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The Cursed Crown #1
Les Péchés Gravés Dans Leurs Os (Edition Relié): La Couronne Maudite 1
Dimitri Alexeyev used to be the Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo. Now, he is merely a broken man, languishing in exile after losing a devastating civil war instigated by his estranged husband, Alexey Balakin. In hiding with what remains of his court, Dimitri and his spymaster, Vasily Sokolov, engineer a dangerous ruse. Vasily will sneak into Alexey’s court under a false identity to gather information, paving the way for the usurper’s downfall, while Dimitri finds a way to kill him for good.
But stopping Alexey is not so easy as plotting to kill an ordinary man. Through a perversion of the Ludayzim religion that he terms the Holy Science, Alexey has died and resurrected himself in an immortal, indestructible body—and now claims he is guided by the voice of God Himself. Able to summon forth creatures from the realm of demons, he seeks to build an army, turning Novo-Svitsevo into the greatest empire that history has ever seen.
Dimitri is determined not to let Alexey corrupt his country, but saving Novo-Svitsevo and its people will mean forfeiting the soul of the husband he can’t bring himself to forsake—or the spymaster he’s come to love.
But stopping Alexey is not so easy as plotting to kill an ordinary man. Through a perversion of the Ludayzim religion that he terms the Holy Science, Alexey has died and resurrected himself in an immortal, indestructible body—and now claims he is guided by the voice of God Himself. Able to summon forth creatures from the realm of demons, he seeks to build an army, turning Novo-Svitsevo into the greatest empire that history has ever seen.
Dimitri is determined not to let Alexey corrupt his country, but saving Novo-Svitsevo and its people will mean forfeiting the soul of the husband he can’t bring himself to forsake—or the spymaster he’s come to love.
Hardcover
First published May 7, 2024
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About the author
Laura R. Samotin
7 books181 followersLAURA R. SAMOTIN and her spouse live with two enormously large felines. When she’s not pursuing her academic research on military tactics, power politics, and leadership, she relishes her role as a full-time cat servant.
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April 11, 2024SHADOW AND BONE meets FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST but make it Jewish and about sexual trauma in this new queer, Jewish, dark fantasy (NOT a romantasy!).
Our story takes place in a post-war world, like a sea after a rough storm, residual debris floating to the surface and now adrift.
Dimitri, the self-exiled Tsar, is struggling as he copes with the loss of his husband, Alexey, in more ways than one. He's surrounded by his friends who all want to support and love him the best they can, but his violent past with Alexey makes it hard for him to accept tenderness.
Alexey is now the acting Tsar, furious at his husband's betrayal and hungry for power. With the help of the Holy Science, he intends to remake the world as he remade himself, as the Chosen One of the Lord, a vessel between realms.
Vasily watches Dimitri ache, determined to take down Alexey and provide Dimitri with the happiness and freedom he deserves. But in order to make that happen, he'll have to craft an elaborate plan. One that involves risking his life and getting incredibly close to the enemy.
This violent yet resilient story wonderfully explores the effects of trauma, especially from abusive relationships, and how we write our scars deep into the bones of our identity, carrying the blame of a fault that was not our own.
My only critique of this book is less of a critique, but more something that if I was editing this book, I would suggest as a way to elevate the narrative. The story begins in the aftermath of a war, with most of the present stakes and circumstances informed by a complex backstory. With that in mind, I wish information about what exactly occurred in the past was divulged slowly in small, intentional moments. This post-war environment could have had a stronger impact and helped with pacing if the audience had been kept stewing in obscurity for longer, gathering up the shattered pieces bit by bit to make a full picture. Especially if Alexey had been kept vague, with only hints at his POV up until a certain point in the story. These changes definitely would have allowed for a stronger balance of intrigue and drama.
But other than that, I really enjoyed this story and found it full of such vivid and nuanced commentary about trauma and abuse.
I don't recommend this book lightly, as I found myself often nauseous from the violence and gore or deeply upset by the graphic sexual abuse. A third of the narration is told from the mind of an abuser, and witnessing his cruelty in high definition is not the easiest feat, nor is that of witnessing the other characters sacrifice their all in the name of their country's freedom and safety. But if these contents are something you're able to handle, it really is all worth it in the end. I can't wait to see how the story continues in the sequel.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
CW: sexual violence, abusive relationship, blood & gore, violence, injury detail (graphic), body horror, human experimentation, trauma, sexual content, character death, gun violence, drug use, war (past), torture (mention), child death (mention), death of father (past), emesis, alcohol
Our story takes place in a post-war world, like a sea after a rough storm, residual debris floating to the surface and now adrift.
Dimitri, the self-exiled Tsar, is struggling as he copes with the loss of his husband, Alexey, in more ways than one. He's surrounded by his friends who all want to support and love him the best they can, but his violent past with Alexey makes it hard for him to accept tenderness.
Alexey is now the acting Tsar, furious at his husband's betrayal and hungry for power. With the help of the Holy Science, he intends to remake the world as he remade himself, as the Chosen One of the Lord, a vessel between realms.
Vasily watches Dimitri ache, determined to take down Alexey and provide Dimitri with the happiness and freedom he deserves. But in order to make that happen, he'll have to craft an elaborate plan. One that involves risking his life and getting incredibly close to the enemy.
This violent yet resilient story wonderfully explores the effects of trauma, especially from abusive relationships, and how we write our scars deep into the bones of our identity, carrying the blame of a fault that was not our own.
My only critique of this book is less of a critique, but more something that if I was editing this book, I would suggest as a way to elevate the narrative. The story begins in the aftermath of a war, with most of the present stakes and circumstances informed by a complex backstory. With that in mind, I wish information about what exactly occurred in the past was divulged slowly in small, intentional moments. This post-war environment could have had a stronger impact and helped with pacing if the audience had been kept stewing in obscurity for longer, gathering up the shattered pieces bit by bit to make a full picture. Especially if Alexey had been kept vague, with only hints at his POV up until a certain point in the story. These changes definitely would have allowed for a stronger balance of intrigue and drama.
But other than that, I really enjoyed this story and found it full of such vivid and nuanced commentary about trauma and abuse.
I don't recommend this book lightly, as I found myself often nauseous from the violence and gore or deeply upset by the graphic sexual abuse. A third of the narration is told from the mind of an abuser, and witnessing his cruelty in high definition is not the easiest feat, nor is that of witnessing the other characters sacrifice their all in the name of their country's freedom and safety. But if these contents are something you're able to handle, it really is all worth it in the end. I can't wait to see how the story continues in the sequel.
Thank you to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
CW: sexual violence, abusive relationship, blood & gore, violence, injury detail (graphic), body horror, human experimentation, trauma, sexual content, character death, gun violence, drug use, war (past), torture (mention), child death (mention), death of father (past), emesis, alcohol
April 4, 2024
DNF at 50%
I believe getting advance review copies is a great privilege, hence why I always make a point of reading them through to the end before leaving a review.
In this case, however, I must make an exception. Despite being one of my most anticipated releases of the year, The Sins on Their Bones turned out to be so excruciatingly boring that I simply could not bring myself to finish it.
To begin with, I feel like the story started in the wrong place. The characters kept referencing past events that marked both their personal lives and the history of their country, but because we don’t actually see these events unfolding or these characters bonding, it’s hard to get invested in them. Even though the stakes are literally as high as they get, we are given no reason to care about the fate of this world or the people in it. This felt like reading the sequel to a first novel that doesn’t exist.
Which brings me to my second problem: the pacing. In the two hundred pages I read, pretty much nothing happened. Characters did little but sit around moping, talking about their past, and revisiting their trauma. Alexey, the villain we’re supposed to root against, was the only one driving the plot forward and therefore the only compelling character out of the whole cast. Call me cold hearted, but I can’t bring myself to be interested in a protagonist who does nothing but sulk, drink, and have rebound sex with his equally bland best friend.
Speaking of which, what’s with all the gratuitous sex in this book? I usually don’t mind explicit scenes, but here they felt excessive and repetitive to the point that I started skimming them. We don’t need to read about the same characters having the same dysfunctional sex over and over again to understand they’re messy and tortured—we got the point the first time around. It almost feels like the author chose to throw in some random smut to compensate for the slow, uneventful plot; unfortunately, I found the romance (and the characters’ relationships in general) just as dry as the plot itself. The two main leads had no chemistry whatsoever and I simply couldn’t figure out what they saw in each other besides physical attraction.
The one thing that managed to hold my interest was the mythology. I love folklore and mysticism and enjoyed reading about this re-interpretation of Ashkenazi religious traditions. However, the lore alone wasn’t enough for me to push through the book.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Canada for this e-ARC.
I believe getting advance review copies is a great privilege, hence why I always make a point of reading them through to the end before leaving a review.
In this case, however, I must make an exception. Despite being one of my most anticipated releases of the year, The Sins on Their Bones turned out to be so excruciatingly boring that I simply could not bring myself to finish it.
To begin with, I feel like the story started in the wrong place. The characters kept referencing past events that marked both their personal lives and the history of their country, but because we don’t actually see these events unfolding or these characters bonding, it’s hard to get invested in them. Even though the stakes are literally as high as they get, we are given no reason to care about the fate of this world or the people in it. This felt like reading the sequel to a first novel that doesn’t exist.
Which brings me to my second problem: the pacing. In the two hundred pages I read, pretty much nothing happened. Characters did little but sit around moping, talking about their past, and revisiting their trauma. Alexey, the villain we’re supposed to root against, was the only one driving the plot forward and therefore the only compelling character out of the whole cast. Call me cold hearted, but I can’t bring myself to be interested in a protagonist who does nothing but sulk, drink, and have rebound sex with his equally bland best friend.
Speaking of which, what’s with all the gratuitous sex in this book? I usually don’t mind explicit scenes, but here they felt excessive and repetitive to the point that I started skimming them. We don’t need to read about the same characters having the same dysfunctional sex over and over again to understand they’re messy and tortured—we got the point the first time around. It almost feels like the author chose to throw in some random smut to compensate for the slow, uneventful plot; unfortunately, I found the romance (and the characters’ relationships in general) just as dry as the plot itself. The two main leads had no chemistry whatsoever and I simply couldn’t figure out what they saw in each other besides physical attraction.
The one thing that managed to hold my interest was the mythology. I love folklore and mysticism and enjoyed reading about this re-interpretation of Ashkenazi religious traditions. However, the lore alone wasn’t enough for me to push through the book.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Canada for this e-ARC.
September 6, 2024
”They could have this, if only for a moment. A tiny bit of comfort in a world that wanted to rip them apart.”
**I received an advanced copy of this book from Random House Canada and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Thank you so much for giving me a chance to read this ARC!**
After reading “The Sins on Their Bones” and giving myself some time to digest the book it seems like I’m still at a loss for words. Considering the heavy topics this story explored and how dark and twisted it turned out to be this shouldn’t come as a surprise, though. If you ask me Laura R. Samotin did something not many authors are able to pull off. She wrote a book that’s not only set in a Jewish folklore-inspired queernormative world but also one that features three different POVS. And she gave all those characters such a unique voice that it was extremely easy to keep them apart. No matter if it was Dimitri, Vasily or Alexey, each and every single one of them had their own agenda and tried to push it forward.
Still, if you’re expecting something fast paced now, you’ll be disappointed. “The Sins on Their Bones” is a very character driven story that used every tool available in order to create a lush and credible setting. There’s a very strong religious element that runs through the entire storyline and the topic of abuse and how it affects the people who suffered from it is always in the forefront as well. All of the characters are morally grey and they all did things they aren’t proud of. It’s a pretty complex world with multi-layered characters that are all forced to play the parts they’ve been given. Like a chess game, that’s working its way towards the grande finale.
What the book truly lives from are the different kinds of love that are visible in every line of the story, though. And I’m not just talking about queer love here. I’m talking about the toxic, destructive, manipulative kind of love that rips you apart, the wholesome and nourishing sort we all crave for, as well as the love that comes from having supportive friends that stick with you through thick and thin. Samotin didn’t just cover the entire bandwidth of human emotions and relationships, she also dove into the abyss of human nature and gave this book an unexpected psychological depth that’s not easy to match. The story raises the century old question of what is wrong and what is right and confronts the reader with what happens if both sides think that the other side is in the wrong.
Hearts and bones are quite literally broken in order to find the truth, but in the end, as is the essence of war, no side ever truly wins. And for that alone I love what Laura R. Samotin did with this story!
“The Sins on Their Bones” is a book about love and loss, about grief and guilt, about the darkness within and the light of hope that always finds its way in. It’s a study of human nature, a story about the resilience of humankind and what we’re able to endure. But most of all it’s a story about faith, the belief that no matter how dark it gets, there are people who love us, there’s a higher power that guides us and when confronted with our sins, there’s always hope for change and amendment. 4,5 stars rounded up to 5.
Trigger warnings:
The characters:
Welcome to my spoiler section! When I read ARCs I usually don’t go for one of these, but since I bought the book (my e-reader died and my copy didn’t work anymore) I decided I’d go for a more thorough review here. I have many thoughts and I need to put them into words. So here goes nothing! You’re welcome to join me or to skip this part. It’s your choice. ;-)
Dimitri:
"I'd ask God to protect you, but I don't think He's listening to me anymore." Dimitri looked down at his hands in his lap, his voice thick.
Dima is a character I couldn’t help but feel sorry for. He probably would hate me for saying that, but after everything he went through it’s no surprise that he’s a broken man. The things he did in order to get Alexey back and the things he had to do after he betrayed him? It’s enough to break any man and this without true love being involved. Dimitri loved Alexey too much and there’s truth in the saying that “the ones who can hurt you the most are the ones you love”. I hear the reviewers who said that Dima is wallowing in self-pity and therefore didn’t get anything done but hear me out. This man was thoroughly broken, Alexey was the one person he trusted and his everything after his parents died. He was manipulated and gaslighted by him for years and because he loved him, he didn’t even notice until it was too late. The pain and guilt that came along with the realization of what he’d done and what he had allowed him to do with his country must have been more than just crippling and yes, we might have not known everything that happened but the reader knows enough to get a good picture of the situation. And if that wouldn’t have been enough already, the physical and mental abuse went on for years. No, seriously, I feel so, so sad for Dimitri because he’s a poor soul that had to suffer. Yet despite it all, he’s also a survivor and I loved to see the change in him. It was slow but it was realistic and after all the pain he went through I honestly hope that he and Vasya will have some peace now.
”He’d spent the last year wondering if Alexey had been right, if he’d been too weak to be the Tzar that Novo-Svitsevo needed. He still heard the echo of every one of Alexey’s scornful remarks over and over, every time he was alone.”
”Alexey was still so much a part of him, still controlling him, still leaving him crippled with guilt and with grief. He was nothing more than a boy living in the past, wishing that there was some way to undo his sins so he didn’t have to grapple with the consequences in the present.”
Alexey:
”They all cried out for their families, begged him to let them go, prayed to God, as if Alexey Balakin, God’s finest creation, was not standing in front of them, offering to be their family, giving them a chance to protect the empire from any of the monstrosities that would stand against it. None of them loved Novo-Svitsevo like he did.
Boy, Alexey was a piece of work! >_< The horrible thing about him, was that he truly believed he was doing what was best for Dimitri and his country. Whilst Dima was eaten up with self-doubt and self-hatred in equal measure, Alexey had no such qualms. Quite the contrary, Alexey was self-assured and believed in himself and his Holy Science. You might say he was a fanatic that did what he thought needed to be done and you’d be right. But unfortunately he was also charismatic and manipulative af and very scary which explained all the people at his court that just tried to survive his reign. For Alexey there’s no doubt that he’s in the right and he ruled with an iron fist. And I have to say this here: he’s also a sadistic assh*le that thrives when others are in pain. From what I gathered from all the sex scenes in the book he enjoys being in power and degrading and humiliating others. I know some people criticized that there are seemingly unnecessary sex scenes but I think Samotin wrote them in order to emphasise Alexey’s sadistic streak. For me those scenes revealed a lot about his character and megalomaniacal personality and therefore actually felt necessary for the plot.
”Every day after that, Alexey had prayed that Dimitri made no trouble, because as long as he made no trouble, he could stay alive. The moment he began to make a move for the throne, he would have to die. There would be no way that Alexey could maintain control otherwise. So he hoped that Dimitri would never make that mistake.”
"I believe, Moy Tzar," Ivan said, bending down for another kiss, then nuzzling his neck. "I believe in two things. In you, and in the Lord our God." Alexey didn't correct Ivan that believing in him and believing in God were one and the same.
Vasily:
"He'd made it his life's mission to protect Dimitri - the very heart of Novo-Svitsevo, the backbone of them all - from anything that might hurt him, be it assassination or civil unrest, or bruised ribs and a broken heart."
