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All the Murmuring Bones will be published by Titan Books, an independent UK publisher. I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
All the Murmuring Bones is a gorgeous book, with some of my favorite gothic horror elements: once-great family now fallen, mysterious homes, marriage (threatened, in this case) to a terrible man, family secrets. Added to that are fairy tales and magical creatures, and a protagonist who just wants to live a life of her own. I'm not used to seeing the gothic and the fairytale side by side in this way (mysterious family house! protagonist is granted a boon in exchange for a kindness! another mysterious family house!) but I could definitely get used to it; the two of them aren't so different as all that. They each have their formulas, and each allow for liberties.
I really liked that Miren was running too something as much as she was running away. It gave her journey a fixed point, and it also gave her a more solid and interesting (to me) motivation. And for all that she tried not to be like her family, her moments of ruthlessness were a joy to read. Miren is fairly distant- she grew up mostly alone, and the story isn't about the power of friendship and community- but I thought that added rather than detracted to the character. I can see how some people might find that off-putting, though.
I definitely thought there would be more mermaids, and possibly selkies. They're present, but in the same way ghosts are in gothic novels. There is a selkie story, and it's wonderful, but it's not the plot of the book. Once I got into the story, though, I dropped that expectation, and, while I would never say no to more of Slatter's creepy mermaids, I will admit they weren't needed. I could have done with more horror, as well, but again, the story worked perfectly well without it.
The prose is gorgeous and very flowing- I'm glad Slatter likes writing this sort of fairy-taleish fantasy, because her writing is great for setting that sort of atmosphere. Also, the title is really cool. I'm happy I read this, and I'll definitely look to check out her next book (and also her short stories- I've read one or two but not any of the ones that are set in the same world).
All the Murmuring Bones is a gorgeous book, with some of my favorite gothic horror elements: once-great family now fallen, mysterious homes, marriage (threatened, in this case) to a terrible man, family secrets. Added to that are fairy tales and magical creatures, and a protagonist who just wants to live a life of her own. I'm not used to seeing the gothic and the fairytale side by side in this way (mysterious family house! protagonist is granted a boon in exchange for a kindness! another mysterious family house!) but I could definitely get used to it; the two of them aren't so different as all that. They each have their formulas, and each allow for liberties.
I really liked that Miren was running too something as much as she was running away. It gave her journey a fixed point, and it also gave her a more solid and interesting (to me) motivation. And for all that she tried not to be like her family, her moments of ruthlessness were a joy to read. Miren is fairly distant- she grew up mostly alone, and the story isn't about the power of friendship and community- but I thought that added rather than detracted to the character. I can see how some people might find that off-putting, though.
I definitely thought there would be more mermaids, and possibly selkies. They're present, but in the same way ghosts are in gothic novels. There is a selkie story, and it's wonderful, but it's not the plot of the book. Once I got into the story, though, I dropped that expectation, and, while I would never say no to more of Slatter's creepy mermaids, I will admit they weren't needed. I could have done with more horror, as well, but again, the story worked perfectly well without it.
The prose is gorgeous and very flowing- I'm glad Slatter likes writing this sort of fairy-taleish fantasy, because her writing is great for setting that sort of atmosphere. Also, the title is really cool. I'm happy I read this, and I'll definitely look to check out her next book (and also her short stories- I've read one or two but not any of the ones that are set in the same world).
