Beastly Bones: A Jackaby Novel (Jackaby, 2)

Okay, so I'm working my way through the Jackaby series. While it is interesting enough to keep me reading and totally worth the time, it also is such a mash-up of two of my favorite series, I just have to mention it. If you've read Stroud's Lockwood series, this is so similar, it's almost spooky. Also, this particular Jackaby novel (Beastly Bones) gave me a crazy Harry Potter vibe. Let me just say: big harry loveable character who likes wild animals; nosy, somewhat invasive reporter woman; magical bird that attacks reptile and saves main characters; loveable, quiet character who turns into a wolf; dragon & other magical creatures; vampires. I wouldn't call this book a copycat by any means, but I feel like it is a mash-up of Lockwood and Harry Potter. So, if you like those series, give Jackaby a try.

3.5 stars, but I rounded up because if you've read the first installment, you'll want to read this one. Furthermore, I am looking forward to the third. Upon nearing the end of the book, it seems as if the case was very disjointed, but then it becomes clear there is a mastermind behind the crazy events that happened. It appears this storyline will carry over into the next installment, whereas the first book stood on its own pretty well.The slow burn romance is adorable, and in the professional realm, Jackaby continues to more greatly appreciate Abigail's contributions to the case while retaining his infuriatingly sincere arrogance and quirkiness.

The second Jackaby book has proved to be as charming as the first, if even more verbally anachronistic.  Never mind all that.  As The Housemate quite rightly pointed out, "It's an alternate universe!"  Nowhere in ours do we find cranky toads that spew sulphurous smoke from their eyes, and at no point did Darwin decide to keep secret creatures that morph into the animals they prey on.  Or as Abigail Rook herself puts it, "Working as his (Jackaby's) assistant tends to call for a somewhat flexible relationship with reality."In this volume the two leave New Fiddleham to investigate the theft of a fossil and the murder of the wife of the man who discovered it.  They join officer Charlie Cane, who has changed his name to Charlie Barker (If you haven't read the first book, you won't understand why this made me hiccup with laughter.) after leaving New Fiddleham under a cloud of suspicion.  Abigail is sweet on Charlie, Charlie is sweet on Abigail, everyone thinks they should just get on with it, including Jackaby who is notoriously obtuse about such things.  But before they can, events surrounding the fossil discovery heat up.  You have a lot of people telling a lot of lies, dueling paleontologists, an intrepid female reporter who also thinks Abigail should put the moves on Charlie, and a whole lot of cryptozoology going down.  In short, it's a Jackaby novel.These stories are like potato chips.  I could read one after another and still want more.  They're decently written, funny, fast-paced, but they're not just mind candy.  There are decent mysteries at the heart of each one.  However, in spite of Jackaby being the eponymous hero, these are actually Abigail's stories.  She's a true partner to Jackaby, the emotional heart of each book, and in this one in particular, her expertise drives a good bit of the plot.I've heard a sad rumor that Jackaby #4, The Dire King, is the final book of the series, and I hope that's not the case.  The world Ritter has created is such fun, and filled with so many possibilities that I'm sure he could produce many more adventures.  Still, never say never, right?  I'll keep hoping he changes his mind.  Until then, I have two more to read, and you, dear reader, have a delightful mystery series with which to become acquainted.

Overall Rating 5 Stars-Book Description: 5-Cover: 4-Plot: 5-Creativity: 5-Grammar: 5-Simile Use: 4(little to none)-Description: 4 (well-balanced)The second novel in the Jackaby series continues to follow the eccentric Jackaby and his intrepid assistant Abigail on a new adventure. This novel ties nicely in with the first, thickening the plot of the series along the way. It also gives us a deeper look into Abigail and how she is going to develop as a person. The character development of this novel focuses mainly on Abigail learning how to balance who she wants to be without allowing too many people to influence her. As always, Jackaby is there to guide her but never pushes her in any one direction. We have intense excitement and twists in the plot that you'll never see coming. Overall, Ritter delivers another fantastic read that is Sherlock Holmes meets the supernatural. Bravo!