Can I have my own Vasya, please?! I swear this man stole the show and I enjoyed his POV so damn much! The way he toyed with Alexey and catered to his needs in order to get the information, he wanted… chef’s kiss! The role as spymaster fit him so well and Dima honestly couldn’t have found a better guy for the job. Vasya has all my respect for being a force to be reckoned with, and keeping a cool head when everyone else would have succumbed to panic. I’m not gonna lie, I fell in love with this man’s clever mind and the way he went about solving problems. He was extremely resourceful and would have done everything to safe not only Dima but also his country and people. His unwavering trust, dedication and loyalty in Dima and his court was so admirable. I can’t even. Moreover, I adored him for being so compassionate and having one hell of a poker face. Yes, I’m besotted with this man and I regret nothing. Legit the best character in the entire book. <3
”Alexey licked his lips, and Vasily prayed to God that Ivan was satisfying in bed, because while he would bury every fear and instinct of his and let Alexey fuck him for days if that would save Dimitri and Novo-Svitsevo, he’d really rather not.”
”You shifted my entire image of myself. For all this time, I thought I deserved what happened to me as a child. I thought I was the one at fault. But now that instinct just kills me, because I see it in you too.”
The relationships & ships:
Dimitri & Alexey:
"But he could love Alexey the same way Alexey had loved him. Unflinchingly, honestly, willing to look him in the eyes and assess his flaws. Willing to betray him, because the love they both felt for their country was more powerful than anything else."
I’m still in awe of the way Samotin wrote their toxic relationship. It felt so real, dark and twisted and it was definitely abusive and destructive as well. You know some part of Dima still loves Alexey, yet at the same time he’s painfully aware of all the abuse he went through. Alexey for his part sees nothing wrong in his actions and this makes it so damn difficult. Whilst Dima went through some tough trauma initiated by his own husband, Alexey thinks the end justified the means. Alexey is blind to his own actions and how they affect and hurt the ones around him. Mostly because his humanity seems to have died when he returned from the grave. It was so hard to read from the villains POV because you know he’s wrong but he doesn’t see the error of his ways. Alexey tried to form Dima into someone he wasn’t and he didn’t care whether that broke him or not. So whilst Dima has true feelings for Alexey, his husband seems to be incapable of feeling anything at all. Even worse, when confronted with the truth, he refuses to acknowledge it. In the end Dimitri sees no other way than to kill his own husband, even going as far as to ask for help from an angel. Which is dangerous and leaves him with an arm that was flayed open because Gods name ended up written on his bones. Quite literally. Boy, that one was graphic. As were the scenes of Alexey’s abuse and how he broke Dimitri, figuratively and literally. This definitely wasn’t for the faint hearted… In the end, Dima tried to do the right thing and suffered immensely because of it and I can’t help but wonder how this will affect him in the second book. I’m sure we’ll see more of Alexey as well and that their toxic story isn’t quite over yet even though I wish it would be. For Dima’s sake I hope he’ll be a lot stronger when he faces him again. >_< But that’s the problem, if you’ve been the victim, it’s not easy to change your role and to fight against what the other made you believe. I guess we’ll have to find out in the next book.
"If there was one thing about Dimitri he had despised, it was how stubborn and steadfast he was. Dimitri had pushed back and fought him, clawed at him, despite all of Alexey's efforts to mold him."
”We’re just two broken men, aren’t we? Who tried and tried, and yet in the trying, made everything worse.”
Alexey recoiled and squared his shoulders. “I am not broken.”
Dimitri laughed wetly. “If you refuse to admit it, then, who are we but two people who loved each other to the point of destruction? You and I burned everything to the ground in our wake. I loved you, Alexey, but I lost you all the same. I lost you to that fucking Holy Science of yours, and you never came back to me.”
Dimitri & Vasily:
”It filled him with guilt, pretending that Vasily was Alexey instead, but it was what he needed. And Vasily had never told him no, had never complained, and so he took and took and took, even as he wished it wasn't Vasily he was taking from."
Those two were so good for each other and I loved their slow burn romance! I know a couple of other readers mentioned that Dima was too hung up on Alexey to make their ship believable but I personally think that this was very realistic. To fall in love is easy, but to fall out of it is hard and it’s exactly what Dimitri was trying to do. He knew Alexey was bad for him, but his heart couldn’t quite follow the lead of his head. Once there are feelings involved it’s always difficult. You can hate someone but still love them and I think Samotin portrayed Dima’s inner conflict more than just well. So yes, Vasya’s and Dima’s relationship is developing slowly and there isn’t a lot of chemistry, but considering their history this felt real. They connected more on an emotional level than on a physical one and I think that’s totally believable. Both of them suffered physical and emotional abuse from the people they trusted and loved so them building a healthy relationship based on trust and familiarity was exactly what they needed. I think it was realistic and developed naturally and I don’t need them to have mind-blowing chemistry as long as they are happy and feel comfortable around each other. They have room to grow and to heal and that’s perfect! I ship it! Period!
”I know what he would do. I know exactly what he would do, because I spent years watching him do it to you. I could draw the atlas of the way he hurt you.”
It was a punch to the gut, the way that Dimitri leaned into his touch, the way that he replied, “I don’t want him to hurt you. And I’m afraid he will.” Like his own hurt didn’t matter. Like he was so worthless that he didn’t deserve to be safe.
”It was a feeling that only one other person had truly been able to give him, and something in Dimitri’s heart burned with the thought that Vasily’s comfort was better, and purer, and more real and selfless and solid than Alexey’s had ever been.
He couldn’t lose this. He couldn’t bear it. This would be the loss that tore him to shreds.”
”There will merely be this, between us, this recognition of the perfect hurt and pain that honed us into blades, so we could cut each other free. I wanted so badly to tell you that if you died, I would follow, because it’s no longer the secrets of heaven I would wish to whisper to you. It’s that I love you too.”
Alexey & Ivan:
”Would you –“ Ivan was truly crying now, and Alexey deigned to wipe away his tears. “Would you be doing this if I wasn’t my father’s son?”
No, Alexey thought. “Yes, of course. Don’t be ridiculous.”
I still feel sad about Ivan’s death because this gullible boy fell in love with the wrong man and he’s basically the embodiment of what could have happened to Dimitri if he would have stayed with Alexey. But Dima was too strong-willed and fought against Alexey, something that would have never even occurred to Ivan. Which is so tragic because it’s the reason Alexey didn’t love him as much as he loved his husband. Ivan was too pliable and innocent. No match for Alexey’s wickedness and cunning. He was just a means to an end and this will always be tragic and sad. T_T
”None of us get what we want in this life.” Ivan’s voice was laced with such unbearable sadness that it made Alexey choke on a sob. “Not bastards, not Tzars. Not even the chosen one of God.”
Dimitri & his Court:
”I meant it because to people like you, to people like me, there’s more to our lives than family, than friends, than love,” Annika continued. “There is duty, and loyalty to one’s country, and the knowledge that we will do what we must to protect our people.”
I absolutely adored Dima’s court because they weren’t just amazing but also distinctive and diverse voices. Mischa his physician went by they/them pronouns, Ladushka (Lada in short) seemed to be on the aro/ace spectrum and Annika was a compassionate soul that deserved the world. (I think she might have been bi or lesbian, but it was never truly mentioned, at least as far as I can remember) I loved that they all had different strengths and that they did their best to support Dima. They definitely were a found family and I was glad Dimitri and Vasily had them. =)
”None of them had protested the plan. He had not needed to ask if they would come with him, back to Novo-Svitsevo. Because he knew that even if he was standing at the edge of the world, these four would be behind him, holding him up. They were his friends, his family, his strength, his salvation.”
Conclusion:
So, those are my thoughts on the book and its characters. I probably could go on and on but I think I’ll leave it at that. If anyone wants to discuss the story with me, feel free to drop me a comment! I’d love to talk about this because I still have so many thoughts! =)
_____________________________
I was very lucky to get an e-ARC of “The Sins on Their Bones” through NetGalley.
Well, and then I was extremely unlucky because my e-reader died and my ARC copy didn’t work anymore. >_<
Guess they are right when they say: You win some, you lose some?! *lol*
I decided to buy the book now, though because I wanted to read this so badly it hurts
So yeah, I might be late to the party but I had very good reasons and now I’m going to read this book!
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**I received an advanced copy of this book from Random House Canada and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Thank you so much for giving me a chance to read this ARC!**
After reading “The Sins on Their Bones” and giving myself some time to digest the book it seems like I’m still at a loss for words. Considering the heavy topics this story explored and how dark and twisted it turned out to be this shouldn’t come as a surprise, though. If you ask me Laura R. Samotin did something not many authors are able to pull off. She wrote a book that’s not only set in a Jewish folklore-inspired queernormative world but also one that features three different POVS. And she gave all those characters such a unique voice that it was extremely easy to keep them apart. No matter if it was Dimitri, Vasily or Alexey, each and every single one of them had their own agenda and tried to push it forward.
Still, if you’re expecting something fast paced now, you’ll be disappointed. “The Sins on Their Bones” is a very character driven story that used every tool available in order to create a lush and credible setting. There’s a very strong religious element that runs through the entire storyline and the topic of abuse and how it affects the people who suffered from it is always in the forefront as well. All of the characters are morally grey and they all did things they aren’t proud of. It’s a pretty complex world with multi-layered characters that are all forced to play the parts they’ve been given. Like a chess game, that’s working its way towards the grande finale.
What the book truly lives from are the different kinds of love that are visible in every line of the story, though. And I’m not just talking about queer love here. I’m talking about the toxic, destructive, manipulative kind of love that rips you apart, the wholesome and nourishing sort we all crave for, as well as the love that comes from having supportive friends that stick with you through thick and thin. Samotin didn’t just cover the entire bandwidth of human emotions and relationships, she also dove into the abyss of human nature and gave this book an unexpected psychological depth that’s not easy to match. The story raises the century old question of what is wrong and what is right and confronts the reader with what happens if both sides think that the other side is in the wrong.
Hearts and bones are quite literally broken in order to find the truth, but in the end, as is the essence of war, no side ever truly wins. And for that alone I love what Laura R. Samotin did with this story!
“The Sins on Their Bones” is a book about love and loss, about grief and guilt, about the darkness within and the light of hope that always finds its way in. It’s a study of human nature, a story about the resilience of humankind and what we’re able to endure. But most of all it’s a story about faith, the belief that no matter how dark it gets, there are people who love us, there’s a higher power that guides us and when confronted with our sins, there’s always hope for change and amendment. 4,5 stars rounded up to 5.
Trigger warnings:
The characters:
Welcome to my spoiler section! When I read ARCs I usually don’t go for one of these, but since I bought the book (my e-reader died and my copy didn’t work anymore) I decided I’d go for a more thorough review here. I have many thoughts and I need to put them into words. So here goes nothing! You’re welcome to join me or to skip this part. It’s your choice. ;-)
Dimitri:
"I'd ask God to protect you, but I don't think He's listening to me anymore." Dimitri looked down at his hands in his lap, his voice thick.
Dima is a character I couldn’t help but feel sorry for. He probably would hate me for saying that, but after everything he went through it’s no surprise that he’s a broken man. The things he did in order to get Alexey back and the things he had to do after he betrayed him? It’s enough to break any man and this without true love being involved. Dimitri loved Alexey too much and there’s truth in the saying that “the ones who can hurt you the most are the ones you love”. I hear the reviewers who said that Dima is wallowing in self-pity and therefore didn’t get anything done but hear me out. This man was thoroughly broken, Alexey was the one person he trusted and his everything after his parents died. He was manipulated and gaslighted by him for years and because he loved him, he didn’t even notice until it was too late. The pain and guilt that came along with the realization of what he’d done and what he had allowed him to do with his country must have been more than just crippling and yes, we might have not known everything that happened but the reader knows enough to get a good picture of the situation. And if that wouldn’t have been enough already, the physical and mental abuse went on for years. No, seriously, I feel so, so sad for Dimitri because he’s a poor soul that had to suffer. Yet despite it all, he’s also a survivor and I loved to see the change in him. It was slow but it was realistic and after all the pain he went through I honestly hope that he and Vasya will have some peace now.
”He’d spent the last year wondering if Alexey had been right, if he’d been too weak to be the Tzar that Novo-Svitsevo needed. He still heard the echo of every one of Alexey’s scornful remarks over and over, every time he was alone.”
”Alexey was still so much a part of him, still controlling him, still leaving him crippled with guilt and with grief. He was nothing more than a boy living in the past, wishing that there was some way to undo his sins so he didn’t have to grapple with the consequences in the present.”
Alexey:
”They all cried out for their families, begged him to let them go, prayed to God, as if Alexey Balakin, God’s finest creation, was not standing in front of them, offering to be their family, giving them a chance to protect the empire from any of the monstrosities that would stand against it. None of them loved Novo-Svitsevo like he did.
Boy, Alexey was a piece of work! >_< The horrible thing about him, was that he truly believed he was doing what was best for Dimitri and his country. Whilst Dima was eaten up with self-doubt and self-hatred in equal measure, Alexey had no such qualms. Quite the contrary, Alexey was self-assured and believed in himself and his Holy Science. You might say he was a fanatic that did what he thought needed to be done and you’d be right. But unfortunately he was also charismatic and manipulative af and very scary which explained all the people at his court that just tried to survive his reign. For Alexey there’s no doubt that he’s in the right and he ruled with an iron fist. And I have to say this here: he’s also a sadistic assh*le that thrives when others are in pain. From what I gathered from all the sex scenes in the book he enjoys being in power and degrading and humiliating others. I know some people criticized that there are seemingly unnecessary sex scenes but I think Samotin wrote them in order to emphasise Alexey’s sadistic streak. For me those scenes revealed a lot about his character and megalomaniacal personality and therefore actually felt necessary for the plot.
”Every day after that, Alexey had prayed that Dimitri made no trouble, because as long as he made no trouble, he could stay alive. The moment he began to make a move for the throne, he would have to die. There would be no way that Alexey could maintain control otherwise. So he hoped that Dimitri would never make that mistake.”
"I believe, Moy Tzar," Ivan said, bending down for another kiss, then nuzzling his neck. "I believe in two things. In you, and in the Lord our God." Alexey didn't correct Ivan that believing in him and believing in God were one and the same.
Vasily:
"He'd made it his life's mission to protect Dimitri - the very heart of Novo-Svitsevo, the backbone of them all - from anything that might hurt him, be it assassination or civil unrest, or bruised ribs and a broken heart."
Can I have my own Vasya, please?! I swear this man stole the show and I enjoyed his POV so damn much! The way he toyed with Alexey and catered to his needs in order to get the information, he wanted… chef’s kiss! The role as spymaster fit him so well and Dima honestly couldn’t have found a better guy for the job. Vasya has all my respect for being a force to be reckoned with, and keeping a cool head when everyone else would have succumbed to panic. I’m not gonna lie, I fell in love with this man’s clever mind and the way he went about solving problems. He was extremely resourceful and would have done everything to safe not only Dima but also his country and people. His unwavering trust, dedication and loyalty in Dima and his court was so admirable. I can’t even. Moreover, I adored him for being so compassionate and having one hell of a poker face. Yes, I’m besotted with this man and I regret nothing. Legit the best character in the entire book. <3
”Alexey licked his lips, and Vasily prayed to God that Ivan was satisfying in bed, because while he would bury every fear and instinct of his and let Alexey fuck him for days if that would save Dimitri and Novo-Svitsevo, he’d really rather not.”
”You shifted my entire image of myself. For all this time, I thought I deserved what happened to me as a child. I thought I was the one at fault. But now that instinct just kills me, because I see it in you too.”
The relationships & ships:
Dimitri & Alexey:
"But he could love Alexey the same way Alexey had loved him. Unflinchingly, honestly, willing to look him in the eyes and assess his flaws. Willing to betray him, because the love they both felt for their country was more powerful than anything else."
I’m still in awe of the way Samotin wrote their toxic relationship. It felt so real, dark and twisted and it was definitely abusive and destructive as well. You know some part of Dima still loves Alexey, yet at the same time he’s painfully aware of all the abuse he went through. Alexey for his part sees nothing wrong in his actions and this makes it so damn difficult. Whilst Dima went through some tough trauma initiated by his own husband, Alexey thinks the end justified the means. Alexey is blind to his own actions and how they affect and hurt the ones around him. Mostly because his humanity seems to have died when he returned from the grave. It was so hard to read from the villains POV because you know he’s wrong but he doesn’t see the error of his ways. Alexey tried to form Dima into someone he wasn’t and he didn’t care whether that broke him or not. So whilst Dima has true feelings for Alexey, his husband seems to be incapable of feeling anything at all. Even worse, when confronted with the truth, he refuses to acknowledge it. In the end Dimitri sees no other way than to kill his own husband, even going as far as to ask for help from an angel. Which is dangerous and leaves him with an arm that was flayed open because Gods name ended up written on his bones. Quite literally. Boy, that one was graphic. As were the scenes of Alexey’s abuse and how he broke Dimitri, figuratively and literally. This definitely wasn’t for the faint hearted… In the end, Dima tried to do the right thing and suffered immensely because of it and I can’t help but wonder how this will affect him in the second book. I’m sure we’ll see more of Alexey as well and that their toxic story isn’t quite over yet even though I wish it would be. For Dima’s sake I hope he’ll be a lot stronger when he faces him again. >_< But that’s the problem, if you’ve been the victim, it’s not easy to change your role and to fight against what the other made you believe. I guess we’ll have to find out in the next book.
"If there was one thing about Dimitri he had despised, it was how stubborn and steadfast he was. Dimitri had pushed back and fought him, clawed at him, despite all of Alexey's efforts to mold him."
