Ryn, Gareth and Ceridwen are siblings living alone since their mother died and their father went to the copper mine and never returned. Ellis is a mapmaker traveling in the mountains when Ryn finds him being attacked by a dead man that’s risen and she promptly saves him. The three siblings are barely scraping a living but they’re loyal to each other. Ellis wants Ryn to be his paid guide through the mountains so he can make a map and try to discover his origins. Ryn agrees because she wants to search for her father in the mine and also stop the rising dead, the bone houses. They travel together through dangerous terrain with bone houses all around and find the reason behind the curse. A wonderfully immersive story, 5 stars!

Language: PG for 8 swears, no f-bombs

Mature content: PG for kissing

Violence: PG for dead bodies rising and trying to harm people. Axe and sword cutting of the risen dead.

Likes/dislikes:
I love this tale of bravery, mystery and loyalty set in a fantasy world. Ryn and Ellis are my favorite characters even though they’re very different from each other. I like that the author wrote this story out of respect for Lloyd Alexander’s books and the love that she has for his writing since her childhood.

Ethnicity:
Mixed

Setting:
An imaginary village, Colbern, is where Ryn lives with her siblings.

A wonderful book that is great for readers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Holly Black. I could not put it down.

Fascinating and keeps you turning the page.. The author does a great job immersing the reader into the world. It is a haunting book and I enjoyed every page of it.

Wow!! I liked this WAY more than I thought I would! I kind of went into this without even really knowing what the summary was...(I just liked the cover). Such a good story!!!

The characters were likable and relate-able. Death is such a big part of life, and this story reminds us of that. The curse is a blessing in a way too. Ryn got some closure about her father, I really wanted that for her!

Ellis is amazing. I loved that he wasn't this big huge bulky manly man. He knew his weaknesses and strengths and wasn't ashamed of them. I loved where his story went, even if my heart broke for him a little. He is such a sweetie.

And the zombie goat. Coolest part of the story for sure.

Wow, this book! A little bit gothic, a little bit horror, a little bit thriller, this is the perfect fall read. Additionally, this book is steeped in Welsh mythology and folklore, which is amazing and clearly should be done more.

I didn't know what my life was missing was an ax-wielding zombie killing teenager, but here we are. (Now, when I say zombie, I don't really mean Walking Dead zombies. Rather, the Bone Houses are dead people who just don't die and so wander around the forests at night.) This is the story of a brave girl and a boy she saves who go on a journey to find the source of the magic which enables the Bone Houses and destroy it. There is danger, magic, mystery, and legend, and I was absolutely entranced by this book.

I'm not going to lie, the cover for The Bone Houses is what originally attracted me to this book. It's just gorgeous. I am very glad that the writing and the story turned out to be equally as gorgeous. I'm not normally a fan of books that deal with the dead and restless spirits, but this one was just so well done.

It was so descriptive that I found myself actually visualizing what I was reading. It gave me chills. Ryn is also such a badass, and a great character. She doesn't come off too cocky or arrogant but is very self- assured. Also, who wouldn't want to carry around a magical axe?

This was a delightful story reminiscent of a true fairytale. It edged on spooky but with a perfect dose of old magic and Welsh folklore, perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman.
It was a quick enough read that kept me hooked from the very first page until the last. Loved this story!

The world of The Bone Houses is not quite like anything I've read. I was intrigued from the very beginning about why these skeletons were suddenly going over the boundary they had always stayed away from. This was a very magical and exciting read!

Loved the way chronic pain is portrayed here. I deal with this issue, and I appreciated how it was tackled in a YA book. I think lots of teens will be able to relate as well.

Protagonist Ryn’s family are gravediggers, GRAVEDIGGERS. Tell me of a more Halloween appropriate occupation, except that these gravediggers may have to contend with the rising dead. This atmospheric, creepy and thrilling novel was the perfect book to include on my Halloween List at The Young Folks, "25 Spooky, Witchy and Overall Fantastic Books of Halloween."

Great story about a young woman trying to help her family. I loved the characters,--including the goat! Very entertaining.

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Ryn has always loved the land, her life, digging graves and putting the dead where they belong. After the death of her parents, she tries her hardest to take care over her brother and sister, but it seems like the dead, or Bone Houses as they are known, won't stay where they are put. Traveling map maker Ellis just wants to survive his chronic pain, make maps of uncharted areas and possibly find out the truth about his origins. When Ryn and Ellis's paths collide, neither could have foreseen the journey they are about to take on.

“I grew up thinking monsters could be slain.”
“Ah,” he said. “And I grew up thinking people were the monsters.”


