Trails of Bone, 2nd Relicant Chronicles book, now out
This past week the second volume of The Relicant Chronicles, Trails of Bone, was released. Written by best-selling author Aaron Rosenberg, it continues the disparate adventures of a warrior, a monk, a thief, a killer, a soldier, and a ruler, each trying to make their way through a world once rich with magic but now severely diminished.
The first volume, Bones of Empire, was released in December by Falstaff Books in print and digital and Tantor Media in audio. It received sterling reviews. Rosenberg describes the series as “Anime-esque epic fantasy,” or a cross between Game of Thrones and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In this world, characters absorb knowledge and memories from the bones of the dead, which is a brilliantly twisted way to gain power.
Bones introduced readers to two young brothers who set out on a journey with little money and only a few of the relic bones called aishone, seeking to make their way in a world. Things become tumultuous and the brothers’ fates are changed forever when they are forced to make a dangerous deal that could lead to their success—or their deaths. Meanwhile the emperor has struggles of his own, as do a young graverobber and a remorseless killer, all of them striving to make sense of their world. Their journeys are not only exciting but loosely connected, and readers will find themselves on the edge of their seats waiting to read the outcome.
One reviewer said of it, “The rich, fun, (slightly dark) world that Aaron Rosenberg writes is a delight to travel to and visit.” Another called it “[a] fascinating story of a decaying empire, a looming war, and the people caught up in the middle.”
The second volume is also available in print and digital from Falstaff and audio from Tantor. The back cover copy reads: “Amid all this chaos an emperor learns about his subjects firsthand, a warrior battles both foes and ancient tradition, a young man tests recently acquired prowess while another learns to rely on himself, a young graverobber struggles to overcome new scruples even as a different young woman with no scruples begins to amass power, a strange pair wreak havoc, and a mysterious new threat approaches the capital.” The book delivers all this and more, giving readers a window into a world thrown into chaos and war, and into the lives of its people and into the magic at the heart of everything.
“In Bones I got to present all the main characters and set them on their respective paths,” Rosenberg explained. “In Trails we get to see each of them starting to come into their own, but also we’re seeing some of them start to intersect. Those connections are only going to increase as the series continues.” The Relicant Chronicles is a five-book series, with the next book releasing at the end of 2019.
Rosenberg is a prolific author across multiple genres and audiences. A founding member of Crazy 8 Press, he is perhaps best known for his game-design work, his tie-in novels, and his snarky character DuckBob, star of the four-book SF comedy series The Adventures of DuckBob Spinowitz.
