Of His Bones

Tracey Scott-Townsend

Mar 2017 · Inspired Quill

About this ebook

“Gabe and I are happy this way. We don’t need anyone else in our lives.”

Mariana feels like a pawn in other people’s games. Her birth mother is ill and opportunities for them to be reconciled are running out.

Despite being adopted, Mariana has always felt secure with who she is. But both sides of her birth family are now closing in, and whatever she decides will irrevocably alter many lives; most of all the man and woman who created her.

Of His Bones is about predestination and choices. It explores themes of familial love, identity and the powerful hold of the past. Set in the seascapes of East and North Yorkshire, this novel is the sister-book to The Last Time We Saw Marion.

Ratings and reviews

This is my third book by Tracey Scott-Townsend in a month, and the standalone sequel to The Last Time We Saw Marion (which I recently reviewed), with some of the same characters and a continuation of the story around the fictional, remote village of Pottersea, an Blackberry House. In all honesty, had I not read the other book first, there would have been a few lingering questions, but on the whole, Of His Bones works perfectly well as a standalone novel. The way the author described the scenery around Pottersea was so crisp and vivid, that I felt I could envision every scene, every conversation, every wave crashing against the shore, every step in the harsh wind and rain. Simply beautifully written. It sounds like the kind of place I want to go with my dogs in my campervan. If I had to find any minor criticism, it would be the juxtaposition of the names Marianne, Marion, Maria, and Mariana. One two occasions, I had to go back a number of chapters to make sure I hadn’t confused the names when things stopped making sense. But the link between the names is undeniably important to the story. I liked most of the characters, and even those to whom I initially took a dislike. Their prickly personalities were understandable and, in many ways, completely excusable. Maria is distraught that the daughter she put up for adoption at six months old, refuses to have any contact with her once she is 18 despite her attempts at reaching out. Mariana’s happy with her family. As far as she is concerned, the couple who adopted her are her real family, and she doesn’t want any contact with the woman who abandoned her. The families came crashing together several times, becoming linked permanently, changing them forever. Not many books can elicit a real emotional response from me, but this book did exactly that. Another example of the author’s skill at writing. I think this was an improvement on it’s predecessor, and I’m happy to recommend it to any reader of beautifully written fiction. I’ll add the recommendation to read The Last Time We Saw Marion first, if only for better context and backstory. I gave Of His Bones, by Tracey Scott-Townsend five stars.

About the author

Tracey Scott-Townsend is the author of uncompromising family dramas which delve into often uncomfortable aspects of relationships of all kinds, but motherhood is frequently at the heart of her stories. Sense of place is also important. Three of her books feature the Humber Estuary in East Yorkshire, where she lived for a year when she was young. Tracey writes in her shed in the garden, warmed by the wood stove. She and her husband frequently take to the road with their dog, Riley, in a van which also has a wood stove. They go to wild places. Tracey's favourite is the Outer Hebrides, the setting for a future novel. Tracey is the mother of four grown children. She is also editorial director of Wild Pressed Books, a small publishing company she runs with her husband Phil Scott-Townsend. They published their first three books in 2016, one of which is Tracey's third novel, The Eliza Doll. Of His Bones, her fourth, marks a return to publication with Inspired Quill.