Andrea Stewart: The Bone Shard Daughter

Hi everyone

The Bone Shard Daughter is the debut novel by Andrea Stewart and the first book in The Drowning Empire series. 
I got my copy from Bol.com.

"The Emperor's reign has lasted for decades, his mastery of bone shard magic powering the animal-like constructs that maintain law and order. But now his rule is failing, and revolution is sweeping across the Empire's many islands.
Lin is the Emperor's daughter and she spends her days trapped in a palace of locked doors and dark secrets. When her father refuses to recognise her as heir to the throne, she vows to prove her worth by mastering the forbidden art of bone shard magic.
Yet such power carries a great cost, and when the revolution reaches the gates of the palace, Lin must decide how far she is willing to go to claim her birthright - and save her people."

This was mediocre at best. And that’s a shame, because the ingredients for a great story were there.

The idea was very interesting: an empire using its populace’s bones to defend everyone against an enemy. I hadn’t read anything like this before; it’s dark, original, and full of potential. I also really liked the setting of these different floating islands, which gave the world a distinctive, atmospheric feel.
There’s a dark atmosphere and quite some gory moments, which were written very well. The constructs too were interesting in concept, but boringly written. What could have been creepy and fascinating never quite came alive on the page.
The writing in general was entertaining, but the further I got into the book, the more bored I became.

The execution, fell rather flat for me. All the characters blended into one another, and I didn’t feel connected to anyone. None of them left a lasting impression, which made it hard to care about their fates or stay invested in the story.
The world and its history are not really expanded upon either; there’s very little we get to see or experience of this world.
There are also a few things that made me wonder how thoroughly the world-building was thought out. For example: the Emperor is the only one able to do bone shard magic, but that’s impossible given that there are constructs on all the islands (there will always be a few malfunctioning, or a bone shard will stop working when the donor dies). It’s just not possible one person manages this, and there’s no mention of any form of maintenance on the constructs. It pulled me right out of the story.

So yeah, The Bone Shard Daughter is very promising but shallow. If you’re drawn to unique magic systems and dark settings, you might find something to enjoy here but for me, it never delivered on its potential.

Have you read The Bone Shard Daughter? Did it work better for you, or did you feel the same way? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy reading!
Helena