Review: Call of the Bone Ships by R.J. Barker

I didn’t even wait to write my review of The Bone Ships before I started Call of the Bone Ships. I loved the first book so I was so excited to jump into the next! I’m happy that I’m getting to read this series after it has already been published so I can read it all at once. I started reading a lot more new releases when I started blogging, so it’s rare that I get to binge a series!

In other news, it’s September now so it’s time to bring out my fall post headers. I try to align my headers with the seasons, but I’ve been so bad at posting regularly in the past I don’t think I’ve had a fall header before. I’ve also done the Self Published Fantasy Month and Spooktastic Reads events in the fall and used their headers in the past. In other other news, I’m writing this post over the summer with the knowledge that when this gets published in September I will be in school already! Yikes! I am so excited but also very nervous. Wish me luck, and the mental energy to keep reading books like Call of the Bone Ships when I’m not studying! AHHHHH

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Title: Call of the Bone Ships
Author: R.J. Barker
Series: The Tide Child #2
Genre: epic fantasy
Publisher: Orbit
Pages: 528
Audiobook length: 16 hrs 42 min
ISBN: 9780316487993
Content warnings: violence, death, gore, injury/injury detail, confinement, ableism, acephobia, slavery, mentions of miscarriage, attempted rape/references to rape

Blurb

A brilliantly imagined epic fantasy of honor, glory, and warfare, Call of the Bone Ships is the action-packed sequel to RJ Barker’s The Bone Ships.

Dragons have returned to the Hundred Isles. But their return heralds only war and destruction.

When a horde of dying slaves are discovered in the bowels of a ship, Shipwife Meas and the crew of the Tide Child find themselves drawn into a vicious plot that will leave them questioning their loyalties and fighting for their lives.

Review of Call of the Bone Ships

***This review contains spoilers for The Bone Ships (Tide Child #1)***

• Format: ebook
• Pacing: medium
• Plot or character-driven: plot
• POVs: third person POV, multi POV but mainly focuses on main character
• Representation: Achillean mc, m/m relationship mentioned (no romance)

Call of the Bone Ships kicks off with an ominous start when Joron and Meas find a boat packed full of critically ill people and guillaime being shipped to an unknown location. Slavery is suspect, but even slavers need to keep people alive so they can work. I was both surprised and not at how dark a turn Call of the Bone Ships took. The first book made it clear that The Hundred Isles was unforgiving, but there were moments in Call of the Bone Ships that made me feel sick. As Joron and Meas begin to unravel the mystery of where these people and guillaime are being taken, it becomes clear that their fight for peace will demand a high price.

Characters & Relationships

Meas and Joron’s relationship was one of my favorite parts of The Bone Ships, so I was so happy we got to see further development of their bond. I loved all the little moments when Joron understood what Meas didn’t say as much as what she did say. Without telling the reader, Barker portrays that Joron and Meas greatly respect each other and have spent enough time working together to have a good understanding of each other’s idiosyncrasies.

I liked the guillaime in the first book but expected it to remain more of a quirky mascot during the series than an actual character. I was pleasantly surprised at how much guillaime lore I was gifted in Call of the Bone Ships! From its incessant curiosity to its explosive outburst, the guillaime has the most loud and colorful personality on Tide Child. I love that we got more of a glimpse into its backstory and on the history of its kind in Call of the Bone Ships. I wasn’t expecting the guillaime to be much of a character, but it looks like it is going to play a central role in the story.

I also really enjoyed the connection Joron has with the guillaime. I feel like I appreciate their bond a lot more than I want Joron to. Joron. My guy. A super cool bird that controls the wind wants to be friends with you. Stop talking about how weird its legs look and act like you like it!

Less time is spent getting to know side characters in Call of the Bone Ships. Instead the book is focused on the plot and the main characters, Joron, Meas, Dinyl, and the guillaime. The side characters still have important roles, but it’s more assumed you remember them from The Bone Ships and focusing on their role in the battles. Barker did a good job in The Bone Ships at making sure I knew who was important, so even though there are a good number of characters, I didn’t have an issue keeping track.

Worldbuilding

As I mentioned, we learn a lot more about the guillame in Call of the Bone Ships, which I thought was the most interesting piece of worldbuilding.

The keeshans, or dragons, remain magnificent and mysterious. Word has spread that they have begun to awaken, but people soon realize that much of the knowledge their ancestors had about hunting sea dragons is lost. I feel like highlighting lost history in The Hundred Isles weirdly gave the world more depth. It was so interesting to see how pieces of history were recorded, changed as different generations passed on stories, or were lost. These types of details in The Tide Child series just make world feel so much more real.

I can also say that in my experience growing up in a landbound state with zero sailing experience, the portrayal of the bone ships and sea travel felt very realistic.

Plot and Pacing

The Bone Ships felt more slow-burn to me because of how slowly Joron and the other characters changed. Call of the Bone Ships continues to highlight how the story’s events change its characters, but since the plot was already underway, the pacing felt a bit quicker. Mystery and tension were introduced right at the start of the book, and I needed to know what was going to happen.

Call of the Bone Ships definitely takes a dark turn after The Bone Ships in both the direction of character development and the plot. This made sense since this book acts as a bridge to the final installment. Overall, I felt like Call of the Bone Ships had a lot of exciting plot elements (that I’m not going to spoil for you!). I already loved the characters after the first book, so I felt strapped in a ready for their fight for peace to begin ramping up. All I can say is that I continue to be amazed by The Tide Child Trilogy and I am so excited for the final book!

Conclusion

I continue to recommend this series to anyone who enjoys fantasy! I am loving The Tide Child Trilogy so much!

You’ll like this book if you enjoy…

• Epic fantasy
• Dragons!
• Pirates!

Where to find Call of the Bone Ships:

Have you read Call of the Bone Ships? Let’s chat in the comments!