”We’re just two broken men, aren’t we? Who tried and tried, and yet in the trying, made everything worse.”
Alexey recoiled and squared his shoulders. “I am not broken.”
Dimitri laughed wetly. “If you refuse to admit it, then, who are we but two people who loved each other to the point of destruction? You and I burned everything to the ground in our wake. I loved you, Alexey, but I lost you all the same. I lost you to that fucking Holy Science of yours, and you never came back to me.”
Dimitri & Vasily:
”It filled him with guilt, pretending that Vasily was Alexey instead, but it was what he needed. And Vasily had never told him no, had never complained, and so he took and took and took, even as he wished it wasn't Vasily he was taking from."
Those two were so good for each other and I loved their slow burn romance! I know a couple of other readers mentioned that Dima was too hung up on Alexey to make their ship believable but I personally think that this was very realistic. To fall in love is easy, but to fall out of it is hard and it’s exactly what Dimitri was trying to do. He knew Alexey was bad for him, but his heart couldn’t quite follow the lead of his head. Once there are feelings involved it’s always difficult. You can hate someone but still love them and I think Samotin portrayed Dima’s inner conflict more than just well. So yes, Vasya’s and Dima’s relationship is developing slowly and there isn’t a lot of chemistry, but considering their history this felt real. They connected more on an emotional level than on a physical one and I think that’s totally believable. Both of them suffered physical and emotional abuse from the people they trusted and loved so them building a healthy relationship based on trust and familiarity was exactly what they needed. I think it was realistic and developed naturally and I don’t need them to have mind-blowing chemistry as long as they are happy and feel comfortable around each other. They have room to grow and to heal and that’s perfect! I ship it! Period!
”I know what he would do. I know exactly what he would do, because I spent years watching him do it to you. I could draw the atlas of the way he hurt you.”
It was a punch to the gut, the way that Dimitri leaned into his touch, the way that he replied, “I don’t want him to hurt you. And I’m afraid he will.” Like his own hurt didn’t matter. Like he was so worthless that he didn’t deserve to be safe.
”It was a feeling that only one other person had truly been able to give him, and something in Dimitri’s heart burned with the thought that Vasily’s comfort was better, and purer, and more real and selfless and solid than Alexey’s had ever been.
He couldn’t lose this. He couldn’t bear it. This would be the loss that tore him to shreds.”
”There will merely be this, between us, this recognition of the perfect hurt and pain that honed us into blades, so we could cut each other free. I wanted so badly to tell you that if you died, I would follow, because it’s no longer the secrets of heaven I would wish to whisper to you. It’s that I love you too.”
Alexey & Ivan:
”Would you –“ Ivan was truly crying now, and Alexey deigned to wipe away his tears. “Would you be doing this if I wasn’t my father’s son?”
No, Alexey thought. “Yes, of course. Don’t be ridiculous.”
I still feel sad about Ivan’s death because this gullible boy fell in love with the wrong man and he’s basically the embodiment of what could have happened to Dimitri if he would have stayed with Alexey. But Dima was too strong-willed and fought against Alexey, something that would have never even occurred to Ivan. Which is so tragic because it’s the reason Alexey didn’t love him as much as he loved his husband. Ivan was too pliable and innocent. No match for Alexey’s wickedness and cunning. He was just a means to an end and this will always be tragic and sad. T_T
”None of us get what we want in this life.” Ivan’s voice was laced with such unbearable sadness that it made Alexey choke on a sob. “Not bastards, not Tzars. Not even the chosen one of God.”
Dimitri & his Court:
”I meant it because to people like you, to people like me, there’s more to our lives than family, than friends, than love,” Annika continued. “There is duty, and loyalty to one’s country, and the knowledge that we will do what we must to protect our people.”
I absolutely adored Dima’s court because they weren’t just amazing but also distinctive and diverse voices. Mischa his physician went by they/them pronouns, Ladushka (Lada in short) seemed to be on the aro/ace spectrum and Annika was a compassionate soul that deserved the world. (I think she might have been bi or lesbian, but it was never truly mentioned, at least as far as I can remember) I loved that they all had different strengths and that they did their best to support Dima. They definitely were a found family and I was glad Dimitri and Vasily had them. =)
”None of them had protested the plan. He had not needed to ask if they would come with him, back to Novo-Svitsevo. Because he knew that even if he was standing at the edge of the world, these four would be behind him, holding him up. They were his friends, his family, his strength, his salvation.”
Conclusion:
So, those are my thoughts on the book and its characters. I probably could go on and on but I think I’ll leave it at that. If anyone wants to discuss the story with me, feel free to drop me a comment! I’d love to talk about this because I still have so many thoughts! =)
_____________________________
I was very lucky to get an e-ARC of “The Sins on Their Bones” through NetGalley.
Well, and then I was extremely unlucky because my e-reader died and my ARC copy didn’t work anymore. >_<
Guess they are right when they say: You win some, you lose some?! *lol*
I decided to buy the book now, though because I wanted to read this so badly it hurts
So yeah, I might be late to the party but I had very good reasons and now I’m going to read this book!
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April 8, 2025
Sorry for anyone who loved this but this one is a 2.5 stars for me.
I am going to start this off by saying that I think that for people who this works for, it’ll be a great read. It’s dark, atmospheric and has an intriguing magic system. The actual writing skill in this book I think is good and the characters and found family vibes are well executed. Unfortunately, the core romantic relationships and dynamics were just so wildly and drastically off the mark for me and my tastes that I found myself not enjoying it.
I’ve seen some people struggle with the fact that this book essentially starts in the aftermath of the big war and Dimitri being usurped as Tzar and you don’t see it first hand. I actually didn’t mind this aspect that much. It was an interesting reading experience that provided a new spin on an otherwise not uncommon premise.
There’s been come comments that liken this to ‘Shadow and Bone’ but much darker and I can see where that comes from. Alexey does give some pretty serious Darkling vibes.
This starts to get a little spoilery but is mostly unveiled in the first 15-20% or so.
Where my issues and preferences come into my reading experience is in the core interpersonal relationships. You see the history of Alexey and Dimitri marrying initially for political reasons and then falling in love for real and the devastating emotional fall out following Alexeys betrayal and subsequent war.
Honestly, the focus was so heavily on how heart broken and still hung up on each other they were (throughout literally the whole book) that I thought the story was going to be about some sort of redemption and reconciliation arc (would have totally read and loved that story direction) and was shocked when I started to realise that it wasn’t the case at all. Things started going off the rails for me when (whilst still obviously dealing with being in love with the other) Alexey is carrying on a secret affair with Dimitri’s bastard half brother (whilst noting their physical similarities) and Dimitri is having a relationship with his friend and spy master, who’s chemistry I didn’t understand or really care for all that much (because it commences and is established before the book starts). I understand that it wasn’t on page infidelity, and really speaks to the complicated nature of toxic relationships, but I couldn’t escape that vibe and it left a bad taste for me. For someone who doesn’t care for love triangles, the love square was just not it. I’ve joked for ages that I hate love triangles cause I always pick the wrong option and this one continues to be no exception lol.
I am disappointed, cause when I first read about this I was anticipating this release and jumped on it when I had the chance. I do really think that there can be value here for the right person. That person is just not me.
Thank you to NetGalley for an opportunity to read and review this book.
I am going to start this off by saying that I think that for people who this works for, it’ll be a great read. It’s dark, atmospheric and has an intriguing magic system. The actual writing skill in this book I think is good and the characters and found family vibes are well executed. Unfortunately, the core romantic relationships and dynamics were just so wildly and drastically off the mark for me and my tastes that I found myself not enjoying it.
I’ve seen some people struggle with the fact that this book essentially starts in the aftermath of the big war and Dimitri being usurped as Tzar and you don’t see it first hand. I actually didn’t mind this aspect that much. It was an interesting reading experience that provided a new spin on an otherwise not uncommon premise.
There’s been come comments that liken this to ‘Shadow and Bone’ but much darker and I can see where that comes from. Alexey does give some pretty serious Darkling vibes.
This starts to get a little spoilery but is mostly unveiled in the first 15-20% or so.
Where my issues and preferences come into my reading experience is in the core interpersonal relationships. You see the history of Alexey and Dimitri marrying initially for political reasons and then falling in love for real and the devastating emotional fall out following Alexeys betrayal and subsequent war.
Honestly, the focus was so heavily on how heart broken and still hung up on each other they were (throughout literally the whole book) that I thought the story was going to be about some sort of redemption and reconciliation arc (would have totally read and loved that story direction) and was shocked when I started to realise that it wasn’t the case at all. Things started going off the rails for me when (whilst still obviously dealing with being in love with the other) Alexey is carrying on a secret affair with Dimitri’s bastard half brother (whilst noting their physical similarities) and Dimitri is having a relationship with his friend and spy master, who’s chemistry I didn’t understand or really care for all that much (because it commences and is established before the book starts). I understand that it wasn’t on page infidelity, and really speaks to the complicated nature of toxic relationships, but I couldn’t escape that vibe and it left a bad taste for me. For someone who doesn’t care for love triangles, the love square was just not it. I’ve joked for ages that I hate love triangles cause I always pick the wrong option and this one continues to be no exception lol.
I am disappointed, cause when I first read about this I was anticipating this release and jumped on it when I had the chance. I do really think that there can be value here for the right person. That person is just not me.
Thank you to NetGalley for an opportunity to read and review this book.
May 6, 2024
(4.25 stars)
When I saw the description of this book, I knew I had to read it. It has been described as a queer dark fantasy. The story takes place in a fictional version of 19th century Eastern Europe/Russia and is drenched in East European Jewish mysticism, folklore and traditions. Yes, there’s a Tsar, but he’s Jewish! This world also treats same-sex relationships as nothing unusual, which is another refreshing aspect.
The story follows Dmitri’s efforts to regain control of Novo-Svitsevo. He used to rule Novo-Svitsevo as Tsar, but lost to his husband, Alexey, in a civil war. Alexey is now immortal, having undergone a resurrection/transformation via what he calls the Holy Science, a twisted version of the fictional religion of Ludayzim. Dmitri is in exile now, with a few of his faithful court. The plot took quite a while to take off, but once it did, I was hooked.
Chapters are told from three POVs: Dmitri, Alexey, and Vasily who is Dmitri’s close friend and spymaster. The book design is beautiful, with illustrations at the beginning of each chapter and illustrations of two playing cards that figure in the story.
It’s not an easy read; be aware that there is a lot of violence and gore, body horror, human experimentation, and abusive relationships, among the content warnings. There are also quite a few very explicit MM sex scenes throughout the book. Dark magic pervades the whole story, which includes both angels and demons.
The story talks to us about the long-term effects of abuse and trauma, about deep friendships, facing our faults (and realizing that some things weren’t our fault).
The final chapter hints at the possibility of a sequel. If that happens, I’ll be reading it.
Don’t skip the Author’s Note at the end!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Canada for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
When I saw the description of this book, I knew I had to read it. It has been described as a queer dark fantasy. The story takes place in a fictional version of 19th century Eastern Europe/Russia and is drenched in East European Jewish mysticism, folklore and traditions. Yes, there’s a Tsar, but he’s Jewish! This world also treats same-sex relationships as nothing unusual, which is another refreshing aspect.
The story follows Dmitri’s efforts to regain control of Novo-Svitsevo. He used to rule Novo-Svitsevo as Tsar, but lost to his husband, Alexey, in a civil war. Alexey is now immortal, having undergone a resurrection/transformation via what he calls the Holy Science, a twisted version of the fictional religion of Ludayzim. Dmitri is in exile now, with a few of his faithful court. The plot took quite a while to take off, but once it did, I was hooked.
Chapters are told from three POVs: Dmitri, Alexey, and Vasily who is Dmitri’s close friend and spymaster. The book design is beautiful, with illustrations at the beginning of each chapter and illustrations of two playing cards that figure in the story.
It’s not an easy read; be aware that there is a lot of violence and gore, body horror, human experimentation, and abusive relationships, among the content warnings. There are also quite a few very explicit MM sex scenes throughout the book. Dark magic pervades the whole story, which includes both angels and demons.
The story talks to us about the long-term effects of abuse and trauma, about deep friendships, facing our faults (and realizing that some things weren’t our fault).
The final chapter hints at the possibility of a sequel. If that happens, I’ll be reading it.
Don’t skip the Author’s Note at the end!
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Canada for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
April 15, 2024
The Sins on Their Bones by Laura Samotin was a gripping, heart-wrenching adventure from start to finish. I'd definitely recommend checking out the website to see the content warnings, as I neglected to do so and was woefully unprepared for some of the darker scenes.
This novel expertly weaves a story full of rich characterization and culture, drawing on Samotin's Jewish heritage and lived experiences (don't skip the end note for this one! It really added to my understanding of the book). Some books with alternating POVs are challenging for me, but each of the three narrators had such a unique voice that I had no trouble keeping track of who I was reading.
The only reason I'm rating 4 instead of 5 stars is because there was a period of time in the first half of the book where the sex scenes felt like they were overpowering the plot. But that's the kind of thing many readers love, so it's easily forgivable.
I was enthralled from the start and can't wait to read more of Samotin's work in the future. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
This novel expertly weaves a story full of rich characterization and culture, drawing on Samotin's Jewish heritage and lived experiences (don't skip the end note for this one! It really added to my understanding of the book). Some books with alternating POVs are challenging for me, but each of the three narrators had such a unique voice that I had no trouble keeping track of who I was reading.
The only reason I'm rating 4 instead of 5 stars is because there was a period of time in the first half of the book where the sex scenes felt like they were overpowering the plot. But that's the kind of thing many readers love, so it's easily forgivable.
I was enthralled from the start and can't wait to read more of Samotin's work in the future. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
August 3, 2023
Well I just finished this and took a massive deep breath and collapsed on my bed because this was SO good. If you liked Shadow and Bone but want something darker, sexier, and deeply Jewish, I can’t recommend adding this to your TBR enough!!
April 28, 2024
3.5 stars
Review to come
Review to come
Read
March 5, 2024DNF at 26%.
I had seen raving reviews about this book, and I had seen one review of a friend who DNF’d. The raving reviews talked about lots and lots of trigger warnings, and the sadder and grittier a book, the more I seem to like it. So I was really excited about The Sins on their Bones, but because of that one review, I got a little scared before I started reading. And d*mn, was she right. I tried, I really did, but even though the writing is beautiful, I couldn’t connect to the characters and found the story boring. I just didn’t feel a thing. So I doubted for a while, and in the end, I also decided to DNF.
I’m so sorry, Penguin Random House Canada and Edelweiss, for DNFing this book, but thank you so much for the opportunity to read The Sins on their Bones early.
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I had seen raving reviews about this book, and I had seen one review of a friend who DNF’d. The raving reviews talked about lots and lots of trigger warnings, and the sadder and grittier a book, the more I seem to like it. So I was really excited about The Sins on their Bones, but because of that one review, I got a little scared before I started reading. And d*mn, was she right. I tried, I really did, but even though the writing is beautiful, I couldn’t connect to the characters and found the story boring. I just didn’t feel a thing. So I doubted for a while, and in the end, I also decided to DNF.
I’m so sorry, Penguin Random House Canada and Edelweiss, for DNFing this book, but thank you so much for the opportunity to read The Sins on their Bones early.
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May 20, 2024
A promising set of ingredients and a vivid world, plus generally good sentence-level and paragraph-level prose. But this needed serious editing with respect to characterization and structure (these aspects of the book are inextricable from each other). Dimitri comes off early on as whiny and self-pitying, so it's hard to understand the continued devotion of those around him, while Alexey is so OTT evil that Dimitri's love for him is unfathomable. By the time I learned much of anything about the backstory, it was too late to believe in it or to care.
And why "dubbyk" rather than "dybbuk"?
Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for the ARC.
And why "dubbyk" rather than "dybbuk"?
Thanks to Penguin Random House Canada and NetGalley for the ARC.
February 15, 2024
I cried real tears three times 10/10 stars no notes
March 9, 2024
I should have realised my relationship with this book was doomed the moment I read this travesty
halfway through the opening chapter.
CAVIAR IS NOT SEXY. I DO NOT WANT MENTAL IMAGES OF WHAT THESE TWO MIGHT HAVE BEEN DOING WITH CAVIAR IN A SEXUAL CONTEXT. STOP IT. WHY. WHY WOULD YOU EVEN GO THERE. WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU.
YES I AM KINK-SHAMING YOU. BITEYOUR CAVIAR ME AND SHUT UP.
(In complete fairness, this isn’t indicative of Samotin’s skill, or lack thereof, with sex scenes, because the sex scenes are actually perfectly fine. I just feel like there’s something about this caviar thing that proves this writer has a fundamental misunderstanding of what the reader is going to find sexy and/or funny, because seriously – caviar??? Imagine that on your skin! GROSS.)
Dimitri has a lot of reasons to angst, but his complete lack of hope or anything like it makes for pretty miserable reading, and didn’t give me a lot to empathise with. You are, arguably, a Tsar; you don’t get to give up, because you have a responsibility to your people to get them out of the mess you left them in. Alternatively, if you are going to give up, then fucking give up and don’t let your people – the ones who escaped with you into exile – risk themselves in working to get you back your throne.
