The Bone Ships (The Tide Child Series #1)[June 1, 2023]

[Yanique, Thread Master]

This is a Buddy Read for The Bone Ships by R.J. Barker starting on June 1, 2023.


Happy Reading!

[Rob]

In. though the buddy read for Furies of Calderon starts the same day. This one is higher on my TBR priority list :)

[Tonari no Emily]

I've been seeing this trilogy around a lot lately. I hope I'll be able to give this a try!

[Nirkatze]

I'm excited--missed out last year and been wanting to read these. Also--Broken Binding is doing them for the April-June subscription--very pretty...

[Rob]

I started reading this yesterday. Up to chapter Five. This has the whole Malazan let's just dump you off in a new universe and let you tread water and catchup sort of feel which leads to lots of questions!
(view spoiler)[ status has something to do with how many births your mother survives. That's new. Jorow wants to know why Meas is here, so I guess that's a question for all of us to sit and wait to see. Jorow's whole story and background is something to be unraveled. Chapter 1 he seems like he's an old hand, but in reality, he's somehow only 19 and was put in charge. That seems slightly explained now supposedly as being the least objectionable choice. And I suppose we will get to know the rest of the crew as we go. Seems to be a magic system here and a world history here, but not quite fully revealed yet either. Lots to dive into. Short chapters and good pacing is a nice change from the Lawrence book (hide spoiler)]

[Athena]

This one picks up as it goes! I am re reading because I loved the trilogy, all I'll say is that by the end Meas ends up one of my favorite characters of all time!

[Rob]

Very cool. I'm hoping for more POVs.

[Nirkatze]

This is next on my eyebook list! Hoping to be here by Friday.

[Nirkatze]

Started! Actually starting with audiobook, though I was planning to do eyebook. Mostly keeping track of what is going on and rather enjoying it. I haven't even read the back of my books, so I am going in completely blind, but I'm a huge fan of naval stories--SF, Fantasy not even necessary... I loved the Aubrey & Maturin books & Horatio Hornblower too when I was younger...

The bit about mothers was indeed interesting, and I'm liking Meas more and more as I go on... something about crochety mentor figures...

[Nirkatze]

I'm also finding it really interesting how the ships are all "he" and the captains are "shipwives" regardless of gender... the book is doing a lot of interesting things with gender and sexuality....

[Nirkatze]

Through Chapter 22 and still really enjoying. (view spoiler)[I really like the part with the weather-bird creature whose name and species I have trouble catching...Galain? I love that Joron figured out how to work with the ornery creature, and it required nothing less than to be treated like one of the crew rather than a slave.

I also really enjoy seeing Joron slowly gain his own confidence, and slowly getting the respect of the crew; the crew coming together... and am still loving Meas. (hide spoiler)]

[Nirkatze]

Just finished! I loved this! I loved Meas as captain, I loved seeing Joron grow, the action was good, the mysteries are enticing, the creatures... so much fun!!

I was getting some Realm of the Elderlings vibes, and it also made me think of a lot of the military SF I've read, like Honor Harrington--especially in Meas's shipwifery skills. And I really enjoyed the culture and terminology--all of the gendered titles that have nothing to do with gender of the holder, and the different rules and statuses of each. Really looking forward to #2.

Haven't decided if I'll switch to eyebook from audio--I really enjoyed the narrator but I also have these pretty books with pretty pictures in them waiting for me... will probably depend on whether or not I have a stack of eyebooks waiting or not.

[Saar The Book owl]

I've started yesterday and I'm currently at the second chapter. It made me think a lot of the Draconus seriers from Anthony Ryan. Not the story, but the writing style.
Also, I had to look up what 'Shipwife' meant. I had a whole different idea of it!
And the 'corpselights': (view spoiler)[It was told that children were abducted and sold to become corpselights on the ship for luck? I mean, are the children then killed or so?
And those bones the ships are made of, what being was it? A dragon?
The fauna and flora seems interesting, but very hostile! (hide spoiler)]

[Nirkatze]

Saar The Book owl wrote: "I've started yesterday and I'm currently at the second chapter. It made me think a lot of the Draconus seriers from Anthony Ryan. Not the story, but the writing style.
Also, I had to look up what '..."

I listened to Bone Ships but read the Anthony Ryan books, and I'm having a hard time cross-comparing across media--my brain just doesn't want to make that jump, which is interesting. So I am taking your word for it!

I just took "shipwife" to mean "captain"--like married to the job, but married to the ship, and found it really interesting that the ships are all "he," when modern English military etc all refer to ships as "she."

I missed a lot of details from listening, I think, but (view spoiler)[part of the reason for the war is that both sides steal children and sacrifice them for some magic or another--corpselights is part of it but not, I think, all of it... and the descriptions of the creatures used to make the bone ships do sound like sea-serpents/sea-dragons. (hide spoiler)]

Happy to be revisiting this with your comments, Saar!

[Rob]

Anyone going onto book 2?