Ok, I am a complete fan girl here. I love, love loved this book, it is easily one of my favorite reads from 2019 and I would not change a single thing about this story. I have no idea how Emily was able to create this story with so many magical wonderful components that fit so well together. I finished the book a while ago and I put off writing this review because I had no idea what to say to really show the story how enamored I was with it, so now this will be a brief review where I will highly encourage you to pick up a copy of this standalone story full of romance, magic, adventure, horror, mythology and great main characters who felt like real people I knew and rooted for. I selfishly wish there was a sequel so I could see what else Ryn would get herself into, but the ending was too perfect for me to wish it was changed. I will not go purchase all of Emily's previous books because she made a fan of me complete.

And just know the goat is the hero here.

Or, perhaps it went something like this: A goat ended the curse. It got tired of its humans being distracted by hordes of dead soldiers, so it went into the mountains and ate the cauldron.

A wonderful, wonderful standalone YA historical fantasy/horror with a hint of romance and plenty of zombies. I loved everything about this book: I loved Ryn/Ellis, the Welsh setting, the descriptions of the forest and the Welsh countryside...plus, to find a standalone in a world full of sequels and threequels is extremely refreshing. Also: there's a zombie goat. Zombie. Goat. What more do I need to say to convince you to read this? Go on. You know you want to. How many books out there have zombie goats? If they're out there, they're probably not as fun as The Bone Houses.

The writing style wasn't for me. The characters never pulled me into their plight and their personalities just rubbed me the wrong way. Overall, this story just wasn't for me.

This book was DELIGHTFUL. The concept and writing was perfect, the characters were easy to root for and the goat... I didn’t think I’d like a goat as much as I do right now. It was fast paced, fun yet heartbreaking at the same time- Emily Lloyd Jones has made it into my favorites list for sure.

Thank you so much to Little Brown Books for Young Readers for the free copy of this book for my review!

This book is now one of my top favorite books of all time. It had the perfect amount of spooky, romance, and keep you on the edge of your seat creepy. I have never read a book like this before and I absolutely loved it.

I would definitely classify this book as a dark fantasy with the rotting corpses and the dead coming back to life but it also had a lot of humor thrown in that surprised me. The writing was amazing and kept me entranced the entire time I was reading, it was so detailed and gripping. The world that Emily Lloyd-Jones created was richly-imagined but so simple at the same time, you could picture everything and that’s one thing I loved so much about this.

I loved the characters of Ryn and Ellis, especially how Ellis was dealing with chronic pain throughout the book which is something I don’t normally find in fantasy books. Their relationship was so fun to read about and the ending honestly left me gasping and dreading for the outcome.

Overall an excellent book that I highly, highly suggest reading. This was unlike any other fantasy book I’ve read and I doubt anything will ever compare to it.

I loved the gender reversal with the female main character Ryn being the more physically strong one protecting their village from bone houses and working at the family buisness digging graves while her brother Gareth was the more quiet intellectual one taking care of the finances and their little sister Ceri. Then we have the other main character Ellis, a well off mapmaker from the city with less outdoor survival and fighting skills than Ryn. The two meet when she saves him from an undead bone house attack. I felt like Ellis got more character development, but thats because Ryn was self assured from the beginning. However she does learn that some of her beliefs about the bone houses arent completely accurate. As for Ellis, being around Ryn has helped him open up and be himself which is something he struggled with growing up around nobles, but never truly being one of them.

The switch between perspectives felt very seemless. I never found myself wanting one point of view over the other. I loved the two main characters dynamic, especially with the gender norm reversal. Theres this wonderful slow burn romance that develops between them and the progression felt very authentic with their mutual goal turning into mutual respect and then attraction. Then theres the relationship between Ryn and her siblings was super heartwarming. Having lost every other member of their family they've learned to rely on one another. I loved how Ryns young sister Ceri was a little spitfire. I also adored their loyal and protective pet goat. He was definitely a highlight of the story for me. We get some chronic pain representation with Ellis old shoulder injury that I thought was well done. Plus we find out that Ryns brother Gareth is into boys.

Wanting to be the first one to map the mountains surrounding Ryns little village Ellis asks her to be his guide. Needing the money to pay off her uncles debt before her family loses their home Ryn accepts. On top of that Ryn wants to find out why the bone houses have decided to start attacking her village, and how to put a stop to it. Ryns not the only one with more than one reason to venture into the treacherous mountains, besides his mapmaking Ellis has questions about his past that he needs answered. The pace and more specifically their journey through the mountains got a little slow at times. We did get some action, but it started to feel repetitive after a while. I didnt have that need to keep turning the pages to get to the reveal since the foreshadowing was pretty obvious to me. I wish the plot was more suspenseful, but it was the characters and the world that kept me intrigued.