Pick a lane and commit to it!
Then we have the villain, Alexey, Dimitri’s ex-husband, who wants to rule the imperial court through fear, but also by example re being forward-thinking and demonstrating that he is The Most Modern And Smartest. He leans into them thinking he’s some kind of demon by dressing in all-black, but hates superstition and is vaguely offended they think he’s a demon. But lets the nobles get away with wearing anti-demon talismans, even though a) superstition and b) if they think he’s a demon, then their wearing these talismans is hugely rude and arguably a kind of treason.
Forget the court, it feels a lot more like Samotin can’t decide whether or not he’s a demon. Once again: pick a take/approach and commit to it, for crying out loud.
Then we have the third PoV character, the Tsar-in-exile’s vaunted spymaster, who genuinely thinks this
You’re a SPY. A SPY. How can it possibly be difficult for you to accept that handsome people are evil? Shouldn’t you of all people know that appearances are meaningless? What with being a SPY? An honest-to-gods SPYMASTER, in fact?
So basically, all three of our main characters are pretty poorly-written, imo, being weak, contradictory, and idiotic to varying degrees.
The main issue, though, is just that I find the writing really basic and blunt. The language level and sentence structure and so on are really simplistic, and therefore boring, no matter how interesting the plot and themes might be. Word choice and phrasing are both so dull – I want prose that’s complex, that engages me, that I’m not editing in my head as I read to make it sound more sophisticated and polished. It kind of feels like, having created an interestingly complicated story, Samotin was worried about us being able to follow it all and dumbed down the writing to make it easier on us.
There’s also an awful lot of info-dumping, which, I get that Samotin chose to set the story after the big war and therefore has to find a way to tell us all about it, but – that was a choice that was made, and you’re responsible for the effects of that choice. Find a better way to get us all this information than dropping it on us like lead weights.
Hard DNF. There’s the bones (hah) of a really great story here, but I absolutely cannot stand the execution of it.
It’s not as if he’s going to be able to cut a transport deal to the east with the Urushkins without getting his balls handed back to him on a silver platter with a side of caviar.”
Dimitri blinked to clear the visions from his mind of what he and Alexey had done with caviar.
halfway through the opening chapter.
CAVIAR IS NOT SEXY. I DO NOT WANT MENTAL IMAGES OF WHAT THESE TWO MIGHT HAVE BEEN DOING WITH CAVIAR IN A SEXUAL CONTEXT. STOP IT. WHY. WHY WOULD YOU EVEN GO THERE. WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU.
YES I AM KINK-SHAMING YOU. BITE
(In complete fairness, this isn’t indicative of Samotin’s skill, or lack thereof, with sex scenes, because the sex scenes are actually perfectly fine. I just feel like there’s something about this caviar thing that proves this writer has a fundamental misunderstanding of what the reader is going to find sexy and/or funny, because seriously – caviar??? Imagine that on your skin! GROSS.)
Dimitri has a lot of reasons to angst, but his complete lack of hope or anything like it makes for pretty miserable reading, and didn’t give me a lot to empathise with. You are, arguably, a Tsar; you don’t get to give up, because you have a responsibility to your people to get them out of the mess you left them in. Alternatively, if you are going to give up, then fucking give up and don’t let your people – the ones who escaped with you into exile – risk themselves in working to get you back your throne.
Pick a lane and commit to it!
Then we have the villain, Alexey, Dimitri’s ex-husband, who wants to rule the imperial court through fear, but also by example re being forward-thinking and demonstrating that he is The Most Modern And Smartest. He leans into them thinking he’s some kind of demon by dressing in all-black, but hates superstition and is vaguely offended they think he’s a demon. But lets the nobles get away with wearing anti-demon talismans, even though a) superstition and b) if they think he’s a demon, then their wearing these talismans is hugely rude and arguably a kind of treason.
Forget the court, it feels a lot more like Samotin can’t decide whether or not he’s a demon. Once again: pick a take/approach and commit to it, for crying out loud.
Then we have the third PoV character, the Tsar-in-exile’s vaunted spymaster, who genuinely thinks this
Vasily just wished he’d never seen Alexey in person. It was hard to reconcile knowing Alexey was evil with thinking that he was insufferably handsome.
You’re a SPY. A SPY. How can it possibly be difficult for you to accept that handsome people are evil? Shouldn’t you of all people know that appearances are meaningless? What with being a SPY? An honest-to-gods SPYMASTER, in fact?
So basically, all three of our main characters are pretty poorly-written, imo, being weak, contradictory, and idiotic to varying degrees.
The main issue, though, is just that I find the writing really basic and blunt. The language level and sentence structure and so on are really simplistic, and therefore boring, no matter how interesting the plot and themes might be. Word choice and phrasing are both so dull – I want prose that’s complex, that engages me, that I’m not editing in my head as I read to make it sound more sophisticated and polished. It kind of feels like, having created an interestingly complicated story, Samotin was worried about us being able to follow it all and dumbed down the writing to make it easier on us.
There’s also an awful lot of info-dumping, which, I get that Samotin chose to set the story after the big war and therefore has to find a way to tell us all about it, but – that was a choice that was made, and you’re responsible for the effects of that choice. Find a better way to get us all this information than dropping it on us like lead weights.
Hard DNF. There’s the bones (hah) of a really great story here, but I absolutely cannot stand the execution of it.
May 10, 2023
THE SINS ON THEIR BONES is a book that will break your heart and then fuse it back together, stronger for having been broken. It's a story of agency and abuse, about what we deserve and what we owe ourselves, about finding the strength to forgive ourselves and to accept the forgiveness of others. It's a story of friendship and love and family. Of belief and the corruption of belief. Of people who hurt you and hurt you and hurt you and call it love so often that you believe it. It's a story of feeling worthless and useless and realizing, through the many ways pure love can take, that you are worth everything to the people whose lives you exist in, in the people who choose to be by your side.
It's also incredibly funny, incredibly smutty, and incredibly well-written, with a world, a magic system, a villain, a hero, and an anti-hero that are so compelling that I can already feel them lingering in my heart. As Dimitri faces down the truth of the world's darkness to find the light in something other than sex and alcohol, so too did I, as a reader, begin to question some of the toxic lessons and beliefs that are embedded in my own brain. Because, at the end of the day, this is a story of hopefulness: that even after pain, there can be joy.
As such, I can't possibly give it less than five stars. I hope future readers remember to love themselves in tandem with Dimitri—and that they join me in waiting breathlessly for Book 2.
It's also incredibly funny, incredibly smutty, and incredibly well-written, with a world, a magic system, a villain, a hero, and an anti-hero that are so compelling that I can already feel them lingering in my heart. As Dimitri faces down the truth of the world's darkness to find the light in something other than sex and alcohol, so too did I, as a reader, begin to question some of the toxic lessons and beliefs that are embedded in my own brain. Because, at the end of the day, this is a story of hopefulness: that even after pain, there can be joy.
As such, I can't possibly give it less than five stars. I hope future readers remember to love themselves in tandem with Dimitri—and that they join me in waiting breathlessly for Book 2.
May 20, 2024
The concept for this was really good, but the execution was lacking. The characters were flat, there was a lot of telling and not a lot of showing, and the stakes never felt real because the protagonists didn't seem to take them seriously.
This book clearly worked for some people judging by the reviews I've seen, but it didn't work for me.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
This book clearly worked for some people judging by the reviews I've seen, but it didn't work for me.
I received an advance copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
May 7, 2024
4.5/5 got an arc from Libro.FM
Oh man, this was good. Brutal and intense and hard to listen to at times but so, so good. I loved the characters (except for THAT one, he knows what he did) but it made me laugh almost as often as it made me want to cry. Read the TWs, PLEASE read the TWs, but if it’s something you can handle you should absolutely read this
Oh man, this was good. Brutal and intense and hard to listen to at times but so, so good. I loved the characters (except for THAT one, he knows what he did) but it made me laugh almost as often as it made me want to cry. Read the TWs, PLEASE read the TWs, but if it’s something you can handle you should absolutely read this
March 28, 2025
4.5/5 stars, rounded up because it just gave me a lot of feelings and I'm slightly dying for the sequel.
I had a feeling, from the moment I first heard about this book, that I would love it. So, naturally, I procrastinated on reading it for several months despite quite literally attending its release party (and also chatting with the author several times--Laura is a lovely human!). And, surprising exactly nobody, I loved it.
This is one of a few books I've read recently that upends traditional fantasy structures by beginning after the "big battle" is over, as characters are attempting to bring themselves back from the rubble and recover from the traumatic events they experienced. This can be a difficult needle to thread, getting readers emotionally invested in characters whose most intense experiences are already in the past, and I wasn't sure at first if I'd grow attached to the three broken men at the heart of this tale--but I needn't have worried. Within a few chapters, I absolutely loved two of them and just wanted to give them hugs and tell them everything would be okay (and also to TALK ABOUT THEIR DARN FEELINGS), and while I hated Alexey, (a) he is objectively the villain of the story and deserves to be hated, and (b) it was a sort of fascinated dislike, where I didn't want him to succeed, but very much wanted to understand what was going on in his twisted mind. Even the side characters were endearing; I have a particular soft spot for the aroace bookworm Ladushka and the feisty cook/medic Mischa, both integral members of Dimitri's support system.
With that rambling on character development aside, here are a few other things I loved in this book (which you might, too):
- a Jewish-inspired world, where schisms within the country's faith map closely to actual past divisions within Judaism (Jewish mysticism, more orthodox beliefs, etc.), and where actual Hebrew prayers appear on-page
- a very good goat who must be protected at all costs
- a library that forces people to sacrifice items they value to gain access to arcane knowledge
- super queer-normative worldbuilding, as you may have already guessed, including demisexual, bi, gay, aroace, and nonbinary characters
- an unflinching look at the devastation of a civil war on both individuals and nations (the latter being likely informed by Laura's academic background in public policy, political psychology, and military effectiveness)
- a probing excavation of grief, mental illness, trauma, recovery, the rocky road to healing, and the power of hope, faith, and love
- normalized on-page use of antidepressant medication!!
- brutal, gruesome cruelty and aching tenderness in equal measure
- a really sweet love confession letter 🥺
- some cool demonic creatures, and also some downright horrifying ones
- a mental bond letting two characters communicate through dream magic
- honestly just a super wholesome queer found family dynamic, against the backdrop of a horrifying sociopolitical situation, emphasizing the importance of support systems
As a final warning, please check the trigger and content warnings for this book. In particular, be aware that it depicts an abusive relationship from the perspectives of both the victim AND the abuser. Take care of yourself, and make sure you read this one when you're in the right headspace to handle its content.
Tl;dr this book is unconventional in structure and pretty darn dark, but if you're willing to face the literal and emotional carnage, the payoff is absolutely worth it (but oh my, that epilogue has me quite anxious for the sequel now).
Rep: gay demisexual MC, bisexual MC, gay MC, nonbinary SC, gay SC, aroace SC
TW/CW: abusive relationships (physical, emotional, and sexual), explicit sexual content, war, violence, injury details, alcohol and drug abuse, passive suicidal ideation, grief, depression, trauma
Spice: 🌶🌶.5 (multiple on-page scenes, some of which are rough and/or in an abusive context, but the narration is handled with care and sensitivity)
I had a feeling, from the moment I first heard about this book, that I would love it. So, naturally, I procrastinated on reading it for several months despite quite literally attending its release party (and also chatting with the author several times--Laura is a lovely human!). And, surprising exactly nobody, I loved it.
This is one of a few books I've read recently that upends traditional fantasy structures by beginning after the "big battle" is over, as characters are attempting to bring themselves back from the rubble and recover from the traumatic events they experienced. This can be a difficult needle to thread, getting readers emotionally invested in characters whose most intense experiences are already in the past, and I wasn't sure at first if I'd grow attached to the three broken men at the heart of this tale--but I needn't have worried. Within a few chapters, I absolutely loved two of them and just wanted to give them hugs and tell them everything would be okay (and also to TALK ABOUT THEIR DARN FEELINGS), and while I hated Alexey, (a) he is objectively the villain of the story and deserves to be hated, and (b) it was a sort of fascinated dislike, where I didn't want him to succeed, but very much wanted to understand what was going on in his twisted mind. Even the side characters were endearing; I have a particular soft spot for the aroace bookworm Ladushka and the feisty cook/medic Mischa, both integral members of Dimitri's support system.
With that rambling on character development aside, here are a few other things I loved in this book (which you might, too):
- a Jewish-inspired world, where schisms within the country's faith map closely to actual past divisions within Judaism (Jewish mysticism, more orthodox beliefs, etc.), and where actual Hebrew prayers appear on-page
- a very good goat who must be protected at all costs
- a library that forces people to sacrifice items they value to gain access to arcane knowledge
- super queer-normative worldbuilding, as you may have already guessed, including demisexual, bi, gay, aroace, and nonbinary characters
- an unflinching look at the devastation of a civil war on both individuals and nations (the latter being likely informed by Laura's academic background in public policy, political psychology, and military effectiveness)
- a probing excavation of grief, mental illness, trauma, recovery, the rocky road to healing, and the power of hope, faith, and love
- normalized on-page use of antidepressant medication!!
- brutal, gruesome cruelty and aching tenderness in equal measure
- a really sweet love confession letter 🥺
- some cool demonic creatures, and also some downright horrifying ones
- a mental bond letting two characters communicate through dream magic
- honestly just a super wholesome queer found family dynamic, against the backdrop of a horrifying sociopolitical situation, emphasizing the importance of support systems
As a final warning, please check the trigger and content warnings for this book. In particular, be aware that it depicts an abusive relationship from the perspectives of both the victim AND the abuser. Take care of yourself, and make sure you read this one when you're in the right headspace to handle its content.
Tl;dr this book is unconventional in structure and pretty darn dark, but if you're willing to face the literal and emotional carnage, the payoff is absolutely worth it (but oh my, that epilogue has me quite anxious for the sequel now).
Rep: gay demisexual MC, bisexual MC, gay MC, nonbinary SC, gay SC, aroace SC
TW/CW: abusive relationships (physical, emotional, and sexual), explicit sexual content, war, violence, injury details, alcohol and drug abuse, passive suicidal ideation, grief, depression, trauma
Spice: 🌶🌶.5 (multiple on-page scenes, some of which are rough and/or in an abusive context, but the narration is handled with care and sensitivity)
May 16, 2024
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher and an audio copy through the Libro.fm ALC program. This has not influenced my review.*
This was a very atmospheric book. With very heavy, despairing sort of vibes. Not in a way that made me feel depressed or bleak, but the characters spend the book hiding away, dealing with grief and trauma, after Dimitri's husband has taken over as a cruel undead tyrant. And I felt that heaviness that surrounded them.
Unfortunately, I didn't feel the relationships. There was so much angsty emotion, the relationships were messed up and complicated, and I loved the idea of the dynamics. But I never really felt the emotion. I don't know if it was me or the book or simply my mood.
For most of the book, the pacing was slow. I don't think much happened other than going to a library a few times, summoning a few otherworldly creatures, and having sex.
I got more into the book closer to the end though. Pacing picked up, I felt emotions a bit more, some interesting things happened, and there was a lot of tension. I think the tension could've been drawn out more, certain things ended up happening more quickly and easily than I thought they would, but I enjoyed what I got.
The characters were well-written enough, but I don't have any strong feelings about them.
The world was queer-accepting and Jewish-inspired. The fantasy elements with angels and demons and immortality were cool.
At this point in time, there's no indication on Goodreads, Amazon, or the publisher site that this is the first in a series. But the ending makes me think it might be. So now the emotion I'm left with is confusion and frustration. Expecting a standalone and then getting an ending with a big open plot thread affects my reading experience. Assuming it is a series, I actually think the next book may be something I would enjoy more, I just would've liked to know in advance.
I mostly enjoyed the audiobook, narrated by Aaron Willis, Daniel Chichagov, and Robin Wilcock. The narrator for Vasily was too flat for my taste. Maybe a purposeful choice for the character, since dialogue seemed ok, but it still didn't sound very natural to me at times when Vasily would've had more emotion. I liked the other two though, they sounded natural and matched their speaking to the feel or pace of the scene, especially Alexey's narrator.
Overall, I never really got into the relationships, but this was an atmospheric story with an interesting fantasy world, and others may enjoy it more!
*Rating: 3 Stars // Read Date: 2024 // Format: Audiobook*
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes slow-paced, atmospheric stories and Jewish-inspired fantasy.
More Reviews @ Metaphors and Moonlight
This was a very atmospheric book. With very heavy, despairing sort of vibes. Not in a way that made me feel depressed or bleak, but the characters spend the book hiding away, dealing with grief and trauma, after Dimitri's husband has taken over as a cruel undead tyrant. And I felt that heaviness that surrounded them.
Unfortunately, I didn't feel the relationships. There was so much angsty emotion, the relationships were messed up and complicated, and I loved the idea of the dynamics. But I never really felt the emotion. I don't know if it was me or the book or simply my mood.
For most of the book, the pacing was slow. I don't think much happened other than going to a library a few times, summoning a few otherworldly creatures, and having sex.
