RJ Barker continues his excellent new series. Fans of fantasy will find plenty to like, here. The world-building is great, as are the characters and writing. Also: dragons. Very highly recommended (as is everything else Barker writes).

I’ll confess, this sequel did not take me in any of the directions I was expecting at the end of The Bone Ships. I had thought we’d jump straight into the action, calling up the Arakeesians and taking down the Thirteenbern.

Instead, I’ve been given a tale steeped in espionage and cunning. The stakes have been raised, and the winds are changing. Joron will find himself flensed to the bone, losing everything he holds dear. He will be hammered and tempered into steel before he can live out his destiny… or reject it entirely and shape a different future from what has been foretold.

The moment the realization of just what was being risked hit me was singularly profound, and I am deeply, deeply curious how Barker will work all this out in the trilogy’s final book. The Hundred Isles are not what they seem, and the stakes are higher than I ever could have guessed. The implications hinted at in the events of Call of the Bone Ships are grand and epic in scale even as the cast remains small and focused.

Written in the same flowing, descriptive voice as The Bone Ships, you can be well assured you’re in excellent narrative hands. Barker explores themes such as waste, ableism, and the basic assumptions of societies. By setting his epic naval fantasy in a world steeped in perfectionism, matriarchy, and distrust, he creates a world that is engaging and refreshing. He is casual in the extreme as he subverts gender roles and expectations, allowing women readers to experience the same relaxed set of assumptions that male readers tend to enjoy in most fantasy settings.

Rating: 8.0/10

The Call of the Bone Ships is part 2 in R.J. Barker’s The Tide Child Trilogy, and, in my opinion, while it does represent an expansion on the first book in the series, The Bone Ships, and presents some similarities it is also very different in a lot of ways. That being said, I still found it to be a very enjoyable read.

One of the aspects of that I loved of book 1 that is similar in book 2 is the fact that it is just so pirate-y. The dialogue contains a hard sea-faring dialect, which is so important because it permeates every conversation in every scene. This, along with all the bounty of nautical terms, makes for an atmosphere that transports the reader to ship. Honestly, it is so easy to get lost in this world, and that is a tribute to Barker’s writing. The author does a phenomenal job of immersing the reader through dialogue, world building, and description that The Tide Child Trilogy has become a wonderful piece of escapism.

The main characters are mostly the same as in the first book. There are a few differences, but nothing that changes the story significantly. Lucky Meas, Joron et al are back, so I am going to file this under “If It Ain’t Broke Don’t Fix It”. In my opinion, this is a big plus. There is a lot of character growth in this book, though, and that bring some freshness to the character set. When I mention that feeling of being immersed and escaping into this world also means I have come to care for my fellow shipmates (and, yes, even my Deck Keeper and Shipwife), so I am happy to spend another (almost) 500 pages with them.

Now, this is where Call of the Bone Ships begins to diverge from The Bone Ships. In my opinion, Call is much more emotional. The characters that I have grown to love go through a lot of shit. So much that there are times when I began to really worry about them. And for every time I wanted to cry there were plenty times I would smile and laugh, too, be it out of sheer happiness or even relief. So, plot-wise it really runs the gamut emotionally. The plot also differs for me with the fact that Call does not feel as adventure-y to me as the first book. In The Bone Ships I was a pirate, sailing seas high and low hunting sea dragons. In Call there is much more politicking and problem solving than adventuring. This may be only my opinion and others may have found this book to be just as adventurous, but I did not. And I lament that a little.

All said, Call of the Bone Ships is another fantastic submission in The Tide Child Trilogy. With its pirate-y tone and emotional plot it was an absolute joy to read. I happily recommend this book to fans of fantasy, and particularly those that are for a story involving pirates and big bodies of water. And with the way this book ended, the wait for the third and final installment is going to be brutal.

From the very first book in RJ Barker’s The Wounded Kingdom series I knew I had encountered a talented new voice in the fantasy genre, so I should not have been surprised that his new saga The Tide Child would follow on the same footsteps, but once again I discovered how this author is able to surpass himself with each new work he publishes: Call of the Bone Ships is the gripping sequel to an outstanding first volume, and it drew me into this world even more deeply than its predecessor did.

