The Bone Houses

MASL Book Trailer Winner

The Bone Houses - Abby H. from Marshfield Junior High

About the Author

Emily Lloyd-Jones grew up on a vineyard in rural Oregon, where she played in evergreen forests and learned to fear sheep. She has a BA in English from Western Oregon University and a MA in publishing from Rosemont College. Her novels include Illusive, Deceptive, The Hearts We Sold, and The Bone Houses. 

About the Book

Since the death of her parents, seventeen-year-old Ryn has been scraping together a meager existence as a gravedigger in a remote village at the foot of a harsh and deadly mountain range that was once home to the fae. The problem with being a gravedigger, though, is that the dead don’t always stay dead.

The risen corpses are known as bone houses and legend says they’re the result of a decades-old curse. After Ellis, an apprentice mapmaker with a mysterious past, arrives in town, the corpses attack with new ferocity. What is it that draws them near? And, more importantly, how can they be stopped for good?

Together, Ellis and Ryn embark on a quest that takes them deep into the heart of the mountains, where they will have to face both long-forgotten magic and the deeply buried truths about themselves.

Praise for The Bone Houses

"With ghostly prose... filled with breathless moments and occasional humor... this melancholic horror novel digs its way into the heart.” —Booklist (starred review)

"...both exciting and imaginative. Inspired by Welsh mythology, this stand-alone novel is both a classic quest saga and a page-turning horror story....A required purchase for collections serving young adults, this fine novel will especially appeal to those who enjoy fantasy with more than a touch of terror.” —VOYA (starred review)

"...a new and magical journey, filled with the best parts of a fairy tale. Monsters, curses, love--both slow-burn and familial--beautiful descriptions of an eerie mythical Welsh setting, and a streak of humor make this stand-alone novel a must-read.” —SLJ

"[Emily] Lloyd-Jones (The Hearts We Sold) creates an evocative world of magic...and plays with the conventions of fairy tales and horror.... The story serves as a meditation on the complicated relationship between the living and the dead, combining fear, humor and enchantment in equal measure...” —Publishers Weekly

"Centered around a truly epic journey, with a satisfying ending and slow-burn love story complicated by the walking dead, The Bone Houses is a horror-drenched fairytale. Emily Lloyd-Jones spins wit, longing, and loss into something just as magical as the creatures that haunt the night in Ryn and Ellis's world, and the result is a careful, beautiful examination on the impression love leaves behind.” —Sarah Henning, author of Sea Witch and Sea Witch Rising

"The Bone Houses is a dark and beautiful book, full of magic, as quiet as death and as powerful as love. Lloyd-Jones gives us a beautiful setting full of vibrant characters that's resonant with gorgeously eerie mythology, plus my absolute favorite literary goat. I loved this book.” —Kate Howard, author of An Unkindness of Magicians

"A deliciously monstrous novel, full of the magic of ancient Wales. Reminiscent of Juliet Marillier and Marion Zimmer Bradley. Expect the unexpected in this funny, scary, mysterious, and ultimately unputdownable story!” —Dawn Kurtagich, author of Teeth in the Mist


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