I got more into the book closer to the end though. Pacing picked up, I felt emotions a bit more, some interesting things happened, and there was a lot of tension. I think the tension could've been drawn out more, certain things ended up happening more quickly and easily than I thought they would, but I enjoyed what I got.
The characters were well-written enough, but I don't have any strong feelings about them.
The world was queer-accepting and Jewish-inspired. The fantasy elements with angels and demons and immortality were cool.
At this point in time, there's no indication on Goodreads, Amazon, or the publisher site that this is the first in a series. But the ending makes me think it might be. So now the emotion I'm left with is confusion and frustration. Expecting a standalone and then getting an ending with a big open plot thread affects my reading experience. Assuming it is a series, I actually think the next book may be something I would enjoy more, I just would've liked to know in advance.
I mostly enjoyed the audiobook, narrated by Aaron Willis, Daniel Chichagov, and Robin Wilcock. The narrator for Vasily was too flat for my taste. Maybe a purposeful choice for the character, since dialogue seemed ok, but it still didn't sound very natural to me at times when Vasily would've had more emotion. I liked the other two though, they sounded natural and matched their speaking to the feel or pace of the scene, especially Alexey's narrator.
Overall, I never really got into the relationships, but this was an atmospheric story with an interesting fantasy world, and others may enjoy it more!
*Rating: 3 Stars // Read Date: 2024 // Format: Audiobook*
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes slow-paced, atmospheric stories and Jewish-inspired fantasy.
More Reviews @ Metaphors and Moonlight
May 7, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the arc!
4.25 stars
This was a really solid debut fantasy novel! I really enjoyed the characters (especially Vasily), and I'm so excited to see where the story goes next after that ending! I do think that the pacing was a bit off at parts of the novel, but I otherwise really loved it and would recommend it to those who like dark fantasies. Definitely check trigger warnings before reading, though :)
4.25 stars
This was a really solid debut fantasy novel! I really enjoyed the characters (especially Vasily), and I'm so excited to see where the story goes next after that ending! I do think that the pacing was a bit off at parts of the novel, but I otherwise really loved it and would recommend it to those who like dark fantasies. Definitely check trigger warnings before reading, though :)
August 23, 2024
Before I even started the novel, two things struck me immediately.
A. No map. I'm used to having that for reference as a seasoned fantasy fan. It's a quick way for audiences to gauge where things are and the shape of the world. Sarah J. Maas had maps. Most of the fantasy books I’ve read so far this year had maps. The fucking omegaverse fantasy series I read earlier this year HAD MAPS. To me, it shows disinterest in the word. This is a fantasy book where many different names and locations are thrown at you quickly, and you have no idea where any of those are or how long it takes to get anywhere because you have no reference. Not to mention, you sometimes forget what’s country, what’s a city, etc., etc. Samotin has opted (at least in this edition) to put on THREE PAGES of praise for this book; we get two drawings of Vasily and Dimitri. No map! Nothing!
B. The author's note we have in this book was…underwhelming. Before reading the book, the note says that The Sins on Their Bones “centers themes” of intimate partner violence, sexual abuse, PTSD, etc., etc. Now, this wording is pretty vague. Usually, when books explicitly depict specific themes on the page, the author’s notes will say, “This book contains X,Y, and Z). Saying “centers themes” implies that themes will be talked about and mentioned, but they will not be explicitly shown within the story. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end here. You have to go to Samotin’s website for THE ACTUAL TRIGGER WARNING LIST. I should not have to do outside research to be able to enjoy a book, but I did have to do it to understand this book. What happens if someone in a bookstore wants to purchase this book without internet access? If the worst of the worst of booktok books can get this right, Samotin has no excuse.
I don’t usually comment on the writing within books mainly because I have nothing intelligent or witty to say about prose. But here? Oh no. For an adult fantasy book, Samotin sure likes to treat the audience like idiots. Repetition is also a common occurrence. We constantly get scenes that remind us how domineering and controlling Alexey is, we get reminders of how Dimitri is a sad sack of shit who can’t do anything, we get reminders that his 3 nigh-interchangeable friends are oh so caring and how he’d die for them, we get reminders that Ivan looks just like his older brother but is so much more compliant (bleugh). It’s infuriating, it’s boring, and it undermines the audience’s intelligence.
Another problem with this book is showing and telling. Samotin clearly knows how to show emotion and writes huge paragraphs where scenes are shown to us. But then, the final sentence will be the conclusion the audience would form if they had an ounce of critical thinking skills. For an adult novel, you should assume your audience has at least two brain cells to rub together, and it constantly felt like Samotin was telling us what to think.
This is where plot problems come in. Not much happens because of the previous two bits of criticism I mentioned, and the plot is incredibly slow. We spend the first half of the book from Dimitri/Vasily’s side mainly doing fuck all. Alexey is the one moving things forward, which…that's good, I guess, for a villain. But it’s not until Vasily goes to Novo-Svitsevo that the plot starts kicking into gear. This book could have easily cut out 50 pages, and we would have had a decent story.
The worst part about the plot is that the events before the story sound so much more interesting than what we got. I love fantasy stories dealing with the ramifications of war. But the trick is to make the plot on the page more interesting. Because of the circumstances of this war and how mind-numbingly dull most of the book is, I would have rather seen the damn war! Therefore, this book has middle book syndrome while being book 1. And it’s not even just the war! The deterioration of Alexey and Dimitri’s relationship is ALSO interesting!! I want to see Dimitri struggle with being Tsar when he was never meant to be!! I want to see his court come together!! There’s a reason why a lot of fantasy books start there!
The lore of this world is underdeveloped. I get that this is more low than high or even normal fantasy, but I still would have liked to see more of it. There were some references to Judaism, and I enjoyed being able to understand a lot of words, phrases, and cultural norms (the one about a character not being able to afford headstones for her family’s graves even though it’s been a year since they died is a nice touch). This book isn't well researched in other areas. My friend who speaks Hebrew frequently pointed out misspellings of words. The use of “Shabbat” instead of “Shabbos” (aka what we grew up calling it) shows a lack of care towards the religion Samotin is a part of. Maybe there will be more references in the next book, and Samotin will get a more reliable translator, but I’m not so sure about that. In addition, the queernormativity within worldbuilding is almost non-existent. Sure, most of the characters are somewhere in the Not Straight realm. But when I’m promised a queernormative world, I don’t expect a world where it’s still weird for an unmarried woman to walk around unaccompanied or adopted children not seen as legitimate heirs in high society. I know this sounds nitpicky and biased, but basic things like that are present in our world because it’s still not fully acceptable to be queer (among other things, but this review isn’t about that). A queernormative world would accept adopted children as legitimate because they’d be viewed legally as the couple’s children. Bloodlines wouldn’t be heavily emphasized because a queernormative world would state that blood does not inherently equal family. That’s the whole fucking point of found family, which Samotin’s book is TECHNICALLY ABOUT. COME ON.
This book has weird attitudes towards a lot of different marginalized folks. The fact that the two prominent brown characters (Vasily and Annika) are the ones who saw/have seen the most combat (even if Annika doesn’t like to be the general, that’s still her role). Ladushka is a weird stereotype of ace/aro people, being cold and robotic and generally “unfeeling” (there was also a bizarre scene where she walks in on Dimitri and Vasily fucking and tells them to finish in front of her). Poor people in this book are brushed over and treated as props for the main characters to either advance the plot forward (for the protags) or torture needlessly (for the antagonist). I don’t know how this book managed to have the greedy Jew stereotype, blood libel (Alexey using blood in his rituals falls very close to this trope), and a plotline where a villain tries to create a master race in a book about Jews (yes i get this is supposed to be problematic. Villains can be problematic. No it does not erase the fact that it’s still weird as hell). I And though they’re not technically “marginalized”, it’s telling that the anarchists are faceless baddies who blew up Dimitri’s family and are probably going to be even worse in the sequel.
Speaking of Dimitri is one of the worst protagonists I’ve ever seen. I don’t understand why he has two men lusting after him, considering he has the spine and personality of wet cardboard, and that’s an insult to wet cardboard. Most of the time, he’s either whining or crying about something he did. I understand Dimitri is a broken man who did shitty things….and yet he barely faces material consequences for doing said things. Yeah, he ran away and lost his throne, but he’s living with his 4 best friends in a safe zone, in a lavish house. He has food and water, he’s able to bathe, he has constant moral support and friends who will drop anything to help him, and he is constantly drinking (and doesn’t experience many side effects of that; he still looks like a hot, skinny, small twink). Considering most of his country is living in poverty or about to be sacrificed to demons, he’s sitting pretty.
Before I get into the rest of the characters, I want to expand upon a part in Dimitri’s character analysis. There’s this weird undercurrent within The Sins on Their Bones where Dimitri’s trauma is more talked about and focused on than any other character. Even for our protagonist, it’s excessive. I understand Samotin admitted she sees herself in Dimitri. I'm not denying her experience, and I hope she finds peace wherever that is. But there comes a point when you have to realize you're writing a fictional story, not a memoir. Writing can be a form of catharsis many use to process events that typically happen out of their control. But here's the thing: catharsis writing is usually done in private. And this story feels like unpolished catharsis writing. At every step of the way, whenever Dimitri inevitably has a breakdown about some (arguably) shitty thing he did (like, I don’t know, abandon his soldiers so they could be slaughtered), his groupies or Vasily rush over to comfort him. Assure him that nothing was his fault. That it is all Alexey’s fault for being power-hungry and starting a civil war. If anything, this removes Dimitri’s agency, framing him as an unwilling victim in his own story. I’m not saying it’s his fault he got abused, but when it comes to war and being a leader of your country, yes, he does have responsibility. The constant circlejerk of “it’s not your fault” not only halts the pace of the novel but is a detriment to your supposedly complex character. And in any case, this is a DARK FANTASY BOOK. Why Samotin can’t allow any of her main characters to be responsible for doing anything bad/face consequences for it is beyond me.
Moving onto Vasily, he has the potential to be interesting, but so many character choices left me befuddled. Why was this man a lord even though it would have made much more sense for him to be a commoner? Why is his trauma of CSA one of the most brushed-over parts of the novel, and he gets one scene where Dimitri comforts him while he constantly has to soothe Dimitri? In his first scene of doing spy work, why does he go out in RICH PEOPLE CLOTHES and pretend to be poor? Why does he go along with Dimitri’s sexual request to blindfold him and fuck him like Alexey did? And why did he let that slide??? Why didn’t he look out for Ivan when Dimitri told him to?? It sucks because there could have been potential for him, but in the wise words of my friend, “Vasily, you are an idiot, you are a hack, you are a fraud, and I hope you die.”
(also the fact that Vasily steals the identity of a man and pretends to be disabled has to be ableism…right??? Are we gonna brush over that???)
Alexey is a fucking joke. He’s an edgy, brooding ruler who wears all black and a big cape, says “you dare defy me” and “obey me” unironically, and needs a long mustache he can twirl to complete the look. He is the Darkling we got at the dollar store. Not to mention, he’s our only gay man in this book, and he’s a GROOMER. And not to mention, he gets more sex scenes than the actual main couple we’re supposed to root for, with both Dimitri and Ivan. Sure, he’s the only one who moves the plot along in the beginning; for that, he’s compelling. But other than that, he’s an incredibly predictable one-note villain.
Ladushka, Annika, and Mischa are just…there. They each have their own little thing going on, but other than that, they are two-dimensional characters meant to be Dimitri’s cheer squad. While their domestic moments were cute and added some levity, it didn’t feel like there were enough heavy moments to justify them. It’s nice to see casual displays of platonic intimacy in a book because that’s actually queernormative. I wish we got to see more of their backstory. Their hopes and dreams for the world. They don’t feel like individual characters. They’re background pieces for Samotin to control.
Also, a bit of an add-on: it’s strange that of the main 5, only ONE is lower class. This is not only a Sins on their Bones problem; many fantasy books have their important characters only be royalty/upper class. Mischa, who is not only our only prominent character who’s poor but also trans,
Ayla came in way too late for me to form a proper opinion of her. She’s another one of Dimitri's half-siblings (which… also barely got any attention) and allegedly in a relationship with that other female guard??? I completely missed that. I hope she gets more love in the next book.
I didn’t think much of Ivan, but after several passionate discussions with my friend, I’ve been convinced otherwise. Ivan is an overlooked tragedy that deserves so much better from the other characters around him and the narration (And arguably Samotin herself). He’s an abuse victim who only wants to be loved and seen as important. He’s being groomed by a powerful man 10+ years his senior. He’s the bastard son of the ex-ruler of this country and received nearly zero privileges for it. And my friend pointed out something I never even thought of: Ivan is a victim, too. He is a victim of Alexey, yet he is never treated with any respect or dignity that Dimitri gets. Ivan is a plot device despite going through many of the same things Dimitri went through as an abuse victim. Ivan is a nothing character meant to give angst to our main characters and is a punching bag for Alexey to show how awful he is. Hell, he even helps Vasily right near the end. But the thing about Ivan, which is the real tragedy, is that he’s entirely alone. Dimitri has four friends, riches, and power he can fall back on, while Ivan has ZERO support system. The fact that Samotin seemingly never realized this, that she wrote a victim with nothing and just killed him off like that…makes me question whether or not this book truly is for victims of DV. People all around the world are stuck in situations like Ivan: no support system, no power, no nothing. So, to make a character like that lose in such a violent, graphic way shows me that only certain victims matter. Some lines almost feel like victim Blamey, saying that Ivan “didn’t realize” he loved a monster who was treating him wrong. And this is just sad. It’s disgusting.
And Ivan’s treatment isn’t even the most damning thing Samotin did.
Earlier in this review, I said that research for a book is unnecessary, but I found this next part to be so utterly disgusting that I need to comment on it.
On Samotin's Instagram account, she promoted an extra erotic scene of Dimitri and Alexey's first night together as a pre-order bonus. Let me repeat that: the AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK, who claims to want to portray abuse with the sensitivity it deserves, wrote an erotic scene between an abuser and his victim (who, by the way, would be 28 and BARELY 20 in that scene) SPECIFICALLY to sell more books. Not an extra scene between the main couple. Not cute found family shit that Laura claims to love but barely pays attention to. A sex scene between a barely legal victim and an abuser pushing 30.
Laura, what the FUCK is wrong with you.
You can't claim to support victims and then monetize and eroticize abuse. And then go on to write a SECOND Dimitri/Alexey sex scene for funsies to show to your Instagram followers. You just can't. I don't care that you've gone through something similar. You don't get a free pass to do those things. You can’t say that you want to treat abuse and partner violence with the sensitivity it deserves and then use a sex scene between an abuser and his victim to SELL MORE COPIES OF YOUR BOOK.
Oh yeah! And then lie about a whole rape scene that’s in the book. Don’t think I forgot that.
I thought the biggest antisemitic hate crime I experienced was when some cuck on Instagram told me that I belonged in the oven with the rest of my kind. Reading The Sins on Their Bones comes pretty close to that.
I wanted this book to be good. I wanted to have a fun romp in a world where I understood phrases, items, and cultural differences. Instead, we got a circlejerk of a bunch of people feeling bad for themselves, sex scenes that left me dryer than the Sahara, a weird fetish for non-brown eyes, a plot where the first half of it could have been nearly cut out, characters that were boring at best and eye-gouging infuriating at worst, and the threat of an awful sequel. Big fucking whoop. And...I’ve seen other books do worse. But over the past month, I watched my best friend get so fucking triggered by this book he almost started crying when he talked to me about it. I watched my book bestie, who has also been in an abusive relationship, become infuriated by the way the topic is treated in the book. I got so mad at this book that I started biting it. The teeth marks are still there. Whenever I think about this book's few redeeming qualities, I look at those half circles indented on the cover, and I remember why I’m writing this review.
A. No map. I'm used to having that for reference as a seasoned fantasy fan. It's a quick way for audiences to gauge where things are and the shape of the world. Sarah J. Maas had maps. Most of the fantasy books I’ve read so far this year had maps. The fucking omegaverse fantasy series I read earlier this year HAD MAPS. To me, it shows disinterest in the word. This is a fantasy book where many different names and locations are thrown at you quickly, and you have no idea where any of those are or how long it takes to get anywhere because you have no reference. Not to mention, you sometimes forget what’s country, what’s a city, etc., etc. Samotin has opted (at least in this edition) to put on THREE PAGES of praise for this book; we get two drawings of Vasily and Dimitri. No map! Nothing!
B. The author's note we have in this book was…underwhelming. Before reading the book, the note says that The Sins on Their Bones “centers themes” of intimate partner violence, sexual abuse, PTSD, etc., etc. Now, this wording is pretty vague. Usually, when books explicitly depict specific themes on the page, the author’s notes will say, “This book contains X,Y, and Z). Saying “centers themes” implies that themes will be talked about and mentioned, but they will not be explicitly shown within the story. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end here. You have to go to Samotin’s website for THE ACTUAL TRIGGER WARNING LIST. I should not have to do outside research to be able to enjoy a book, but I did have to do it to understand this book. What happens if someone in a bookstore wants to purchase this book without internet access? If the worst of the worst of booktok books can get this right, Samotin has no excuse.
