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Ink and Bone
Ink and Bone
Ink and Bone
Audiobook10 hours

Ink and Bone

Written by Rachel Caine

Narrated by Julian Elfer

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

()

About this audiobook

In an exhilarating new series, New York Times bestselling author Rachel Caine rewrites history, creating a dangerous world where the Great Library of Alexandria has survived the test of time ... Ruthless and supremely powerful, the Great Library is now a presence in every major city, governing the flow of knowledge to the masses. Alchemy allows the Library to deliver the content of the greatest works of history instantly-but the personal ownership of books is expressly forbidden. Jess Brightwell believes in the value of the Library, but the majority of his knowledge comes from illegal books obtained by his family, who are involved in the thriving black market. Jess has been sent to be his family's spy, but his loyalties are tested in the final months of his training to enter the Library's service. When he inadvertently commits heresy by creating a device that could change the world, Jess discovers that those who control the Great Library believe that knowledge is more valuable than any human life-and soon both heretics and books will burn ...
LanguageEnglish
Release dateJul 7, 2015
ISBN9781490684284
Ink and Bone
Author

Rachel Caine

Rachel Caine is the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Amazon Charts bestselling author of more than fifty novels, including Wolfhunter River, Killman Creek, and Stillhouse Lake in the Stillhouse Lake series; the New York Times bestselling Morganville Vampires series; and the Great Library young adult series. She has written suspense, mystery, paranormal suspense, urban fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal young adult fiction. Rachel lives and works in Fort Worth, Texas, with her husband, artist/actor/comic historian R. Cat Conrad, in a gently creepy house full of books. For more information, visit www.rachelcaine.com.

