The book itself:  This is full on! So many fantasies and mythological creatures and elements into one book. It was fast-paced, funny, random, and really entertaining. I really enjoyed it and laugh out loud on occasion, which is a rare thing for me. 

It does have all sorts of creatures and magical places into one book. It's got huldras, furaribi,  lamia, fairies, Harvester (death), bloody Mary, bone-spirits, unicorns, a castle in the skies, princes, a red queen and a white queen, a queen of frost, fairyland, fairy curses, goblins. All of that is packed into one book. It kind of feels like the TV show "Once Upon A Time" Where all the fairytales are interlinked and grouped into one world. This has a lot of creatures in one place that normally are not found together in the same book.

The Story: In the beginning, the story feels like there are a lot of smaller subplots put together into one large story. Even the main storyline feels like it could be a subplot in a bigger book. To be honest I'm not even 100% sure which story is the main plotline...  So its a bit strange in that sense, but I'm enjoying all the subplots and the main plot, whatever it is. 

In the end, the main storyline becomes clear and the unsolved storylines provide options for a second book in the series. YES!

The Characters:  Pretty much every single character in this book is morally grey, of different shades. Some didn't even have hearts. Literally. There was no goody two shoe character, but no truly evil either. It was a mishmash of grey wonder

There are several LGBT+ characters in here. No explanation given, no explanation needed. I'm feed-up with characters who always explains why they find so-and-so attractive, blah blah blah. 

For you how needs a list there are gay, trans, and asexual characters in here.

Retz is the main guy and the youngest brother and he's pretty cool I think. It's tricky to get a feel for him in the beginning as there are two characters in one here. He never really talks about himself much and is almost always living two lives, one for himself and one for Nalem. But you do really feel that he is the youngest brother. Even Nalem is constantly taking care of him and telling him what to do. An understanding of him will creep in throughout the book, both through his own actions and through his brother Jarrod's view and thoughts.

It takes a couple of chapters before you get an understanding of who Jarred is. You get a feel for him along the way but when things become clear it all falls into place and I felt I understood the character more than Retz. I really liked Jarrod, but he's got some serious issues. I feel more emotionally connected with Jarrod than with Retz and I think that has something to do with Retz not being himself 100% of the time. Jarrod, with all his problems, is fully himself. He does not share his body with anyone and has suffered alone for many years. Retz is never alone and always has someone there to comfort or tell him what to do. I almost prefer Jarrod of the two brothers. Almost.

Nalem is an interesting character and information about him is drip-feed into the story and his background slowly unravels. I like how he actually cares (a little bit) about Retz even though he's supposed to be this "I have no empathy, die all!" - type character  He does do some shitty stuff or gets Retz to do it for him, but in the end, I like him too.

Ferris I think is my favourite character. He is Jarrod boyfriend and sidekick. He's funny and charming and they have a constant playful banter going. He does have a problem with his memory, which is a subplot in this book. And might evolve into something more in a later book *hopes*

I think I like all the characters in this book.

No, wait. I'm not a fan of Alexander. He is too far gone into the darkness. The rest is lovable

Writing: The writing style is quick and quirky which I really liked. I can almost hear the writers personality through it. That might also be because the writing style when I read it in my head, sounds like someone I know...

The story is written from two perspectives; Retz and Jarrod's. Both are told in the first person which makes it a lot easier to tell apart. It also helps that Retz has internal dialogues with Nalem, while Jarrod has a boyfriend he talks to and is concerned for. So telling the perspectives apart is easy.

The writing is fluid but sometimes chunky. I don't know if that even makes sense to you, but it does to me. There are occasions when I feel a word is missing for the sentence for it to make complete sense to me, but that could be a writing style thing mixed with my level of English (second language but fluent)

Overall: I thoroughly enjoy this adventure and would definitely pick up other stuff from this author. It was funny, very entertaining and full of weird and wonderful things. But I think the main storyline and the book itself could have been stronger. There was plenty of room for more meat on this skinny thing.

Also considering the title, bourbon wasn't even mentioned before halfway through the book... not cool. I don't like beer.

As I said several times already I really liked this book and I hope this will become a series. The is so much potential with this world and its characters. I can't wait to see what the author does next.

This is an intricate tale set in a world where fae are real, possession is a thing, and unicorns run rampant. Two brothers, set against each other since childhood, are tested in increasingly horrific ways. As fan of urban fantasy and sci-fi, this story ran a little too much into the horror genre for me. That said, the writing was excellent and the author did a great job of establishing a world and weaving an interesting story.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.

