bit mixed when it comes to this book. On one hand, the story and characters are incredibly interesting. Paige is a likable, intelligent heroine. Her ability to adapt with her surroundings and learn new skills is admirable. The rest of the characters are less defined than Paige, but none of them feel unnecessary. The tension between Paige and Warden is palpable. While the story starts slowly, it picks up the pace toward the middle of the novel for an action packed conclusion.

On the other hand, I had a hard time with the setting and the world building. My biggest issue is with the language, particularly the slang terms the author uses liberally throughout the novel. It took me to the middle of the novel to feel I had a grasp on the language only for a new term to occur. The problematic language only accentuated the poorly constructed world building.

tl;dr A problematic adult fantasy with interesting characters yet a poorly constructed setting.

Review originally posted at Simply Adrift.

The Bone Season is a paranormal series set in future England. I loved this idea so much! It's based in a world where people have clairvoyant abilities, normal humans are terrified of those paranormal abilities and have put measures into place to discover and destroy them.

What I liked

- The Bone Season really surprised me. The summary doesn't interest me at all but a friend of mine convinced me to give it a try because she really likes this series. The beginning was a bit slow but once I pushed through it I fell in love with this world and these characters.

- The characters were gritty but really likeable. I wasn't sure how I felt about Paige but as I read, the more I liked her and understood her.  Her ability to walk in other peoples dreamscape's was really confusing to understand at first but it sounded like such a cool ability. Warden was a complex character and I loved discovering him more and more.

- This story has layers and so many things happening at once. I'm really excited to continue this series to see where it goes.

- Even after finishing this book I can't stop thinking about it, picking up the second book really excites me because being immersed in this world was amazing the first time around.

What I didn't like

- The only thing I didn't like about The Bone Season was that there were so many new words that I had no idea what they meant. Luckily there's a glossary at the end of the book so I was constantly turning to the glossary, but I felt like it was still really hard to wrap my head around everything. I also feel like the glossary should be at the beginning of the book.

- It looks like each book comes out every two years. WHY?! The fourth book is said to be published in 2018 so I hope that actually happens because waiting two years for each book will be TORTURE.

The Bone Season is a complex story that is worth reading. The characters are fun to fall in love with, the world is crazy and interesting, and there's more going on than you think. I loved this book and I can't wait to get into the next one!

Always,
Jordon

This review was originally posted on Simply Adrift

[Joséphine]

Notes: Alternating between the audiobook and hardcover.

[nightingalereads]

I really really liked this book. So excited for the next one. 3

[Kelly]

★★★★☆
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2015/09/the-bone-season-by-samantha-shannon.html

Oh good lord. Why did I wait so long to immerse myself in Samantha Shannon's world of The Bone Season? It was absolutely incredible, so intricate and vividly imagined. I adored it. I must admit that I was hesitant to start the series especially seeing I'm not an avid fantasy reader, but within the first few chapters I was completely captivated. It follows the storyline of Paige or The Pale Dreamer as she's known within her sector. Paige is a Dreamwalker, able to access the mind and dreamscape of those around her, making her Jaxon's most prized possession. Jaxon is a flamboyant wolf in the guise of a lamb but seeing her only alternative is to live on the streets and beg, Paige sees her work for the The Binder as the lessor of two evils and works alongside Jaxon as his heir. Scion London is segregated into two groups, Amaurotics who are natural and solely human and the Voyant community, those with Clairvoyant abilities who are deemed as illegal by a ruthless and oppressive government. The Voyants pay with their lives or in a new revelation, sent into slavery with a race of dangerous and cruel captors

It was so refreshing to see a fantasy series not based on kingdoms but rather feature a syndicate or organised crime rivalry throughout the districts of London. There are varying levels of clairvoyance among the Voyant community, from tarot readers to those who can bind spirits of the dead to use as weapons and none more revered than Paige. The hierarchy between the characters is delicious. I really enjoyed seeing the personalities beyond their abilities, with each character not only distinctive but wonderfully crafted.

Paige isn't your average heroine. She doesn't harbour feelings of grandeur or self importance, nor does she live in luxury with material possessions and given her rare gift, she certainly could be living the high life. She's insecure, in love with man who doesn't reciprocate her feelings and works for a man she is beginning to despise. The barely there romance was slow burning, yet incredibly intense similar to A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. Warden is an unusual love interest. Distant and gruff, Paige may be able to forgive his past deeds but the streetwise girl is reluctant to trust the Rephaim that keeps her captive. Although Warden shows signs of redemption, I can't help but wonder if Paige's interest is little more than a form of Stockholm Syndrome.

The characters, the world building and the vividly imagined London were breathtaking. Not since Throne of Glass has a series captured, enthralled and enchanted me so. I simply adored it. Samantha Shannon is a phenomenal author who's has crafted one of the best fantasy fusion series I've read to date.

[sarahjay]

(Reread) I still can't get over how often Paige gets injured and seems to not care/feel it. I know she's a special snowflake but come on! Anyway, definitely excited for the Mime Order now.

[tweetybugshouse]

The amount of imagination and detail that has gone into the world building is stunning. This is a book that I think will require patience from the reader, because it takes a while to grasp some of the ideas, and just when you think you've grasped them something new is thrown in. However, when everything does eventually fall into place the complexity of it all will just blow you away. It has elements of The Throne of glass that will draw young adult readers in but since you have lots of new concepts to grasp it does take a bit to dive into the story. It took me about a week to finish the book but it was well worth the read and then to top it all off i get to the end and realize book two is due out in just a few days. Loved this book so glad i took a chance on reading it.