Still really enjoying this series. This book had a stronger finish than the last one. The world is crazy and interesting. I look forward to seeing where he goes with it next.

( )

Picking up where Bone Song left off, life (or afterlife) for Detective Donal Riordan means having the black heart of his dead lover beating in his chest. Avenging Laura's murder is high on his priority list, but in order to catch her killers he has no choice but to wade into the morass of politics and intrigue that is Tristopolis's governing body.

With confirmed allies dropping around him, a bill to revoke the status and rights of the undead gaining popularity, new enemies, and a sinister, mind altering sorcery - not to mention plain old propaganda - affecting the minds of ordinary citizens... Let's just say the future has looked a lot brighter.

Fantastic second installment - Meaney has a real way with cliffhanger endings. ( )

A continuation of the Universe of Bone Song. So deeply textured, and TECHNICAL-- a 'Modern' world of magic and power with nearly mathematical rules and natural laws that literally cut to the bone if ignored. And it is so cool to have a magical universe that doesn't rehash the tired Mage/Magician & Apprentice vs Evil Demon formulas.

Politics, dirty finance, ulterior motives, international objectives, murder and the settling of scores. And the best part-- Donal isn't finished yet.

This takes the phrase Noir to a new level. I hope the NEXT Tristopolis novel won't be too long in coming. ( )

This is an interesting world John Meaney has created, a world that runs on the power of bones. A world with other creatures, a world that's almost steampunk. It does have a vaguely victorian air about it.

Our hero, Donal Riordan, now has the heart of his undead lover beating inside him, with guilt and a strange echo of that woman living inside his head. He's trying to come to terms with his new life (there's a hilarious sequence about him exploring knitting which made me chuckle being a knitter myself) or unlife. He has abilities that he hasn't fully explored and if that wasn't enough there are people looking to strip the undead of their rights. Add in some assassination and you've got a complex and involved story that, while not being a fan of zombies and most darker fantasy, I found compelling and interesting.

I look forward to more installments and wonder how the author resolves the cliffhanger. ( )

In _Bone Song_, we were introduced to a world where it was always night and wraiths served as elevators and to animate cars and the primary energy source of the city of Tristopolis was derived from the bones of the dead. Donal Riordan used to be an ordinary human police lieutenant until he's shot and his human life is ended at the end of the book. Now he's a zombie, kept alive by the black, artificial heart of his love, Laura, whose zombie life was ended by a bullet to the head at the same time he was shot, in the first book.

Donal now 'lives' to wreak revenge against those responsible for Laura's death, chasing down members of the Black Circle, powerful intriguers and sorcerers who are involved in various conspiracies aimed at toppling governments and gaining power. They may be behind the sudden growth of the Unity Party that is threatening to strip away all rights from zombies and others no longer quite human.

This is full of action and suspense against a background of gothic horror and dark urban fantasy. Readers should probably start with the first book, since this is a sequel that starts when the first book ends and many of the characters return. The plot is fast-paced and intricate. The characters are interesting. But above all, it's the bizarre inventiveness of this world of darkness that is part futuristic dystopia and part dark fantasy and horror where the tech is something out of nightmares that supplies a large part of the fun. ( )