Doll Bones - Holly Black

Doll Bones
Holly Black
Margaret K. McElderry Books
an imprint of
Simon and Schuster
ISBN 9781416963981

From the second I saw the cover of this book there was something that compelled me to track it down and read it. It was likely a combination of being a big fan of Holly Black's works and something about the cover made me think about the book Children by Maggie Clark. And this book did not disappoint. This book was my top pick in the second quarter of 2013 and my second top fiction read in all of 2013. But that being said it had taken me a long time to circle back and write my review. In part I was hesitant because the book had such a strong impact I did not want to over react in my praise of it. And in part the book is different enough I was unsure how to approach writing a review of it. The story is dark, spooky, a little creepy and a whole lot of awesome.

Poppy, Alice and Zach have been friends for a log long time. And for most of their friendship they have played 'The Game' a continuous and continuously changing game. They use props for the game and take turns deciding what happens next, it is a high adventure of thieves, mermaids, pirates and more. But ruling over all the lands is the Great Queen, a bone china doll, who resides in a display case. The Great Queen will curse and dispose of those who displease her in the game. When Zach suddenly stops playing and declares the game over mid adventure it looks like their friendship might be at an end also. But Poppy lets the others know she has been dreaming about the Queen, and soon the game and reality seem mixed and the three going on a real adventure to help put a restless spirit to rest.

 The story was a very compelling read. Almost like a campfire ghost story coming to life. Something to entertain that ends up scaring. It was very well written. If you are a fan of Black's other works it is a great addition to her canon. If you like a spooky story this one will grab you and not let go!

Other Books by Holly Black:
The Poison Eaters and Other Stories (2010)
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown (2013)
Doll Bones (2013)

The Modern Faerie Tales
Tithe (2002)
Valiant (2005)
Ironside (2007)

The Spiderwick Chronicles
The Field Guide (2003)
The Seeing Stone (2003)
Lucinda's Secret (2003)
The Ironwood Tree (2004)
The Wrath of Mulgarath (2004)
Arthur Spiderwick's Notebook of Fantastical Observations (2005)
Arthur Spiderwick's Field Guide to the Fantastical World Around You (2005)
Care and Feeding of Sprites (2006)

Beyond Spiderwick
The Nixie's Song (2007)
A Giant Problem (2008)
The Wyrm King (2009)

The Good Neighbors
Kin (2008)
Kith (2009)
Kind (2010)

The Curse Workers
White Cat (2010)
Red Glove (2011)
Black Heart (2012)

Anthologies
Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd (2009)
Zombies vs. Unicorns (2010)
Welcome to Bordertown (2011)