I purchased this book from Amazon to read with my bestie @mycornerforbooksand. All opinions are my own. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Beastly Bones by William Ritter. When I began this series I was unsure of what to expect. (Another Sherlock retake?) I am pleasantly surprised that Abigail and Jackaby keep you on your toes with their mysteries. In this book they find shapeshifting kittens whose owner dies the next morning and in another town uncovered dinosaur bones go missing from a dig site and traces of a beast are leaving mangled bodies in it's path. Abigail encounters a deadly and dangerous bird that may just lead them to the answers they need.

In true Jackaby fashion, this book does not disappoint. I read the first book over a year prior and when I picked this up to read I wasn't lost and was easily pulled back in to a world where the unexplained paranormal exists and coincides with every day life and right under our noses.Abigail Rook and R.F. Jackaby are pulled into a case of shape shifters, chameleomorphs to be exact. While on the case they get side tracked with yet another case that takes them to Gads Valley where bones have been unearthed, strange deaths have happened and police officer Charlie Cane resides.We get to see more in depth traits on all characters including Jenny Cavanaugh the friendly specter who resides with the detective and Abigail. We also get to see Abigail develop some boldness when it comes to the handsome police officer.I'm very anxious to read the next book and find out about Jenny's death.

‘So often,’ Jackaby said, ‘people think that when we arrive at a crossroads, we can choose only one path, but – as I have often and articulately postulated – people are stupid. We’re not walking the path. We are the path. We are all of the roads and all of the intersections. Of course you can choose both.’I adore the world of R.F. Jackaby and Abigail Rook. The characters, the plot, the writing, and the intensity of feeling – I am in the world, part of it, walking alongside Jackaby and Abigail as they investigate and adventure. The second instalment Beastly Bones only confirmed what I already know to be true – William Ritter is an excellent writer who has created a magical world within his Jackaby novels.Originally, I wasn’t going to write a review for this, it was just going to be a bridge between the first novel and Ghostly Echoes, due for release in August. But there’s something about these books, something that makes me want to say how good they are and how much you should get your hands on a copy.In Beastly Bones the adventure and mystery are different but the feeling of magic is not. The characters remain as wonderful as ever, the writing as beautiful to read. There is a slight feeling of second book syndrome for me, as I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as Ritter’s first, but it is still fantastically written, and I found it so easy to slip back into the world of Jackaby and Abigail.(...)

A case involving a cat who has mysteriously turned into a fish soon leads into something much bigger after the occurrence of a mysterious murder at a dig sight. After another murder occurs in the city, Supernatural detective Jackaby and his assistant Miss Rook are on hand to investigate.This novel carries straight on from the last and, even after breaking off to read several other books, I found that I could slip right back into it with ease. It’s an easy read and just plain fun. William Ritter’s writing is once again of pretty good quality, with good imagery and pacing and well established characters. His style still reminds me of elements of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. (it's a little on the strange side.)For those of you who haven’t read Jackaby, the plotline of these novels is basically a feel of Sherlock, only on a much more mystical and magical level, as the detective investigates cases of the supernatural kind. It’s set in New England in 1892.

