Review: The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco

Title: The Bone Witch
Author: Rin Chupeco
Series: The Bone Witch #1
Publication: March 7th 2017 by Sourcebooks Fire
Genre: Fantasy ~ Young Adult
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 5/5

Let me be clear: I never intended to raise my brother from his grave, though he may claim otherwise. If there's anything I've learned from him in the years since, it's that the dead hide truths as well as the living.

When Tea accidentally resurrects her brother from the dead, she learns she is different from the other witches in her family. Her gift for necromancy means that she's a bone witch, a title that makes her feared and ostracized by her community. But Tea finds solace and guidance with an older, wiser bone witch, who takes Tea and her brother to another land for training.

In her new home, Tea puts all her energy into becoming an asha-one who can wield elemental magic. But dark forces are approaching quickly, and in the face of danger, Tea will have to overcome her obstacles...and make a powerful choice.

I've enjoyed the author's YA horror books, The Girl from the Well and its sequel The Suffering but I've always felt they missed that little extra to make them full five star reads. Now The Bone Witch, the first book of her new fantasy series, was a very different one compared to her previous books. Different in genre but it also felt like a whole new level of storytelling than I've experienced from her. Consider me throroughly and utterly in awe of this amazing book!

I almost don't know where to start with this story. First of all it has two points of view. The first one is of Tea, who finds out, after she brings her dead brother back to life, that she has the gift of necromancy which makes her a bone witch. The second point of view is in the perspective of a bard. It has a very unique style and is very different compared to Tea's. I totally loved these two POVs. I probably liked the bard's POV the most because it was so deliciously dark and captivating.

Tea definitely was a great character to read about. The story continues over a few years so we actually get to see her growing up a little, learning more about the magic she has and what it all means. I also really liked her brother Fox. I absolutely loved his sense of humor and his relationship with Tea. Because she accidentally raised him from the his grave he is her familiar, which makes them connected and in tune to each other.

There's only hint of romance, which I thought was perfect for this book The story does move slowly so I totally get why some people wouldn't like it. Personally I loved this aspect of it because it build everything up perfectly without rushing anything. And then there's the writing... it was beyond a doubt one of the most beautiful prose I have ever read. It was seriously amazing!

Overall, The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco is nothing short of brilliant. I would absolutely recommend it to any lover of fantasy, especially to fans of Leigh Bardugo's Shadow and Bone and Kiersten White's And I Darken.

Despite an unsettling resemblance to Japanese revenants, Rin always maintains her sense of hummus. Born and raised in Manila, Philippines, she keeps four pets: a dog, two birds, and a husband.
She is represented by Rebecca Podos of the Helen Rees Agency.
Website | Twitter | Goodreads