Ryn lives in a village surrounded by mountains that use to be home to the fae and even though they left some time ago remanents of their magic still lingers. One of the consequences of that magic is the dead dont always stay dead. I enjoyed the stories about the fae, but I wish we got more than just stories. I was hoping for more magical creatures. We do get a lake monster and the creepy hidden village. I thought it was clever that Ellis past was told in the same storytelling style. The writing wasnt super atmospheric, but it gave me a clear picture of the characters surroundings while still being a fairly quick read. I even found myself highlighting some of the banter because it had me laughing. The world had some great spooky vibes, but its not too scary either so I think many people could enjoy it this autumn season. I personally would recommend it for the characters alone.

Holy moly.

I used to hate zombie stories, because they tend to rely on clichés. But this one. Combining one of my favorite horror movie elements with Welsh history and folklore? SOLD.

Ryn is the exact kind of leading lady I adore: she doesn't care what people think, she's stubborn to a fault, and overly loyal. And Ellis is the exact leading guy I love: soft, smart, and willing to do whatever he can to help.

I have A Type, okay?

I just had a lot of good feelings seeing pwcas mentioned on page. It's been a weird recent obsession of mine (Welsh folklore, not just pwcas specifically), and to read such a rich tale with them? Yes, please.

This book evokes the same kind of feelings I get from An Enchantment of Ravens. It's rich and beautiful and scary and just...all the feels.

Plus, can we please appreciate that cover?! So good!

A spooky tale perfect for fall, I give The Bone Houses 5 out of 5 goats. Thank you so much to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for providing a copy in exchange for review.

Don't judge a book by its zombies... or undead, really. These aren't your typical zombies. Bone Houses, as they are, do wreak their havoc on humankind, they aren't the slam them in the brains Walking Dead type norm. Instead, enchanted by the remains of magic and a curse.

And even if that doesn't get you past the idea of the dark forest so wickedly built up in Emily Lloyd-Jones' lush world, there is Ryn. Wonderfully strong in the midst of her grief. Fiercely loyal to her siblings, Ryn is the town gravedigger (a job less needed as time goes on), to keep the family afloat after the death of their mother and disappearance of their father.

Their deadbeat uncle and appointed caretaker has up, and runoff. Simultaneously scared and brave, a quote from Game of Thrones kept running through my mind that best described her.

Lloyd-Jones writing truly shines in bringing to life a simple but vibrant forest most of Bone House takes place in, but how the supporting cast comes to life around Ryn and the lost mapmaker, Ellis.

Hapless Ellis. A boy who wants desperately to help and by all means, a mapmaker that should, by all rights, be able to help. Except. No.
Who is he? Can't tell you.
Where is he from? Doesn't know that either.

Can he help? He thinks he can. And with nothing else to go on, and the attacks of the Bone Houses growing by the day. Ryn has nothing left but her own fortitude and a gamble to give it a shot.

The chemistry between Ryn and Ellis is undeniable but with snappy, quick dialogue that brings a sense of humor to what could have easily been an overbearingly dreary story. Bring in a goat (yes goat) that pops in and out of the story, built in a way that truly works and there is a light heartedness that makes the story work. It provides just the right amount of quirky banter, action and wit.

Without it, the heft of grief, search for answers to the Bone House plague and perilous journeys faced might have become just depressing. Combine these two elements and your heart remains hopeful, you continue to have hope and are able to root for the characters, engage with the action-packed plot and are held in suspense right through the end.

At just over 300 pages Bone Houses is an atmospheric quick read that is perfect for fall and the upcoming Halloween season. Spooky and suspenseful, with underlying tones of grief, family dynamics and finding out who you were, Lloyd-Jones has crafted a wonderful book to curl up with this season.

Oh my gosh this was such a quick, fun read! (Bonus points it’s a standalone!) This centers around two teenagers, Ryn & Ellis being the only ones brave enough to not only go into a dark, creepy forest, but its filled with zombies! AKA bone houses though a tad different in nature than our thoughtless only wanting to eat our brains kind.

I loved our Ryn isn’t our typical heroine girl and that she was the gravedigger! Ellis is without a doubt our sweet cinnamon roll character we will all cherish and want to hug. Such a great pair and you really felt the journey they went on and the ending so heart warming even though it was a tad sad.

Do yourself a favor and add this book to your tbr! It has zombies, adventure, myths, curses and more! Plus look at that cover (insert drooling and petting book motion)