Khat is a krisman, one of a race of engineered humanoids built to survive in the Waste. Separated from his people, by choice, he's considered less than human by most people, except for his (human) partner, Sagai and Sagai's family. Khat and Sagai survive by hunting and trading relics (potentially magical) of a previous civilisation. Though wary, Khat is tempted to join an expedition to the Waste organised by the Warders, mages who serve the Elector of Charisat. Khat and Elen, a minor Warder, are the only survivors of that expedition and both get caught up in a deadly game of upper-class politics. Though this is a solidly written, second-world fantasy, it's not easily comparable with Wells' brilliant Murderbot books. It's complex and twisty, but lacks a bit of zing.

This was a solid fantasy read! I really enjoyed the world building and the plot, but I found myself wanting more regarding the characters themselves and the history/lore of the world. I didn't really care for a lot of the political drama, but that is purely my personal preference. Someone who enjoys political intrigue would appreciate it. Overall, I would definitely recommend this book!

This book just wasn’t for me. I got bored because it was so slow .

I know some will love it but I have to say it’s not for me .

Another hit from Martha Wells. A book absolutely saturated with fantasy-world-building vibes that throws you into the deep end and lets you revel in the experience. All the way to the end I found myself on the edge of my seat eager to find out just what was going to happen next.

Despite being very different from the Murderbot Diaries, I can see a lot of the same themes. Martha Wells has a vibe, and I love that very humorous framing of the world. This was a little harder to get into at first, but the author's wit and characters kept me around. I did not regret it.

Fell into the trap that’s so common for me of loving the beginning/world building, but the story lacking for me! It was a slow start but I enjoyed that part!

This book was a SLOW burn of sorts. The beginning of this book lags and takes a long time to truly get into. The concept is interesting and gives Mad Max vibes in its overall setting. While it gives perspectives to Wells’ position as a true master within the genre, this, this story in itself wasn’t a particular favorite for me.

Relic hunters and stumbling across ancient technology?! Sign me UP!!! As a huge Martha Wells fan, I was fully enticed by the description of CITY OF BONES, and really wanted to love this one. However maybe her more fantasy-oriented repubs just aren't for me? I picked it up and put it down for week before setting it aside for other reads . . . and there it sat, until 6 months later I finally had to admit it wasn't going to get read and I passed my paper copy along. Better luck next time, because I'll always try a MW!

Well I felt an odd kinship to Khat, I too have been called soulless by many people. But I'm a ginger and not an engineered person to survive a desert, slightly different issues. "City of Bones" by Martha Wells is a fantastic stand-alone and more folks should read her fantasy.

So the planet got screwed. Large swaths of land have been turned to desert to form the Waste after something broke the world. Charisat is a tiered city (higher tier better living conditions) by the edge of the Waste that has a thriving market place for relics. Khat is a quasi-legal dealer of such goods. Unfortunately, he gets noticed for being decent at his job (and expendable in the eyes of society) and gets wrapped up in the plots of the rulers of the city. And then the cult gets involved.

Reasons to read:
-The world feels lived in
-Good engineering to prevent a bad problem
-Violent homeowners association
-Overcoming preconceived weaknesses instituted by people afraid of what someone can do
-Crazy person who appears and disappears to be helpful

Cons:
-Flashbacks to high school due to the soulless comments

I tried to love this, I tried to get through this, but I just felt like it meandered around too much and I couldn’t get a grasp of what was important and what was not.

Something about Martha Wells's writing just doesnt vibe well with me, with the exception of her murderbot books. I know a lot of these books are being rerelease, but I am just not connecting to them. This one took me AWHILE to finish, as I kept putting it down in favor of other things. That's usually the sign that the book is not for me.

I love Martha Wells, and you see the beginning of her masterful character work here. Also, her world-building in this one is very entertaining. Yet, this is missing the Wells' voice that shines so much in her more recent works.

Thank you to Tor Publishing for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Worldbuilding was top notch, loved the supporting characters...felt like the main character was a bit dry ( Khat). This was classic fantasy but with a twist that I felt was really well done. Might not spend a lot of time thinking about it later, but will def read more of Wells' fantasy.

It seems unfair to say that City of Bones just didn't live up to the Murderbot Diaries because honestly what could? I will admit that it was a lot better than Witch King which was a relief.

The worldbuilding and character development here is incredible. You really need to pay attention in the beginning when it feels a bit slow because it pays off if you stick with it. And it certainly doesn't stay slow for long.

City of Bones proves that Wells has known what she is doing for far longer than Murderbot has existed. Her writing is intricate and purposeful and worth a read.

I'm very grateful to have received a copy of The City of Bones by Martha Wells upon its re-release via NetGalley, in exchange for this honest review.

