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The Bones of the Old Ones [Hardcover]

Howard Andrew Jones

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Book Description

Dec 11 2012
A thrilling, inventive follow-up to The Desert of Souls by Howard Andrew Jones, a "rare master of the storyteller’s art" (Greenmanreview.com)

As a snowfall blankets 8th century Mosul, a Persian noblewoman arrives at the home of the scholar Dabir and his friend the swordsman Captain Asim. Najya has escaped from a dangerous cabal that has ensorcelled her to track down ancient magical tools of tremendous power, the bones of the old ones.

To stop the cabal and save Najya, Dabir and Asim venture into the worst winter in human memory, hunted by a shape-changing assassin. The stalwart Asim is drawn irresistibly toward the beautiful Persian even as Dabir realizes she may be far more dangerous a threat than anyone who pursues them, for her enchantment worsens with the winter. As their opposition grows, Dabir and Asim have no choice but to ally with their deadliest enemy, the treacherous Greek necromancer, Lydia. But even if they can trust one another long enough to escape their foes, it may be too late for Najya, whose soul is bound up with a vengeful spirit intent on sheathing the world in ice for a thousand years...

The Bones of the Old Ones is a damn good tale that not only pays homage to the masters, but sets its own print on the genre.” --SF Signal

“This rousing sequel to The Desert of Souls offers a mélange of ancient adventure myths populated by convincing, endearing characters… As intricately woven as the magic carpet of Greek sorceress Lydia, Jones’s tale incorporates real historical personages and settings like Mosul of “haggard beauty” from the early days of Islam, and fills the pages with gallantry and glamour to provide a thrilling spectacle.” –Publishers Weekly, starred review


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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books (Dec 11 2012)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312646755
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312646752
  • Product Dimensions: 15.5 x 2.9 x 23.6 cm
  • Shipping Weight: 408 g
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #345,100 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Product Description

Review

Praise for Bones of the Old Ones

The Bones of the Old Ones is a damn good tale that not only pays homage to the masters, but sets its own print on the genre.” --SF Signal

“This rousing sequel to The Desert of Souls offers a mélange of ancient adventure myths populated by convincing, endearing characters… As intricately woven as the magic carpet of Greek sorceress Lydia, Jones’s tale incorporates real historical personages and settings like Mosul of “haggard beauty” from the early days of Islam, and fills the pages with gallantry and glamour to provide a thrilling spectacle.” –Publishers Weekly, starred review

"By turns groundbreaking and classical, Howard Andrew Jones is a pure joy to read." - Nebula and Campbell Award finalist Saladin Ahmed

“A thumbs-up for series fans.” --Kirkus

"Jones is a resurrector of unfairly forgotten tales and an illuminator of a neglected milieu. His love for the setting of the Dabir and Asim stories is as obvious as his grasp of classic sword-and-sorcery forms. The result is something rich and brisk at the same time, just as it ought to be." –Scott Lynch, author of Red Seas Under Red Skies

 

The Bones of the Old Ones is one lovely fantastical adventure, blending mystery, romance and magic in such a way that I had to keep reading.  There were moments of laughter, passion, and edge-of-my-seat surprises.  A fabulous read!” --Elizabeth Vaughan, USA Today bestselling author of the Chronicles of the Warlands series

 

“In the midst of a sea of Tolkein clones, Howard A. Jones stands out with his Arabian Nights inspired detective stories. Rollicking, and magical. What more could you want?" --Mary Robinette Kowal, Hugo and Campbell Award Winner

 

 

Praise for Howard Andrew Jones

 

“Like the genie of the lamp, Howard Jones has granted this reader's wish for a fresh, exciting take on the venerable genre of sword-and-sorcery!” --Richard A. Knaak, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Legends of the Dragonrealm

 

"Howard Jones wields magic like a subtle blade and action like a mighty cleaver in his scimitars and sorcery tale, weaving together Arabian myth, history, and some honest-to-gosh surprises to create a unique story that you’ll not soon forget."  -- Monte Cook, author of The Dungeon Masters Guide, 3rd Edition

 

"A rousing tale of swords against sorcery. Howard Jones writes with wit and flair. His world is involving, authentic and skilfully evoked. The best fantasy novel I have read all year." -- William King, Author of the Space Wolf trilogy and creator of Gotrek and Felix

 

“Howard Jones proves himself a rare master of the storyteller’s art, a talent uncommon even amongst successful novelists.” –Greenmanreview.com

 

“Smooth and effortless, with a definite middle-eastern flair, I fell in love with Jones’s style and his skill at weaving adventure, action, wit, religion, and realism into a cohesive story..” -- hippogriff.wordpress.com

 

“His grand sense of storytelling [makes] Howard Andrew Jones a writer to be reckoned with for many years to come.” -- roguebladesentertainment.com

 

“Jones's writing style makes one feel as if they're listening to someone with incredible narrative talent telling a story... In Jones's hands, the characters come to vivid life… and it's easy to feel as if you've been transported back to early Baghdad as well.” –FreshFiction.com

About the Author

HOWARD ANDREW JONES is the acknowledged expert on fiction writer Harold Lamb. He is the Managing Editor of Black Gate magazine, and he blogs regularly at its website. 


