Bone and Jewel Creatures: Bear, Elizabeth: 9781596062740: Amazon.com: Books

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Bone and Jewel Creatures Hardcover – January 1, 2010

by Elizabeth Bear (Author)

41 ratings

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Dark magic is afoot in the City of Jackals...

Eighty years Bijou the Artificer has been a Wizard of Messaline, building her servants from precious scraps, living with the memory of a great love that betrayed her. She is ready to rest.

But now her former apprentice, Brazen the Enchanter, has brought her a speechless feral child poisoned by a sorcerous infection. Now, Messaline is swept by a mysterious plague. Now the seeping corpses of the dead stalk the streets.

Now, finally, Bijou's old nemesis--Bijou's old love--Kaulas the Necromancer is unleashing a reeking half-death on Bijou's people. And only Bijou and her creatures wrought of bone and jewels can save the City of Jackals from his final revenge.

Print length

133 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Subterranean
Publication date

January 1, 2010
Dimensions

5.75 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

1596062746
ISBN-13

978-1596062740
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Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Into a slim volume Bear packs the kind of intrigue, detailed world building, and passionate characters found in her longer books. Aging artificer Bijou, a wizard of Messaline, remains spry because she works the forge during the building of her beloved bone and jewel creatures. One equinox, her former apprentice Brazen brings her a feral child, poisoned by sorcery, and Bijou fashions an arm of bones and pearl for it. The child, whom Bijou calls Emeraude, turns out to be the opening salvo in a battle between Bijou and her old nemesis and former lover, who has created a plague that is poisoning the city. Bijou, of course, is the only one with any hope of saving the city from this necromancy. In the ensuing struggle, decades of betrayal are finally resolved. Because of the scale of the novella, many things are only hinted in it, so artfully that what are tantalizing glimpses of its world seem much, much larger than the page count would seem to allow. --Regina Schroeder

From the Inside Flap

Dark magic is afoot in the City of Jackals...Eighty years Bijou the Artificer has been a Wizard of Messaline, building her servants from precious scraps, living with the memory of a great love that betrayed her. She is ready to rest.But now her former apprentice, Brazen the Enchanter, has brought her a speechless feral child poisoned by a sorcerous infection. Now, Messaline is swept by a mysterious plague. Now the seeping corpses of the dead stalk the streets.Now, finally, Bijou's old nemesis--Bijou's old love--Kaulas the Necromancer is unleashing a reeking half-death on Bijou's people. And only Bijou and her creatures wrought of bone and jewels can save the City of Jackals from his final revenge.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Subterranean; 1st edition (January 1, 2010)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 133 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1596062746
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1596062740
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.2 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #6,027,017 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #226,658 in American Literature (Books)
- #298,022 in Fantasy (Books)

Customer Reviews:
41 ratings

About the author

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Elizabeth Bear

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ELIZABETH BEAR was the recipient of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 2005. She has won two Hugo Awards for her short fiction, a Sturgeon Award, and the Locus Award for Best First Novel. Bear lives in Brookfield, Massachusetts.

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Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5

41 global ratings

5 star		55%
4 star		33%
3 star		12%
2 star 0% (0%)		0%
1 star 0% (0%)		0%

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Top reviews from the United States

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*Review from The Illustrated Page*

Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2018

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This little novella is probably one of my favorite things Elizabeth Bear has ever written.

Bijou the Artificer is a wizard of Messaline, and she has remained such for over eighty years. Now, near the end of her life when she only wants to create her fantastical metal animals in peace, a former apprentice has brought her a feral child, poisoned by a sorcerous spell. It is the clear work of Kaulas the Necromancer, Bijou’s old enemy. He has plans afoot, and both Bijou and the unnamed child will find themselves being swept into them.

Bone and Jewel Creatures is set in the same world as several of Bear’s other fantasy stories. Most notably, this is the home of Range of Ghosts, the first book in her epic fantasy trilogy, and The Stone in the Skull, a new novel and the start of a swords and sorcery series. While it is a second world setting, it draws heavily on our own world, specifically Central Asia. The cultural analogs range from Nepal to Mongolia to India to Arabia. Messaline is a trading city, similar to our own Silk Road cities. However, you don’t really need to know this or need to have read any of her prior work to make sense of Bone and Jewel Creatures. But the world building is wonderous and gorgeously wrought!

Bijou rends down dead animals for their bones, then refashions the skeletons into fantastical animals, embedded with jewels. She brings these creations to life with her magic, and they serve as friends and companions. Hence, the title. Still, there’s a large difference between Bijou’s bone and jewel creatures and the still-living child she’s given to raise. The interactions between the two are one of my favorite parts.

The child in question is mute and doesn’t consider herself human. She was raised by the jackals that haunt the city’s shadows, and those jackals are her family. Yet, she has capabilities that surpass them, as she is beginning to realize. I love how Elizabeth Bear always creates such vibrant female characters, and she again achieves this in Bone and Jewel Creatures. How often have you read about a girl raised by jackals and a ninety-something-year-old female wizard?

