This is an intensely dark book – in tone and subject matter – so please read the trigger warnings and be prepared for a challenging story.
Bone of My Bone is set during the Thirty Year’s War in Bavaria. Elsebeth randomly meets a nun named Ursula while running from soldiers, and they find a mortally wounded body on the road, holding a box with a saint’s skull. He’s been told that if you reunite the skull with its body, the saint will grant you a wish. Ursula believes the story wholeheartedly, and while Elsebeth has seen too much war to believe in miracles, she can’t leave Ursula alone. As they begin their quest to find the saint’s grave, they’re stalked by a necromancer, his undead servant, and hungry ghosts killed by battle and starvation.
There is SO MUCH I could talk about; the folk legends, the historical depictions of witchcraft, the mundanity of war, the religious arguments between Ursula (a Catholic) and Elsebeth (a Protestant) – half the dialogue is a back-and-forth argument about the nature of belief. The story is both horrifying and fascinating, but what stood out to me was the developing romance. Ursula and Elsebeth believe their relationship is sacred because love is a gift to God, and this felt like such a novel way of approaching queer history. The author included a bibliography at the end, which I will definitely be perusing.
Van Veen pulled the rug out from me so many times, with a show-stopping conclusion that was well earned. I can’t wait to read her other novels, and reread this book many times.
Reviewed by Rachel Denham-White
Read an extract from Bone of my Bone here.
Read our interview with Johanna van Veen here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Johanna van Veen grew up in the Netherlands with her two sisters. She received an MA in English Literature with a specialization in early modern literature, as well as an MA Book and Digital Media with a specialization in early modern book history. Her publications include My Darling, Dreadful Thing and Blood on her Tongue.
She enjoys spending time with her girlfriend, her sisters, and her dog, though not necessarily all at the same time.
Visit Johanna van Veen’s website here.
0 Comments