Cry of Metal & Bone

Starred review from August 1, 2020
Penelope's previous titles in the Earthsinger Chronicles series, Song of Blood & Stone (2018) and Whispers of Shadow & Flame (2019), ended with the same event: the Mantle between the kingdoms of Lagrimar and Elsira fell just as the Queen Who Sleeps awakened. Now, those stories come together in an epic, sprawling fantasy adventure that sees our heroes battling everything from xenophobia and terrorism to airship sabotage and corrupt academia as the Lagrimari seek refuge in Elsira. Jasminda and Jack are learning to rule a land of divided peoples. Darvyn is searching for his beloved Kyara. And?because it's Penelope?there's also a sexy romance involving Tai, a blue-haired tattooed pirate, and Lizvette, a prim and proper socialite who wants to atone for the wrongs she's done against her queen. Readers looking for a romantic, inclusive version of Game of Thrones will find plenty of courtly politics here as well as a marvelous medley of world building. Penelope draws on an array of fantasy tropes, ranging from steampunk to medieval, and deftly blends it all together into something entirely original. But Penelope's writing shines the brightest through her characters, many of whom are Lagrimari (i.e., Black), and readers will be eager to see how they continue to grow and work together.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)