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Reviews for Ink and Bone

Rating: 3.9601227128834355 out of 5 stars
4/5

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I am in love! There is just something deeply fascinating about a world revolving around a magical library.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In this alternate history book, the Great Library at Alexandria wasn't destroyed and has now gained immense power. All books are owned by the library and distributed in the form of blanks. That makes the smuggling of original books a lucrative but extremely dangerous business. Our hero Jess Brightwell comes from a smuggling family and has been a smuggler since he was a small child. Now sixteen, he doesn't want to join the family business and so his father sends him to try out to win a place in the Library.Jess and quite a number of young people are accepted into the Library but they have to pass tests of all sorts before they will be offered a position. Jess and 29 others are put under the care of Scholar Wolfe who has to narrow the field down to six. We get to know some of his fellow classmates. Thomas is German and an extremely talented engineer. Khalila is from Riyadh and a brilliant mathematician. But the Library has all sorts of secrets and has become corrupt over the centuries. Anyone who does anything to undermine the supremacy of the Library is an enemy. For example, the printing press has been invented and suppressed numerous times since Gutenberg in the 15th Century. The Library has also become a very political organization with lots of in-fighting. Wolfe has run afoul of the Library but also has supporters who are protecting him. Lots in this book has to do with plots to kill Wolfe and incidentally his students. Besides Smugglers, the Library is also threatened by Burners who want to destroy the library. A couple of Jess's fellow students come from Burner families and don't survive. I got the feeling that the Library was under siege from a variety of avenues and having its own internal issues too. Obscurists are a necessary part of the library maintaining its monopoly on information but they are becoming scarce enough that any potential Obscurists who are discovered are kidnapped and enslaved by the Library.I enjoyed this story. I thought the world building was well done. I also liked Jess as a character who is able to use his smuggling background and contacts to survive in the Library. However, his situation is rather perilous at the end of this volume - but not perilous enough to be considered a cliffhanger ending.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I love Jess and Morgan. This was such an interesting story. I’m so curious about what happens next. I also loved a bunch of the side characters.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The story takes place in an alternate world where the library of Alexandria controls dissemination of all reading material and knowledge. It has its own army and network of spies. They assassinate people such as Johann Gutenburg. In this alternate world are burners (protesters who burn books), obscurists (who read and copy "suitable" books) and a great black market. Jess Brightwell is from a middle class family who deals in black market books. They think it would be an honor to have a family member work at the library in Alexandria so Jess takes the test and is accepted into an apprenticeship; but all it not as it seems. This was an interesting book, not my usual read. There are 2 more books in the series and I may or may not read them at a later date. 362 pages
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    The Great Library of Alexandria was the greatest and most significant library in the world, however 2000 years ago the library and thousands of priceless scrolls were destroyed by fire.In her novel Ink and Bone, Rachel Caine has imagined a world where the Alexandria Library wasn't destroyed and remains a prominent force in society.For some reason, I mistakenly thought this book was an historical fiction novel, and it took me a while to adjust my expectations to what I consider to be a YA fantasy novel.With students going through a somewhat gruelling selection process to become a librarian, it had a very YA / Harry Potter vibe.Ink and Bone has automatons and alchemy and book lovers will no doubt enjoy the references to 'the library' but will need to keep an open mind with regard to the world-building.Ink and Bone is the first in a series of more than 3 books, however the world-building just wasn't what I was expecting and I never really felt 'at home' so I won't be continuing any further with the series.Ink and Bone by Rachel Caine is recommended for fans who enjoyed the dark side of Harry Potter and YA fantasy.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    This, unfortunately, was not for me. Libraries in books is one of those things that instantly makes me interested in a book, but my interest just didn't hold here. I never found myself super excited to pick it up and read, and I didn't really care enough about any of the characters.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I thought I would like this book more than I did. The premise sounded amazing. It wasn't that the story was bad, I just couldn't connect with any of the characters. I tried! I tried so hard, but it didn't happen. I probably won't continue with this story. I would still recommend it though because it really IS a good book, just wasn't for me. 3 out of 5 stars.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The story takes place in an alternate world where the library of Alexandria controls dissemination of all reading material and knowledge. It has its own army and network of spies. They assassinate people such as Johann Gutenburg. In this alternate world are burners (protesters who burn books), obscurists (who read and copy "suitable" books) and a great black market. Jess Brightwell is from a middle class family who deals in black market books. They think it would be an honor to have a family member work at the library in Alexandria so Jess takes the test and is accepted into an apprenticeship; but all it not as it seems. This was an interesting book, not my usual read. There are 2 more books in the series and I may or may not read them at a later date. 362 pages
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Wonderful book. I was a bit skeptical about it at first, but as I got into it, it became VERY interesting. Can't wait to read the next book!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This novel is about a dystopian future based on the idea that the Library at Alexandria was never destroyed. Unfortunately, those in charge became consumed with power and control the content of books shared with the world. Themes include the corruption that often accompanies great power, censorship, and loyalty. The world-building is inventive and thought-provoking. The plot starts out a bit slow, but soon involves multi-cultural friendships, adventure, and peril. Due to the limited knowledge shared, it has had a significant impact on the course of inventions, resulting in an environment based on steam and alchemy. This book seemed to me to be a mix of Harry Potter-style friendships among young adults, steampunk, and "big brother." Recommended to readers who enjoy fantasy, dystopian worlds, and the impact of alterations in history. Note: This is the first book of a trilogy.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This one gave me both steam-punk and HP vibes.I enjoyed the world-building in this one, where the librarians of the Great Library of Alexandria control access to books and therefore knowledge, with different sections of society: those who oppose this tight control and those who profit from the illegal trade in books.A new group of teens are tested and go through trials to become part of the Great Library system. Trials and conflicts ensue. First in the series!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I found this book highly dissatisfying. To be fair, I am a librarian, so trying to sell me a dystopian world in which the library is the great evil, hoarding knowledge and controlling the world, is pretty unlikely to be successful. I just wasn't convinced. Not about the world, not about the massive character shifts, not about the very unlikely plot. I found it puzzling and frustrating. Also, I'm a letterpress printer and I hang out in the world of rare books, so you'd think I'd get the appeal of originals, but I just ended up wondering why no one's making their own copies of things. If you're from a crime syndicate family that handles rare volumes, then why not have a forgery arm, for crying out loud?
    Perhaps that will occur in the next book, but I'm pretty sure I don't care enough to find out.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I liked it. Love the library theme, the Alexandria and England settings, the group of friends. The details were well done. The overarching plot is not as compelling to me, or maybe I just don't have a very good handle on it. Fun read. Will try the second installment of The Great Library series.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This book attracted me because of the idea of the Alexandrian Library still existing, and of all the evil that comes of it.

