Before Murderbot, there was City of Bones. Martha Wells gives the reader a 4 star fantasy epic that will have you turning pages far into the night. Khat is hired to find relics of the Ancients that created the multi tiered city of Charisat out of the desert Waste. Working with his human partner, Sagai, and the Warder Elen, Khat must navigate the fantastical, the arcane, and the dangerous world of palace intrigue before an ancient evil is unleashed upon the world. If you enjoy well done fantasy with world building that is off the charts (Martha Wells does it again) this is the book for you, dear reader.
I really liked how all the parts of the story worked together. There was the mystery of Khat and who or what he is. All the Ancient things like the relics and how the magic of this world works was interesting and well done; I believed all of it. There were a lot of characters and factions to keep track of but it just made me read slowly and focus so I think that is a good thing!
The world building and the construction of the city of Charisat is so good, I can’t even tell you. When I first started reading I was thinking it was just a big city so, ok, they live in a big city. Nope, when the story starts to unfold and you realize just what Charisat is and all the tiers begin to make sense-this is no ordinary city. I’m still wrapping my head around it; how does Martha Wells think this stuff up? Wow, just wow.
The ending was awesome as everything was tied together with some fantastical elements to bring the story to a close. There were a few loose ends that may have been destined for a follow up book but this was originally published way back in like 2003 so I think that ship has sailed. We may never find out ALL the answers but this was a great book and I think you ‘otter’ be reading it.
All the elements of the tightly plotted story work together to draw you in and keep you hooked. 4 big fat stars. I was given a copy and this is my opinion: read this book today!