River of Bones

Destroyermen Series, Book 13

By: Taylor Anderson

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 17 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's Summary

The crew of a WWII destroyer face their greatest challenge yet as they try to survive in a strange new world in the next thrilling book in The New York Times best-selling series.

Commander Matt Reddy and his crew are afraid it may finally be the end of the USS Walker. Ever since their ship was transported to another world, and they became embroiled in a deadly conflict between the Lemurians and the vicious Grik, the Walker has been taking a pounding. With Walker out of commission for repairs, Reddy takes command of a different ship and joins a desperate battle to block the Grik swarm.

Meanwhile, the humans and their allies face a deadly second front in the Republic to the south. All of Reddy's forces are committed, and there's no turning back. Either they'll win - or lose - everything....

©2018 Taylor Anderson (P)2018 Tantor

Not bad, but I don't care anymore

River of Bones is a straight down the middle installment in the series that is getting bogged down under its own weight. The scope of the story and number of characters has grown so large that lengthy recaps at the beginning of each book are now required to remind the reader where all the pieces are.

In ironic contrast, though more sprawling, the story has become simpler and one dimensional. All the protagonists are the same self sacrificing goody-two-shoes copy of one another who keep trying to one up each other on just how noble they are. All sense of exploration into this new dinosaur inhabited world and wonder is gone. What remains for each book is a study on military logistics and achieving a single military objective. The result of all this is that nothing much happens in the first six hours of the story that you would not have expected to happen when finishing the prior book 12.

With that said, the story isn't bad. It's just that after twelve books there is not enough novelty to keep you fully engaged. This is somewhat remedied later on once the fighting starts in full, and the inevitable unexpected setbacks of war bring much need variety to a still rather linear plot. In the end I found it way too easy to stop listening to do something else, and had to exert some will to start back up. It's an ok story if you need to waste some time, but it is not something you'd actively seek out to do.

I said after the last book that I hoped the series would wrap things up with this one. That didn't happen, but I think I'll take my exit anyway.

I find this series incredible !

The details aren’t perfect yet . I find myself constantly pre ordering the next book and wishing that I had come across the completed series . Perhaps 30 books in all . There is something to say for anticipation .

No end in sight

I've listened to the entire series, and "River of Bones" is consistent in tone and quality. I think my energy is just running out-- the endless conflicts don't seem to have a resolution. And maybe the pedantic style is starting to overwhelm me. I may be done with the series.

Still going strong!

Despite being 13th in the series there's still plenty of scope for plenty more. The theme of an alternate Earth or multiple alternate Earths, on the same timeline has practically unlimited potential for new plot twists, and new players on the extensive stage. I love the series, and feel it could easily become a TV Series with a significant amount of CGI, as long as the movie/TV guys didn't try to change it, that makes it a waste of time and loses the fan base. Dennis is the most memorable character because of his unexpected activities and the humor he brings to the series, a balance to the gruesomeness of the Grik and Dominion evil traits and habits. Much thanks to the author and looking forward to the next one and beyond!

This cash cow is getting a little skinny

I was entertained but not as much as the earlier books. The story is being milked just a little to much. The end needs to come soon I think 13 books is to much for this story.

its filler

the action, characters are great as usual but story seems like filler. It just sets things up for the next story. Character growth and actions are limited and not much happens.

the story continues and more plot threads created

This book isn't as satisfying as the last one where we had a sense of closure with the death (righteously done) of one of the lead villians.

Wonderful

I did all 13 twice and can’t wait for 14 and more. Presentation is beyond imagination if you didn’t know better you would believe there were one person doing each character! The characters themselves are super, I so wish I could live in their world, but it is fiction. My only complaint is I guess Taylor is attempting to make every book “stand alone” so for us true destroyer men, there is too much review. We know how we got here, just move forward!

Awesome, it’s been a long time!

I missed this series, and this new entry does not disappoint!

Can’t wait for the next!

Why do they end so fast?

Seems like I just start listening and it's over. Can't wait for the next one.

A good set up for the last section

Another excellent addition to this long running series, the characters now fully fleshed and letting the plot flow

Running on empty

I’ve read/listened to all the previous (12?) books. I like the world created and the creative dynamic of the sprawling coalition and the ingenious plot lines Taylor devises. This book doesn’t work. It’s largely a single long drawn out slug fest that over plays the authors obsession with the mechanics and statistics of naval ordnance. Instead of the usual well developed sense of an alternative world the author falls back on the cliches of the characters he has created. The grand sweep of the series doesn’t get moved on until the final sections with quite a few teasers for the next book. So l felt short changed! I’m always impressed by the narrator as he effortlessly moves from different, races and genders in the space of a few lines of dialogue. Does the author do this for a laugh at the readers expense?

No no stop actiion

Another great episode ,the books get better and better ,loved the pace of the story and the scope of the storyline could not stop listening to it keep them coming