ND WILSON

The author ties in so much scripture and makes so many beautiful analogies and you really start to realize how deep his writing goes. An absolutely incredible captivating plot, and I swear these characters are real. Very very well written, and my words are doing it NO justice at all so please go and see for yourself.

I definitely feel very unfinished after reading but oddly satisfied too (sign of a good author). Lot’s of questions… what happened to Phoenix? Radu Bey? Nolan? I want to know more about Pythia…

I truly love the relationships portrayed and they all seem so realistic… the dynamic between Cyrus and Antigone and even Dan as siblings could not be more on point, and the author doesn’t try to gloss over the hard things. The book (whole series really) is down to earth, faces the ugly, but then still gives you hope and redemption, which is how life really is. It is hard and there are ugly parts to it but in the end there IS beauty and redemption and true hope. It just really makes you think.

Also, character growth!!! Insane. Cyrus who are you?!
He is the desolation. The general. The way he assumes leadership and duty is very awe inspiring. And I totally want to name my son Cyrus now.

And Rupert has my heart 😭💔

And I just love Diana.

Also, Dan. I made the connection between him and biblical Daniel, both dreamer!! Good one, Wilson.

The whole concept and different combining of legends and reality is really clever, what with the transmortals and their backgrounds etc. insanely well done.

This was definitely the darkest of all the books in the series so far. Like I said, the author doesn’t gloss over anything and portrays evil as evil. And so yes, it is sickening and some of these villains, all of the really, are vile and do vile things. Awful stuff happens. But not. With. Out. Hope.

I could go on and on, but I’ll stop here. I’m so ready for book four! (I think we have it but in magazine form in snippets!)

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

“Hot tears rolled down Cyrus’ face and the fire of a loved life flowed through his limbs, wiping away weariness with fierce fury.”

“‘What can you do, dragon, to erase the life and the laughter I’ve already lived and already laughed?’ Cyrus asked. ‘What can you do to frighten one as foolish as me?” 😭😭😭

“In every herd, many stampede, while only a few turn to face the lions. Cowards live for the sake of living, but for heroes, life is a weapon, a thing to be spent, a gift to be given to the weak and the lost and the weary, even to the foolish and the cowardly.”

“When mothers lay down their lives for children, when brothers die for sisters and sisters for brothers, when fathers die for wives and children, when heroes die for strangers on the street, they do not pour out their blood because the one they save deserves such a sacrifice. Nah, lad. Love burns hotter than justice, and it’s roar is thunder. Beside love, even wrath whispers. Not one of us, snatching breath with mortal lungs deserves such a gift, and yet every day such a gift is given.”

“To love is to be selfless. To be selfless is to be fearless. To be fearless is to strip your enemies of their greatest weapon. Even if they break our bodies and drain our blood, we are unvanquished. Our goal was never to live; our goal is to love. It is the goal of all truly noble men and women. Give all that can be given. Give even your life itself.”

“‘You who knit me in my mother’s womb and plucked me into life, be not far from me. I am alone in grief’s broad sea. My brothers are fallen, their laughter is stopped, their voices are silenced. The pride of the Monaster is poured out like water, and my courage is no more than ash. Be not far from me. Dogs encircle me. Bulls surrounded me. Trouble melts my heart like wax. Evil has drained a draught of greatness, and I am left alone, to be pierced and broken.’ Rupert rose. ‘Be not far from me,’ he answered. ‘Walk with me through the shadow of the grave. Tear this curtain of darkness. Make your face to shine upon our fallen, and give them peace.’” (Quoting direct portions of scripture!!!)

“He walks the vineyard path, following in the steps of the one Mortal from whom even the Reaper fled in fear. That path runs beneath headstones, down through the lightless cold of lonely loss, through the dark valleys where death was borne down to the black soul rice and the final battle line. Only love can set a man’s feet on such a path. Only love can see him through, into rest and the hot light of the sun.” (The biblical analogy here is so rich)

publisher ! I couldn't think of the word at the time . I heard the publisher had issues with the 3rd book . in which leaves us readers without and ending .

This is one of my favorite series of all time, and this book in particular is extremely well written and showcases a deep understanding of reality and a care for his readers by the author.

Best writer I’ve read

I wanted this to end more satisfyingly.

It is a glorious story full of courage, love, strength, good triumphing over evil, death, and life.

I forgot how good this series was

Cowards live for the sake of living, but for heroes, life is a weapon, a thing to be spent, a gift to be given to the weak and the lost and the weary, even to the foolish and the cowardly." (314)

the world building continued to be wonderful and well imagined. i definitely followed the story better in this one. a good ending

Wiiiiild book. Full of epic characters- very cool series

An excellent series with exciting characters and interesting plot twists

Loved it. Read this series at the behest of my son. It was such an enjoyable read. I highly recommend for middle grade boys and everyone else too. Love the themes of sacrifice, valor, love. It’s truth, goodness and beauty in the midst of a fallen world on every page. I won’t lie I cried a little, laughed more and was sorry to come to the end only to have to wait for number 4.

There are some lovable gems of characters in this series, some quotable quotes and a richness those writers who have come before and inspired this author.

Life is meant to be spent.

INCREDIBLE. The only disappointment is that it has a less than satisfying ending... there's supposed to be a 4th book but it's not available unless you want to pay $80 for it.

It was all so well done: the fights, the character arcs, the raising of the stakes, the ending. The inclusion of a wide variety of characters of legends from all over the world was truly amazing, and having Captain Smith go out singing those lines from the Psalms was one of the coolest deaths I've ever read. Also, who can't love lines like the following:

"I have worn many names. I have taken many sacrifices. With a stolen spark of life I have grown much folly and seasoned much wine and spread much foolish love. Always, in every temple, in every rite, I was the fool, always I was Quick and Quickening. A greater Fool came. A greater Folly. I was broken and found peace."

