Trained warriors kill loudly. We kill silently. And that is how you hunt a beast.
Frey yearns for a life worthy of saga and song. But she is a Boneless Mercy, a member of an ancient female sect that has survived the rising and falling of kingdoms.
Mercies are death-traders, doomed to roam Vorseland killing the old or the sick for meager pay. Their methods are quiet, even merciful, yet wherever the seasons lead them, their daggers inspire unease. Frey and her band of Mercies--Ovie, Runa, and Juniper--are weary of the death trade and dream of a bigger life. So when Frey hears that a beast is slaughtering people in a northern jarldom, she decides that killing it is the Mercies’ chance at fame and fortune, even if it means they must align with the reclusive Sea Witches and face the ruthless Cut-Queen of the Red Willow Marsh. Their success—or failure—might change the fate of women everywhere.
"The Boneless Mercies feels like a cathartic war cry advocating for the power of girls and women…A dynamic critique of the hero's journey: Who is granted honor and glory, and at what cost does it come? …A deeply feminist update to its source material." --The New York Times
Publisher Weekly's best of 2018
The B&N Teen Blog’s Favorite YA Books of 2018
Tor.com Best Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2018
Earphones Award Winner for best audiobook
Green Mountain Book Award list 2019-2020
The Best Books that Feature Heroic Female Leads
"These fierce, honorable adolescent female warriors hold their own and break all the rules. Wow."
--Kirkus, Starred Review
"Tucholke injects close intimacy into her lush saga, interweaving love and murder, mercy and glory into her portrayal of life and death. It is a beautiful, haunting modern-day epic that stars a bold and resourceful sisterhood of heroines unafraid to claim agency."
--Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
"Frey embodies the pursuit of glory through a quest to become a hero remembered in story and myth. Fans of The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings will find similar themes and elements. This is a must-have for avid fantasy readers who enjoy action-packed plots. VERDICT An excellent choice for any YA fantasy collection."
--School Library Journal, Starred Review
"Frey’s earnest narrative voice creates a strong sense of the center of this fantasy: female solidarity. Bodily closeness, a shared quest for justice, and sheer joy in physical capacity are only part of it: collaboration and attentive respect are the true underpinning of Tucholke’s creation. This is the quiet force behind a plot of conquest and adventure, and of the diverse religions, cultures, terrains, and tales that make up Tucholke’s invented world. A dark and vivid story, with what-happens-next? momentum."
--The Horn Book
”Fierce and glorious, this story of outcast girls defying fate utterly bewitched me. Tucholke is a gorgeous writer."
--Laini Taylor, New York Times-bestselling author of Strange the Dreamer
"The Boneless Mercies maintains the mystical, haunting flavor of an ancient ballad across the length of a novel. Its every page hints at a deeper magic at work; it contains a whole world and all its myths and histories within its skin."
--Melissa Albert, New York Times-bestselling author of The Hazel Wood
"Ruthless and lyrical, heart-warming and blood-chilling, and beautifully redolent of ancient tales and history. It will sing to a new generation of heroes."
--Samantha Shannon, New York Times bestselling author of The Bone Season