B+ | It is well-paced and a well-plotted mystery YA novel. The characters are compelling. The historical setting is wonderfully researched and it shows in the writing because Hur brought Joseon Korea to life through her characters and descriptions of the setting. Hur does a fantastic job with its plot as it explores loyalty and family.
Title: The Silence of Bones
Author: June Hur
Synopsis: I have a mouth, but I mustn’t speak;
Ears, but I mustn’t hear;
Eyes, but I mustn’t see.
1800, Joseon (Korea). Homesick and orphaned sixteen-year-old Seol is living out the ancient curse: “May you live in interesting times.” Indentured to the police bureau, she’s been tasked with assisting a well-respected young inspector with the investigation into the politically charged murder of a noblewoman.
As they delve deeper into the dead woman’s secrets, Seol forms an unlikely bond of friendship with the inspector. But her loyalty is tested when he becomes the prime suspect, and Seol may be the only one capable of discovering what truly happened on the night of the murder.
But in a land where silence and obedience are valued above all else, curiosity can be deadly.
June Hur’s elegant and haunting debut The Silence of Bones is a bloody tale perfect for fans of Kerri Maniscalco and Renée Ahdieh.
Publication Date: 21 April 2020
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Table of Contents
— REVIEW:
This is certainly one of those books that I have been really excited for, so when I saw that there was a FFBC blog tour for it, I jumped at the chance.
The Silence of Bones is a beautifully written murder mystery novel set in Joseon-era Korea and is about an inquisitive young woman named Seol, an indentured servant to the police bureau. She becomes intrenched in the investigation of the murder of a noblewoman, despite the fact that it’s basically her job to be silent, listen, and follow orders. It also has another mystery that surrounds Seol’s family — specifically her brother and what lead to Seol become an indentured servant. Wrapped between the two mysteries, we also have this layer that explores loyalty, family, and beliefs.
This book leaves you on your toes.
I love books that leave you guessing. I love it when books give you the hints, but you’re still unable to correctly guess what’s the outcome because those hints were overshadowed by the multiple red-herrings meant to turn your attention away from the truth. I will admit that when it came to the family drama/mystery, I was able to guess that quickly and was right about it. However, when it came to the murder-mystery itself? Wow. I absolutely applaud Hur.
I believe that there’s a fine line that mystery authors need to toe when it comes to unpredictable endings. Things obviously can’t come out from left field, but you also can’t have the readers correctly guessing the outcome 30% of the way into the book. Readers need to be taken astray, their gaze turned towards another character while still dropping those hints of who actually committed the crimes.
Speaking of characters!
These characters are so damn well-written.
Admittedly? I didn’t really connect with any of these characters. None of them made my heart go boom. I wasn’t absolutely in love with them.
However, despite my lack of connection with them, the characters in this book are well-done. They are interesting and fleshed out. None of them felt like they were the exact same person; they were all varied with their own individual stories.
And you know what? None of these characters are perfect. They all make mistakes that cost them.
I appreciate that Hur didn’t shove these characters to the side for the sake of shock value. I appreciate that she took the time to develop them and flesh them out. And what I loved even more was the fact that we had characters who were a mystery themselves. This desire to uncover/unravel just who the characters are drove me to finish this book as much as the murder-mystery itself.
Worldbuilding & setting
So I’m not all that familiar with Korean history so I can’t speak to the historical aspects of this book. Also, I am not Korean so I can’t speak to the cultural aspects of this book. If either one of these interest you, I hope you will find some #ownvoices reviewers that can speak about these two points. Unfortunately at the time of writing this review, I don’t know which #ownvoices book bloggers have written a review about this.
I can speak to the atmosphere though.
I found that it was very easy to picture the surroundings. I do think that this was helped by the fact that I was an avid watcher of historical Korean dramas. My mind took those images and blended them in with what was presented in the book.
This leads me to the writing.
The writing was pretty good but there were issues.
Hur is an awesome writer and I am absolutely looking forward to seeing what she comes up with next. She captured the atmosphere that I expect from mystery/thrillers. She leaves you wanting more — from the characters to finding out who did the crime.
Furthermore, I think that she did a good job exploring what is loyalty and family.
But when it comes to the pacing? Truth be told, I’m not crazy about the pacing. There is a LOT of things happening and a lot of things to unpack. It felt too fast and too short. The topics are dense but they weren’t explored enough in my opinion.
So why only a B+/4 Stars?
Two reasons.
1) The fact that I could not connect with the characters.
Okay, petty? Maybe? Yeah.
Look, I truly believe that the characters are well-done and fleshed out. I found them to be intriguing. But I just could not connect with them. I couldn’t find it within me to truly care about them beyond the curiosity I had over the mysteries hanging over their heads.
2) Pacing and density.
Like I said above, I’m not crazy about the pacing. The book felt too short. Then there’s the action. It moved a bit too quickly for my taste. Now, I don’t mind fast-paced books. I enjoy books that move fast and never let you breathe. I also enjoy short books that can wrap things up nicely in less than 400 pages.
However, in this case, I think it didn’t really work in the book’s favor. I felt like the topics warranted just a little bit more time expanding on them. Nothing too crazy! Just a little something more so it doesn’t feel so light, despite the heavy topics at hand.
But would I still recommend this book?
Absolutely. Please, give this book a chance. While I don’t think I will be picking this book up again, I did enjoy reading it. It is entertaining and a great book to read when you’re craving a good, solid, and well-written mystery.
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I want to thank FFBC as well as June Hur and Feiwel & Friends for organizing this blog tour and providing me with a copy of the eARC. Furthermore, I want to thank June Hur for this solid debut novel. Make sure to check out the other reviews by other bloggers & certainly make sure to check out #ownvoices book reviews of the novel as they appear.
Meet the Author
JUNE HUR (‘Hur’ as in ‘her’) was born in South Korea and raised in Canada, except for the time when she moved back to Korea and attended high school there. Most of her work is inspired by her journey through life as an individual, a dreamer, and a Christian, with all its confusions, doubts, absurdities and magnificence. She studied History and Literature at the University of Toronto, and currently works for the public library. She lives in Toronto with her husband and daughter.
Her debut novel THE SILENCE OF BONES (Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan, April 2020) is a murder mystery set in Joseon Dynasty Korea (early 1800s), and also a coming-of-age tale about a girl searching for home. It was recently selected by the American Booksellers Association as one of the top debuts of Winter/Spring 2020.
She is represented by Amy Bishop of Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC.
Check her out @ the following social media pages:
Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram
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