The Sins on Their Bones

Book One of The Cursed Crown series

By: Laura R. Samotin

Narrated by: Aaron Willis, Daniel Chichagov, Robin Wilcock

Set in a Jewish folklore-inspired reimagining of 19th century Eastern Europe, this LGBTQ+ dark fantasy debut pits two estranged husbands and a daring spymaster on opposite sides of a civil war. Perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo, C.S. Pacat, and readers who love deliciously queer, spicy fantasy.

Two men. One cursed crown. And a love that could burn an empire to the ground.

Dimitri Alexeyev used to be the Tzar of Novo-Svitsevo. Now, he is merely a broken man, languishing in exile after losing a devastating civil war instigated by his estranged husband, Alexey Balakin. In hiding with what remains of his court, Dimitri and his spymaster, Vasily Sokolov, engineer a dangerous ruse. Vasily will sneak into Alexey’s court under a false identity to gather information, paving the way for the usurper’s downfall, while Dimitri finds a way to kill him for good.

But stopping Alexey is not so easy as plotting to kill an ordinary man. Through a perversion of the Ludayzim religion that he terms the Holy Science, Alexey has died and resurrected himself in an immortal, indestructible body—and now claims he is guided by the voice of God Himself. Able to summon forth creatures from the realm of demons, he seeks to build an army, turning Novo-Svitsevo into the greatest empire that history has ever seen.

Dimitri is determined not to let Alexey corrupt his country, but saving Novo-Svitsevo and its people will mean forfeiting the soul of the husband he can’t bring himself to forsake—or the spymaster he’s come to love.

An amazing story

I enjoyed this book a lot, the world building is very good, and the characters are very well written. 10/10 from me.

Blown away

I can already tell this is a book that will stick with me for a LONG time. Beautifully written, heart-wrenching and healing, with a side of horror, I couldn’t stop!

Seriously this book just sucked me in. Alexey gives you a true villain you love to hate: a tyrannical ruler, cult leader and Dr. Jekyll all mixed into one glorious package. And Vasily and Dimitri are just *chefs kiss* - their mutual road to healing tugged at my heart strings and never let go.

I CANT WAIT FOR THE SEQUEL - NOBODY TOUCH ME

Highly Recommended!

What a fantastical and compelling world Laura Samotin has created! Fully edible in the book reading mode, this book took me on a journey right out of old fairytales and myths – not the jolly fairytales of children but those of adult human imagination fueled by the multitude of experiences gained by living and surviving in long ago times. This is a beautiful story, beautifully written. The characters have unique individual and multilayered personalities, the monsters are both beautiful and terribly ruthless, and each one believes God is guiding and justifying their actions. Isn’t this push and pull of different beliefs still influencing politics and lives in our modern global times? The belief that one’s “way” to govern and live is the right way, even though that path means death and destruction to humans that don’t agree?
At the end of the book, the author talks about their reason for writing the story and the cultural history of the folklore, myth, and magic forming the basis for their imagination to build upon. This is a beautiful story, but not a light read and sadly, only a HFN ending. (I’m a bit anxious when characters I’ve come to care about are left on the proverbial cliff edge.)
I’ve already queued up the next book, The Lure of Their Graves. I’ll only begin reading it however when my heart can deal with the real-life joy, love, pain, and grief I know I’ll experience along with Dimitri and Vasily and their devoted group of friends.
The trio of narrators, Aaron Willis, Daniel Chichagov, and Robin Wilcock, are absolute perfection in bringing Samotin’s story to life