4 stars for Dragon Bones (Nia Rivers Adventures book 1) by Ines Johnson.
This book comes recommended by an author in the newsletter that I receive every now and then. I thought to give the book a try since it has been such a long time when I last read an Urban Fantasy novel. To tell the truth, I am not much impressed by the book title and cover. So, it comes as a surprise, when I got hooked to the story right from page one.
The protagonist in the book is a certain Dr. Nia Rivers, Doctor of Antiquities, who has a love of Greek history. She makes her living in ruins all over the world as an archaeologist.
After reading chapter one, if I didn't know better, I will have pegged this book a general fiction on Archeology because nothing in the story indicates that this is an out-of-the-world tale, at least not in chapter one or two. But having known for a fact - based on the recommendation - that this is an Urban Fantasy story, I am excited to read on to discover more. True enough, in no time, there comes subtle hints to indicate that Nia Rivers is not a human. To quote "I took off after him, my powerful legs eating up the ground much faster than any human runner could manage." If not for the recommendation by the author I followed, I would not have ventured out into this book at all.
The story, about immortals and their secrets, is well balanced in terms of action and romance. Interestingly, the book covers a fair amount of Chinese history. It is quite an eye opener for me to read about the Shang Dynasty, the Zhou Dynasty and the Xia Dynasty. I even googled in a bid to learn more about this part of the Chinese history - The Shang Dynasty lasted from 1600 to 1046 BCE, and the Zhou dynasty took power around 1045 BCE. It was one of the longest running dynasties. Most historians believe the Xia was a small tribe in ancient China that had thrived for a brief period before the more well-known Shang Dynasty. The Xia Dynasty was the first of many ancient Chinese ruling houses, thought to exist from around 2070 BCE until 1600 BCE. Yet the actual existence of this dynasty and culture has been debated. Given that the existence of the Xia dynasty is debated, the Shang dynasty is sometimes seen as the first of the China's dynasties.
Now that I have read Dragon Bones, I am keen to continue with the adventures of Nia Rivers, to see where she will bring me to next.
Publisher: Independently published
Publication date: 2 Sep 2020
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Meet Nia Rivers: archaeologist, fashionista, and an ancient immortal with a serious memory problem.
For the last couple of centuries, Nia has been trying to fill in the blanks of her past by shedding light on history's darkest stories. Her motto: the ugliest stories are the ones that deserve to be told the most.
But when a mysterious woman comes forth with a two-thousand year old relic from Nia's past, Nia isn't sure if the story connected to it is one she wants told to the world. Unfortunately, Nia has no choice but to uncover the truth — fast — before a greedy land developer buries the site forever. The fact that he's also an immortal, with a millennia-old grudge against her, doesn't help. Neither do the dark assassins who have been stalking her for centuries, and who've suddenly decided to up their game to end her life.
Letting her enemies have their way might be best for Nia, especially when the truth might expose a horrific crime from Nia's past. But all stories deserve to be told.
Even the ugliest ones.
Even if they say you might be a mass murderer.
*Blurb from Goodreads*
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