The Bonemender's Oath

Emily Walters Gregor is a graduate student in 20th-century American
literature and an ESL writing tutor at the University of Minnesota.

This sequel to Bennett’s first novel, The Bonemender (2005), continues
the story of Gabrielle, a half-elf with a gift for healing, and her
brother Tristan, a prince busy defending his people from nearby warring
civilizations. One storyline has Gabrielle journeying to meet her Elvish
ancestors, with a young companion from an enemy tribe whose life she has
saved; the other shows Tristan’s efforts to protect his fiancée and
her family from the threats of a cruel, wealthy merchant. The two
stories intersect at the end.

Bennett follows a familiar but well-constructed set of events and
characters common to fantasy novels: heroism abounds, and is accompanied
by swordfights and magic. Both female and male characters perform their
fair share of clever feats. The book is an engaging and enjoyable read,
but does suffer from a few shortcomings. The characters have virtually
no flaws, and their consistent success and heroism stands in the way of
internal conflict or growth that might complement the action-oriented
plot. This also means that readers have few opportunities to identify
with or learn from the characters. And, most significantly, the story
draws on a complicated mythology and history developed in the first
novel. Though several scenes of exposition attempt to fill in the
background, this novel is really meant to be a sequel, and proves
somewhat challenging to follow if you haven’t read the previous
instalment. Recommended with reservations.