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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com: 4.8 out of 5 stars  12 reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Carpets and Aurochs and Rocs, Oh My! Dec 21 2012
By Claire S. Cooney - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This is the second of the Dabir and Asim books, which are often described as Sherlock and Watson in 8th Century Baghdad - only this time they're in Mosul, near the ruins of the ancient city of Nineveh.

Dabir and Asim are fast friends - brothers - by the time this book takes place. Asim, the first person narrator, has grown more likable - probably due to Dabir's influence. He seems less of a lunkhead, less arrogant, more tender. Not any less a warrior but beginning to become a poet.

Dabir is, of course, pining for Sabirah from Book 1. But he's his usual competent and laconic self, and it's nice to see him reacting with friends he's had longer than Asim, and how his mysterious back story is shaping up.

The presence of women is hugely strong in this book (one of my plaintive outcries against the last was the usual 4 women versus 400 men complaint, though in most fantasy it's 1 to about 10,000), and they play every role from ghost-possessed seeress, to the blood witch Lydia, to a warrior sorceress, to an immortal chaos priestess, to a Frost Goddess Titan. It was just so jolly to see these girls out and about, up and doing, destroying worlds, that sort of thing, instead of behind walls and veils, kept in the kitchen... Although the one housekeeper who IS in the kitchen has a splendidly sour attitude, and I loved her for that.

The settings of each scene were fantastic (in all senses of the word): tombs, and mountains, and temples, and ruins, and cities, and magic carpets. The tenor of the book was as unabashedly romantic as it was heroic and sorcerous. The fight scenes were gorgeously executed and constantly interesting - and the pacing of the entire plot was smashing.

I can't wait for the third.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Soaring Sword & Sorcery Dec 18 2012
By John C. Hocking - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
The second novel of Dabir & Asim more than fulfills the promise of the first.
The lush Arabian Nights setting is as entrancing as before, but rendered fresh and strange as an unnatural chill shrouds the landscape with ice and snow. Asim el Abbas tells the tale and in doing so emerges as one of the most believable and compelling characters in modern fantasy. Honest to a fault, dedicated (and much-needed) bodyguard to the wise and valiant Dabir ibn Khalil, Asim comes into his own in this novel as he and his friend strive against a weird cabal of fearfully powerful beings who are in ruthless pursuit of some very dark goals.

Virtually every enjoyable aspect of The Desert of Souls is found here, and much of it is stronger, more emotional and more intense. Devotees of classic sword & sorcery will delight in rich scenes of ancient pageantry, eerie delving into forbidden places, weird and horrific magic, sweeping clashes of combat and ferocious duels to the death. Yet ultimately it is through character that the novel makes its deepest mark. These characters think and feel and bleed and strive. The novel's climax offers spectacular wide-screen thrills, but is also emotionally exhausting.
If you like adventure fantasy, this is the real deal. I can only hope for more.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Great characters, great adventure Dec 30 2012
By S. Raines - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
Jones' writing has something of the adventurous style of novels of days gone by, with a depth many pulp writers didn't have. When I sampled the first novel before purchasing it, I immediately thought of Indiana Jones and Robert E. Howard, and knew I'd be in for a good time.

This second novel of the series is even better than the first. While the first novel had some uneven pacing, this novel shows none of that. It pulls you through the book from beginning to end, nothing dragging and halting the pace.

But what I really liked the most were the characters. All of them, even the villains, have more than one dimension. Secondary characters weren't just plot points. The main characters were written in shades of gray. A times I wanted to shake the heroes for their foibles, and was in turn pleasantly surprised that the villains had reasons why they acted as they did, some even changing in the process.

And likewise, the action too was sometimes fun, sometimes harrowing, and not always ending well. I didn't know how the book would end until it did, and the ending was good and above all, earned.

I enjoyed the style too. As I mentioned, it reminded me of old tales of adventure with Middle Eastern flavor (though with none of the inherent racism of the times). The descriptions were very evocative of other places and times, and yet written in a way that I could relate to. Jones made me aware of how normal and like me these people in this tale were, which is quite an accomplishment considering the magic and difference in era and place, and so I was quite invested in their story.

I was really impressed with the writing, but want to stress how *fun* these books are. Sometimes when people say "good writing" it translates to convoluted artsy books that give me headaches. But sometimes it means it was written by an author who knows how to tell an incredible tale populated with real human beings, and it both touches you and leaves you breathless. This is one of the latter. I can't wait for the next book this man writes.

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