I'm only a fantasy-dabbler. I usually hesitatingly dodge in and out of the genre, so my comfort level with some of the themes (general magic, mythical beasts, ashas) is pretty low. I really appreciated the thoroughness of the explanations - without them, I would have been lost!

The book is told from two perspectives - that of a bard who's met our heroine, Tea, at some point in the future, and that of Tea's witch-awareness and apprenticeship. I found the Tea apprenticeship story to be very intriguing. It wasn't all action, but I wasn't expecting it to be. The plot moved along at a tolerable pace (a little slower than I'd prefer). On the flip side, I thought the future-version story was really, really slow and almost unnecessary to the story - aside from creating a small mystery surrounding why she's there in the first place.

All this being said, I really did enjoy the book and will definitely be reading the next one (because there most certainly will be another book!) whenever it comes out.

This book was beautifully written. The prose was excellent, the world building superb. However, the plot moved along SO very slowly, I had an extremely difficult time staying with the story and staying involved. At some point I will finish and post a full review.

DNF at 11% I just couldn't get into it. The cover and description were amazing but the actual book fell way short for me. The writing was good and the premise was one I was very interested in however I couldn't continue. Too much description on things that had no purpose and didn't really move the story along.

The Bone Witch has an interesting premise, and though I do not normally read modern books with witches (aside from Practical Magic and HP), I liked the idea of a witch with a rare magic that would make her an outsider within her own community and what conflict that would cause for her as she tried to learn and master her gift. Necromancers (or asha in this world), those with power over the dead, are nothing new to the fantasy genre (see The Hobbit and any other number of books) and yet they are not introduced often and even more rarely as a main character. Anyway, I was in.

The first half of the book really delivered in building the world and getting to know Tea. I really enjoyed her relationship with her brother, Fox. I found the setting to be gorgeous and her apprenticeship to be well-detailed. The book does, however, switch between two points of view. Switching POV for me is a double edged sword. It works when it works, and when it doesn't, it's a little uncomfortable. For me, this was somewhere in between those two options. At times it was fine (probably because I'm reading a lot of multiple POV stories lately), and other times it was disjointed.

The powers of the other witches were elemental - fire, water, earth and wind. This seems true to a lot of what I've read about witchcraft in the past, but not so similar to other currently popular magic-filled worlds. What was even more unique was the heartglasses. Without giving too much away about them and how it effects the dynamics of relationships, in short, they are almost a way of wearing your heart and emotions on your sleeve for all to see... if they know how to read and use them. It was just an interesting magic element that sounds like a mood ring, but goes much beyond that.

There is a ton of description, which if you love that, you will really enjoy this world. With lots of description comes a plot that is not as fleshed out. I feel like the characters could have used a little more action as they are made to be women and men of power and adventure. But, that being said, I believe there is going to be a second book (if not a series?) so maybe this is building everything up for a lot of action in the next book.

Overall I would give this a 3.5 out of 5. Somewhere between like and really like. I will definitely want to read the next book.

Note: Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. The Bone Witch is currently available, having released this Tuesday, March 7, 2017.

Tea comes from a family of witches, but her magic is like no one else’s. She can wield the magic of necromancy and is considered a bone witch. Because she holds a powerful magic, most people are either scared of her or other witches like her. Tea must leave her family and village to train with those older and wiser. Can Tea learn to control this magic? Will she be able to help her kingdom as war bubbles in the kingdoms around her?

The Bone Witch is the first book in a new series by the same name. Although the premise of the story holds a lot of merit, the execution was missing the magnetic pull of a good fantasy story. Tea’s plight would pull me along and then drop me unexpectedly in the next chapter. Chupeco left an ending to make readers curious about the next stage in Tea’s life, so I will try the next volume in the series and decide at that time if I will continue further.