We’re back aboard the Tide Child, the black ship of the forsaken among the islanders peopling this world, and her captain - pardon me, shipwife - Meas Gilbryn is bent on ending the long war between her people, the dwellers of the Hundred Isles, and the Gaunt Islanders, and to this effect she had a hand in the creation of a place, Safeharbour, where both groups could live together. It’s a short-lived dream, however, and soon enough Meas, her second Joron and the whole crew must face both the threat to their own existence and the mystery of the mass abductions of weak and powerless people, carried in slave ships to an unknown destination and killed for some dark, loathsome purpose. This is as much of the story as I feel comfortable in sharing, because to say more would deprive any reader of the joy and terror of discovering what this book has in store for them.

With Call of the Bone Ships you don’t need to choose between a character- or plot-driven story, because you can have both: there are long sea chases, battles, mutinies and a dreadful mystery to be solved in what at times becomes an undercover operation, complete with double-dealing agents; there are the delightful details of everyday life at sea on a very peculiar ship that’s crafted out of dragon bones; and again one can meet amazing creatures, or terrifying ones. But what carries this novel more than anything else is the strength of its characters: in the series’ opener they were introduced and we got to know them a little, together with the fascinating world they inhabit, but here - now that the needs for background have been fulfilled - they are given more than enough room to expand. And shine.

“Lucky” Meas moves a little to the sidelines here, although she remains the strong, determined leader capable of taking a motley group of rejects and turning them into a loyal and proud crew: one might say that she is the heart and soul of the ship and the inspiration that drives them to move forward even in the face of certain death. But here she leaves more room for Joron Twiner, her deck-keeper or first officer, to grow into a more rounded, many-faceted character. Where he started his journey as a despondent, defeated individual, he slowly gained more confidence in himself and a measure of pride in his accomplishments under Meas’ tutelage: in this book we see him not only reach new levels of self-respect and wisdom, but also inspire the same feelings in the rest of the crew as he earns their own consideration and loyalty.

Perversely enough, though, this newfound connection with the rest of the crew and the way he has come to care for them - shown in many little gestures of appreciation and understanding - leave him exposed, vulnerable: now that he has something worthwhile to lose, he’s bound to suffer under the cruel blows of chance as he was not when he had nothing of value he could call his own. And in the course of the story Joron will lose much, in more ways than one, which will remind us that this is a harsh, unforgiving world, that always exacts a price for the small favors it chooses to bestow on people.

Together with Joron, we gain a better understanding of a few secondary characters aboard the Tide Child, and if some of them are not exactly friendly or trustworthy, it all adds to the delightful variety offered by this crew and enhances the story with little and big details that build on its substance. Among these characters, however, the one that stands out more is that of the Gullaime, the avian creature able to summon the winds necessary to propel the ship, or to tame the fury of storms. The first glimpse we were given of the Gullaime in the first book was that of a wretched creature, kept in the darkness of the hold and summoned only when need arose, but otherwise considered as a useful tool rather than a living being: the different outlook imposed by Meas has now morphed the Tide Child’s Gullaime into an assertive, curious individual and a valued member of the ship’s complement, but it’s in his interactions with Joron that the Windtalker sparkles with intriguing life and opens the way to a number of questions that simply beg to find an answer. There is a so-far barely explained bond between the Gullaime and Joron, one that takes the form of a pervasive song whose effects have been touched on but not completely disclosed, and yet this takes second place to the emotional connection between the two of them that seems to go beyond the confines of mere respect and friendship. I am eager to have this mystery unveiled, but for now I count myself very happy to have witnessed the many, meaningful interactions between the two of them.

There is a great amount of emotional content in Call of the Bone Ships because it offers a number of poignant personal interactions, made even more so by the contrast with the harsh shipboard life and the drama of the quest in which Meas, Joron and the crew are involved. Together with the captivating descriptions of life at sea, of powerful storms and creature-infested waters, these moments gift the book with a lyrical quality that runs seamlessly throughout the story and turns it into a compelling and exciting read. If you have not read The Tide Child series yet, do yourselves a favor and pick it up: you will not regret it.

