Customer Reviews

The Bards of Bone Plain

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I've been reading Patricia A. McKillip since her very first novel came out, and I think she is one of the most creative imaginers and certainly one of the most sophisticated writers of fantasy of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. From that vantage I think "The Bards of Bone Plain" is the best she's done in many years.

Not, of course, that any of her books are less than elegant and wonderful. Not so. But "The Bards of Bone Plain" is incredibly tightly written, and its fusion with a lightly glossed steampunk quasi-Victorian kingdom and the centuries-long quest of an immortal bard for his lost music just plain works seamlessly. You believe that you can simply step sideways from the mundane to the magical and back, easily and painlessly.

Her characters are well-drawn and are clear and clever enough to spawn one of those BBC miniseries where sparkling dialog is the chief hallmark of civilization. The bemused king watching his youngest daughter be more interested in archaeology than "princessing," while his queen fumes is worth a couple of guffaws and a hiccup. The sad quest of Jonah Cle for his lost magic after failing the three tests on Bone Plain centers the book and provides a sobering thread throughout.

This, here, is the real deal, folks. If this isn't one of the finalists for the World Fantasy Award in 2011, there ain't no justice.

Walt Boyes
Active Member SFWA

I've read most of Patricia McKillip's books over the years, and always look forward to her densely poetic fables dealing with one or more of her favorite themes: magic, music, language, scholars and usually a few cameo appearances featuring beautifully described foods. I am familiar with the parallel plotlines, often alternating from chapter to chapter, and often fancy I can catch a glimpse here and there of my native Oregon in her descriptions of the landscape. I enjoy the thoughtful, image-rich meditations in which she steeps her stories, although I can't always understand the point she is driving at. But this only leaves room for re-reading, as I know I'll always discover something new in her work. Also, I have to mention that Kinuko Craft's beatiful artwork is a perfect complement to the beauty of the stories found within the covers of the books.
This book is not devoid of any of the aforementioned features, and it does have a coherent, straigtforward story. However, I found the plot almost too simple. I could see pretty much the whole trajectory early on in the book, and while that is not necessarily a fatal detriment in work as poetic as McKillip's, I found myself a bit bored with the characters as well. They seemed fairly one-dimensional, save for Nairn, Declan and the mysterious Welkin, who remained a bit too wrapped in mystery for my satisfaction.
Another of McKillip's works, Alphabet of Thorn, is similarly straightforward in plot, but throws in a lot more intersting twists and features more complex characters. Also, the mysterious language which is driving the plot in Alphabet has a more satifying reveal than the runes of The Bards of Bone Plain, which, like Welkin, are never fully delineated in all their glory. The Bards of Bone Plain is a watery, sweet tea compared to the spicier broth that is Alphabet of Thorn.
I will still buy McKillip's books, as there are many aspects of her work that I delight in. I love her quirky, playful side and did I mention her great descriptive powers? However, I will hope that her future works more fully incorporate all of her talents to create a masterful brew of soaring storytelling.

Patricia McKillip does it again! Unique among fantasy writers for her dreamy prose, her ability to meld complex characterization with original fairytale plots, and her ability to slip in a clever twist or two before the story's end, McKillip returns to form after the slightly lackluster The Bell at Sealey Head (great build-up, terrible climax) with "The Bards of Bone Plain."

For his final school essay, Phelan Cle decides to write about Bone Plain, the mysterious plain-lands where his eccentric father Jonah spends most of his days excavating for lost riches. Dotted with standing stones and the subject of many poems and ballads in the bardic tradition, Phelan assumes it'll be an easy topic with which to complete his education. But he soon finds himself sinking deeper and deeper into the ancient records that recount the history of the bard Nairn, an enigmatic figure linked closely with Bone Plain.

Phelan's discoveries are connected to the Princess Beatrice's own work alongside his father on the plain. Uninterested with the life of a princess, Beatrice spends her days among Jonah Cle's archeologists as they dig up the relics of the old bard school, hoping to glean some understanding of the past. The comedic aspect of this novel concerns Beatrice's attempts to avoid her family's obsession with impending weddings and her disapproving mother's constant threats to remove Beatrice to the more lady-like setting of a faraway relative's house.

