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motherofbooks93's review
4.0
“I’m not the hero of any story. Not the villain, either. I’m the one that cleans the bones after the battle is over. I’m just the scavenger.”
Cleaner of the Bones is a novella set at the same time as [b: Black Bird of the Gallows|33509076|Black Bird of the Gallows (Black Birds of the Gallows, #1)|Meg Kassel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1501159168s/33509076.jpg|42139488], but instead of Angie’s perspective, we get Reece’s. This is a few scenes from the first book and it tells them from Reece’s perspective. I really enjoyed this and that is probably because like I mentioned in my Black Bird of the Gallows review, I really wanted some chapters told in his perspective.
We get to see what Reece was thinking and we learned a little more about his first life and how he died. I would love to see a prequel novel about his previous life.
If you don’t care to read from his perspective, you will probably see this as unnecessary, but I greatly appreciated it.
I also want to mention that Goodreads labels this as a prequel, it is absolutely NOT a prequel. I do not recommend reading this before the first book. This will spoil so much from the first one. Read this after you have read Black Bird of the Gallows. It also kind of introduces you to the main character in the next book, [b: Keeper of the Bees|107933|The Keeper of the Bees|Gene Stratton-Porter|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348275370s/107933.jpg|104019].
Cleaner of the Bones is a novella set at the same time as [b: Black Bird of the Gallows|33509076|Black Bird of the Gallows (Black Birds of the Gallows, #1)|Meg Kassel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1501159168s/33509076.jpg|42139488], but instead of Angie’s perspective, we get Reece’s. This is a few scenes from the first book and it tells them from Reece’s perspective. I really enjoyed this and that is probably because like I mentioned in my Black Bird of the Gallows review, I really wanted some chapters told in his perspective.
We get to see what Reece was thinking and we learned a little more about his first life and how he died. I would love to see a prequel novel about his previous life.
If you don’t care to read from his perspective, you will probably see this as unnecessary, but I greatly appreciated it.
I also want to mention that Goodreads labels this as a prequel, it is absolutely NOT a prequel. I do not recommend reading this before the first book. This will spoil so much from the first one. Read this after you have read Black Bird of the Gallows. It also kind of introduces you to the main character in the next book, [b: Keeper of the Bees|107933|The Keeper of the Bees|Gene Stratton-Porter|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348275370s/107933.jpg|104019].
lealai's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
anna_hepworth's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
If I understand where this book fits in with the other two in the series, it is roughly book 1.5. I've read book 2, but not book 1, and I don't think this one truly works without having read the first one (it might be that it wouldn't have worked anyway, but it felt like reading fanfic of a series that I wasn't yet familiar with the characters for). It reads almost as an out-take, although it might be that it is an alternate viewpoint on a set of the events -- I'll leave that judgement for later.
I don't really have much to say. There is a little bit of background for the viewpoint character, some obsession about how falling in love is out of character for them, and some actual communication after failure to communicate causes issues.
I don't really have much to say. There is a little bit of background for the viewpoint character, some obsession about how falling in love is out of character for them, and some actual communication after failure to communicate causes issues.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug use and Car accident
taisie22's review
4.0
If you've read Black Birds of the Gallows, this short story is basically the beginning of that book told from Reece's point of view. I love this world so I found it interesting. I think it's also a great beginning for those who haven't read this wonderful series. But I admit I was disappointed we didn't get too much new material, just some backstory. I'd give this 3 1/2 stars.
meganewanchuk's review
1.5
1.5*
This prequel had no significant extra information or plot line at all, as a prequel should have, but once again, what was I expecting with this series? I was intrigued by the idea of a prequel because I thought it would include some backstory on Reece, possibly go into detail about his life before becoming cursed, the thoughts and feelings at the beginning of the curse, etc., but no.
Literally all this “prequel” was was some of the beginning chapters of “Black Bird of the Gallows,” the other book in this series, that were originally told in Angie’s perspective, rewritten in Reece’s. I knew everything that was happening, everything that was going to happen, and so many scenes just dragged on making this book seem way longer than it actually was, in the worst way possible.
Although there was the smallest *hint* of backstory for the character of Reece, it lasted for about two pages, and didn’t go into any deep details about the life of Reece before becoming cursed or what he felt at the beginning of the curse before becoming used to it all.
Overall, this was nothing special at all. I know my expectations should have been lower, but I just wanted more backstory of Reece, rather than the plot line and conversations I already had to suffer through once in the first book in the series. The only reason I gave it 1.5 was because I liked the tie-in conversation between Reece and a character from the second book in the series “Keeper of the Bees.” But yea. This was a true waste of my time✨
This prequel had no significant extra information or plot line at all, as a prequel should have, but once again, what was I expecting with this series? I was intrigued by the idea of a prequel because I thought it would include some backstory on Reece, possibly go into detail about his life before becoming cursed, the thoughts and feelings at the beginning of the curse, etc., but no.
Literally all this “prequel” was was some of the beginning chapters of “Black Bird of the Gallows,” the other book in this series, that were originally told in Angie’s perspective, rewritten in Reece’s. I knew everything that was happening, everything that was going to happen, and so many scenes just dragged on making this book seem way longer than it actually was, in the worst way possible.
Although there was the smallest *hint* of backstory for the character of Reece, it lasted for about two pages, and didn’t go into any deep details about the life of Reece before becoming cursed or what he felt at the beginning of the curse before becoming used to it all.
Overall, this was nothing special at all. I know my expectations should have been lower, but I just wanted more backstory of Reece, rather than the plot line and conversations I already had to suffer through once in the first book in the series. The only reason I gave it 1.5 was because I liked the tie-in conversation between Reece and a character from the second book in the series “Keeper of the Bees.” But yea. This was a true waste of my time✨