Gorgeous photo by @literaryreadit!
Hey fairy fam!
It’s the final section, are you ready to find out how Silver in the Bone ends? I don’t know if I’m prepared…
Today we’re reading from Chapter 38 to the end of the book.
Grab a snack, get comfy and let’s read!
Please be warned, the following section will include spoilers for Silver in the Bone by Alexandra Bracken, from chapter 38 to the end of the book. Please only read on if you’ve finished Silver in the Bone!
-!SPOILERS!-
Tamsin wakes up in a watch tower with Emrys tending to her wound as she drifts in and out of consciousness. She is dangerously cold so they end up spooning to warm her up. CUTE!
Emrys confesses that his scars were actually a punishment from his father and he took this job to finance his and his mum’s escape from him. Tamsin confesses that Nash won her in a card game, thinking ‘the Tamsin’ was a boat.
They share their first kiss!
They discover that the sword only fires for her as they travel through the snow to track the Revenant. They journey along the river and across a bridge, finding themselves inside a dragon carcass.
They find Neve, Cait and Olwen inside a fairytale cottage and Tamsin struggles to process that they cared enough to come and look for her.
The dragon is Caron, the last of her kind and a friend of the Keeper of the Orchards who the cottage belonged to.
The group theorise about how Viviane became the Revenant and they realise they need to cut off her source of magic: the living tomb of King Arthur. They’ll need to either divert the Revenant away from the tomb or remove the magic, which means Arthur will die. What a conundrum!
Tamsin also tells them about her silver bone and Olwen suggests that this could be because she has been touched by death magic. They suggest that the visions she is experiencing are the Goddess talking to her. I need answers about this girl, stat!
When they arrive at the tomb, they witness the Revenant dragging Arthur out by the ankle and throwing him to the Children.
Cait charges on them and a fight ensues. Tamsin is attacked but she manages to cut off the Revenant’s hand that holds the Ring of Dispel. The Revenant speaks to Tamsin through her mind, telling her she knows her but ‘he’ doesn’t know what she is. Umm, what?
Neve unleashes her magic and the Revenant and Children crumble. It seems like we might get a happy ending, until they realise Emrys is gone and he has taken the Ring.
On top of that, when they return to the Tower, the Mother Tree has been burned and the people have been slaughtered. Tamsin searches for Cabell and finds pieces of Bedivere’s armour and a strip of Cabell’s clothing.
They begin moving and cleaning the dead and find Flea’s body, still clutching the missing piece of bone from Viviane’s sculpture. No one here can fix it but Tamsin thinks someone in the mortal world might be able to.
They burn the bodies and decide to do the ritual with just the four of them: Tamsin, Neve, Olwen and Caitriona.
They perform the ritual but it ends in disaster as Tamsin wakes up in the demolished hall with the others. Cabell and Bedivere appear and reveal that Bedivere is actually dead and this is Lord Death in Arthur’s form. The twists just keep coming!
We learn that Viviane was actually trying to keep the Athame from Lord Death so the ritual couldn’t be performed but Tamsin was tricked into retrieving it.
Cabell leaves with Lord Death, joining him because he has taught him that he is not cursed but that he has a gift.
Tamsin hears sirens and peers outside to find that the ritual has restored Avalon to the human world. It’s just casually sitting at the top of Glastonbury Tor, where it was rumoured to be located before moving to its own world.
Tamsin takes them to her old apartment. There’s a knock at the door and she answers it, thinking it’s the pizza they ordered. ! It’s a living Nash!
The last line reveals that Nash wanted the Ring of Dispel, not to break Cabell’s curse, but to break Tamsin’s.
Do you think Emrys has really betrayed Tamsin?
Do you have any theories on Tamsin’s curse?
What did you think of the book overall?
I can’t believe Alexandra Bracken is just gonna leave us on that massive cliffhanger. I need the next book now!