The nitty-gritty: A stunning follow-up to The Bone Ships, R.J. Barker’s thrilling, intricately plotted seafaring fantasy is just as good, if not better, than the first book.

The gullaime made their way to the windspire, a curved, pale bone-like piece of rock that sang to Joron—the spires always sang, and it was a song Joron could always hear, a strange counterpoint to his own thoughts, a constant low hum on a scale alien to his own sense of harmony and of what was sharp and what was flat, but still full of beauty and yearning.

R.J. Barker has cut out my heart with a curnow* and shredded it to bits, and I couldn’t be happier. Call of the Bone Ships is a more than worthy sequel to The Bone Ships, so there’s no need to worry about “middle book slump” here. Once again, the author immediately drew me into his unique and fascinating fantasy world, where bone ships—ships made from the bones of giant sea dragons—sail the deadly waters of the Hundred Isles. This series has it all—thrilling action, humor, characters who worm their way into your heart, and of course, dragons and other fantastical creatures.

Because this is a sequel, I won’t get into the plot details too much so as not to spoil it for you. But here’s the basic set-up. The story takes place eight years after the end of The Bone Ships, which might seem like a big time jump, but honestly not a lot has changed. With her evil mother on her tail, Lucky Meas, the shipwife of the Tide Child, has found a secret, sheltered strip of land she’s named Safeharbour, where the downtrodden and victimized citizens of the Hundred Isles can live in peace. So far Safeharbour has gone undiscovered, but one day Meas and her crew  rescue another bone ship that is about to crash into a rocky shore. When they board the ship, they are horrified to find hundreds of prisoners aboard, many of them dead or dying. This discovery sets a series of events in motion that will have lasting repercussions throughout the Hundred Isles. And the elusive keyshan, the mighty sea dragons that this empire is built upon, has once more been spotted on the horizon...

One of my favorite things about this series is the way the characters get under my skin. OK, some of them get under my skin like a splinter, but even those characters managed to wring a tear or two from me by the end of the book. Barker has a knack for creating complex relationships that don’t end up where you expect them to. One of my least favorite characters in this book was Cwell, an angry, bitter woman who resents Meas and absolutely hates Joron. She and Dinyl, Joron’s former lover and a man passed over for his own ship time and again, join forces and make ship life very uncomfortable for Meas and Joron. But just when you think you know where the trajectory of those characters’ relationships are headed, Barker twists things around in some very surprising ways. I can’t tell you how many times I gasped out loud while reading this book, and my review copy is covered with exclamation points and “WTF”s.

And then there are the characters who made my heart ache, the characters who seem way too fragile and good for such a violent, harsh world. Farys, Berhof, Anzir, and Coult to name a few, tore at my heart every time they faced danger, and I love that Barker included such good hearted folks in the mix, because they balance out all the horror. This is a brutal story, full of swords and knives, axes and bolt throwers, catapults and poisonous fire, and war is a part of everyday life. Characters who hate each other are forced to work together or die, both women and men—there is no ease for anyone if your life is on the sea. Killer sea creatures lurk below the ship, waiting with sharp teeth for a strong wind to push a crewmember over the side, and there is of course the sea itself—cold, cruel and unbending. In this world, people believe that when they die, they go home to the Hag at the bottom of the sea, a fitting end to those whose lives are mostly spent on the water.

Joron is front and center in this story, and we learn more about him and his ability to “sing” and communicate (in a way) with the keyshan. Joron also has an interesting connection to the gullaime, the bird-like creatures who are revered by ships because of their magical ability to call forth winds. There is still quite a bit of mystery surrounding Joron’s talent, though, but I have a feeling we’ll get some answers in the next book. Meanwhile, it was satisfying to see his relationship with the Tide Child’s gullaime grow. I adore these creatures, who add a bit of humor to the story—although you have to watch out, because where there is humor, pain and horror follow close behind.

