Rather, they were simply a string of events, with no cause and effect at play, all asking the same amount of excitement from the reader instead of leading us through highs and lows. Here, the world-building, the clues Seol and the others uncover, and the scenes in general weren’t built on top of each other to achieve something greater. I’m usually one who loves beginnings other readers dub “slow” or “boring” but those situations usually involve meticulous setup and useful or interesting information.

My biggest frustrations with The Silence of Bones were with its slow first half and lack of overall cohesion. There is a lot of love and vision and good intentions behind The Silence of Bones, but the final, published product is still sadly lacking. Rather, it falls into the category of… mediocre. You know: you sit there cringing at every line you read, you wonder who let it get published, you start writing strongly worded letters to editors. The Silence of Bones wasn’t one of those books that are actively bad. Themes and Representation-★★★★☆ (3.75 Stars) – Too many “sudden revelations” on the Seol’s part – Cast larger than Hur can capably handle

– Themes and content struggle to come together in a cohesive whole Mentions of suicide and animal slaughter. Period and culturally specific sexism and classism, including indentured servitude and branding. Genre-typical descriptions of violence, murder, torture, mutilation, and gore. Published by Macmillan Publishers / Feiwel and Friends Imprint

A home where there was no more sorrow or tears, no more deaths or farewells. The home Brother had told me about, I had dreamed of arriving there one day. I had grown up under the memory of my brother’s stories of home, and in the twelve years that had passed without him, I realized that I had been waiting, that I had never truly left Heuksan Island.

June hur the silence of bones