* I got this book for review*
I really enjoyed this book. Alex has always been a master at slow burn stories and espeically slow burn series! I think this book overal had such a fun merln esc world and i love the female focus of this book and this book was def more bloodthristy then i was expecting i really loved the found fmily eleemnt in this story and grew to love the main character. This book was a ton of set up but the last 50 pages was a wild ride!! I am excited for book 2!! ( )

* I got this book for review*
I really enjoyed this book. Alex has always been a master at slow burn stories and espeically slow burn series! I think this book overal had such a fun merln esc world and i love the female focus of this book and this book was def more bloodthristy then i was expecting i really loved the found fmily eleemnt in this story and grew to love the main character. This book was a ton of set up but the last 50 pages was a wild ride!! I am excited for book 2!! ( )

Disappearing people and lands, magic, both good and evil, secrets galore. All of these are wrapped up in a cloak of Arthurian legend with characters both highly appealing and utterly evil. The world is nicely crafted and you're left salivating for what comes next on the last page. ( )

A unique take on Arthurian legend.

Tamsin and Cabell are found siblings, making a living stealing magical objects for sorceresses after their guardian disappeared. Cabell struggles under a curse, and Tamsin becomes obsessed with an object she thinks may be able to break it: a ring from Arthurian legend.

Tamsin and Cabell find themselves part of a misfit expedition along with Neve, a sorceress who isn’t sure how to use her power, and Emrys, a rich guild member who Tamsin loves to call Trust Fund. Together, they find a way to another world, Avalon, straight from Arthurian legend. But things take a dark turn when they find Avalon under a curse. In the end, the characters are conflicted between saving Avalon and themselves.

Neve was my absolute favorite character. As a naive, loveable, nerdy sorceress who’s out of her depth yet constantly saving the day, she breaks through the other character’s walls through her pure goodness. She refuses to let them stay mopey and distant. Emrys was interesting as a love interest for Tamsin, though it takes her a while to realize he’s interested. Tamsin’s intense love for Cabell and willingness to do anything to save him made her a heroine to root for.

The ending packs a punch and left me wondering what direction the author would take the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and TBR & Beyond Tours for the advance review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ( )

Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the Silver in the Bone series. I got a copy of this book to review through NetGalley.

Thoughts: Previous to reading this book I have read many other books by Braken. I have enjoyed most of them but never really really loved them. I enjoyed "Brightly Woven", the 1st book in The Darkest Minds series, and "Lore"; I did not enjoy the later Darkest Minds novel. So, in summary Bracken is a bit hit or miss for me...this book followed in the same vein as those. This was okay, I like the darker twist to Arthurian mythology and the relic hunting but for some reason this wasn't the most engaging story for me.

The story follows Tamsin Lark and her brother Cabell. They are raised as Hollowers, those who populate the magical underground in the modern world and make a living hunting enchanted relics. The story starts with us hearing about an enchanted relic they need to hunt but then we are quickly transported to Avalon to hunt down a ring from Arthurian mythology. The world-building is a bit thin and I never quite understood how the whole multiple worlds thing worked.

There were things I enjoyed in the story and things I didn't. I really loved the beginning and enjoyed the treasure hunting aspect and the curses and adventure. Unfortunately, that quickly ended up in the background for a lot of the story. We quickly moved from relic hunting to a dark and cursed Avalon where our characters get forced into helping ancient Arthurian mythology figures. I didn't really enjoy the transition or the direction the plot took once they got to Avalon. It was like an Arthurian zombie apocalypse or something.

The characters were okay but I didn't love them, they just felt like they were missing something. Tamsin is so focused on how "bad" she's been that she gets in her own way. Her enemy-to-lovers, love interest isn't much better. All of these characters are supposed to be tortured and complex but come off as a bit stiff and shallow. The romance felt awkward and Tamsin's relationship with the others around her wasn't much better.

I read this and finished it and even enjoyed some of it. However, it was also very easy for me to put the book down and walk away from it. The writing style didn't really suck me in. When I was done I didn't want to read the next book but instead thought, "okay well onto something else". I really think this could have been an amazing book if the story had continued to focus more on relic hunting rather than Arthurian politics. The whole plunge into Arthurian mythology felt really forced.

My Summary (3.5/5): Overall I read this and it was okay, I even enjoyed some aspects of the story, but I didn't love it. I am coming to the conclusion that Bracken just might not be an author I want to keep reading. I am always excited to read her books and end up feeling a bit disappointed afterwards. This isn't a bad story; I really enjoyed the curse and magic and relic hunting...but it didn't flow very well either and the characters felt awkward. I won't be continuing with the series. ( )