But there is a parallel plotline at work alongside Phelan and Beatrice's sojourns into the past. Though they exist in what seems to be a quasi-Victoria period that comes complete with steam-powered cars and garden parties, alternating chapters take us back to the more typical medieval era that permeates the fantasy genre, revealing the actual history of the enigmatic Nairn and his journey from a pig-keeper to the tragic circumstances that earned him titles such as "the Unforgiven" and "the Wandering Bard."

As the story unfolds, these two plotlines begin to merge as the past inevitably rushes up to greet the present. As the mysteries of Nairn's past are revealed one by one, the present-day populace is absorbed with the upcoming competition that decides who holds the position of the king's court bard. Phelan's friend Zoe is the favorite among the competitors, but the arrival of a black-clad traveler from the north throws her victory into doubt. This visitor clearly knows more than he's letting on - more about Phelan's research and Beatrice's archeological discoveries, not to mention more about Bone Plain itself.

As always, McKillip's work must come with a disclaimer to new readers: that her prose and style will catch you off-guard with its dreamy, vague quality. Often it envelops the plot and characterization behind a veil of adjectives and similes that take a few seconds to untangle, but which always add to the richness and mystery of the reading experience. It is best described by K.Y. Craft's exquisite cover art: beautiful and intricate and filled with minute detail that demands close inspection.

There are a few slip-ups here and there: a last-minute romance seems tacked up and out-of-nowhere, and her main antagonist (if we can even call him that) is a little *too* ambiguous for his own good, but for the most part this is vintage McKillip. Her fascination with language, music, history, and the relationship between past and present are well utilized in previous books, and here they are refined and thematically connected into a satisfying arc of exploration and discovery. McKillip's characters are sparkling with life, though perhaps a little underdeveloped in this case, and she never gets bogged down in a quagmire of endless world-building and excessive detail. Best of all, McKillips's novels are self-contained. One does not have to collect a dozen or so books in order to get the complete story - here you will get a clear beginning, middle and end within the pages of a single book. If only other fantasists could be so generous to their readers!

"The Bards of Bone Plain" demands a re-read almost the very instant that you finish it, just to better appreciate the way its interconnected stories and characters relate to one another in light of the final chapters' revelations. Personally, I think it's one of McKillip's most accomplished works, though she has yet to dislodge Alphabet Of Thorn from its place as my absolute favorite.

The Bards of Bone Plain is just so beautiful. McKillip's writing is always so lyrical and poetic, and this one is no exception. I've read many of her novels, and Bards falls in with my favorites. I'm not going to do a plot overview because that is already there in the description of the book.

First off, like previous novels, there are several main characters, but I felt that all of them were clear and had something to add to the story. The novels switched between two different times, but the transitions were very clear and didn't cause any confusion.

The story itself was superb. In some of McKillip's previous novels it seems that the "bad guy" is somewhat ambiguous, and there isn't a lot of tension withheld throughout the novel. This one, however, felt like there was something at stake if the riddle of Bone Plain wasn't solved, and this feeling carried through until the end. There was still a certain amount of ambiguity, but it is ambiguous without being too vague It all adds to the appeal of the mystery.

The big mystery of Nairn's whereabouts and what happened on Bone Plain is weaved well from the novels beginning. I had some inkling of what the answer might be the closer I got to the end, but it was still exciting to watch how Phelan solved the riddle.

One slight issue that I had with the novel is that the ending seems a bit rushed. I wanted a few more answers about the other mysterious bard (not Nairn) and what his motivation was. I suppose, like the characters, readers are left to make their own conjecture about him. I will say, however, it was clearer than some of her other novels.

All in all, this was a great read. I was almost sad to finish it, which makes me happy. Go figure ;)

Patricia McKillip is a must-read author for any true lover of fantasy literature. With a voice all her own, she imbues her work -- both the story and the style -- with beauty, magic, and wonder. Her latest novel, The Bards of Bone Plain, is just as enchanting as I was expecting it to be. I listened to Audible Frontiers' version read by Marc Vietor and Charlotte Parry -- a nice combination.