As for pacing, I really have nothing to complain about. The Call of the Bone ships isn’t a quick read, so those readers looking for breakneck pacing might be disappointed. Yes, there are plenty of heart-racing scenes, but there are also quieter moments when Barker really digs into his characters and their relationships, and I honestly loved these sections. The book is also full of dense, atmospheric passages, but these are necessary and give the story a very particular ambiance. We actually spend a lot of time on land in the sequel, and Barker takes this opportunity to describe the mysterious, rotting forests of the islands and the horrifying creatures who live there. There are mysteries aplenty still to learn about this world, and I have come to savor each one.

But. When the action does ramp up, get ready. There were so many memorable scenes in this book, and I wish I could talk about them! (But I won’t. You should discover them for yourself. Although I will say, watch out for Chapter 40!) Barker isn’t afraid to kill off beloved characters, and there are some painful deaths in this book, some of them shocking. Deaths are always worse when you care about the characters, and I cared for every single one, even the worst of them.

And oh the ending. I thought Barker was done wringing out my heart but no, he had one more trick up his sleeve. Let’s just say it’s going to be agony waiting for the next book in the series, The Bone Ship’s Wake. The book doesn’t end on a cliffhanger so much as a lead-in to the next adventure, but judging by those last few pages, Barker has raised the stakes even higher and my heart is already racing! Epic fantasy fans who love well written, well rounded, thrilling stories with plenty of heart and heartache won’t want to miss this boat.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

*a sharp, knife-like weapon used for cutting rope and killing enemies.

Lucky Meas’s mother, the leader of the Hundred Isles, wants her “dead” daughter, and Meas is fueled by her anger at the severe mistreatment of her people and will do anything to bring her mother down.

Call of the Bone Ships is a stunning sequel to The Bone Ships. It picks up some time after the events in the first book, but it was easy to get back into the gentle rocking of Tide Child and the routines of his crew. I really loved the first book, so was eager to read the second. The middle book in a trilogy is not usually known to be the most exciting, but this one had me breathlessly reading as quickly as I could to find out what happens next.

The Plot: Chock Full of Adventures
When Tide Child comes to the rescue of a merchant brownbone ship, his crew is shocked and angered to discover it full of ill-treated dead or nearly dead people and guillame called Windshorn. Wanting to know why, and discover where they were being taken, especially after news of the safe haven they and others had created has been destroyed, they make their way into the heart of the Hundred Isles.

Leaving Bernshulme worse off than when they arrived, they do manage to pick up a lead. Danger and death, though, are never far away for a ship of the dead. Though it does answer many questions, all of them horrifying and none of them leading to anything good, especially when Shipwife Meas’s mother is involved.

I have to admit I was a little lost and wondering where the story could possibly be going for about the first quarter. While I loved being back on Tide Child and on the high seas, I just couldn’t fathom what the second installment in the trilogy could be about. It felt like a series of events setting something up, but I could neither tie it into the first book nor figure out what this book was about. But, once I did, I couldn’t read fast enough to find out how it was all going to unfold.

Full of adventure, danger, betrayal, and secrets, Call of the Bone Ships absolutely delivered a breathtaking story. Neither the crew nor the reader ever seems to have a chance to catch their breath. It’s unrelenting, but really moves the story along. There are many threads running through this story, but they’re so perfectly and tightly twined that it’s easy to follow them, though I felt there were some great surprises, especially in the characters, who really make the book come alive.

Ultimately, though, Call of the Bone Ships is more than just a daughter trying to undermine and bring down her mother, more than what the return of the keyshans means for the Hundred Isles. It’s all about Joron Twiner, Meas’s second-in-command. It’s about his transformation through loss and the unrelenting pushes for him to be more, to grow, to learn, to be seen as worthy not just by Meas but by the crew. This is not an easy story for Joron. It tries to kill him several times and throws up barrier after barrier, so it beautifully details his transformation and how he slowly starts to come into his own.