2/5 stars

When Tea accidentally resurrects her brother at his funeral, she learns that she is a bone witch.
She must leave her family to begin her training and understand how to control her powers.
Bone witches are feared because of their dark abilities and their numbers are dwindling.
Will Tea complete her training?
Will she be able to stop the darkness that threatens the kingdom?

I was intrigued by the premise of The Bone Witch - a young girl that can raise the dead - but reading it I found myself disappointed.
Tea was an okay protagonist but none of the characters really stood out to me.
The plot was dull in places and seemed to drag out. I often found my attention wandering.
I liked the similarities between the asha (those with elemental magic) and Geisha - asha also had to learn dancing, music etc.

Unfortunately, this wasn't for me.

The Bone Witch is a deeply immersive tale that high fantasy lovers will really enjoy. Because of the detail in the world building I think it will work for adults as well as teens. Though, it is a different kind of storytelling, weaving back and forth in time and it is best not to come into the story with expectations about what you think will happen and who should be with whom.

Tea has lived all her life in a small village with her family. Then, when she is thirteen, her brother, who had been called to the army to help protect the kingdom from fierce monsters called daeva, is killed in battle. The anguished Tea refuses to accept his death, and in her grief, she raises him from his grave. It seems that Tea is a necromancer, a dark asha (witch). Fleeing from the superstition and fear of her neighbors, she journeys to the schools at Ankyo where she can learn to harness her powers.

The lessons at these schools (called The Willows) resemble a geisha’s training more than anything you’d find at Hogwarts. Tea learns singing, dance, flower arranging, and how to pick out the perfect hua (magical outfit). She does also learn healing and combat, but the focus is certainly more on the refined arts and entertaining dignitaries.

When the school is attacked by a fierce daeva, Tea knows she is the only one with a chance of stopping the carnage, but the price that must be paid could mean the sacrifice of all she holds dear.

Right off the bat I’m going to stay that this book wasn’t my cup of tea (pun, sorry). I found the focus on the more mundane aspects (like flower arranging, etc.) to be a bit dull. When the action finally hits, the book is nearly over. That is not to say that this book is bad. There’s quite a bit of good world building here, and the magic system is actually pretty neat, and interestingly done. I feel like this book will appeal more to a true YA audience than me (being old and curmudgeonly). As this is the first in the series, I would be curious to see how the future books pace out. I think the second book will be worth a chance, when it comes out.

An advance copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The Bone Witch will be available for purchase on March 7th, 2017.

I tried really hard to finish this but I eventually had to give up. The plot is so slow and I just didn't connect with any of the characters. The writing is decent, and you may enjoy it if you're in the mood for a fantasy that forces you to stop and smell the roses.

I may try it again, but for now, I'm setting it aside.

I seriously have high expectation about this book. It is from a Filipino author. And knowing that having your book published here in my country is hard enough, Ms Chupeco had hers in a foreign land is kind of new to me and I admit, I felt proud for her. So I was excited when I was given a chance to read and review this book of hers. But what I read somehow disappoint me.


I thought this book is awesome. The blurb sure does sounds good. Not to mention the cover is enough to have you grabbing it to buy. So imagine my disappointment when I found out that those were just fronts.

At first it was all good. Tea raised her brother from the dead, something happened in that very first page. Which made me continue reading until I feel like it’s starting to get slow and I kind of like missing the point of the story anymore.

So Tea is a dark asha, a very rare kind of asha or witch, so she’s that badass if you put it like that. What I didn’t get is if she’s a rare witch and, according to the book, really powerful, why is she attending tea parties and working like a maid?? Like seriously? Also as I’m reading the book, the point of it is slowly fading. Until I don’t know what’s going on anymore. First she set out a journey to be an asha apprentice only to become a maid on an asha house for a while. Why? I know it says in the book that she needs to be tested if she’s really worth training or not. But still! She’s a rare and really powerful asha, isn’t that enough reason to train her?