The City of Bones was nothing like I expected - nothing like an ordinary fantasy book, with no real tropes and a lot of very interesting worldbuilding. Having read Martha Wells' Murderbot books, and then also Witch King (her newer fantasy book, also with very extensive worldbuilding), I thought maybe this would be somehow less inventive because it was from over 20 years ago, but I was very wrong.

The City of Bones follows the relic dealer Khat and his friend and colleague Sagai, on their adventures. It feels like Indiana Jones for a little bit before you realise that there's a lot of sci-fi/fantasy worldbuilding that leads to racism and complicated caste systems in this world, and it's all in service of a very big plot that feels like it could have spanned multiple books. There's an interesting female character from the higher echelons of society, and several mysterious characters whose intentions you never quite know. Magic is a bit unclear but the mystical nature of everything keeps you reasonably intrigued.

My only issue with this book was that I spent a lot of it pretty confused on account of the worldbuilding, and I made the mistake of reading it at a time in my life when I didn't have much time or patience for reading. I think if I had the chance to start it again, I would have become significantly more immersed.

Martha Wells deserves many points for the complexity and intriguing nature of her worldbuilding in this book and others, and I'd definitely recommend this one!

I loved Wells' Murderbot series and was interested to read her take on a fantasy story. Her writing is dense, but great. It's not the easiest to get into but once it kicks in, she's so creative. I will recommend this to only the most hardcore fantasy readers.

In the city of Charisat, along the desert known as The Waste, there is a massive temple built by the Ancients. A human named Sagai and Khat, of a humanoid race created by the Ancients to survive in the Waste, work together as relics dealers. They are hired to find some special relics believed to be part of the Ancient's technology which might be used to advance the current society (the Ancients were clearly much more technologically advanced that current society).

But their discoveries open a metaphorical Pandora's Box. There are those who wish to unleash the technology without study or training, which could destroy the entire civilization and Sagai and Khat may be the only ones able to keep the relics safe from the fanatics.

I hope I'm not alone in this, but there are authors whose name I recognize and who I know I've read, but I can never remember what I generally think of their work. Martha Wells is one of those authors for me. And as I look back at past reviews I can see why I can't remember what I think of Wells' work ... it is generally unremarkable or very average to me. Her work reaches and speaks to a lot of people, but I'm not one of them.

There's a lot of world-building and character building in the early (and mid) stages of this book. A lot. This book is very slow to get moving. It's not a particularly active story in the first place (the description sounds much more active than it is) but it's very slow moving. We get to know Khat, Sagai, the Ancients, the current world and the caste system in place. Cool. And we see how our characters navigate this world. Um, okay. And then we learn that there might be something going to happen. Yawn. And then things happen.

What this does, for me, is have me question, where does one draw the line between world-building and storytelling? Some authors are able to integrate the two quite seamlessly, sometimes the separation makes for a clever weaving of the two. But I mostly found this to be a bit of a bit of a challenge that didn't have a high enough pay-off to make the challenge worth my time.

I see that this is an older book (1995?) that has been rereleased with Wells' 'preferred' text but I still find Wells' writing to be very middle of the road for me, and hopefully I can do better about remembering that.

Looking for a good book? City of Bones is an older novel by Martha Wells but with the author's preferred text. It's slow going with not much happening until 2/3 of the way through, but if you like books of character and world-building, this may be just right for you.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book!

Unfortunately, this is a DNF for me. I tried multiple times to get into this book and it never grabbed me. I love the Witch King by Martha Wells, so I'm surprised I couldn't get into this.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me an arc in exchange of my honest review.

I love Martha Well y’all she really has a way for great storytelling and lovable characters.
I honestly loved Khat, Elen and Senai they were very different but I loved how they complimented each other in a way. I think the concept of the city with different tiers it was really well done and I really wish there were most stories in this world. I also wish we had gotten to learn more about the builder. He was such a minor but important character at the same time and I’m just interested in him. I love how in a way this read like a classical fantasy story with a quest and small subplots.
I was shipping certain characters so hard lol that it was sad at the end I didn’t get what I wanted but it’s okay because that would have been just a bonus. The story itself was really good and didn’t need romance.

Book Name: City of Bones
Author: Martha Wells

ARC
Thank you to NetGalley and **Tor Publishing Group | Tordotcom** for an ARC of Martha Wells’ City of Bones

Stars: 1 (DNF)

Thoughts
- Characters weren't Engaging
- Glacier Pacing
- Why do we Care???

Apologies for the late review I did attempt this book multiple times but…..

Overall I think Martha Wells just isn't my flavor of fantasy, the world-building and slow build-up of character and plot loses me every single time I try. I did attempt this book multiple times and just couldn't get past 10% each time. It made picking up my Kindle feel more like a chore than enjoyable. This feels like a me problem though as Wells is praised as an amazing sci-fi fantasy author. Thank you to Tor for letting me attempt her work but this one isn't it for me.

Due to the Negative Nature of this review, I will not be posting it to Goodreads or retail sites with respect to the publisher and author.