Last year I had the pleasure of winning a signed copy of The Bone Season from Tor.Com. I had no clue what I was getting into when I received it. I had never heard of it before. But once I dived in, I could barely come up for air. Because I took part in last year’s blog tour for The Bone Season, I was offered the opportunity to receive an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) in order to participate again this year. Of course, I said yes.

The Mime Order was no different. I loved it. Samantha Shannon did not disappoint with the story, the characters, or the tension. Although I miss Warden and Paige’s interactions, it was necessary for the overall story. I’m sure we will be seeing more scenes with the two of them in later books. We did get to see more into the Syndicate than we did in the first book, and the introduction of their society and traditions was quite interesting. The one Mime-lord, mysterious, hidden in the belly of the catacombs of London and The Seven Seals, left me guessing who they could be. The end of the book, the very last words, I was expecting for quite some time. I wonder if you all will guess this ending, too?

In the world of SCION, clairvoyants have a hierarchy based on the type of clairvoyant they are.
Summary of the Seven Orders of Clairvoyance

I. Soothsayers – Purple – Require ritual objects called numa to connect with the æther
II. Augurs – Blue – Use organic matter, or elements, to connect with the æther
III. Mediums – Green – Connect with the æther through spiritual possession
IV. Sensors – Yellow – Privy to the æther on a sensory and linguistic level
V.  Guardians – Orange – Have a higher degree of control over spirits
VI.  Furies – Orange-red – Subject to internal change when connecting with the aether
VII. Jumpers – Red – Able to affect the aether outside their own physical limits

Bloomsbury wanted to do paint a picture of our aura. Here’s mine:

While I LOVE the color blue, I do not liken myself to an Augur. I much prefer a Guardian or above. But I still love my blue. Maybe Ms. Shannon can invent a character that can disguise their aura? What do you think?

Last year, I wrote my own version of fan-fiction – a story that ties in with the world, but not the characters. I will re-post it here, but you can read the entire blog post here.

Mind Share
by Jamie Dement (published 8/26/2014)

Cracks in the cement captivated me as I walked along the street on my way home. Step on a crack, break your mother’s back. A game I played as a child, when she was alive, when I was innocent. Now, I make sure I step on every single one of them.

From the outside, our house looked like any other home. A two-story cottage, quaint with its white picket fence. It even had a porch swing. Hedge roses split our property from our neighbors. Everything perfectly trimmed. Neat and clean.

Outward appearances can be so deceiving.

Dad’s home. His car was in the driveway, too lazy to pull it in the garage like normal people. At least that gave me a heads up before I walked in the door. I know what to expect. What’s coming.

I dreaded it.

I took a deep breath before I pushed the kitchen door open. He sat at the table, bent over so only the top of his bald head beamed at me. He didn’t move, even when the screen door bounced shut. Its taught spring always brought it closed harder than it should. Like slamming a gavel down on my sentencing.

I stood, frozen, contemplating my next move.

No matter what, Mom always said, just get to your room. He stops then.

But he never stopped. She’s proof of that.

Ever since we buried her, it hasn’t stopped. He hasn’t stopped. I come home. He’s either there or not. But somehow, it still happens. If it’s not first thing through the door, it’s later when I sneak down to get something to eat. Yeah, sure he doesn’t follow me into my bedroom. But it’s getting there that’s the struggle. Either way, it’s never ending.

I pulled the strap on my backpack tighter, trying to make myself as thin as possible so I could squeeze past without touching him. Touching triggered everything. There wasn’t much room between him and the fridge but I could manage. So long as he didn’t move.

His burly hands gripped the edge of the table so hard his knuckles were white. I stood as tall as my five foot self could and held my breath as I walked by. He didn’t raise his head but a low moan came from deep within his chest. I felt it more than heard it. I knew what it meant. My heart pounded against my ribs, demanding to be released from its prison.

His hand twitched.

My feet tangled as I tried to run passed him, up the stairs to my room, to safety. But it was too late.

His hand grasped my wrist and everything went white.

I drifted alone on a gentle breeze. Catching the updrafts. Swirling in the downdrafts. Floating on a cushion of nothingness. The sky was crystal blue, clear as the waters of Paradise. So peaceful.

But it wouldn’t last. It never did.

“Hello, darlin’,” said Dad.

So it begins again.

The Mime Order by Samantha Shannon
Published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Publication Date: January 27th 2015
Genres:Fantasy & Magic, Fiction, Science Fiction
Format: ARC
Purchase: Amazon / The Book Depository

Add it on Goodreads!
4.18 of 5 stars 4.18  ·  rating details  ·  260 ratings  ·  147 reviews

Blurb: Paige Mahoney has escaped the brutal prison camp of Sheol I, but her problems have only just begun: many of the survivors are missing and she is the most wanted person in London…

As Scion turns its all-seeing eye on the dreamwalker, the mime-lords and mime-queens of the city’s gangs are invited to a rare meeting of the Unnatural Assembly. Jaxon Hall and his Seven Seals prepare to take centre stage, but there are bitter fault lines running through the clairvoyant community and dark secrets around every corner. Then the Rephaim begin crawling out from the shadows. But where is Warden? Paige must keep moving, from Seven Dials to Grub Street to the secret catacombs of Camden, until the fate of the underworld can be decided.

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Follow Samantha on Twitter, @say_shannon, visit her blog, samanthashannon.co.uk and join The Bone Season Facebook page.

Have you read THE BONE SEASON yet?

• Rebecca posted on January 29, 2015
  I loved it it is now one of my favorite books
• bn100 posted on January 26, 2015
  No, I haven't