Thank you all so much for joining us for another FairyLoot readalong. I hope you had as much fun as I did and we’ll see you very soon for the next one!
Love,
India
Oh my gosh, that ending. I can’t cope! The audacity to end the book that way!
I want to think the best of Emrys, so I don’t think he’s betrayed her. I think he’s trying to protect her. Because if she had the ring, then it would probably put a huge target on her back. Since you can’t take the ring without killing the previous owner, he’d rather die himself than let her die for it.
I have absolutely no idea what Tamsin’s curse might be! They said that she has a death mark, but maybe it’s more than that. I wonder if she might be a reincarnation of someone important? Could be massively clutching at straws though.
Overall, I loved this book way more than I thought I would. I knew I’d enjoy it because I love Alexandra Bracken, but it still managed to surprise me and make me love it more.
I just can’t believe Emrys would betray her either! So glad you loved this book! ?
I cannot *believe* the nerve of one Alexandra Bracken leaving us hanging after all of that. ? First of all, we now have a kitten. After Flea, I needed something to hold on to, so I’m very happy about that. Nothing better happen to that baby.
1) I refuse to believe that. And even if he did, honestly, I’m not sure I can fault him. Who wouldn’t take any advantage if they could save the person they love most? And better mum than Cabell. While I understand he’s under duress and that Lord Death probably coaxed him little by little into it (I don’t think he’d ever throw Tam under the bus by telling ‘Bedivere’ everything otherwise), I’m peeved at him. ?
2) Only that I was right about Nash looking for the ring for Tam and not Cab. And I’m so glad I was wrong and that he’s alive after all! I knew he loved his kids.
3) I really liked it overall. There were some bits that I didn’t love/needed more work, but it was probably my fave pick of the year so far and I can’t wait for book 2! ?
I don’t know how we’re going to wait for book 2! I still have faith that Emrys is acting in Tamsin’s best interests! ?
I don’t really know what to think of emrys at this point, but I know that he loves his mother and if he took the ring I’m pretty sure it’s more about saving his mother than himself and I would find it hard to fault him for that.
I’m pretty sure Tamsin’s curse does have something to do with the dark of heart and silver in the bone line simply because of the death marks location and her silver bones and it’s probably super bad juju.
I enjoyed the book a lot, it ended up being a lot darker at points than I expected but that wasn’t a bad thing for me, Im looking forward to the sequel hopefully it will be out sooner rather than later!
Yes, it was a lot darker than I expected too but I loved that! ?
i absolutely loved the ending though Cabell HURT!!! you know that meme, “I WAS ROOTING FOR YOU! WE WERE ALL ROOTING FOR YOU!” well… that was me!!!!! i do think Emrys is the secretly good guy and definitely did not betray Tamsin out of malice!! I also love the found family!!!! but Nash????????? i did NOT see that coming!
I do also think Tamsin’s curse has to do with something highly important, like great power was passed onto her when touched!
overall, i absolutely ADORED the book and cannot wait for book 2!
That meme is so perfect for this situation! ?
What a rollercoaster of an ending! The last 50pgs were never ending whiplash!
I hope that Emrys didnt truly, truly betray Tamsin! Maybe the weird voice thing took over him like it did in the tower when they found Merlin. Most likely he determined his Mother would need the profit from the ring to get away more as well as that the ritual would most likely work in breaking Cabells curse. He is gonna have to mend some massive bridges in the next book!
I’m so glad Neve didn’t let Tam push everyone away.
I think Tamsin’s curse connects her to Lord Death somehow. How else was she able to see the silver in the cauldron and survive the death mark? Who knows what any of it will entail but Nash seems to know! Also how in the WORLD is he alive and…younger?!?!?!
I really enjoyed this book, I cannot wait for the next one! This was my first Bracken book so I will have to pick up Lore.
I’m still in emotional pain from that ending! ?
Ummm…what did I just read *screams*
I didn’t predict anything! I feel like I’ve been punched. Multiple times.