I don’t usually comment on the writing within books mainly because I have nothing intelligent or witty to say about prose. But here? Oh no. For an adult fantasy book, Samotin sure likes to treat the audience like idiots. Repetition is also a common occurrence. We constantly get scenes that remind us how domineering and controlling Alexey is, we get reminders of how Dimitri is a sad sack of shit who can’t do anything, we get reminders that his 3 nigh-interchangeable friends are oh so caring and how he’d die for them, we get reminders that Ivan looks just like his older brother but is so much more compliant (bleugh). It’s infuriating, it’s boring, and it undermines the audience’s intelligence.
Another problem with this book is showing and telling. Samotin clearly knows how to show emotion and writes huge paragraphs where scenes are shown to us. But then, the final sentence will be the conclusion the audience would form if they had an ounce of critical thinking skills. For an adult novel, you should assume your audience has at least two brain cells to rub together, and it constantly felt like Samotin was telling us what to think.
This is where plot problems come in. Not much happens because of the previous two bits of criticism I mentioned, and the plot is incredibly slow. We spend the first half of the book from Dimitri/Vasily’s side mainly doing fuck all. Alexey is the one moving things forward, which…that's good, I guess, for a villain. But it’s not until Vasily goes to Novo-Svitsevo that the plot starts kicking into gear. This book could have easily cut out 50 pages, and we would have had a decent story.
The worst part about the plot is that the events before the story sound so much more interesting than what we got. I love fantasy stories dealing with the ramifications of war. But the trick is to make the plot on the page more interesting. Because of the circumstances of this war and how mind-numbingly dull most of the book is, I would have rather seen the damn war! Therefore, this book has middle book syndrome while being book 1. And it’s not even just the war! The deterioration of Alexey and Dimitri’s relationship is ALSO interesting!! I want to see Dimitri struggle with being Tsar when he was never meant to be!! I want to see his court come together!! There’s a reason why a lot of fantasy books start there!
The lore of this world is underdeveloped. I get that this is more low than high or even normal fantasy, but I still would have liked to see more of it. There were some references to Judaism, and I enjoyed being able to understand a lot of words, phrases, and cultural norms (the one about a character not being able to afford headstones for her family’s graves even though it’s been a year since they died is a nice touch). This book isn't well researched in other areas. My friend who speaks Hebrew frequently pointed out misspellings of words. The use of “Shabbat” instead of “Shabbos” (aka what we grew up calling it) shows a lack of care towards the religion Samotin is a part of. Maybe there will be more references in the next book, and Samotin will get a more reliable translator, but I’m not so sure about that. In addition, the queernormativity within worldbuilding is almost non-existent. Sure, most of the characters are somewhere in the Not Straight realm. But when I’m promised a queernormative world, I don’t expect a world where it’s still weird for an unmarried woman to walk around unaccompanied or adopted children not seen as legitimate heirs in high society. I know this sounds nitpicky and biased, but basic things like that are present in our world because it’s still not fully acceptable to be queer (among other things, but this review isn’t about that). A queernormative world would accept adopted children as legitimate because they’d be viewed legally as the couple’s children. Bloodlines wouldn’t be heavily emphasized because a queernormative world would state that blood does not inherently equal family. That’s the whole fucking point of found family, which Samotin’s book is TECHNICALLY ABOUT. COME ON.
This book has weird attitudes towards a lot of different marginalized folks. The fact that the two prominent brown characters (Vasily and Annika) are the ones who saw/have seen the most combat (even if Annika doesn’t like to be the general, that’s still her role). Ladushka is a weird stereotype of ace/aro people, being cold and robotic and generally “unfeeling” (there was also a bizarre scene where she walks in on Dimitri and Vasily fucking and tells them to finish in front of her). Poor people in this book are brushed over and treated as props for the main characters to either advance the plot forward (for the protags) or torture needlessly (for the antagonist). I don’t know how this book managed to have the greedy Jew stereotype, blood libel (Alexey using blood in his rituals falls very close to this trope), and a plotline where a villain tries to create a master race in a book about Jews (yes i get this is supposed to be problematic. Villains can be problematic. No it does not erase the fact that it’s still weird as hell). I And though they’re not technically “marginalized”, it’s telling that the anarchists are faceless baddies who blew up Dimitri’s family and are probably going to be even worse in the sequel.
Speaking of Dimitri is one of the worst protagonists I’ve ever seen. I don’t understand why he has two men lusting after him, considering he has the spine and personality of wet cardboard, and that’s an insult to wet cardboard. Most of the time, he’s either whining or crying about something he did. I understand Dimitri is a broken man who did shitty things….and yet he barely faces material consequences for doing said things. Yeah, he ran away and lost his throne, but he’s living with his 4 best friends in a safe zone, in a lavish house. He has food and water, he’s able to bathe, he has constant moral support and friends who will drop anything to help him, and he is constantly drinking (and doesn’t experience many side effects of that; he still looks like a hot, skinny, small twink). Considering most of his country is living in poverty or about to be sacrificed to demons, he’s sitting pretty.
Before I get into the rest of the characters, I want to expand upon a part in Dimitri’s character analysis. There’s this weird undercurrent within The Sins on Their Bones where Dimitri’s trauma is more talked about and focused on than any other character. Even for our protagonist, it’s excessive. I understand Samotin admitted she sees herself in Dimitri. I'm not denying her experience, and I hope she finds peace wherever that is. But there comes a point when you have to realize you're writing a fictional story, not a memoir. Writing can be a form of catharsis many use to process events that typically happen out of their control. But here's the thing: catharsis writing is usually done in private. And this story feels like unpolished catharsis writing. At every step of the way, whenever Dimitri inevitably has a breakdown about some (arguably) shitty thing he did (like, I don’t know, abandon his soldiers so they could be slaughtered), his groupies or Vasily rush over to comfort him. Assure him that nothing was his fault. That it is all Alexey’s fault for being power-hungry and starting a civil war. If anything, this removes Dimitri’s agency, framing him as an unwilling victim in his own story. I’m not saying it’s his fault he got abused, but when it comes to war and being a leader of your country, yes, he does have responsibility. The constant circlejerk of “it’s not your fault” not only halts the pace of the novel but is a detriment to your supposedly complex character. And in any case, this is a DARK FANTASY BOOK. Why Samotin can’t allow any of her main characters to be responsible for doing anything bad/face consequences for it is beyond me.
Moving onto Vasily, he has the potential to be interesting, but so many character choices left me befuddled. Why was this man a lord even though it would have made much more sense for him to be a commoner? Why is his trauma of CSA one of the most brushed-over parts of the novel, and he gets one scene where Dimitri comforts him while he constantly has to soothe Dimitri? In his first scene of doing spy work, why does he go out in RICH PEOPLE CLOTHES and pretend to be poor? Why does he go along with Dimitri’s sexual request to blindfold him and fuck him like Alexey did? And why did he let that slide??? Why didn’t he look out for Ivan when Dimitri told him to?? It sucks because there could have been potential for him, but in the wise words of my friend, “Vasily, you are an idiot, you are a hack, you are a fraud, and I hope you die.”
(also the fact that Vasily steals the identity of a man and pretends to be disabled has to be ableism…right??? Are we gonna brush over that???)
Alexey is a fucking joke. He’s an edgy, brooding ruler who wears all black and a big cape, says “you dare defy me” and “obey me” unironically, and needs a long mustache he can twirl to complete the look. He is the Darkling we got at the dollar store. Not to mention, he’s our only gay man in this book, and he’s a GROOMER. And not to mention, he gets more sex scenes than the actual main couple we’re supposed to root for, with both Dimitri and Ivan. Sure, he’s the only one who moves the plot along in the beginning; for that, he’s compelling. But other than that, he’s an incredibly predictable one-note villain.
Ladushka, Annika, and Mischa are just…there. They each have their own little thing going on, but other than that, they are two-dimensional characters meant to be Dimitri’s cheer squad. While their domestic moments were cute and added some levity, it didn’t feel like there were enough heavy moments to justify them. It’s nice to see casual displays of platonic intimacy in a book because that’s actually queernormative. I wish we got to see more of their backstory. Their hopes and dreams for the world. They don’t feel like individual characters. They’re background pieces for Samotin to control.
Also, a bit of an add-on: it’s strange that of the main 5, only ONE is lower class. This is not only a Sins on their Bones problem; many fantasy books have their important characters only be royalty/upper class. Mischa, who is not only our only prominent character who’s poor but also trans,
Ayla came in way too late for me to form a proper opinion of her. She’s another one of Dimitri's half-siblings (which… also barely got any attention) and allegedly in a relationship with that other female guard??? I completely missed that. I hope she gets more love in the next book.
I didn’t think much of Ivan, but after several passionate discussions with my friend, I’ve been convinced otherwise. Ivan is an overlooked tragedy that deserves so much better from the other characters around him and the narration (And arguably Samotin herself). He’s an abuse victim who only wants to be loved and seen as important. He’s being groomed by a powerful man 10+ years his senior. He’s the bastard son of the ex-ruler of this country and received nearly zero privileges for it. And my friend pointed out something I never even thought of: Ivan is a victim, too. He is a victim of Alexey, yet he is never treated with any respect or dignity that Dimitri gets. Ivan is a plot device despite going through many of the same things Dimitri went through as an abuse victim. Ivan is a nothing character meant to give angst to our main characters and is a punching bag for Alexey to show how awful he is. Hell, he even helps Vasily right near the end. But the thing about Ivan, which is the real tragedy, is that he’s entirely alone. Dimitri has four friends, riches, and power he can fall back on, while Ivan has ZERO support system. The fact that Samotin seemingly never realized this, that she wrote a victim with nothing and just killed him off like that…makes me question whether or not this book truly is for victims of DV. People all around the world are stuck in situations like Ivan: no support system, no power, no nothing. So, to make a character like that lose in such a violent, graphic way shows me that only certain victims matter. Some lines almost feel like victim Blamey, saying that Ivan “didn’t realize” he loved a monster who was treating him wrong. And this is just sad. It’s disgusting.
And Ivan’s treatment isn’t even the most damning thing Samotin did.
Earlier in this review, I said that research for a book is unnecessary, but I found this next part to be so utterly disgusting that I need to comment on it.
On Samotin's Instagram account, she promoted an extra erotic scene of Dimitri and Alexey's first night together as a pre-order bonus. Let me repeat that: the AUTHOR OF THIS BOOK, who claims to want to portray abuse with the sensitivity it deserves, wrote an erotic scene between an abuser and his victim (who, by the way, would be 28 and BARELY 20 in that scene) SPECIFICALLY to sell more books. Not an extra scene between the main couple. Not cute found family shit that Laura claims to love but barely pays attention to. A sex scene between a barely legal victim and an abuser pushing 30.
Laura, what the FUCK is wrong with you.
You can't claim to support victims and then monetize and eroticize abuse. And then go on to write a SECOND Dimitri/Alexey sex scene for funsies to show to your Instagram followers. You just can't. I don't care that you've gone through something similar. You don't get a free pass to do those things. You can’t say that you want to treat abuse and partner violence with the sensitivity it deserves and then use a sex scene between an abuser and his victim to SELL MORE COPIES OF YOUR BOOK.
Oh yeah! And then lie about a whole rape scene that’s in the book. Don’t think I forgot that.
I thought the biggest antisemitic hate crime I experienced was when some cuck on Instagram told me that I belonged in the oven with the rest of my kind. Reading The Sins on Their Bones comes pretty close to that.
I wanted this book to be good. I wanted to have a fun romp in a world where I understood phrases, items, and cultural differences. Instead, we got a circlejerk of a bunch of people feeling bad for themselves, sex scenes that left me dryer than the Sahara, a weird fetish for non-brown eyes, a plot where the first half of it could have been nearly cut out, characters that were boring at best and eye-gouging infuriating at worst, and the threat of an awful sequel. Big fucking whoop. And...I’ve seen other books do worse. But over the past month, I watched my best friend get so fucking triggered by this book he almost started crying when he talked to me about it. I watched my book bestie, who has also been in an abusive relationship, become infuriated by the way the topic is treated in the book. I got so mad at this book that I started biting it. The teeth marks are still there. Whenever I think about this book's few redeeming qualities, I look at those half circles indented on the cover, and I remember why I’m writing this review.
June 2, 2024
Favorite book of the year so far, I loved it so much
March 6, 2024
I’m throwing in the towel on this one. I’m kind of bored with it. I kept hoping it would get better but it didn’t. The pace is slow and the characters are bland. The romance is blah. However, I loved the Rasputin vibes and the great queer rep. I might skim the rest just to see what happens. I think it will probably hit the sweet spot for a lot of readers, I’m just not one of them.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the digital arc.
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eta: Here’s a bit more info about the book. I DNF’d at 57% so I got a pretty good feel for what was going on before I bounced.
Former tzar Dmitri is depressed, betrayed, and mourning the loss of his throne and his abusive ex-husband Alexei. (And make no mistake. It was an abusive relationship. Emotional manipulation/abuse, physical violence, etc. He suffers from PTSD, depression and panic attacks.) Dmitri’s licking his wounds in exile after being overthrown by Alexei. He starts out a wobbly little lump of undealt-with trauma, being propped up by his pals and forced to get out of bed everyday, Weekend at Bernie’s-style.
Dmitri and his cohort have to find a way to take back their country from the cruel usurper/dictator (and recently undead) Alexei. The country is at the precipice of a dark future in the hands of this dangerous new tyrant (which feels more timely and relatable than it should in 2024).
Knowing the premise and seeing how Alexei was set up to be the villain, I was surprised to discover that he had a POV in the book - but I actually thought his chapters were interesting. Alexei gave off super creepy Rasputin vibes in this revolutionary Russia-style setting. Dark magic and supernatural creatures are part of the culty mysticism that he exploits for power. Angels and demons are summoned, gory rituals are performed. Monsters, literal and figurative, are fought.
TSotB is gaslamp fantasy-adjacent with found family and queer rep. (In addition to the three queer MCs, one side character is nonbinary and one is aroace.) There is spice but it’s minimal (imo).
The friends to lovers trope is a little subverted here. It’s more a Friends With Benefits/fuckbuddies to Boyfriends (probably? I didn’t actually get far enough to see them become officially together. The romance between Dmitri and Vasily was not compelling for me. But they were already sleeping together at the beginning of the book which I think really watered down their emotional progression.)
Tw/cw: toxic/emotionally abusive relationship, ptsd, panic attacks, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing the digital arc.
———
eta: Here’s a bit more info about the book. I DNF’d at 57% so I got a pretty good feel for what was going on before I bounced.
Former tzar Dmitri is depressed, betrayed, and mourning the loss of his throne and his abusive ex-husband Alexei. (And make no mistake. It was an abusive relationship. Emotional manipulation/abuse, physical violence, etc. He suffers from PTSD, depression and panic attacks.) Dmitri’s licking his wounds in exile after being overthrown by Alexei. He starts out a wobbly little lump of undealt-with trauma, being propped up by his pals and forced to get out of bed everyday, Weekend at Bernie’s-style.
Dmitri and his cohort have to find a way to take back their country from the cruel usurper/dictator (and recently undead) Alexei. The country is at the precipice of a dark future in the hands of this dangerous new tyrant (which feels more timely and relatable than it should in 2024).
Knowing the premise and seeing how Alexei was set up to be the villain, I was surprised to discover that he had a POV in the book - but I actually thought his chapters were interesting. Alexei gave off super creepy Rasputin vibes in this revolutionary Russia-style setting. Dark magic and supernatural creatures are part of the culty mysticism that he exploits for power. Angels and demons are summoned, gory rituals are performed. Monsters, literal and figurative, are fought.
TSotB is gaslamp fantasy-adjacent with found family and queer rep. (In addition to the three queer MCs, one side character is nonbinary and one is aroace.) There is spice but it’s minimal (imo).
The friends to lovers trope is a little subverted here. It’s more a Friends With Benefits/fuckbuddies to Boyfriends (probably? I didn’t actually get far enough to see them become officially together. The romance between Dmitri and Vasily was not compelling for me. But they were already sleeping together at the beginning of the book which I think really watered down their emotional progression.)
Tw/cw: toxic/emotionally abusive relationship, ptsd, panic attacks, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse
October 20, 2024
I enjoyed how atmospheric this book was. I am confused as to how it was marketed as a romantasy, because it’s not that… This book is dark, political fantasy. I wish we weren’t dropped in right after a big conflict happened, because I was really confused as to how we got where we were when the book started. I thought the queer and Jewish representation was well done. I did struggle with the pacing of this book, I genuinely felt like nothing happened for the longest time. This also isn’t really a love story, it’s full of abuse and toxic relationships. The overall idea was really interesting but I feel like if we got more backstory and more plot I would have enjoyed it more. Please please check the CW’s before reading this one. It’s a lot.
CWs: sexual violence, abusive relationships, blood & gore, trauma, sexual content, injury, war, torture, death, human experimentation
Thank you to LibroFM for the ALC.
CWs: sexual violence, abusive relationships, blood & gore, trauma, sexual content, injury, war, torture, death, human experimentation
Thank you to LibroFM for the ALC.
August 14, 2024
1.75 ⭐️
!!!!!MILD SPOILERS!!!!
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Thank you Netgalley and Random House Canada for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Make sure you read all the CW for this one before you dive in.