Scholar Phelan Cle is nearly finished studying to be a bard and he's ready to graduate. He's chosen a fairly easy and unambitious topic for his final paper, something that's been written about many times before: the myth of Bone Plain. Is it a real place? If so, where is it and what happened there to Nairn, the legendary harpist who disappeared during the first bardic competition hundreds of years ago? Expecting to write a rather dull and inconclusive paper (like all the previous dull and inconclusive papers), Phelan is surprised to discover that his alcoholic father, archeologist Jonah Cle, knows more about Nairn's story than the scholars do. Finally, Phelan's interest is piqued, and he sets out in earnest to uncover the past.

Meanwhile, Princess Beatrice, is literally uncovering the past. Much to her mother's embarrassment, Beatrice prefers to hang out in Jonah Cle's underground archeological digs in her dusty dungarees rather than attend palace garden parties. When she unearths a strange piece of jewelry, she starts looking for the meaning of the unknown runes carved in it.

But she's not the only one interested in ancient runes. So is Kelda, the mysterious bard who's competing against all the other musicians who aspire to be the king's new court bard. Also competing is Phelan's friend Zoe, daughter of the palace steward who's helping Phelan with his data collection. During the competition, it all comes to a head as Phelan's research, Beatrice's ancient discoveries, and Zoe's talent collide.

The Bards of Bone Plain combines the arts and sciences (and mysteries) of archeology, music, language, and history, to create a multi-layered story that's sure to satisfy both sides of your brain. I enjoyed the academic atmosphere and the way that Phelan's research paper was used as alternating chapters to present Nairn's story. In the audiobook edition, only these chapters are read by Charlotte Parry so that they are clearly set apart.

The characters are well-done, though there are so many important ones that we don't get to know them all as well as we'd like to. I especially liked Princess Beatrice, who drives a steam-powered car and is always trying to balance her courtly duties with her dirty hobbies. She hates the social events she's required to attend, but she knows that if she pushes her mother too far, she'll be shipped off to the country to live with her sister's family. Beatrice's social blunders and her interactions with her family are delightfully humorous.

If you're familiar with Patricia McKillip, then you know she writes in a somewhat dreamy and fanciful style that, though lyrical and lovely, is occasionally misty and vague. While the plot of The Bards of Bone Plain is fairly straight-forward, McKillip's romantic style shrouds some aspects of the plot and characters in mysteries that are never completely cleared up. This sense of wonder is part of what makes her stories work so well as fantasy. The Bards of Bone Plain is another McKillip novel that leaves the reader in awe. It's a gorgeous story that celebrates the power of music, language, and love.

The Bards of Bone Plain (2010) is a standalone Fantasy novel. It is set in Caerau, a city in the middle of the Stirl Plain within the kingdom of Belden. It is a town with horse carriages and steam trams.

In this novel, Nairn was born in a crofter family far in the past. He loved to sing, but was laughed at by his older brothers. He was set to tending the pigs and sang to them. Finally, he ran away to become a wandering bard, collecting songs as he roamed.

Declan was the Royal Bard of King Oroh. Long ago, he helped his king conquer five small kingdoms and establish the Kingdom of Belden. When he retired, Declan started a bard school.

Beatrice is the youngest child of King Lucien of Belden. Bea is the disappointment of her mother, the queen. The princess would rather dig up ancient things in dungarees than sew or embroider.

Jonah Cle is a very rich and eccentric man. He is married to Sophy.

Phelan Cle is the son of Jonah and Sophy. He is a senior student at the bard school.

Zoe Wren is the daughter of the bard school steward. She is also a senior student at the school.

In this story, Nairn first met Declan is a hovel of a tavern in the far north. Nairn played the jewels off Declan's harp. Then the king's men came and took Nairn away to be a marching bard.

The second time Nairn saw Declan was after the king was defeated. Oroh's bard came to parlay with the defeated king and ordered him to attend King Oroh at dawn. The local king took Nairn with him to the surrender.

The third time Nairn saw Declan was at the bard school. Nairn came into the school looking for food and found a very pretty maid in the kitchen. When he learned that it was Declan's school, he contemplated an abrupt departure, but went to face the bard.

Centuries later, Phelan goes looking for his father. He finds Jonah at the river's edge covered with grime and broken shells. He tells his father that Sophy wants him to go home. He refuses to give his father any money and leaves for his morning class.

