The Grief of Stones
The Cemeteries of Amalo Book 2
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- €7.99
Publisher Description
Celehar’s life as the Witness for the Dead of Amalo grows less isolated as his circle of friends grows larger. He has been given an apprentice to teach, and he has stumbled over a scandal of the city—the foundling girls. Orphans with no family to claim them and no funds to buy an apprenticeship. Foundling boys go to the Prelacies; foundling girls are sold into service, or worse.
At once touching and shattering, Celehar’s witnessing for one of these girls will lead him into the depths of his own losses.
The love of his friends will lead him out again.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Thara Celehar's adventures serving the provincial city of Amalo continue in Addison's immersive sequel to The Witness for the Dead. Having finally grown accustomed in his role as a Witness for the Dead, communing with the deceased to solve their murders, Celehar is surprised when his employers suddenly send him an apprentice, a widow named Velhiro Tomasaran, and force him into a teaching role. Meanwhile, the Marquess Ulzhavel believes his late wife was murdered and requests that Celehar look into her death. But the investigation takes a turn when Celehar and Velhiro discover an unexpected connection to a murdered student at a girls' foundling school and uncover a scandal that leaves Celehar questioning his life's purpose. Though the ending feels rather anticlimactic, the ride there is thoroughly entertaining. The plot masterfully blurs the line between fantasy and mystery, and Addison turns her brilliant character building to the common folk of Amalo, fleshing out the citizens with heart-wrenching backstories and addressing and ameliorating the world's societal ills. New readers won't want to jump in with this one, but series fans are sure to be pleased.