After getting past on the 67% of reading I gave up. The book is getting really slow by this time and I don’t see the point of the story anymore. I don’t know what kind of path Tea is walking on now. I try finishing it, convincing myself that there’s gotta be more to this story. There’s got to be. But then ugh!

One thing that made me give up to this book is the kind of narration. I get that you need to describe the surrounding of the scene so your readers can have a good picture of it in their head. But the way things, places, and characters are described here are way too much. It’s like in every little thing, it’s being described. Every hua, the asha’s clothes, in every asha ever mentioned in this book is being explain so long I got bored that I didn’t even bother reading the whole paragraph. Not to mention the characters that when you read their descriptions it’s like reading their whole family tree and some parts of their lives. I mean what? Too much! Too many describing and less talking and getting on the point and it’s getting boring.

So I gave up. I didn’t like it. I tried though but this book is not working for me.

I didn't want this book to end. I loved the short chapters and the bits of information they gave. Well done.

The plot of this book sounded real promising. A girl raises her brother from the dead and then gets exiled? Sign me up! That's not what I got. Instead I got paragraphs of nothing. A lot of descriptions. Half the time I didn't know what was going on. I didn't know if it was the present or the past. K even skimmed some chapters. I did not connect with this book. I heard others who loved this and the world (which wasn't explained enough for me) but sadly it wasn't my cup of tea (haha because the main character was named Tea) . I rated it 2 stars because although I wasn't enjoying it I was interested to see if anything would happen (it never did) although there is a part at the end of the book that I saw coming.

Actual rating is 3.5 stars

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started The Bone Witch. And to be honest, it isn't necessarily the kind of book I'd pick up on my own based off the description alone. But, after hearing so many good things about it, I knew I had to give it a read. And I'm so glad I did!

The Bone Witch isn't quite like anything I've read. It seems to have a little bit of everything: romance, political intrigue, magic, monsters, and necromancy. And oddly enough, they all work together incredibly well. Rin Chupeco created a rich, beautiful world that both terrifies and delights.

I adored the characters in this book. Tea is a wonderful main character and I'm so intrigued with her. And the rest of the characters are all so fascinating too. Each one has their own unique personality and I love it.

This book does tend to move a bit slow at times. While for the most part I really enjoyed the story and world, there were times when I got a little bored. But overall, I thought this was a great book and I'm interested to see where the story goes next!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A fantasy book set in a fantasy land with many asha's who all have different skills. Tea is one who has VERY different and rare skills. She is able to do things that a lot of asha's are not able to do. She is taken from her homeland to learn how to use her skills when she is just 14 years old. This is an early age for Tea but was a necessity. Tea had used her powers to unleash her brother from his grave. A power she did know she had, nor did she know how she did it.

This book was definitely a YA read. This was a fantasy land, with a lot of fantasy characters and fantasy words. Most of the time I was reading the book, I did not know exactly what the words meant. However, I was able to enjoy the book for the most part and able to finish it. At first, I was a little concerned but I did get into it and was able to finish it.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Fire for approving my request and to Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was outstanding. The world building is exquisite, with great detail to various cultures and regions. I became so immersed in this book, the characters' world became my own. I could feel the sand of the beach beneath my feet, smell the ocean on the air. The Bone Witch is one of those rare books that grips you immediately and holds you in its grasp long after that last page has been turned. I actually groaned with sadness when I realized there were no more pages and I would have to wait as long as a YEAR for another book. I didn't have a book HANGOVER - I had a homesickness for the world I had inhabited so deeply and the characters I'd come to know. The Bone Witch is a gem among books; it'll be read and reread, with more being discovered each time. Simply amazing.