    There's smuggling, a black market, censure, dictatorship, and magic, of course. A fast paced story with never a dull moment, and Ben Allen narrated it perfectly. (It seems that I had a different editon, produced by Jammer Audiobooks, and narrated by Ben Allen).

    The one thing I absolutely didn't like about this story, is that I now have to wait for the sequel being launched as audio book. Maybe I'll have to buy the ebook, then again, the third volume will only be out in July next year anyway, so I may just as well wait for the audio of the second volume.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Ink and Bone
    3.5 stars (chose 4 stars over 3 on Goodread's scale because this book isn't average)

    Rachel Caine's deft weaving of popular YA elements is admirable; she's a very experienced writer who delivers what the YA audience craves ... in this case, another Hogwarts, Harry Potter, Hermione, Ron, and Cedric. Snape's here, too, though this time he's gay and his mum might be married to Voldemorte. Everyone writes with real ink and non-Muggles wield alchemy-vibed magic. We also get some Game of Thrones (green fire), Fahrenheit 451 (book Burners), Oliver Twist (artful dodging), and Romeo and Juliet (star-crossed lovers).

    Like billions of other book addicts, I love J.K. Rowling, GRRM, Ray Bradbury, and Shakespeare, and I'm also liking Rachel Caine, who saves the Ancient Library of Alexandria and its Serapeum, too, giving us a dystopian turn of events that catapults librarians into global power positions. The hero, Jess, is an engaging teen from the wrong side of London's tracks and the opening scenes of his secret life as a book smuggler raised my expectations for this hero-in-training. I'm not disappointed in that regard and I also like the star-crossed romance between Jess and Morgan, written with restrained, yet tingly, combustion and thankfully, without overwrought sex that often pollutes the genre.

    Because I'm an ephemera junkie, the use of historic and secret letters (literally labeled "Ephemera") to mete out back story, heighten tension, and deliver clues is appealing.

    Some violence isn't suitable for younger YA readers, including suicide by immolation and the hanging death of Jess' older brother, Liam, sacrificed to the family's illegal smuggling business. Callum Brightwell's willingness to let one son die and risk his other children is revealed in the Prologue: " 'Hold still and stop fighting me,' his father said, and slapped him hard enough to leave a mark. ... 'Lose that book to the Garda and you'll hang, if you're lucky. If I don't get you first. You know the route. Run it flat and fair, and you'd best damn well die before you give it to any but the one that's paid for it.' "