So what makes Bone and Jewel Creatures stand out from Bear’s other work? Why is it one of my favorite? Simply put, I think it’s stronger in plot than many of her other stories, even if it is shorter. The other stories in this world I’ve read are always beautifully imagined and full of interesting characters, but the plots tend to feel fairly standard. Bone and Jewel Creatures might have had a necromancer for a villain (not an unusual choice), but it never felt stale, boring, or trope ladened.

I loved Bone and Jewel Creatures, and I’d love more about these characters! It’s a truly gorgeous novella with a bit of a fairytale feel. I recommend it to anyone looking for an enchanting story.

One person found this helpful

Amazon Customer

Hits all my pleasure spots, and does it beautifully

Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2013

Verified Purchase

My pleasure spots:

1. A thorough grasp of the human condition,
2. An honest, head-on depiction of evil - not a caricature of it,
3. Total absence of GRATUITOUS nastiness,
4. Children being given what they need in a non-sentimental way,
5. Animals being saved - in a non-sentimental way,
6. Old women done well (they're neither witches, nor sages of great wisdom, nor children with wrinkles & ailments),
7. Young women done well (not just martial-art/weapons experts with Barbie bodies),
8. Men (young and old) done well,
9. Neither men nor women being the Source Of All Evil,
10. Neither men nor women being condescended to, or ridiculed,
11. Everyone is not white all the time, or even most of the time, and sometimes not at all,
12. Excellent world-building,
13. Good flow and pacing in the narrative,
14. Good balance between action and complex character development,
15. A poet's ear for words, images, & rhythm,
16. And - that rarest of things - a story without explosions that's nevertheless devastating.

2 people found this helpful

Beautiful but heartless

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2012

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The problem with Elizabeth Bear's writing is that she sets herself a really high bar. I have nothing to fault in the execution or construction of this story, just that it didn't tug at my heartstrings or explode my mind.

The best part of the book was the world, and the magical creations that exist in it, the bone and jewel creatures of the title. Those shimmer against the dusty city. The least compelling part is probably the plot, which hits predictable emotional notes. It's possible I actually yelled "NOT THE MOMMY ISSUES" at my ebook.

Read if: You'd like a viewpoint character who is old, one who really feels the weight of years. If you'd like a viewpoint character who is nonverbal but not unintelligent.

Skip if: You are really not up to reading about maggots, necrosis, or necromancers.

Also read: Love in the Time of Cholera (Oprah's Book Club) for an older viewpoint character struggling with age, and meditating on love, patience, and creepy stalker lovers.

2 people found this helpful

Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2016

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A fun experiment, fascinating characters. I wish the story could have been longer, I enjoyed it so much. Especially good was the inclusion of two unusual character types: an old woman protagonist (a black woman, no less!), and a feral child. In fact, several scenes were from the point of view of the feral child, which I don't think I've ever seen before anywhere else.

The story is paced to match the old creakiness of the protagonist and antagonist, while still engaging the reader's attention and interest. All this set in a world of rich culture and beauty that leaves me wanting to read more. I look forward to reading the prequel!

Great characterization in well defined dystopia

Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2017

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Compelling from start to finish! Bear devised well defined and interesting characters set in a believable class and race stratified dystopia aboard a space ship. I'm ready for the next book in the set.

Visceral and Compelling

Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2013

Verified Purchase

Once you start reading, you are immersed into Elizabeth Bear's world. 'Bone and Jewel Creatures' took disturbing words and imagery, drawing you immediately into the pain and drama of what was happening to the characters, even if you didn't quite understand who and what you were. The characters were full fleshed and powerful, dealing with a unearthly and terrifying situation, which became real and terrifying.

Reviewed in the United States on July 29, 2018

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The story is profoundly disturbing, but well told, and I will be chewing over the themes and philosophy for quite some time.

I love her writing

Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2014

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I love her writing, and this is a lovely novella, but felt truncated, part, perhaps, of a larger work. Or a piece hanging out in her brain that had to be got out, but had not yet a larger context? I am rather hoping for a fitting context for it further down the line. I confess to preferring novel length or even longer story lines. Don't ignore this, but be aware of a feeling of abruptness in the end.

Top reviews from other countries

Miss Kl Parkinson

One of my favorite stories. Bijou is an old wizard who makes ...

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2015

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One of my favorite stories. Bijou is an old wizard who makes sentient creatures out of well, bones and jewels. One day a friend brings her a wounded child. As she helps the girl, Bijou discovers that sinister forces are at work-forces that threaten the entire city of Messaline. Five stars, but it helps if you aren't freaked out by bones.

jobberdave

A GEM

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 12, 2016

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Love the concept

J. B. Egan

A jewel indeed.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 11, 2010

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This is a jewel of a tale by Elizabeth Bear, who writes so beautifully and precisely, I could savour her words all day.A fine and surreally extravagant story told with heartfelt humanity. Alchemical surgery and magical creations face down the bad guys.But does anyone win the game? Highly recommended.

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