The Characters: Broken and Built Back
It’s the characters that really make this story for me, both in the first and second books. As a motley crew sentenced to death, there are cliques and crewmembers who like some and hate others. I imagine it makes for a very interesting time on the seas. At the same time, Meas has been whipping them into shape and creating a truly Fleet ship. I loved those who were loyal to her and hated those who weren’t. While the first book felt like it focused more on the story and the world, this one felt like it focused more on further developing the main characters and crafting great relationships, though some of them just broke my heart.

Joron hurt me the most. He was just starting to get comfortable, to be used to Meas wearing his Shipwife hat, and this book literally and figuratively tore him apart. It left him in serious emotional and physical pain that was so hard to read, but, I think, is meant to build him into a much better man than he was when he’s first introduced in the first book. But he loses so much, and it’s hard and heart breaking.

But Guillame is wonderful as usual. A truly unique avian creature, it has power of the winds. In Call of the Bone Ships the reader really comes to learn what sets Guillame apart from the other guillame. The relationship between Guillame and Joron is my favorite. It’s strange, but it works, and there’s clearly an affection on both sides.

The Setting: Seas and Ship
In a world divided between the Hundred Isles and the Gaunt Islands, there’s a massive amount of sea. Much of the story is set on the ships necessary for traveling between islands, but a good deal is also set on land. It was great to be back on Tide Child and a lot of fun wandering the different islands.

The islands did blur together a bit. There isn’t too much to distinguish some of them, though the ones carrying a significant population were unique from the others, like Bernshulme and especially Sleighthulme. The other islands made me think of warm sand and thick jungles, so it was really only the events that took place, outside of all the fighting, that informed me of which island they were on for which event.

But my favorite location was Tide Child. It’s own microcosm, the crew has formed their own family and their own cliques. What I loved about this installment in the trilogy is that the bonds between them grow stronger, they become a tighter crew with a single loyalty. It was hard to read through its transformation, but necessary to create a stable deck for Joron to stand on.

As usual, my favorite thing about this series is how immersed I was in the world. I loved pretending to be out on the sea, to be on the decks of a bustling ship with adventure and certain death around the corner. Even when I wasn’t reading I found myself having internal exclamations of “Skearith’s Eye!” Both a little scary and a lot amusing, I think it safe to say I really love this world.

Overall: A Stunning Sequel
I loved The Bone Ships and now I also love Call of the Bone Ships. While I did feel a little confused at the beginning, the story quickly came together. Full of horrors, death, and blood, it also pushed the characters as far as it dared so they could come out on the other side to face what the last book has to throw at them. I adore this world and love the characters, though some of the story lines just broke my heart, and I can’t wait to see how the trilogy concludes. I’ll also be sad to see it end, but am dying to know what happens next.


Thank you to Angela Man and Orbit for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
Link to post: https://thelilycafe.com/book-review-call-of-the-bone-ships-by-rj-barker/

Call of the Bone Ships // by RJ Barker

I was lucky enough to receive this title right along with the first one so as soon as I finished The Bone Ships, which was one of my favorite reads of the year, I dove into Call of the Bone Ships. There is just something magical and exciting about not having to wait for the next book at all. It feels so much more immersive.

A big difference between book 1 and book 2 at the very start is that you now know a lot more about this previously unknown world and therefore won't experience the same level of confusion as before. Our previous knowledge allows us to dive right into the next events of this grand adventure without needing as much guidance. But that does not mean the world-building has ended. That is not the case at all. Barker continues to impress with the details in his descriptions of his world. While we may understand the big picture now that allows us to travel through his lands and follow the adventures of his cast, he shows that there is so much left to learn about the flora, fauna, traditions, and society. As I've said before, this is one of my favorite parts of starting a new series and I was excited to see that he continued this very well in this second book.