While he is donning his student robes, another student asks if he has selected a topic for his paper. Phelan states that his topic will be the standing stones of Bone Plain. Another student points out that the topic has been used twice a decade for five hundred years.

Phelan teaches a class on traditional songs. The seven students take turns reciting the successive lines of a hoary riddle song. After the class, one student asks when he will be taught the secrets of magic.

Phelan goes to the tower for breakfast. Zoe is cooking eggs on the iron stove. Phelan has eaten here so many times that she doesn't even look up when he knocks.

Phelan tells Zoe about the student who looking for magic. Zoe thinks of the times that song has lifted her and suggests that music may have some magic. Phelan agrees and asks that she inform him when she finds any such magic.

Princess Beatrice is busily moving dirt around when a coworker finds a large copper disc in his shovel. One side has a profile and the other has lines like broken twigs. Bea thinks that she has seen something much like it in her father's antiquity collection.

Bea takes the disk to check for a match within the collection. She finds the face, but the inscription is still not readable. She enlists the aid of the curator and he shows her other examples of the face and script. Yet he cannot help her decipher the writings.

This tale leads Phelan to a study of Nairn, the Unforgiven. He looks through old records and songs for hints of the wandering bard. The search becomes an obsession.

This novel is actually three stories braided together. The main story is about Phelan and his associates. The second story concerns the activities of Nairn. The third is Phelan's research paper.

Highly recommended for McKillip fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of bardic songs, historic mysteries, and a bit of romance. Read and enjoy!

-Arthur W. Jordin

Bone Plain has two connected storylines, one in the 'present' and one in the 'past.' The protagonists are Phelan and Princess Beatrice in the current day, Nairn in the past. For some reason another bardic student also narrates pieces of the 'present' tale, but these are mercifully brief. Of the two stories I found Nairn's more compelling, possibly because he actually seemed invested in it, where Beatrice and Phelan came across as detached from their own lives, with the sole, bright exception of Beatrice's dismay when threatened with a summer in the country with her sister's family.

McKillip is an incredibly talented author who writes in beautiful, almost poetic prose. Unfortunately, there needs to be more to a book than that, and this time she didn't provide enough of it. The mystery was obvious to me from the beginning, so it was less a matter of watching in fascination as things unfolded than of waiting in impatience for the characters to catch up. The plot itself didn't hang together. Some things never made sense, and at the end we are left with many unanswered questions. Together those things cost this book a star. Then there was the bizarre, out-of-nowhere romance (and by romance I mean that two characters randomly wake up in bed together). That cost it another. The story didn't need a romance; having decided on one, McKillip should have done it justice. The characters themselves were interesting people. I wanted to get to know them better than I did. McKillip did something here I haven't seen in a classical type fantasy before--she included technology, science and progress. That was a treat. McKillip tends to sit astride the border between poetry and vagueness in her writing--this time she leaned over into the vague side. There's a certain self-consciousness in her work that I find quite offputting, but it's par for the course these days and I've come to expect it from her. The final star got shaved off my rating because so much of Bone Plain is a retread of her other, better, work.

Not everyone finds bardic tales to their taste, but if your life 'is' music and the magic that musicians find in and between the notes, then I do recommend Patricia McKillip's The Bards of Bone Plain.

A mystery? A love story?

"O' The Cursed is Free, the Lost is Found, and the Fool can Play again."

Don't let the synopsis fool you. It is a fascinating, absorbing story; one that takes the reader far beyond the beaten path where words and music intertwine.

I picked up this book on pure impulse the last time I went to the library. I absolutely love the parallel storylines that meet up, and I will definitely read more books by this author. The writing is a teensy bit pretentious in some cases, but I guess I could just call that "poetic". Otherwise, I like everything about this book. I did not find the ending predictable as some other reviewers did, but maybe it's because I'm not used to this author's work. I had a prediction for the ending based on many other stories I've read and heard, and the actual twist was something that I never expected. I also loved the way the story was interesting without completely revolving around the cliches of epic war, saving the world, or romance. The characters were almost ordinary (within their setting), but with a twist. I like those old cliches too, but it's nice to have something different.

I think i have every book she's written and I reread them all. If you like Patricia McKillip or just want a great read I highly recommend this book.