    The battle between good and evil is pitched on two fronts, and that's where I part company with the plotting; the Great Library's cold war is bisected by an ugly civil war in the UK. The students' mission to rescue rare books from a besieged Oxford could have played out with plenty of suspense and danger as a Librarians v. Burners thriller, granting the author more space for deeper development of her fascinating inversion of the printing and tablet industries. Instead, "Ink and Bone" skims along like two YA series butting heads in one volume. Here's hoping brisk sales of Ink and Bone will remind Penguin/NAL of Bloomsbury's decision to print gloriously fat HP books. Rowling and her publisher never short-changed readers, crediting them with the passion and patience to devour exceptionally well-developed stories.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    A very readable story that gets of to a fast intense start but lags a bit later in the book. Interesting characters with real losses along the way. The world is grim dark especially in that it is the characters motivating impulse that makes them grist for the mill. And a very dangerous ambiguous mill it is.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    3.5 stars. A fun story and it definitely kept me engaged, but there’s almost no explanation of the magic system and that bothers me.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In a world where the Great Library of Alexandria never burned but instead became the central body of a world-wide system of libraries who control all access to knowledge, Jess Brightwell grows up in a family of book smugglers in London who sell original books and scrolls to the collectors who can afford it. When Jess turns sixteen, his father arranges for him to enter the Library as a postulant. The plan is for Jess to work as a double-agent, turning over the occasional volume to his family as needed. But as Jess begins his training, he discovers political machinations within the Library that will threaten everyone he cares about.That summary only scratches the surface of everything going on in this novel, the first of a series. Of course, I'm a sucker for anything involving a library and to have a universe where the library is the menacing agency is fascinating. There's a light steampunk element here and faint elements of fantasy but large chunks of the novel are devoted to the characters and exploring the world and the Library. The plot churns along at an excellent pace and I'm looking forward to picking up other books in the series.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I don't even know where to begin with this book! Caine creates a fascinating future where all printed books are stored in libraries, while blanks are accessible by citizens to bring up electronic versions, as in e-readers. Owning originals or copies of originals is strictly forbidden! People die for it! Ah, seriously cannot get over how awesome this series is going to be.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Ink and Bone is a marvelous book and a terrific read! It comes from a genre I do not usually choose to read, Dark Sci-Fi.
    In the past, I have ignored this genre for two reasons: I generally do not like dark or dystopian reading, and, I have found far too must Fantasy and Sci-Fi entirely lacking in any actual quality. There are far too few Asimovs, Bradburys or Clarkes, or even good second stringers.
    Ink and Bone appealed to me because I had read a book suggested by a thoughtful, perceptive and intelligent fellow avid reader, my GR friend Daniel, who hooked my into this genre when we Buddy Read “The Elementals.” Daniel is a great friend who lives on the opposite side of the country, but knowing him through GR makes me truly see the value of Buddy Reads and of GR friends.
    “Ink and Bone” takes place in an indeterminate era, the combination of incredible technology that is the basis of the story and ancient technology such as driving steam powered vehicles makes the era all the more ambiguous, but that probably actually reinforces the storyline by not descending into historical inaccurate details.
    In the time era of the book, all the books in the world have been destroyed after they were first digitized. This made them accessible to everyone, but, of course, left a central authority in charge of deciding what to digitize.
    Because of this, people who owned actual books were criminals and a black market in books developed.
    The storyline deals with one of the black marketeers who is recruited by “The LIbrary,” the central book system, to work for them. In his apprenticeship, he must endure tests and is further challenges by encounters with a civil war going on in has native country and with encounters with black marketeers of various shades of integrity.
    His story is exciting, full of suspense, danger, mysteries and, most of all, his own moral and intellectual development.
    If I were to boil everything down to a few words, I would say this book is really a cross between Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451” and Orwell’s “1984,” both of which are scary books of the most should shaking kind.
    The book is a part of a series, so there are sequels and I am unlikely to read them only because I don’t want to give up my progress on my TBR list and because I have another Buddy Read with Daniel to keep me occupied.
    To those who like books in a series when they discover a worthy author, I am happy to fully recommend this book.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    This alternate history book works with the premise that the Library of Alexandria never burned but thrived and slowly became the shadow power that runs the world. Countries still rule themselves but the Library controls all knowledge. No one owns personal books without paying a large fee. Everyone has a “blank” that can access any book in the Library archives. People strive to be able to work for the library. Jess on the other hand has been sent there by his father to “help” with the family business of running black market books. Jess finds himself competing for a precious spot when so many other capable other hopefuls from around the world are in his group.

    The world building is very complete in this setting and you also see what happens with the Library when there is a regional war and the Library also fights the Burners, a rebel group that fights against the ways of the Library. This is a young adult novel so some of the story is Jess learning things about the world and that allows for the reader to learn more about the setting. A great first novel in a new series and I know I’ll be recommending this one to lots of people.

