Literature / The Bone Witch

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A Dark Fantasy Young Adult trilogy by Rin Chupeco, set in the Eight Kingdoms, a world where terrifying monsters known as Daeva periodically awaken from their slumber and rampage. Daeva can be fought only by those with great magical power; most commonly, by elemental witches known as Asha or elite soldiers called Deathseekers. Only the rare Dark Asha, or Bone Witches, can mentally control Daeva; Dark Asha are therefore considered the ideal Daeva-slayers, despite their low numbers.

The books are narrated by Tea, an exiled Dark Asha who summons a wandering bard to hear her tale. The story mainly consists of Tea's recollection of her work as an Asha and fall into darkness, with Flash Forwards between chapters depicting Tea's present-day fight to fix the broken elements of the Asha system and Eight Kingdoms society, by brutal means if necessary.

The first book, The Bone Witch, was released in 2017; it details Tea's training as an Asha and her struggle to understand both her powers and the intricate workings of Asha society. The second book, The Heart Forger (2018), focuses on Tea and her friends' efforts to fight the evil Faceless and their machinations, with additional focus on romance and Tea's exploration into the darker side of her powers. The third book, The Shadowglass, is slated for release in March of 2019.

Tropes present in this work:

• Aerith and Bob: The books use a mix of fantastical names (Altaecia, Telemaine) and real-world names from various cultures (Ludvig, Inessa). Fox and Tea are a special case, as their names and all their siblings' names are proper nouns.
• Beneath Notice: The hidden Faceless leader Aenah turns out to be Kana, one of the Valerian’s maids.
• Berserk Button:
  • Insulting Lady Mykaela is Tea's.
  • Don't threaten Prince Kance in front of Kalen.
• Black-and-Gray Morality: The Faceless are unambiguously evil, but the Asha elders' actions and motivations become increasingly suspect as the series goes on, and Tea herself evenually becomes a brutal Unscrupulous Hero.
• Child Soldiers: The Deathseekers. They start training (and fighting) at thirteen, many don't survive the training, and enlistment is mandatory for any boy with a silver heartsglass (in Kion at least).
• Costume Porn: Personal appearance is one of the most important aspects of being an Asha, and the text goes into great detail describing the characters' clothing, hair ornaments, and makeup.
• Cultural Chop Suey: Applies to the setting as a whole, but the cosmopolitan Kion is the strongest example; the food, clothing and customs are a mix of Asian and European cultures. Most other kingdoms exhibit Fantasy Counterpart Culture to some extent.
• Expy: Quite a few of the characters are very similar to those in Memoirs of a Geisha, with Tea being Chiyo/Sayuri, Mykaela being Mameha, Mistress Pashmina being Mother, Zoya being Hatsumomo, and so on.
• Family Theme Naming: Tea's sisters are named Rose and Lilac, while her brothers are named Wolf, Hawk, and Fox. Tea is the Odd Name Out, since her mother got tired of the theming.
• Fantasy Counterpart Culture: The less Cultural Chop Suey-exhibiting kingdoms are this in a broad sense; Drycht and Daanoris are Middle Eastern and East Asian analogues, respectively, while Istera and Tresea are based on Scandinavia and Russia. These kingdoms still draw from disparate real-world cultures—the second book contains a European-style dance ball in a Daanorian palace.
• Foregone Conclusion: The Flash Forward Framing Device reveals various plot points in the main story; most notably, Tea will eventually become an Anti-Hero estranged from the other Asha and will end up with Kalen, who will die at some point. However, the means by which these events come to pass, as well as the fate of many characters, aren't revealed at the end of the first book.
• Heroic RRoD: Mykaela putting down Daeva carves chunks out of her lifespan, and she spends most of the book having to rest after putting down one or another. Seeing the way the other asha use her makes Tea determined to be never overworked as she was.
• Honor-Related Abuse: Drycht allows fathers to kill their daughters for perceived dishonor, under the rationalization that every day they live only worsens the "betrayal". The Bard's love was killed by her father and the legal system backed him up, which is why Tea recruits him: they both know what it means to lose someone to a corrupt system.
• I Can Rule Alone: When confronted, Aenah tries to convince Tea to work with her by promising her secrets about her magic. Tea agrees, and then makes her into her familiar, forcing her to give them up. She agrees that the Asha are corrupt, but as far as she's concerned the Faceless are worse.
• Jackie Robinson Story: Likh is a boy who wants to be an asha rather than a Deathseeker. Tea secretly helps him learn to dance so he can present himself at the darashi oyun and make his case to the elders. Later books reveal that she is actually a trans woman, but it still counts as she has to overcome those barriers to be considered equal to cis asha.
• Jerk with a Heart of Gold:
  • Zoya is introduced playing a mean prank on Tea and Shadi and is rude and condescending overall, but when push comes to shove she helps smuggle the others out of the book to face the azi.
  • Kalen is a giant jerk to Tea, but he is very devoted to Prince Kance and it's eventually revealed he's afraid she'll hurt him. He eventually realizes that his prejudice against Dark asha was wrong and apologizes to her.
• Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: Any Asha who fights counts as this, as Asha are expected to wear gorgeous, setting-appropriate clothing for any occasion.
• Necromancer: Dark Asha have the power to bring people, animals, and Daeva back from the dead, though they can't revive anyone with a silver heartsglass. Tea is eventually able to, but only after her heartsglass turns black.
• Non-Malicious Monster: When she shares a mind with it, Tea realizes that the azi just wants to be left alone, and was forced into attacking by the Faceless.
• Pronouncing My Name for You: Tea has to pronounce her name "Tey-ah" for some Yadoshan guests. Since all of her siblings have object names, it also serves to inform the reader that her name isn't literally "tea".
• Red Herring: Zoya is heavily implied to be the secret Faceless throughout the book, but it's actually Kana. This goes so far as to have a climactic scene where Tea confronts the former with proof of her treachery, only to reveal that the whole thing was a set up so they could all ambush Kana, revealed as Aenah.
• Satanic Archetype: Hollow Knife/The False Prince, who created the destructive Daeva and is worshipped by the Evil Sorcerers the Faceless. Though it's hinted, albeit by a villain, that things may not be so black and white.
• Satellite Character: A justified example in Fox, as Tea raised him from the dead, so he is magically bound to her and since she's both his familiar and younger sister, his entire (sort of) life revolves around protecting her.
• Serious Business: Many Asha make their living primarily by singing and dancing, and are held to a very high standard by their asha-ka (houses). The Asha-ka also rely heavily on the proceeds from these performances, which is part of why they're taken so seriously.
• Sibling Team: Tea, the Dark asha, and Fox, her familiar that is also her resurrected brother.
• Spot the Thread: How Tea finally finds the Faceless in the first book. Kana kept using Yadoshan slang when her backstory is that she came from Tresea. Also counts as subtle Foreshadowing.
• Those Two Guys: Kana and Farhi, the two maids at the Willows. The main distinction is that Farhi is Drychta and thus disapproves of Asha even though she works for them. And that Kana is a secret Faceless.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Dark Asha are feared due to their necromantic powers, but are still needed to fight Daeva, which leads to a lot of people mistreating them one minute only to demand their services the next. This fuels Tea's resentment against them.
• We Used to Be Friends: Zoya and Shadi used to be childhood friends before Shadi was accepted into Willows and Zoya wasn't.
• Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?: Fox, Tea, and their brothers Wolf and Hawk. Tea's explanation is that her mother had high expectations of her children, and had abandoned flower names by the time Tea came along.