For the most part, the narration still continued from one point of view. I don't mind multiple POVs if they are done well but overall I like for books to continue in the same vein as the first book does. Barker does include some chapters told by other characters and while it was a little jarring for me sometimes, they did add a lot of detail to the story in ways we wouldn't have been able to receive otherwise. It was fun to see how differently those other characters think and perceive the world and their place in it. For the majority of the book though, we stay with Joron and continue to learn more about the world and being a fleet member with him. He has experienced a lot of growth and we get to see that in this book in the way he carries out his job as d'keeper. But that does not mean he is over his self-doubt yet, which to me just makes him even more likable. Lucky Meas is still, well, Lucky Meas. For the most part, she is still the ever-confident shipwife we got to know before but we do get to see her more up close and personal this time since Joron has gotten to know her more by now. A little glimpse under the armor so to speak. I continue to adore her as a character with her strength and confidence and moral compass.

Sadly I do have to wait a little while for the next book in this series now instead of jumping right in like before. I really just want to devour the entire series in one go but that is what we get for being on the team of early reviewers. I cannot wait to see where Barker takes us next. He leaves me with my heart aching and yearning for more. Thankfully he does have another series so I will take a look at those books while I wait!

Thank you so much to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review!

Review: 5 Stars


The Bone Ships was one of my favorite reads of last year. I loved it so much that it wound up having quite the influence on my reading preferences. I started seeking out books set on ships and discovered just how much I enjoy sea adventure stories. When I realized that the release date for Call of the Bone Ships was creeping up I scrambled to get my hands on an ARC. The sequel was absolutely incredible.


In The Bone Ships we saw incredible character development in Joron, a man who was unlikable and weak became a character who I wound up feeling really proud of. I wasn't sure if Call of the Bone Ships would live up to its predecessor in terms of character development, but I should have never doubted R.J. Barker's ability. Joron goes through some horrific losses in this book and somehow comes out stronger. While this is a book about struggle and pain, it is also an incredible story of perseverance, strength and character during times of adversity. Joron is a character I love to root form but also one that my heart aches for. R.J. Barker once again did a fantastic job creating characters that I love fiercely and an emotional journey that really had an impact.


The minor characters also grow immensely in this story. I really loved how we got to see past Shipwife Meas' hard exterior and I truly felt we got to know her so much better in the moments that she let down her walls. I also really loved Dinyl and Cwell's transformations in this book. I really wound up caring for these two characters who I had once hated fiercely. Of course I can't talk about characters I love without mentioning Gullimae. Gullimae is a magical avian creature who calls the wind for ships. Gullimae plays a large role in this book as well which I was really happy about because he always makes me laugh. I really love all the characters in this series, big and small, that I could gush about each of them and their transformations for hours.

While Call of the Bone Ships is a character driven novel it also has an incredible plot that is full of action. There is so much packed into this book that it was really hard to set it down and go to sleep. Call of the Bone Ships was full of adventure and was paced well so that there was never a dull moment. The journey is full of loss and heartache, but there were also moments where I got goosebumps and moments where the tension was so high that I was on the edge of my seat. R.J. Barker really does a fantastic job building up dramatic moments in a way that you feel the impact. The writing is so vivid that I could smell the salt in the air and hear the orders on deck. This journey came to life in my mind and I just didn't want it to end.


Honestly, I could gush about this book forever, but you should really just read it yourself. If you enjoy found families, stories of overcoming adversity, or just love an entertaining sea adventure, you should give this book a shot. R.J. Barker is an incredible voice in fantasy who told a fascinating sea adventure tale that also had deep messages about perseverance and strength.

Despite its massive storms, brutal battles, and monstrous fauna, R.J. Barker keeps the characters at the forefront of his world. The ever-evolving relationships between Joron, Lucky Meas, and the Tide Child crew are really wonderful. Specific attention was paid to flesh out the backstories of several background crew members, which allows them to carry the narrative when Joron or Lucky Meas are sidelined. That said, Gullaime the windtalker remains the standout character of the series and it was exciting to see it again and learn more about its species.

Barker absolutely stuck the landing with this second book of the Tide Child trilogy. The Bone Ships was my favorite book of 2019 and this sequel will surely vie for a top spot in 2020. Every moment spent voyaging through Barker’s Scattered Archipelago is incredibly satisfying. I highly recommend this series.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.