    Review copy given to me by the publisher.
  • Rating: 1 out of 5 stars
    1/5
    The Great Library controls all knowledge. They believe in the hands of the public, knowledge can be dangerous. People found in possession of original books will be put to death. Jess Brightwell's family is in the business of smuggling books to the highest bidder. As a runner for the family business, Jess risks his life to deliver books throughout London. When a chance to become a student at the library arises, Jess's father is quick to have him apply. Having a smuggler on the inside can turn quite the profit. But Jess will learn that the library will do anything to keep its authority.The pretense of this book sounded interesting. I'm also a fan of Rachel Caine, so I decided to give it a go. Big mistake, this book was horrible. I could not connect with Jess. He was the most uninteresting character to focus on. Sure his family ran a smuggling business, but outside of the prologue we barely see any of it! It's a forgotten detail that doesn't do anything for the story. I would have much rather seen Morgan be the main character. She at least had something going for her and a back story that I would have loved to read about.To make matters worse, I couldn't emerge myself in the world. I could care less if people ate books. Because yes, there are people called Ink Lickers who eat books. It is described as a perversion and any character that mentions them is horrified. Seriously? Ok go eat a book, I don't care. I understand how it should matter, but it fell flat.I struggled to make it through this book. I wanted to put it down, but I kept going, hoping that the writing would be better. It felt like a chore to finish this book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    In a reality in which the Great Library in Alexandria wasn't destroyed, the Library has risen to be the most supreme power in the world, controlling not only what people are allowed to read, but also what they are allowed to think. Owning books, apart from Library-sanctioned volumes – presented as digital copies – is illegal. Jess Brightwell belongs to a family of established book smugglers, and when he's old enough, he is sent to Alexandria to train to become a servant of the Library, with his family expecting him to act as a spy and insider. Jess befriends other students on the course, but it soon becomes clear that the Library will stop at nothing to preserve its power, which Jess experiences at great personal cost.I think that YA fiction has moved on a great deal since my teenage days, and this first volume in the Great Library series is only one example. Though the writing is occasionally clumsy, the story itself held my attention fast, so that I raced through it in a matter of days. It touches on some very important and always pertinent questions, and while the characterisations sometimes fall a bit flat, they were enough to engage me throughout; especial mention has to go to the students' teacher Christopher Wolfe, who is easily my favourite character because he appears such a complex human being. I can't wait to start the second volume, Paper and Fire, which is already lined up.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    No one can own handwritten, original manuscripts. They all, by law, belong to the Library which has its headquarters in Alexandria and an army to capture anyone who disobeys. Jess Brightwell, a teen in a family of smugglers, nevertheless is sent to the Library as a postulant - for his father's nefarious purposes, of course - and starts learning the ins and outs of the other side.A fun adventure story exploring the nature of knowledge and power. What if the Library of Alexandria still existed and the printing press had never been invented? What if alchemists called Obscurists were the ones who could transmute originals into the Codex of the library so one "blank" could be loaded with any book you wanted, as long as it was on the Library shelves? The "Ephemera" at the beginning of the chapter, letters between characters and such, were fun but also gave away some of the story so the reader isn't quite so horrified as the students with some of the revelations later on. I look forward to seeing where Jess's story goes next.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is the first book in The Great Library series. I believe five books are planned in this series. This had some amazing world-building and wonderful characters. The story was really good as well. It was really the epic world-building that sold me on this book; such a creative alternate history that I just absolutely loved.I listened to this on audiobook and Elfer did an amazing job narrating it. This is one of those book I would definitely recommend listening to on audiobook if you enjoy audiobooks!Jess grew up in a family of book smugglers but his dream comes true when he is sent to train for a position at the Great Library in Alexandria. Of course this opportunity comes with a price, Jess’s dad wants Jess to help out the smugglers from inside the library. Along the way Jess meets many amazing students and find out that the Great Library may not be what even his cynical mind thought it was.All the characters were very well done. I loved Jess and all his classmates. The world-building was amazing and detailed. This is one of those alternate history/steampunk types of books and I was really impressed with the detail and thought that went into the world.Overall I absolutely loved this. I thought it was a well done alternate history/steampunk book and was impressed with how creative it was. I am incredibly curious as to what will happen next. Can't wait to read the next book! I would recommend to those who enjoy alternate history/steampunk types of epic fantasy.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I enjoyed this book quite a bit. The general premise is that the library at Alexandria was never destroyed. Instead, it thrived and became The Library, a world power unto itself. It began as a shining ideal, to preserve all knowledge and make it available to everyone, through "blanks" (books) they supply. Over the years The Library began to care more for preserving and expanding its own power than its original mission.

