A Tree of Bones

Title: A Tree of Bones
Author: Gemma Files
Published: 2012 by ChiZine, same for the Kindle
Genre: Weird Weird West!
Pages: 400


Oh no, it's over! What... what do I do now? (Start reading 3 different books at once, apparently.)

I'll steer clear of Spoiler Territory as much as possible, and say that all in all, this was one damn enjoyable trilogy, with a lot of new words and ideas. Not to mention a setting almost completely new to me -American Civil War- and plenty of old gods I knew almost nothing of previously. It was fun, fast and even a little heart-breaking, and oftentimes I had no idea where the story was going. I don't mean that it was all over the place or hard to follow, no: it was fresh and free of cliches. No obvious turns. And characters I miss already.

As mentioned, I bought the Kindle Omnibus while I was still reading The Book of Tongues. In addition to the trilogy itself, the Omnibus has three short stories at the end, telling us what happened to some of the main cast afterwards. The books got so intense at points, it was nice to meet them during (slightly) calmer days. Plus, reading the short stories meant that I didn't just have to quit the characters cold turkey. Which was nice, since I do miss the fuckers. 


   "You do know how he ain't the only bent creature in this world, though, right?" Chess asked. "Or me, neither?" As the man shifted even further back, visibly uncomfortable, Chess leaned in, confiding: "Hell, there's even ladies like ladies, if you could credit it. Or them who take what's given, without pledging any sort'a allegiance at all - all manner of strange creatures, roamin' 'round out there in the dark! And any given one of 'em might sometime want a drink, a plate or to just set a while, without some drunken moron runnin' their mouth."
   "Uh, I . . . don't know nothin' on any of that, Mister Pargeter. I just . . ."
   "Run a bar, yeah. Need the custom, no matter who brings it. So I'm gonna make sure no fool like Sam Holger ruins your prospects on that score, ever again. Now, how'd that be?"
   ". . . good, I guess . . ."

Oh, one more thing: I did very much enjoy all the swearing. And the fact that the author herself calls the books blood-soaked gay porno black magic horse opera in this one's dedication.

That was some damn good blood-soaked gay porno black magic horse opera right there.