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This book’s worst crime is being incredibly dull. Mediocre. A snooze fest. I’ve read science fair pamphlets made by middle schoolers that were more captivating.
•Realizing that this book was supposed to be character driven made me angry. I didn’t feel anything for the characters at all. They were one way in the first 60%, another way in the next 20%, then another way for the last 20% without any real fleshing out. I think because this book promises intrigue and action in the synopsis, that’s what you expect, but you end up with these constantly flat chapters that can’t decide if they want to world build, character build, or move the plot forward, so you end up with a dreadful mashup of all three possibilities.
•I think balancing character and plot is both really easy and really hard. Once you figure it out, it’s hard to mess up. This book didn’t figure it out. I think it could have been a dynamic, clever, politically intriguing adventure with characters you can’t help but fall in love with but it wasn’t. It didn’t feel sloppy per se, just underbaked from every aspect. The magic is easily the most interesting part of this book, but the writing didn’t do it service. It didn’t feel rich. It felt like I was reading a summary in bullet point form at the end of a spell book.
•The first 70% of this book is the same three bullet points repeated over and over again. Over and over again. Over and over…zzzzzzz. They weren’t mentioned once and elaborated later, they weren’t mentioned then put in parallel with themselves at a different point in the book, we didn’t get to read them as a unique, beautiful metaphor every time they were brought up. No. They were delivered with the same straightforward manner every time. In every scene. In every POV character’s head. Banging my head against the wall would’ve been just as repetitive but much less painful.
•Most of the scenes read like the kind you would write in a first draft where you aren’t sure where you would take your story. Stuff just happening because.
•Dimitri was always always sad in a way that got exhausting to read. It can be argued that that’s the point (you’re supposed to be sucked into his depression), and I see where that could have been the intention, but it I believe it wasn’t well done. Usually when a character is stuck feeling the same emotion, especially sadness, the author will try to offset it with unique metaphors and a mysterious backstory to keep you invested, but this isn’t done here. I swear the same sentences were copy pasted from the way it was hammered into my head. Even Vasily and Alexey had that same monotonous voice. Alexey was slightly more interesting but also boring. I didn’t feel like the world building and magic were done in a way that submerged me in their richness. Any interest I had was from my own brain filling in the blanks.
•The character of Vasily was incredibly confusing. His thoughts and personality didn’t make sense to me at all for what he was— a spymaster. He read more like a peasant being forced into the role of a spy. He’s not clever or charming. We’re supposed to believe he is but his dialogue doesn’t stand out at all. He just finds stuff out. By having normal conversations with people. Who just give it to him. For absolutely no reason. Maybe it’s the curls?
•If you’re going to have such a large chunk of this book lack action and intriguing politics, your characters and prose need to be more compelling. In terms of prose, either quirky or beautiful. Shadow and Bones’ prose is similarly simple, but it had the plot beats and general intrigue about the world to make up for it. The writing style didn’t have that “YA flow” nor was it sophisticated or fun in any way. The few attempts at humor fell flat for me.
•The POV switches didn’t feel coherent and didn’t add much to the story. The chapters didn’t end in a way that compelled me to keep reading. POV switching can keep readers in suspense but I didn’t find myself caring about the characters or the events of the story enough to be on the edge of my seat.
•The amount of sex scenes and physical attraction didn’t make up for the characters’ general lack of romantic chemistry. The most compelling relationship was the one we weren’t supposed to root for, which was disturbing.
What I think should have been done?
1. Dimitri should have infiltrated the court himself, under disguise using shape shifting magic he found in the library. It would have been interesting to see his POV interacting with his evil husband and his evil husband’s POV as he interacted the love of his life, unbeknownst to him. Vasily should have been a spymaster for Alexey that eventually joined Dimitri’s side (after falling in love and confronting his past). The story could have focused on the suspense of Dimitri swaying the court to his side while Alexey was none the wiser, and trying to find a way to reverse Alexey’s immortality. This idea could’ve balanced character work and plot really well.
2. Maybe the story could’ve taken place at the beginning of the civil war, before Dimitri exiled himself. I think the inner turmoil and general nature of war would’ve made up for the lack of cohesive plot.
3. Or, if we aren’t going to change the basis of the story, just have it begin later. Maybe with Vasily finding the ad from the palace and having an emotional send off with Dimitri and co. Have Vasily spend a longer time trying to sway Alexey over rather than Alexey being immediately convinced (that felt so so so lazy).
Overall, the writing style for this book is what made it so flat. Even if any of the ideas above were executed they would have to be written with a completely different approach to prose to sell it to me.
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Anyway, this book seems to have found its audience so for that I’m glad. It’s not a bad book and I enjoyed what it was doing for queerness by having a queernormative world (did I use the right word?). Will I read anything else by this author? Yeah sure if the synopsis appeals to me. This is a debut after all so the only way to go is up.
!!!!!MILD SPOILERS!!!!
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Thank you Netgalley and Random House Canada for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Make sure you read all the CW for this one before you dive in.
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This book’s worst crime is being incredibly dull. Mediocre. A snooze fest. I’ve read science fair pamphlets made by middle schoolers that were more captivating.
•Realizing that this book was supposed to be character driven made me angry. I didn’t feel anything for the characters at all. They were one way in the first 60%, another way in the next 20%, then another way for the last 20% without any real fleshing out. I think because this book promises intrigue and action in the synopsis, that’s what you expect, but you end up with these constantly flat chapters that can’t decide if they want to world build, character build, or move the plot forward, so you end up with a dreadful mashup of all three possibilities.
•I think balancing character and plot is both really easy and really hard. Once you figure it out, it’s hard to mess up. This book didn’t figure it out. I think it could have been a dynamic, clever, politically intriguing adventure with characters you can’t help but fall in love with but it wasn’t. It didn’t feel sloppy per se, just underbaked from every aspect. The magic is easily the most interesting part of this book, but the writing didn’t do it service. It didn’t feel rich. It felt like I was reading a summary in bullet point form at the end of a spell book.
•The first 70% of this book is the same three bullet points repeated over and over again. Over and over again. Over and over…zzzzzzz. They weren’t mentioned once and elaborated later, they weren’t mentioned then put in parallel with themselves at a different point in the book, we didn’t get to read them as a unique, beautiful metaphor every time they were brought up. No. They were delivered with the same straightforward manner every time. In every scene. In every POV character’s head. Banging my head against the wall would’ve been just as repetitive but much less painful.
•Most of the scenes read like the kind you would write in a first draft where you aren’t sure where you would take your story. Stuff just happening because.
•Dimitri was always always sad in a way that got exhausting to read. It can be argued that that’s the point (you’re supposed to be sucked into his depression), and I see where that could have been the intention, but it I believe it wasn’t well done. Usually when a character is stuck feeling the same emotion, especially sadness, the author will try to offset it with unique metaphors and a mysterious backstory to keep you invested, but this isn’t done here. I swear the same sentences were copy pasted from the way it was hammered into my head. Even Vasily and Alexey had that same monotonous voice. Alexey was slightly more interesting but also boring. I didn’t feel like the world building and magic were done in a way that submerged me in their richness. Any interest I had was from my own brain filling in the blanks.
•The character of Vasily was incredibly confusing. His thoughts and personality didn’t make sense to me at all for what he was— a spymaster. He read more like a peasant being forced into the role of a spy. He’s not clever or charming. We’re supposed to believe he is but his dialogue doesn’t stand out at all. He just finds stuff out. By having normal conversations with people. Who just give it to him. For absolutely no reason. Maybe it’s the curls?
•If you’re going to have such a large chunk of this book lack action and intriguing politics, your characters and prose need to be more compelling. In terms of prose, either quirky or beautiful. Shadow and Bones’ prose is similarly simple, but it had the plot beats and general intrigue about the world to make up for it. The writing style didn’t have that “YA flow” nor was it sophisticated or fun in any way. The few attempts at humor fell flat for me.
•The POV switches didn’t feel coherent and didn’t add much to the story. The chapters didn’t end in a way that compelled me to keep reading. POV switching can keep readers in suspense but I didn’t find myself caring about the characters or the events of the story enough to be on the edge of my seat.
•The amount of sex scenes and physical attraction didn’t make up for the characters’ general lack of romantic chemistry. The most compelling relationship was the one we weren’t supposed to root for, which was disturbing.
What I think should have been done?
1. Dimitri should have infiltrated the court himself, under disguise using shape shifting magic he found in the library. It would have been interesting to see his POV interacting with his evil husband and his evil husband’s POV as he interacted the love of his life, unbeknownst to him. Vasily should have been a spymaster for Alexey that eventually joined Dimitri’s side (after falling in love and confronting his past). The story could have focused on the suspense of Dimitri swaying the court to his side while Alexey was none the wiser, and trying to find a way to reverse Alexey’s immortality. This idea could’ve balanced character work and plot really well.
2. Maybe the story could’ve taken place at the beginning of the civil war, before Dimitri exiled himself. I think the inner turmoil and general nature of war would’ve made up for the lack of cohesive plot.
3. Or, if we aren’t going to change the basis of the story, just have it begin later. Maybe with Vasily finding the ad from the palace and having an emotional send off with Dimitri and co. Have Vasily spend a longer time trying to sway Alexey over rather than Alexey being immediately convinced (that felt so so so lazy).
Overall, the writing style for this book is what made it so flat. Even if any of the ideas above were executed they would have to be written with a completely different approach to prose to sell it to me.
.
.
.
Anyway, this book seems to have found its audience so for that I’m glad. It’s not a bad book and I enjoyed what it was doing for queerness by having a queernormative world (did I use the right word?). Will I read anything else by this author? Yeah sure if the synopsis appeals to me. This is a debut after all so the only way to go is up.
March 16, 2024
Dnd‘ed at 58% (page 228) (Maybe 2 stars)
For the first 30 pages I was sure this would be a glorious 5-star read. I was drawn in completely by the beautiful language and the atmosphere, this fantasified ancient Russia (withs bit of Jewish mythology thrown in) and Dimitri‘s brokenhearted suffering.
And I didn‘t mind the first three sex scenes.
And then … nothing happened.
The Good:
- The language and the world captivate you from page one. I had very high hopes.
- The premise and the mix of ideas! Never read something like it and again, had high hopes.
- Dimitri‘s suffering and the beginning has your heartbreaking and the way his friends treat him, beautiful.
- The interactions between him and his court were fun and light-hearted. You saw how much they cared for him. Love (in all direction) was very well shown.
- The queerness of them all. One (?) straight main character in sight
The Bad:
- It could have been so action-packed and fast and oh so good! Instead I got a snail-paces plot (with the 50%-„climax“ (pun intended) should have happened at 25%) sprinkled in between sex scenes.
- the sex scenes: I get that they show the characteristics of the two main characters, (A. dominant and powerhungry, D. looking for comfort), but there could have been other ways additional to showing them fucking every 5 pages! It got boring really fast. Especially if you got two following scenes being sex scenes and no plot movement. Major yawn.
- Too much talking and strategising, no doing. And if you tell me the action part starts at 60% in - that‘s to late!
- Too much „showing“ sithout showing anything: The two parties almost never left their homes and still I have no good visual of the places. It all was all glossed over quickly without feeling quick. The experiments could have been shown better! The demons, the country, the palace! Focus more on action than on whining and planning. (Although drunk Dimitri at the start was fun.)
All in all I am very dissapointed and am glad I dnf‘ed it, albeit late. Thanks to netgalley for the arc, but that was a miss for me.
For the first 30 pages I was sure this would be a glorious 5-star read. I was drawn in completely by the beautiful language and the atmosphere, this fantasified ancient Russia (withs bit of Jewish mythology thrown in) and Dimitri‘s brokenhearted suffering.
And I didn‘t mind the first three sex scenes.
And then … nothing happened.
The Good:
- The language and the world captivate you from page one. I had very high hopes.
- The premise and the mix of ideas! Never read something like it and again, had high hopes.
- Dimitri‘s suffering and the beginning has your heartbreaking and the way his friends treat him, beautiful.
- The interactions between him and his court were fun and light-hearted. You saw how much they cared for him. Love (in all direction) was very well shown.
- The queerness of them all. One (?) straight main character in sight
The Bad:
- It could have been so action-packed and fast and oh so good! Instead I got a snail-paces plot (with the 50%-„climax“ (pun intended) should have happened at 25%) sprinkled in between sex scenes.
- the sex scenes: I get that they show the characteristics of the two main characters, (A. dominant and powerhungry, D. looking for comfort), but there could have been other ways additional to showing them fucking every 5 pages! It got boring really fast. Especially if you got two following scenes being sex scenes and no plot movement. Major yawn.
- Too much talking and strategising, no doing. And if you tell me the action part starts at 60% in - that‘s to late!
- Too much „showing“ sithout showing anything: The two parties almost never left their homes and still I have no good visual of the places. It all was all glossed over quickly without feeling quick. The experiments could have been shown better! The demons, the country, the palace! Focus more on action than on whining and planning. (Although drunk Dimitri at the start was fun.)
All in all I am very dissapointed and am glad I dnf‘ed it, albeit late. Thanks to netgalley for the arc, but that was a miss for me.
April 17, 2024
I think political fantasies are my jam.
The Sins on Their Bones drops us into Novo-Svitsevo in the aftermath of a war. When I was explaining it to my husband, he said, “like Star Wars” which made me laugh, but also, like…kinda? Anyway, Dimitri, the rightful Tzar, has been overthrown by his estranged husband, Alexey. Dimitri is in hiding, and Alexey is being a giant prick, using perverse methods to become immortal while supposedly being directed by the voice of God. It’s up to Dimitri and what’s left of his small court of followers to save the country and its people.
Please, check the content warnings before reading. It’s dark. Villains are not morally grey redeemable characters here.
That being said, I ate this book up. It’s sort of a slow build, with lots of emphasis on our character’s feelings and motivations, which I absolutely love. The world building is so interesting! It’s based on Jewish history and culture, and the author states that she was inspired by legends and folktales she grew up with. Very cool!
One of my favourite tropes is found family, and this book definitely hits the sweet spot on that. So many boxes were ticked for me - learning to trust and love, healing, finding a sense of belonging, gaining back confidence. Just a lot of great themes covered, and it’s subtle, not in your face telling instead of showing.
The queer rep is also well done. The author wanted to create a “world where queerness is normative”, and I think she’s done an amazing job.
And…that ending? So are we getting a sequel? A series? Whatever happens, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for this author’s future works. Gorgeous debut, and one of my favourite reads so far this year.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for providing the ARC of this book. This review is my honest and voluntary opinion.
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Got an ARC and I’m so excited!
The Sins on Their Bones drops us into Novo-Svitsevo in the aftermath of a war. When I was explaining it to my husband, he said, “like Star Wars” which made me laugh, but also, like…kinda? Anyway, Dimitri, the rightful Tzar, has been overthrown by his estranged husband, Alexey. Dimitri is in hiding, and Alexey is being a giant prick, using perverse methods to become immortal while supposedly being directed by the voice of God. It’s up to Dimitri and what’s left of his small court of followers to save the country and its people.
Please, check the content warnings before reading. It’s dark. Villains are not morally grey redeemable characters here.
That being said, I ate this book up. It’s sort of a slow build, with lots of emphasis on our character’s feelings and motivations, which I absolutely love. The world building is so interesting! It’s based on Jewish history and culture, and the author states that she was inspired by legends and folktales she grew up with. Very cool!
One of my favourite tropes is found family, and this book definitely hits the sweet spot on that. So many boxes were ticked for me - learning to trust and love, healing, finding a sense of belonging, gaining back confidence. Just a lot of great themes covered, and it’s subtle, not in your face telling instead of showing.
The queer rep is also well done. The author wanted to create a “world where queerness is normative”, and I think she’s done an amazing job.
And…that ending? So are we getting a sequel? A series? Whatever happens, I’ll definitely keep an eye out for this author’s future works. Gorgeous debut, and one of my favourite reads so far this year.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for providing the ARC of this book. This review is my honest and voluntary opinion.
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Got an ARC and I’m so excited!
May 8, 2024
Unfortunately, I missed the opportunity to complete the book, so my commentary is limited to roughly 55% of its content. Initially, the story unfolded at a slower pace, but it gradually gained momentum as I delved deeper.
The narrative revolves around Dimitri, a deposed Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo, who resides in self-imposed exile with his four closest companions following a devastating war that claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of individuals under his rule. This conflict, lost to his estranged husband Alexey, the current immortal Tzar, saw the rise of a tyrant who aims to build an army composed of demonic creatures, and strikes fear into his subjects. Alexey's ambitions for Novo-Svitsevo as the paramount global power, achieved through Holy Science, prompt Dimitri and his confidant and lover, Vasiliy, to conspire against him. Yet, the challenge remains daunting: how does one slay an immortal, especially one with lingering affections?
Categorized as queer dark fantasy, the book aptly lives up to its label, laden with numerous content warnings. Themes of physical, mental, and sexual abuse, alongside vivid depictions of bodily harm, resonate powerfully, leaving enduring scars on Dimitri's psyche. It's a narrative that demands resilience from its audience, as Dimitri navigates a landscape of moral ambiguity and personal torment.
