ALL THE MURMURING BONES by A.G. Slatter – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

All the Murmuring Bones by A.G. Slatter
Published by Titan Books on April 8 2021
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 368
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty gritty: Dark and atmospheric, All the Murmuring Bones is an intriguing blend of fairy tale and mystery.

Love is a barbed hook and family the line to which it is tied. It digs deep, and sometimes trying to remove it entirely does more damage than simply leaving the obstruction beneath the skin for a scar to grow over.

All the Murmuring Bones is a beautifully written, atmospheric tale of an old family bound by a dark pact with the sea and the creatures who live there. Miren O’Malley is the last of the true O’Malley’s, an eighteen year old girl who longs to break free from her depressing life. The O’Malleys were once a prosperous family, but lately they’ve fallen into decline. Miren lives in a crumbling mansion called Hob’s Hallow with her grandparents, Aoife and Óisín, who raised her after her mother and father died when she was a baby. But when her grandfather dies, Miren discovers some old letters locked away in his office, letters that suggest her parents aren’t actually dead, but simply left her and escaped to a better life.

When Aoife declares that Miren is to be married to an imposing man named Aidan—a bargain struck to keep the family afloat—Miren knows it’s time to leave for good. Sneaking out of the house one night, she sets off on a journey to find her parents. But along the way, she’ll uncover even more dark family secrets that lead her to some hard truths about her heritage.

I really loved Slatter’s writing, it’s perfect for this dark, Gothic story that revolves around the mysteries of the sea and how it ties to the O’Malley family history. From childhood, Miren has been told stories from an old family book of fairy tales and she knows each one by heart. I loved the way the author incorporates theses tales—a story within a story—by interspersing them here and there. Even though the stories are grim and dark, Miren finds comfort in their familiarity and recalls them during times of stress and uncertainty. They also act as a way to reveal some of the family secrets along the way, and the reader is often left wondering whether the stories are actually real or not. There is a particularly grim family tradition that Miren discovers and takes action on, which is the foundation for the O’Malley family fortunes (or misfortunes!)

Miren herself is a brave, plucky girl who sees herself living a different life than her family expects from her, and I loved her desire to actually take action and change her life for the better. The story appears to be set in Victorian times, based on the characters’ clothing and also the attitudes of the male characters. So you can imagine that Miren has been raised to be obedient to her elders, especially men, and this didn’t sit well with me. So when her cousin Aidan decides to marry her as a way to get his hands on the Hob’s Hallow fortunes—spouting such ridiculous and rage-inducing statements as “I will plant my seed in you and you will produce children” or some such nonsense—I was thrilled when Miren proved to be smart and savvy and figured out a way to escape his clutches.

My favorite part of the story was Miren’s journey to find her parents. She runs into some very interesting characters that I came to love, including a troupe of traveling performers who help her escape Hob’s Hallow. A nice chap named Ellingham runs the troupe and the highlight of their show is an automaton who sings and from a distance looks like a real girl. I also loved a boy named Ben who may or may not be a werewolf!

On her journey, Miren runs into many different sea monsters and creatures, many of whom feature in her book of fairy tales. Miren is described as having “sea water running through her veins,” and so she has an affinity with the merpeople, rusalky, mari-morgan and kelpies she meets along the way. My very favorite character of all was a kelpie (magical water horse) who makes a bargain with Miren and becomes a trusted friend.

As wonderful as all the atmosphere was, though, I did find the overall story to be a bit fractured. I thought the plot was solid up until the time Miren arrives at Blackwater, the estate where she thinks her parents might be living. I loved the beginning and learning about the O’Malley family history. The Gothic sensibility is strong and worked so well for me. As I mentioned before, I especially loved Miren’s journey to find her parents, and although the pacing is slow in the first half, it didn’t bother me at all. But Slatter adds so many characters and side plots to her tale, that the main story arc veered off course at times. We are introduced to characters and elements that seem important at the time, but then they fizzle out and really never go anywhere. 

However, I did love the way the story ended. The author gets back on track and ties in an important bit of family history mentioned in one of the fairy tales in Miren’s old book and gives us a satisfying conclusion. Readers who love fairy tales and don’t mind a bit of darkness in their stories will most likely enjoy this atmospheric story.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.