I really enjoyed The Bone Witch.  The story was very interesting, a girl who can use dark magic instead of light magic.  She can raise the dead, and she's got an attitude.  Tea our main character isn't porcelain doll to be put on display, she's powerful but lacks control.   I felt the writing was well done, but the book itself was flawed. The book is good for about the first half then it drags on for quite sometime where nothing happens. There is a weak attempt at a love triangle that doesn't really materialize, I think we'll see more of that in the next book. There is one really good plot twist, that I didn't see coming, and one I figured out early on. My biggest issue is the ending. The story builds up to some epic thing that is supposed to happen, but it never occurs. I huge pet peeve of mine is books that don't stand alone and close completely. I want to feel closure when I close a book, and be compelled to read the next book. I have to read the next book to find out what happens, I'm given no choice. I have no clue what happens next, and that irks me. There are a lot of loose ends that weren't wrapped up in this book and I hope that they are tied up in the next book.

Hello Fellow Readers,

I've been dying for some good fantasy lately and boy did I find some. The Bone Witch was such a great interesting read and Chupeco did such a great job with her story. The back and forth from present to past was awesome and really made you keep reading to find out what the hell happened and what was going on. The main character Tea, was such a great character. She had a depth and attitude to her that delighted me to now end. The descriptions of the magic and the world Chupeco created was great and one way she draws you into the story. I really love her descriptions of the Hua's and the heart pendants and what it means.

There was a couple of things I had a problem with, one was the names and locations in the story. I was so confused on keeping track and who was from where that I had to constantly keep backtracking to read over some things. This made the book longer to read than I liked. The ending had me so interested to see what the hell happened and what made Tea become how she is. I really can't wait to read the second story to figure things out. I can only hope it gets better and clears up some of my questions.

Great fantasy read, a nice change of pace for me.

I adore this book ! I have been really getting into high fantasy and witchcraft! The world-building was A plus. I felt I was being Tea, following behind her footsteps as she grows to control her powers. I felt the first part was a bit dull and boring for me, however once you get pass the first few chapters, it really picks up and becomes a fantastic read.I did get lost in the alternating timelapses, however, that did not ruin the book for me. As I said before I love love anything that has to do with fantasy, magic and witches.I thought it was really neat how everyone wore necklaces around their necks, how each one was different. I think the bone witch was gripping, intriguing and authentic. I just became immense in the Asha world. -- Thank you Netgallery for letting me review.

In the world of this novel, some people are born with/develop magical gifts. Tea’s sisters have some affinity for some magic but not enough for them to become “asha,” geisha-like women who are trained in various runes and entertain using them or heal or even work as bodyguards or do other defense. In Tea’s case, she only realizes she has an unusual gift when she raises her brother from the dead after he is brought home from battling the monsters that regularly cause problems throughout the lands ruled by various kings, an empress and other leaders.

“Bone witches” are feared and mistrusted, and Tea is quickly taken away for training by another bone witch, one of few still left. She has to navigate a new world, where she eventually goes into training as an asha but is watched closely by everyone around her, who are waiting to see what she will do next with her gift of raising the dead, and how it may hurt or help individuals or different countries. At times she wants to be accepted; she wants to spend time with a prince whom she can’t help liking; she wants to be left alone. In some ways she would like a normal life, but she has to admit that she likes the feel of working the Dark magic. But her future is uncertain, given what she observes, and she may very well have to turn expectations and plans of powerful people on their heads.

The world of the novel is set in a time that would be centuries ago, with little in the way of technology, and much of it is set in the land of Ankyo, where the asha get their training. It’s a place that’s much like old Japan, with simple buildings and sliding doors, and the asha are like geisha. They learn singing, dance, hospitality, history, flower-arranging, and then martial arts and defense and other skills, all of which draw on their particular magical talents. They both entertain and defend the kingdoms from daeva, “gigantic demonic beasts” that can be killed temporarily but return every decade. There are lands that have touches of Russian, Middle Eastern and other cultures, in addition to Japanese. So it all feels familiar but put together in a new way.

This book lays the groundwork for Tea’s story and sets up for a second book where she will try to do things differently. I’ll be curious to see where the story goes. It’s fascinating and atmospheric and Tea is a character to root for, even as the reader may not know what she’s going to end up doing.