Looking back, I can see all the hints, but I just brushed them away at the time, thinking it wasn’t important, smh. Like the fact that the white stone wasn’t at the burial mound, implying that “Bedivere” was lying. Ahhhh! Plus the fact that Cabell was getting all chummy with “Bedivere”…but still, it seems so out of left field that Cabell just betrayed everyone, just like that.
All the death and gore really surprised me O_o And now Nash just shows up at the door. Then it’s revealed that Tamsin has been cursed this whole time! What is going onnn
Ok ok so I don’t think Emrys has betrayed Tamsin because his feelings for her seem genuine. He has to have a plan and something must be going on that we don’t know about. I refuse to believe he left Tamsin alone. But still…couldn’t he have told her before he left? I feel so bad for her 🙁
Ok so maybe Tamsin’s curse is related to the Lady of the Lake? The sword at the lake, plus all her visions…
Literally so much happened in this book! I kind of wish the book was longer, just so we had more time to adjust to everything, plus details and worldbuilding could be more fleshed out. But I totally agree with you: we needed the next book yesterday!
I refuse to believe Emrys really betrayed Tamsin too! ?
1) No, I don’t, but I don’t know what he thinks is so important that he needed to address it /right that moment/. I’m annoyed, but intrigued! It holds promise for an interesting sequel!
2) Either her curse has something to do with her past [her parents, them abandoning her, her /lack/ of a past, her secretly being from Avalon, her being the reincarnation/daughter of Arthur/one of the other Knights, etc.] or with her interaction with the White Lady [though I’m thinking it’s somehow tied to her past.
3) I loved it! Excited for the sequel, and I hope you guys will do a matching, pretty edition like this one is!
We’re so excited for the sequel too! ?
Omg …… I’m still catching my breath. I was my first Alexandra’s braken book and God I don’t know if I love her or if I hate her ?. The 10 last chapter was intense !!!
Knew bedivere was a bad guy !!!!.
I’m sooooo mad at Cabell though.
I cried when they saw the massacre at the tower. It literally broke my heart. Little Flea.. ?. I thought she would’ve survive, hiding in the tower.
Emrys … Emrys, what will I do with you !!!. I was so happy for them. For the proximity they had. they opened to each other when he was healing her. She even told him about the fear of abandon and he still left. I’m mad ! But I do understand his fear for his mother and that he wanted to save Tamsin. He could have stay live 5 mores minutes though.
I need book 2 NOW ! Need to know what will happen.
It’s was a good book, I really like it !! And I really appreciate my sharing with you guys!! My first readalong was a great experience !! ?
So happy you enjoyed your first readalong! Thank you for joining in! ?
I am SO COMPLETELY OFFENDED by the “ending”.
I wasn’t super invested in this story until this last part, what with Emrys and then the girls finally breaking through Tamsin’s cynicism. I absolutely loved all of that.
But then it got SO DARK with how many people died (except apparently stupid Nash) and all of the twisted betrayals. Honestly it felt like a prequel…I could see the next book being about this quartet bonded by love and sorrow going off to save the world, but it means more now because we already have their tragic origin story.
I think Emrys has some ulterior motive but it has to do with whatever weird thing he has going on more than it does with deliberately betraying Tamsin.
I can’t decide if I desperately want book 2 or if I’m just horrified and don’t want any more of this haha.
Yes, there has to be more to Emrys’s actions! ?
I read throught sections two to the end yesterday. I was badly behind and had the whole day to read. I was so immersed in the story that I didn’t even registers the chapters and missed the end of section four.
That cliffhanger was bad. I still think Tamsin is decended from the last Lady of the Lake and I kept wondering where her powers are so that curse is probably the reason.
I totally get Emrys’s motivation and forgive him. I think he will come back and help braking Tamsin’s curse.