    Jess is a book smuggler. He's part of the underground that sells illegal original books to anyone who can pay. He fears The Library because they'd kill him if they caught him. Then he gets the chance--or the curse--to enter Library training.

    There's a huge theme about paper books vs ebooks running through this story, with The Library's blanks taking the part of ebooks. Now, I was reading this as an ebook and didn't find it to be just "words on a page" that didn't move me, as Jess thinks about blanks. But that theme isn't alone; it's accompanied by that of who controls the knowledge. And that's where I really felt The Library's evil. (To sum up: all books good; suppressing knowledge bad.)

    There's one piece of knowledge in particular The Library suppresses. A piece of knowledge that crops up in different places and times by different people, no matter how hard they try to erase it. It's the absolute perfect thing for The Library to suppress and it had me thinking about the tremendous changes the lack of this would have wrought on the world. Loved it.

    Chapters of ephemera are interspersed with chapters of action, and that's a style choice that worked very well for this book. The ephemera is knowledge, of course, communications, books, etc. And it's there, underpinning the story even though our characters don't (yet) know it. It's also the foundation of The Library, and that foundation is rotten. It was a nice touch.

    I'm in for this series. I love thinking and reading about communication and knowledge and stories, and this is right up my alley.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    3.5 stars I’m not even sure how to describe the world, but Jess has been called to become a librarian. Well, he is amongst a group of teens who will be trained and six of them will become librarians. Librarians aren’t quite how we think of them now, though. In this world, they protect the books from even falling into the hands of regular people. There is some kind of war going on. I was a bit confused by the world itself, which is why I don’t have much of a summary. What I did like about the book was the characters and the friendships/relationships. I don’t even feel like I should rate it as high as I have, given that I didn’t quite understand what-all was going on. But, I liked the characters and given the situations they were in, I was interested to find out if they would make it out ok. Maybe a bit surprisingly, I think I will read the next in the series.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    A big disappointment. Had all the elements, on paper, that would appeal to me. But I couldn't care less if any particular character lived or died, no plot events made me gasp with surprise, it was more an action thriller than a fantasy, and for a book with "Library" in the title there weren't enough books. It could have been "The Great Snow Globe Collection" for all that books in particular mattered, they're a Macguffin.

    (Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    In this futuristic adventure, The Great Library controls knowledge and physical books are so rare that a dangerous underground market has developed. Jess was raised to work this market but finds himself in a position as apprentice to the Library, if he can pass the test. Caine flips the idea of a library as a benevolent source of knowledge in a Fahrenheit 451 kind of way and throws in a touch of alchemy. Jess is thrown into a political minefield that makes him question everything he thought he knew. Identifying friends and foes, even among his fellow apprentices, is difficult. The atmosphere is pretty grim with a fair amount of graphic death and destruction but the series seems headed in an obvious direction - unless Caine comes up with entertaining twists in future installments. 4 stars for a compelling plot and great quotes about books.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I read this as a buddy read on Litsy. I had never heard of it. The first half of the book I was sort of uninspired by the story. It seemed like it had already been done, but then I hit Chapter 10 and it really took off and found it's own unique voice. I really enjoyed the story. I am definitely interested in reading the next book.