"Lay down your life, and find that you have picked it up. Fear no raging beast."

I wish that I could write like that.

This one ended so tragically!!!

It’s thrilling, breathtakingly suspenseful, and wildly imaginative. But when you’re done with it (or maybe rather, when it’s done with you), it doesn’t leave you restless and dissatisfied; it dares and inspires you to spend your life with more abandon and to cherish each moment of laughter and love. The other books in the series were amazing, but this one was definitely my favorite. If you love getting lost in great story, totally give these a read.

It’s so rich, and it’s one of the few books that has fundamentally changed the way I view the world. Every time I reread it, I can feel myself being transformed to a stronger, more faithful person who is even more committed to dying by living and laughing in the face of darkness. I legitimately cannot recommend this highly enough. Sic semper draconis!

Fun symbolism throughout this final book in the series.

I really enjoyed how the author ended it as well, unique and different than what I was expecting (and what normally happens with this genre)

This is a fitting story for Easter, and this, I think is one of Wilson's most stirring and gorgeous novels.

Learning that the last book isn't published was absolutely devastating news but I hope and pray that it will be finished.
I am invested in this series in a way that honestly is a bit frightening to me and I will recommend it endlessly to everyone I know.
Just everything about it made me fall in love with it unexpectedly in a way I cannot articulate.

Though I doubt
they will ever print the final book on
paper or hard back.

“You don’t deserve to die.”
“Before I was born, did I deserve to live?” Rupert asked. “I was made and life was given to me so that I could be standing right here, right now. So that I could be spent.””

wilson, ya sly dog, you’ve done it again. wow, i cannot communicate how much i loved this book. i genuinely don’t understand how this is categorized as children’s literature; i think anyone would enjoy this book at any age. the more i read n.d. wilson the more i appreciate his writing style. it’s quick, witty, hilarious and sometimes makes you want to run through a brick wall. i found myself cheering, giggling and tearing up through the whole book. i loved the Christ-like selflessness of rupert greeves, the bravery of cyrus smith, the hilarity of Niffy (the 19 year old irish monk). i also loved the gospel/biblical references + symbolism woven into the story. during the climax of the book, cyrus must wake justice and wrath to help him fight the extremely evil radu bey and save his friends. before he does so, a lamb is slain and the blood placed on his head (and his friends’) so that justice and wrath will see the blood and spare him/them. “No man is pure in heart, mind, body, and soul. There are stains in all of us that the Brothers see, and because they see all things without grace or mercy, because they are Justice and Wrath …They issue a just judgment.”
n.d’s beliefs bleed through his writing and it is clear that he believes there is one true God, we all deserve death, and life is a beautiful gift. undoubtedly the best part of the book is the speech from niffy:
“In every herd, many stampede, while only a few turn to face the lions. Cowards live for the sake of living, but for heroes, life is a weapon, a thing to be spent, a gift to be given to the weak and the lost and the weary, even to the foolish and the cowardly.”“When mothers lay down their lives for children, when brothers die for sisters and sisters for brothers, when fathers die for wives and children, when heroes die for strangers on the street, they do not pour out their blood because the one they save deserves such a sacrifice. Nah, lad. Love burns hotter than justice, and its roar is thunder. Beside love, even wrath whispers. Not one of us snatching breath with mortal lungs deserves such a gift, and yet every day such a gift is given. To love is to be selfless. To be selfless is to be fearless. To be fearless is to strip your enemies of their greatest weapon. Even if they break our bodies and drain our blood, we are unvanquished. Our goal was never to live; our goal is to love. It is the goal of all truly noble men and women. Give all that can be given. Give even your life itself.”

goosebumps.

This is the third book in the series and by far my favorite. My kids picked out a lot of great imagery in this one. I hope the series gets finished soon, or at least the next book comes out soon. I want to know more about these characters!

This was a read-aloud for our family and my boys didn’t want to stop reading most days.

Some excellent quotes in this one. The ending is a page turner.

I already knew how good it is, but I was absolutely stunned, swept off my feet, floored, and flabbergasted by just how, for lack of a better word, GOOD his writing is. He has a very vivid style and a talent for painting scenes; every new setting, every conversation, every new place he describes comes to life with a myriad of details that aren't overbearing or smothering like they are in some books I've read. Everything in these books lives and breathes and speaks of the fabric of life that is there for anyone to see. Empire of Bones, in particular, is the crescendo (The Silent Bells is on its way...but in a way I think that this book is its own climax). This time through, I listened to the audiobooks instead of reading the physical versions (because when you have the opportunity to crochet AND listen to a book at the same time...go for it my lassies), which aided my appreciation of his writing even more. Firstly because the narrator, Thomas Vincent Kelly, is absolutely awesome and does all of the accents impeccably, et cetera et cetera. Secondly because I was able to hear every last word instead of accidentally skipping things like I usually end up doing because I'm a fast reader.

By the time I finished listening to Empire of Bones I was in tears from the sheer gloriousness of the story and the beauty of the writing. I would recommend this series to anyone (including small children because they can read it too... when they're older!). And I encourage everyone to check out N. D. Wilson's podcast Stories are Soul Food! Having listened to every episode ever released, I assure you, it is absolutely worth it! If you scroll to the old episodes, some of the first ones they did (in the 30's I think, but don't quote me on that) talk about each book in the Ashtown Burials series, and after reading the books it's very interesting to get his take on them and hear why he wrote them the way he did and why certain things are included.

Five stars. Five thumbs up. Five....billion stars.

Enjoyed