Regrettably, I was unable to complete the book due to an archival date coinciding with the publication date. Nevertheless, I remain eager to return to its pages promptly.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The narrative revolves around Dimitri, a deposed Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo, who resides in self-imposed exile with his four closest companions following a devastating war that claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of individuals under his rule. This conflict, lost to his estranged husband Alexey, the current immortal Tzar, saw the rise of a tyrant who aims to build an army composed of demonic creatures, and strikes fear into his subjects. Alexey's ambitions for Novo-Svitsevo as the paramount global power, achieved through Holy Science, prompt Dimitri and his confidant and lover, Vasiliy, to conspire against him. Yet, the challenge remains daunting: how does one slay an immortal, especially one with lingering affections?
Categorized as queer dark fantasy, the book aptly lives up to its label, laden with numerous content warnings. Themes of physical, mental, and sexual abuse, alongside vivid depictions of bodily harm, resonate powerfully, leaving enduring scars on Dimitri's psyche. It's a narrative that demands resilience from its audience, as Dimitri navigates a landscape of moral ambiguity and personal torment.
Regrettably, I was unable to complete the book due to an archival date coinciding with the publication date. Nevertheless, I remain eager to return to its pages promptly.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 15, 2024
Wczesny dostęp otrzymany dzięki uprzejmości portalu NetGalley w zamian za szczerą recenzję, za co dziękuję!
tw // sa, manipulacja, przemoc, bodyhorror, trauma, dubcon
Po zapowiedzi mrocznej fantastyki o mężach stojących po dwóch przeciwnych stronach konfliktu, który zasiał jeden z nich, rozdzierając świat na pół, oraz szpiegu w niego wplątanym, oczekiwałam wiele. Dorzucić tu jeszcze inspiracje folklorem żydowskim oraz wschodnią Europą? Wow.
A potem sięgnęłam po pierwszy rozdział i mi się odechciało.
Ale jak już powróciłam, to przynajmniej skończyłam. Co z zapowiedzi zostało tu dotrzymane? Zdecydowanie mrok całej opowieści.
O ile komentowania odzwierciedlenia kultury żydowskiej się nie tykam, bo nie znam tematu wystarczajaco, o tyle mogę zrecenzować całą resztę światotwórstwa. A tutaj, niestety, ono leży. Choć autorka ma wykształcenie w polityce, nie wykorzystuje go – niewiele wiadomo na temat świata oraz zasad jego działania. Nawet magia wymyka się jakimkolwiek opisom. Owszem, to jest historia, która stoi bohaterami, nie fabułą, ale cholera, jeżeli już mają bić się o tron carski, to chociaż wytłumaczcie czemu ten tron jest taki ważny (poza faktem, że Aleksiej ma obsesję na punkcie władzy). Dodatkowo ów grono bohaterów w rzeczywistości sprowadza się do trzech postaci-narratorów. Jeśli czułabym się chojna, to doliczyłabym ich siedmiu, co na opowieść tak rozległą i epicką jak tutaj (budowa armii i podbój imperium od środka) wciśż jest mierną ilością.
Nieobiektywnie tym, co utrudniło mi lekturę, jest ten mrok. Dużo jest tutaj traumy na podłożu seksualnym, bohaterowie również używają seksu, by komunikować swoje emocje. Ale, po raz drugi, cholera, w prawie każdym rozdziale? W porównaniu z ilością scen fabularnych to one właśnie budują tę książkę. Podkreślam, to, że ze mną to nie siedziało, nie oznacza, że to zło absolutne. Po prostu po tej historii spodziewałam się czegoś absolutnie innego.
Świat Aleksieja, Dymitra i Wasilego to świat mężczyzn; od A do Z rządzą i ważni są sami mężczyźni, na całą jego długość pojawiają się cztery kobiety – dwie ważne dla Dymitra (obie skrzywdzone przez wojne, muszące stacjonować na pozycjach na dworze, których nie chciały) i dwie przypadkowe, których spotkanie Wasyli wykorzystuje do osiągnięcia swojego celu. Generalnie tu nie ma postaci kobiecych. Jest duża nierówność w tym, jak wspomniane bohaterki niepojawiające się na stronach we własnej osobie wpływają na fabułę (nijak), a jak tacy bohaterowie (ogromnie – od choćby przemocowego cara, który cieniem kładzie się na wszystkie wydarzenia, do oprawcy Wasyla z dzieciństwa, który zostaje ukarany podczas fabuły). Może to nieważne, może nie wszędzie trzeba zachowywać jakąś proporcję, cholerka, możecie nawet powiedzieć – przecież to inspiracja na osiemnasty wiek, oczywiście, że tu nie będzie wiele kobiet! I może macie rację. Po prostu chciałam podzielić się obserwacją.
Trochę mnie Samotin pozostawia w rozterce, z jednej strony umiem docenić, jak nietypową historię obrała i z jaką pieczołowitością opisuje bohatera-złoczyńcę, z drugiej – czy to była dzięki temu przyjemna lektura? Czy sprawiła, że to będzie moja ulubiona książka? No nie. Wyjątkowa na rynku, ale wyjąkowość niestety nie zawsze wystarcza.
tw // sa, manipulacja, przemoc, bodyhorror, trauma, dubcon
Po zapowiedzi mrocznej fantastyki o mężach stojących po dwóch przeciwnych stronach konfliktu, który zasiał jeden z nich, rozdzierając świat na pół, oraz szpiegu w niego wplątanym, oczekiwałam wiele. Dorzucić tu jeszcze inspiracje folklorem żydowskim oraz wschodnią Europą? Wow.
A potem sięgnęłam po pierwszy rozdział i mi się odechciało.
Ale jak już powróciłam, to przynajmniej skończyłam. Co z zapowiedzi zostało tu dotrzymane? Zdecydowanie mrok całej opowieści.
O ile komentowania odzwierciedlenia kultury żydowskiej się nie tykam, bo nie znam tematu wystarczajaco, o tyle mogę zrecenzować całą resztę światotwórstwa. A tutaj, niestety, ono leży. Choć autorka ma wykształcenie w polityce, nie wykorzystuje go – niewiele wiadomo na temat świata oraz zasad jego działania. Nawet magia wymyka się jakimkolwiek opisom. Owszem, to jest historia, która stoi bohaterami, nie fabułą, ale cholera, jeżeli już mają bić się o tron carski, to chociaż wytłumaczcie czemu ten tron jest taki ważny (poza faktem, że Aleksiej ma obsesję na punkcie władzy). Dodatkowo ów grono bohaterów w rzeczywistości sprowadza się do trzech postaci-narratorów. Jeśli czułabym się chojna, to doliczyłabym ich siedmiu, co na opowieść tak rozległą i epicką jak tutaj (budowa armii i podbój imperium od środka) wciśż jest mierną ilością.
Nieobiektywnie tym, co utrudniło mi lekturę, jest ten mrok. Dużo jest tutaj traumy na podłożu seksualnym, bohaterowie również używają seksu, by komunikować swoje emocje. Ale, po raz drugi, cholera, w prawie każdym rozdziale? W porównaniu z ilością scen fabularnych to one właśnie budują tę książkę. Podkreślam, to, że ze mną to nie siedziało, nie oznacza, że to zło absolutne. Po prostu po tej historii spodziewałam się czegoś absolutnie innego.
Świat Aleksieja, Dymitra i Wasilego to świat mężczyzn; od A do Z rządzą i ważni są sami mężczyźni, na całą jego długość pojawiają się cztery kobiety – dwie ważne dla Dymitra (obie skrzywdzone przez wojne, muszące stacjonować na pozycjach na dworze, których nie chciały) i dwie przypadkowe, których spotkanie Wasyli wykorzystuje do osiągnięcia swojego celu. Generalnie tu nie ma postaci kobiecych. Jest duża nierówność w tym, jak wspomniane bohaterki niepojawiające się na stronach we własnej osobie wpływają na fabułę (nijak), a jak tacy bohaterowie (ogromnie – od choćby przemocowego cara, który cieniem kładzie się na wszystkie wydarzenia, do oprawcy Wasyla z dzieciństwa, który zostaje ukarany podczas fabuły). Może to nieważne, może nie wszędzie trzeba zachowywać jakąś proporcję, cholerka, możecie nawet powiedzieć – przecież to inspiracja na osiemnasty wiek, oczywiście, że tu nie będzie wiele kobiet! I może macie rację. Po prostu chciałam podzielić się obserwacją.
Trochę mnie Samotin pozostawia w rozterce, z jednej strony umiem docenić, jak nietypową historię obrała i z jaką pieczołowitością opisuje bohatera-złoczyńcę, z drugiej – czy to była dzięki temu przyjemna lektura? Czy sprawiła, że to będzie moja ulubiona książka? No nie. Wyjątkowa na rynku, ale wyjąkowość niestety nie zawsze wystarcza.
May 26, 2024
Goshhhh this one was so so good. I knew it would be a ‘me book’ when I saw the author describing it as ‘Six of Crows meets Captive Prince’ and boy oh boy it did not disappoint. This book was a book about healing from trauma, particularly traumatic relationships, and doing what is right, even if it rips your own heart out in the process. It was dark, gory in places and the characters were all so well written and broken in so many different ways. The storyline at times reminded me of a Wes Anderson movie, with the snowy, freezing yet beautiful setting, as we flick from Dimitri, to Alexey to Vasily’s POVs.
Dimitri is the rightful Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo (an Eastern-European inspired fictional nation), however he is on the run after losing a brutal and bloody war to his husband, Alexey. Tired of living in his royal husband’s shadow, Alexey has used a form of dark magic dubbed ‘The Holy Science’ to return from the dead and forge himself into an immortal, unkillable being, determined to take over the nation and rule everything, no matter the cost. Dimitri, with his cadre of 4 loyal friends, including spymaster Vasily, has to work out how to infiltrate Alexey’s court and put a stop to the bloodshed and madness.
This book was beautifully written; I was completely immersed in the warring nation of Novo-Svitsevo and I absolutely loved Dimitri’s found family; his court of 4 loyal friends who would to anything to protect him. I also enjoyed the magic system, a dark mix of demons and angels, sacrifices and vows. I felt so many emotions reading this and I just loved all the characters; there were points when I wept 😭
Read The Sins On Their Bones for:
✨ Lovers to enemies & Friends to lovers
✨ Chosen found family
✨ Royals at war, court politics
✨ Dark, demon-infested magic
✨ Bleak gothic setting
✨ Healing from trauma (whilst sustaining even more trauma) 👀
✨ LGBT+ rep inc gay, bi, lesbian, asexual, aromantic, non-binary
It’s really hard to really sum up how much I adored this book in a single review! There is definitely going to be a second book (2025 release) as although this ends on a HFN and you can happily read it as a standalone, there is definitely still a lot of threat out there and I for one am excited to see where the next phase of the story goes!
Dimitri is the rightful Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo (an Eastern-European inspired fictional nation), however he is on the run after losing a brutal and bloody war to his husband, Alexey. Tired of living in his royal husband’s shadow, Alexey has used a form of dark magic dubbed ‘The Holy Science’ to return from the dead and forge himself into an immortal, unkillable being, determined to take over the nation and rule everything, no matter the cost. Dimitri, with his cadre of 4 loyal friends, including spymaster Vasily, has to work out how to infiltrate Alexey’s court and put a stop to the bloodshed and madness.
This book was beautifully written; I was completely immersed in the warring nation of Novo-Svitsevo and I absolutely loved Dimitri’s found family; his court of 4 loyal friends who would to anything to protect him. I also enjoyed the magic system, a dark mix of demons and angels, sacrifices and vows. I felt so many emotions reading this and I just loved all the characters; there were points when I wept 😭
Read The Sins On Their Bones for:
✨ Lovers to enemies & Friends to lovers
✨ Chosen found family
✨ Royals at war, court politics
✨ Dark, demon-infested magic
✨ Bleak gothic setting
✨ Healing from trauma (whilst sustaining even more trauma) 👀
✨ LGBT+ rep inc gay, bi, lesbian, asexual, aromantic, non-binary
It’s really hard to really sum up how much I adored this book in a single review! There is definitely going to be a second book (2025 release) as although this ends on a HFN and you can happily read it as a standalone, there is definitely still a lot of threat out there and I for one am excited to see where the next phase of the story goes!
December 3, 2023
I'm not fine, thanks so much for asking! These emotionally destroyed men have emotionally destroyed me!
This book is so utterly enchanting with such a beautiful world, inspired by Jewish mysticism, teetering on the edge of darkness. It digs into the emotional torture that comes from abuse and fraught politics, but does so in a way that is so deeply loving. It makes space for the acute suffering that is truthful to reality, but also welcomes the support that comes from those that care.
Everything about this book is dark, sexy, and just so damn GOOD. I wanted to inhale it whole.
This book is so utterly enchanting with such a beautiful world, inspired by Jewish mysticism, teetering on the edge of darkness. It digs into the emotional torture that comes from abuse and fraught politics, but does so in a way that is so deeply loving. It makes space for the acute suffering that is truthful to reality, but also welcomes the support that comes from those that care.
Everything about this book is dark, sexy, and just so damn GOOD. I wanted to inhale it whole.
February 9, 2025
I was disappointed by this book, but I want to make a disclaimer before I dig in: I was going to dnf and skipped ahead to the authors acknowledgements, and reading them I relate to her on a personal level. Reading that she was writing and struggling to publish a novel while recovering from tuberculosis in the pandemic shocked me. I was struggling with a physical disability early in the pandemic too, it was one of the most challenging points in my life. That Samotin has published a book in the wake of that is a remarkable achievement. So I persevered, even though I really did not like it.
As a Jewish person (who's also super into the myth and mysticism angle) the Jewishness of this text felt very surface level. The mysticism of angels and demons seemingly only existed as plot contrivances; when Ibbur came up more than 80% of the way in I rolled my eyes. The Ibbur and reincarnation of Moses Cordavero can be metal (goth?), involving sleeping overnight on a person's grave, that its use in this book as a respawn was crazy to me.
The setting is unabashedly Jewish and queer normative, but the characters exist in such a strange vacuum - they almost exist in blank white rooms talking about the past and planning for MOST of the book - that not just the Yiddishkayt but the WHOLE SETTING felt like shadows on a cave wall.
The characters did not feel like a court, they felt like "grad students in a polycule" as another reviewer said. Even before the sex scenes, their casual intimacy in the beginning of the text made it hard to a) sort out their relationships and b) become invested in them. The characters make so few decisions, the plot is largely driven by Alexey and the contrivance of fate. I wanted to like it so bad but this book is billed as a dark political fantasy...with no politicking. No real acting on scenes, and the world barely reacts to the actions of the characters. Alexey won't shut up about protecting the empire from "it's enemies" but there's no showing of any enemies, near or far.
I never thought spycraft and summoning demons could be so maudlin. Vasily was a milquetoast "spymaster", and all the contrivance of staging a kidnapping of Dimitri, then killing high level nobles while escaping the castle, random half-siblings coming up throughout the narrative, the characters seemingly didn't take the stakes of the narrative seriously. Oops Alexey has been killed? Giant demon flies out a window off into the sunset, no problem there. Hours pass as the characters knit Dimitri's dead body back together, with seemingly no nobles or guards in the court reacting to this disaster.
I wish this author nothing but the best, and I hope serious and lively Yiddishkayt and mysticism is put to page. I just wish those Novo-Svitsevan anarchists finished the job and got Dimitri too.
As a Jewish person (who's also super into the myth and mysticism angle) the Jewishness of this text felt very surface level. The mysticism of angels and demons seemingly only existed as plot contrivances; when Ibbur came up more than 80% of the way in I rolled my eyes. The Ibbur and reincarnation of Moses Cordavero can be metal (goth?), involving sleeping overnight on a person's grave, that its use in this book as a respawn was crazy to me.
The setting is unabashedly Jewish and queer normative, but the characters exist in such a strange vacuum - they almost exist in blank white rooms talking about the past and planning for MOST of the book - that not just the Yiddishkayt but the WHOLE SETTING felt like shadows on a cave wall.
The characters did not feel like a court, they felt like "grad students in a polycule" as another reviewer said. Even before the sex scenes, their casual intimacy in the beginning of the text made it hard to a) sort out their relationships and b) become invested in them. The characters make so few decisions, the plot is largely driven by Alexey and the contrivance of fate. I wanted to like it so bad but this book is billed as a dark political fantasy...with no politicking. No real acting on scenes, and the world barely reacts to the actions of the characters. Alexey won't shut up about protecting the empire from "it's enemies" but there's no showing of any enemies, near or far.
I never thought spycraft and summoning demons could be so maudlin. Vasily was a milquetoast "spymaster", and all the contrivance of staging a kidnapping of Dimitri, then killing high level nobles while escaping the castle, random half-siblings coming up throughout the narrative, the characters seemingly didn't take the stakes of the narrative seriously. Oops Alexey has been killed? Giant demon flies out a window off into the sunset, no problem there. Hours pass as the characters knit Dimitri's dead body back together, with seemingly no nobles or guards in the court reacting to this disaster.
I wish this author nothing but the best, and I hope serious and lively Yiddishkayt and mysticism is put to page. I just wish those Novo-Svitsevan anarchists finished the job and got Dimitri too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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