E.J. Swift

https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-coral-bones-by-e-j-swift/

A gem. It’s set in three timelines, the past, the present and the future, in and around Australia. (Apparently the author has not actually been to Australia, but I couldn’t tell.) The unifying theme is environmental apocalypse, as observed by women scientists; the three plots are each engaging on their own terms, and then the linkage at the end is very satisfying. A real warning about what we are doing to our world and show more ourselves. It is very much in keeping with the spirit of other recent Clarke winners, and Sir Arthur himself would have appreciated the diving scenes; personally I was especially grabbed by the nineteenth century science. show less

What an utterly delightful time-travel/atmospheric tale of freedom, choice, and Paris.

I was struck by just how descriptive and easy the text flowed, but then I was sucked in to all the different time periods as I drifted through the theater of 1875, from catacombs to bohemians, from Moulin Rouge to Moulin Vert... all the way to 2017 with crowded bars and modern woes... to a dystopian and war-torn future of 2042 that includes time travelers and the ever dreaded and alluring Anomaly in the show more timestream.

There's a definite and dark cost to time travel, but sometimes the cost is worth it. Sometimes, we don't even know what we're paying for. Such is the problem of free will and choice.

Above all, this novel is a real delight to read. It's easy, it's immersive, and it's very easy to fall for and into the lives of these free-spirited people. Even more than that, it's very easy to fall in love with Paris. It evokes and succeeds in drawing out the beauty, the oppression, and the crazy desperation of the people who live and breathe the world... no matter the time.

For all this, I am quite pleased that it is also an easy read. Freedom shouldn't be oppressive. :)

I'm totally recommending this for all you free-spirits.

And thanks to Netgalley for the ARC! show less

Osiris was a dream that turned to dust, but then what kind of dystopic post-apocalyptic book would we have if everything did not go to hell?

In this world storms and well everything really turned the world to a wasteland and Osiris was a refuge for some. The rest of the world is dead..or is it? (no really is it? I wanna know!! I guess I have to wait until book 2 for that). But this Oasis is not a happy place. There are citizens who have it all, and then refuges behind a wall who has nothing show more and freeze to death. The perfect setting to cause some conflict. Especially since our heroine is a spoiled rich girl and the hero a poor Westerner.

The premise is interesting. A city eating itself, but some being to close-minded to see it. A world where I wonder if anyone is alive in the world? Because the rich have secrets.

The characters are not exactly lovable. Adelaide is rich and spoiled, and obsessed with finding her lost brother. Vikram on the other hand is nice, but maybe a bit naive. Sometimes you just have to storm the barricades. But they grow on you.

Osiris has a pace of it's own, it moves slowly, like a dream. And when it ends I do wonder, what's next? I enjoyed it. show less

This is a book set in a post-apocalyptic world where the ocean city of Osiris is believed to be the last place on Earth that is still inhabited by humans. The main characters, Adelaide and Vikram, come from polar opposite worlds and and are complete opposites themselves. Adelaide is a pampered socialite from one of the founding families, and Vikram comes from the west where life is full of violence and you have to become very hardened to survive. This unlikely pair each need something from show more the other and find themselves working together to this end.

This book was very character driven. We were given a lot of back story on the main characters and their friends and family, which I think helped me better understand the different worlds the characters lived in. You basically had the Citizens, who were very wealthy and lived high on the hog, and the westerners, who lived in squalor and were very poor. The world building here was phenomenal! The plot was evenly paced and the characters were well written, as mentioned above.

All told, I enjoyed this book very much and look forward to continuing the story in book 2.

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank E.J. Swift and Night Shade Books for the opportunity to read and review this book. show less