Hallo ihr Lieben <3Soooo wie versprochen gibt es jetzt endlich die Rezension zu dem Buch "Beastly Bones" (auf Deutsch: Die verschwundenen Knochen), dem zweiten Teil der Jackaby Reihe <3(Mehr Rezensionen auf Britsbookworld auf Facebook)Und was soll ich sagen? Mir hat der zweite Teil sogar besser gefallen, als der erste Teil und somit erhält das Buch von mir 5 von 5 SterneWorum geht es? (Ohne Spoiler - auch für die Leute, die die Reihe noch nicht kennen sollten)In dem zweiten Teil von William Ritter's Detektiv Romanen mit einem Hang zum Übernatürlichem, müssen sich R.F Jackaby und seine Assistentin Abigail Rook wieder auf einiges gefasst machen. Es ist das Jahr 1892, New Fiddleham, New England. Abigail ist noch nicht lange die neue Assistentin des verschrobenen und wenig zu Empathie neigenden Detektivs R.F. Jackaby. Obwohl sie sich in seinem Haus und den verschiedenen Mitbewohnern recht wohl fühlt, blickt sie noch nicht so ganz durch, wenn es um die Welt geht, in der Jackaby sich zu Hause fühlt.Die Welt des Übernatürlichen!!! Denn wenn die junge Britin auch dachte, dass sich alles logisch erfassen lasse, hat sie sich, seit sie Jackaby kennt, mehr als getäuscht....Und wenn man dann noch eine Katze abholen soll, die sich in einen Fisch verwandelt hat und darauf auch noch ein Mord geschieht, dann ist klar, was Sache ist: Jackaby und Abigail müssen ermitteln und dieses Mal treibt sie ein Fall aus New Fiddleham raus und es geht ab auf's Land - denn dort gibt es nicht nur eine Leiche, sondern gleich mehrere und mit allen stimmt etwas nicht...Was das genau sein soll, was die zwei herausfinden werden und wohin sie dieser Fall führen wird, das verrate ich euch natürlich nicht ;)Meine Meinung: Das Buch bekommt von mir 5 Sterne, da ich das Lesen des Buches wirklich genossen habe. Ich mag diese zwei unterschiedlichen Protagonisten und die Art und Weise, wie sie miteinander umgehen. Der Humor, die kleinen Verschrobenheiten von Jackaby und die ungewöhnlichen Wesen, denen man begegnet, machten das Buch für mich zu einem wahren Page Turner :) Aus der Hand legen? Unmöglich ^^ Und natürlich freue ich mich schon auf Teil 3 und 4, die ich jedoch noch nicht zu Hause habe. (Aber das kommt noch ;) )Ich kann das Buch, bzw die Reihe nur empfehlen. Wer Romane wie die "Flüsse von London" Reihe mag, der wird sich auch mit Jackaby bestens unterhalten fühlen :)

Já falei que sou suspeita para falar dos livros da série Jackaby? Fui conquistada desde o primeiro capítulo do primeiro livro pelos personagens e definitivamente não foi diferente dessa vez! Pelo contrário, aliás, já que, na minha opinião, esse livro foi ainda melhor que seu anterior! Os dois estão nos meus favoritos!Resenhas positivas normalmente são bem curtas, infelizmente. A não ser que eu esteja disposta a dar spoilers e eu não estou! Mas vou deixar claro que o caso desse livro foi bem mais interessante e diferente e que amei muito todo o desenvolvimento e como foi amarrado no final! Os detalhes são incríveis, meu deus! Até o 'epílogo' é muito bem pensado e detalhado!Mas, é claro, a melhor parte ainda são os personagens! Devo admitir que, contra meu melhor julgamento, tenho uma pequena queda por Jackaby e sua falta de tato, me identifico e adoro o jeito desastroso e carinhoso da Abigail e a timidez e o charme do querido Charlie! Adorei absolutamente todos os personagens novos que apareceram, cada um mais único que o outro! Tem vários aqui que eu queria ver de novo! Espero que eles façam aparições nos próximos livros!Por falar nisso, fico um pouco deprimida quando penso que só vai ter mais dois livros! Espero que o autor mude de ideia daqui um tempo e resolva escrever mais vários outros com a Abigail e o Jackaby! Não consigo aceitar que vou ter que me contentar com uma série de quatro só!Super recomendo a leitura, não sei o que a editora no Brasil pode estar esperando para publicar esse volume, que é bem mais engraçado e instigante que o primeiro (com um toque ainda de romance que conseguiu também me fazer apaixonar pelo ship!). Todo mundo deveria ler Jackaby!

I had heard that Jackaby, the first book in the series, was by far the best instalment so I was interested to see how much I would like this one. In my opinion, I think they were both equally enjoyable. There were plenty of interesting characters, fantastical things that happened and further character development. One of the big things I look for in a good read is character development and I thought it was strong. Not only just for the main characters, but for the sub-characters also! I plan to read the third book right away.