I liked how fastpaced the story was. I liked the charcters, I even ended up liking Caitriona even though I disliked her most of the book. There were a lot of twists I didn’t see coming. At some point I thought Bediviere to be suspicious but dismissed those thoughts and definetly did not see the Arthur/Lord Death thing coming or Cabell joining him. But biggest suprise was basically all the Avalonians dying. I hope they find a way to do something about it. Maybe Tamsin’s powers will do it. I need to re-read what the Lady of the Lake was and did. I really enjoyed Silver In the Bone and can’t wait to read book two!
It was so hard to stop reading this book so I completely understand you getting lost in it! ?
I did not expect the book to take such a dark turn… almost everyone dead.
I think we will see Emrys again. I don’t think it was so much a betrayal of Tamsin as it was a chance to rescue his mother.
I don’t have much of a theory about Tamsin’s curse. She has control of the sword and some prophetic abilities. We don’t know where she is from…. maybe originally from Avalon?
I refuse to believe Emrys would betray Tamsin without good reason! ?
How I felt reading those final chapters: ?
I don’t want to believe Emrys really betrayed Tamsin. He better explain himself and get to groveling ASAP ?
I cannot believe I shed tears for “Bedivere” and Cabell ughhh. I had a feeling that knight was sus but not Cabell ?
That scene with “Arthur’s” body getting yeeted?? I have not fully recovered.
Theory: Tamsin is a reincarnation, and she is cursed to have forgotten who she truly is and has her powers blocked.
I had a feeling Nash was still alive, and it warms my heart that he was trying to help Tamsin all along. I am looking forward to seeing her unleashed.
Overall, I loved the book more than I expected. There were parts in the first half that were unclear, confusing, or needed more work. I thought the romance scene was beautifully written, and the emotional moments had me crying. I really enjoyed the final chapters and twists that I totally did not see coming.
But seriously, cliffhangers should be banned. Alexandra, how dare you ?
I still haven’t recovered from that cliffhanger! ?
What?? How am I supposed to wait until the next book is released after THAT?! ? So many bombshells dropped in that last section for a cliffhanger after bawling my eyes out.
Daily Q&A:
Q:
1.) Do you think Emrys has really betrayed Tamsin?
2.) Do you have any theories on Tamsin’s curse?
3.) What did you think of the book overall?
A:
1.) I want to say no & that his bringing the Ring of Dispel to Madrigal (or wherever/whomever) will actually end up helping them against Lord Death, but I’m a bit of a hopeless romantic. ?
2.) I’ve been thinking there was something obviously more to her since her perfect memory failed her & she was having weirdly prophetic dreams.
3.) It was good, I liked it, & I can’t wait for the next book.
I am also a hopeless romantic so I refuse to believe Emrys really betrayed her! ?
Oh my god what a rollercoaster and the ENDING I NEED THE NEXT BOOK NOW.
I really don’t want Emrys to have betrayed Tams like come on she had finally decided to open up to him and he disappears. Please come back Emrys tell me it was just a joke.
I so very much want to know what her curse is. I feel like it has something to do with why she was abandoned or maybe even about Avalon. I need answers though.
Overall I really liked the book and I can’t wait for the next one. I loved watching Tamsin grow to trust others and open up a bit (even if some of that trust was betrayed ;-;). I loved all the twists and turns and I didn’t ever feel like I knew exactly what was coming next.
Also just need to point out how much I love the character art and sprayed edges on this one but not gonna lie seeing Emrys and Tamsin on the cover together after what happened hurts my heart.
So glad you enjoyed the book! ?
Sadly, I do think he betrayed her but I don’t think is all his fault, I get it that he wants to get away from his das and to save his mom. I have absolutely no idea what Tamsin’s curse might be! I’m dying to know more about it, mostly now that Nash was looking it for her and not Cabell so I think her cursed must be really bad. Overall, I really enjoyed the book, some parts weren’t super great but I ended up really liking the book. I can’t wait for book 2! 🙂
So glad you enjoyed the book! ?