This book was incredibly strange yet delightful to read, it started off with Retz waking up from slumber to being attacked by a 'unicorn with teeth that wouldn't be out of place on a shark'. Which to me is not normally how unicorns are viewed which I absolutely adored. The story then goes deeper to find that he is inhabited by a demon named Nalem who has power to control bones, which is pretty nifty. I really enjoyed reading this book and this author has a way with words and description. I do recommend this book, just to have a read of something comical and mildly serious

I'm going to be honest I didn't think I could finish this book but I'm glad I did! OMG! Buckle up and hold on for the ride! It's a fantasy with a lot of twists.

Bones and Bourbon was an interesting read. I was a little put off by some grammar mistakes in the opening chapter; however, that improved, and I was then able to get into the tale. I particularly liked the originality of the story, which featured creatures outside the normal paranormal pantheon. I'm not sure whether the author intended me to feel this way, but my favourite character was actually Nalem. Then again, I am often drawn to the bad boys! The plot was action-packed and humorous. Once or twice I wondered if there were too many characters, with too much going on for us to appreciate it all fully, but on the whole the balance worked. Overall, it was a gripping and satisfying read, and the ending certainly left things open for a sequel, which I would definitely want to read. I am intrigued by Nalem's backstory and would love to learn more about what he has planned. If you are looking for a fun MM fantasy read, check out Bone and Bourbon.

This was a well written humours adventure. However, it was sadly just to much sci-fi and fantasy for me. Stick to one community, or one realm or type of beings - don't smush them all together in high hopes unless they are converging together for a reason.
I did enjoy the fact there was very little, if no, romance.

*~~*ARC kindly provided to me for an honest review *~~*

- Review to come

Review originally posted on my blog with added content on Mikku-chan / A world full of words

3.5 stars only because there wasn't any romance. I really liked the main 4 characters but I have to say I really loved Nalem. Retz who is hi-jacked by Nalem, Jarrod the hunter brother and his amnesiac boyfriend Farris. Alexander, the brother's father, & the Harvester, Nalem's father, not so much. I would have liked a little more world building. We have quests, curses, evil unicorns and a evil paranormal who is kidnapping other paranormals and showing them off in a zoo/circus like conditions and selling some to the highest bidder. There were several places that made me laugh out loud. Things don't seem settled by the end of the book and feels more like this is the beginning to a series. If so, I would continue on as again I really liked the characters.

This book is so very confusing.
It starts off the guy wakes up while driving and has a amputated unicorn head gnawing on his arm... Am I tripping balls? Or is he? Then it turns out he's possessed by *something* I'm not quite sure what.

Getting theough that mess, I thought I could like Retz, he seems kind of funny,but then this error happened and I'm completely like "WTH is going on!?"
I'm brow is so furrowed I'm getting a headache. So here it goes:
Location 100 - 2% Retz's mother, Etica is reading him a note that his possessor, Nalem, wrote to her about taking her son for a joyride. (creepy)
Then in location 272-6% Retz goes on to say he hasn't seen or spoken to Erca, his mother in 10 years. He was JUST on the phone with her last chapter!!

I'm sorry, but this book needs some editing, that's a pretty major deal breaker and I'm pretty sure there's going to be a lot of confused people when they read that.

This is, unfortunately, a DNF for me.
I

This one jumped ahead of 10 other books so first impression was damn good from the blurb. The title jumps out and there’s a lot going on in the cover artwork. So yeah I happily jumped to read this one. From the words attacker and unicorn head, I was hooked. Nalem had me in stitches and that was only the first chapter. The plot is genius and the character creation more so. Nalem the psychopath stuck in another body. Retz hi-jacked and stuck with the fallout, Jarrod the hunter brother and his amnesiac boyfriend Farris. Each one brought more than their own share to the story. Immediately I loved Nalem and Retz. Jarrod took a bit of getting used to since he was classic drunk and his gender confused me for a while. But by the end I felt the same about all four.

I loved how many unicorns died in this story. My mom loves em so everywhere I look damn unicorn stuff. The bone thing was awesome. Creepy but awesome. I don’t think there was a single thing I didn’t like about this story. Strong themes of family and estranged relationships between parent and child. Plenty of violence, crossing, double crossing and strangeness. The harvester was my second favourite character. I wanted to see what Erika would do to Nalem. A lot of unanswered questions so really hoping there is more. Even better than I expected.

A well-written humorous action adventure! 'Bones and Bourbon' begins with two seemingly separate quests which reunite the Gallows brothers before long; though with opposing goals. Various supernatural creatures are featured in this hysterically funny tale of the brothers' misadventures.

Perfect for fans of Christopher Moore!

Look for 'Bones and Bourbon' releasing April 23rd.

I voluntarily read a Review Copy of this book. All opinions stated are solely my own and no one else’s.