A River of Golden Bones

Book One of the Golden Court

De: A.K. Mulford

Narrado por: Vico Ortiz

From bestselling author and TikTok sensation A.K. Mulford comes the first riveting, enchanting book in the all-new Golden Court romantasy trilogy—A River of Golden Bones begins a journey of self-discovery, romance, and adventure for a young heir as she/they comes out of hiding to save her sister from a malicious, powerful sorceress and her dangerous sleeping curse.

A sleeping curse. A fallen court. A secret twin.

Twins Calla and Briar have spent their entire lives hiding from the powerful sorceress who destroyed their kingdom…and from the humans who don’t know they are Wolves. Each twin has their own purpose in life: Briar’s is to marry the prince of an ally pack and save the Golden Court. Calla’s purpose is to remain a secret, her twin’s shadow . . . the backup plan.

No one knows who Calla truly is except for her childhood friend—and sister’s betrothed—the distractingly handsome Prince Grae. But when Calla and Briar journey out of hiding for Briar’s wedding, all of their well-made plans go awry. The evil sorceress is back with another sleeping curse for the last heir to the Golden Court.

Calla must step out of the shadows to save their sister, their kingdom, and their own legacy. Continuing to hide as a human and denying who she truly is, Calla embarks on a quest across the realm, discovering a whole world she never knew existed. Outside the confines of rigid Wolf society, Calla begins to wonder: who could she be if she dared to try?

Full of adventure, love, gender exploration, and self-discovery, A River of Golden Bones follows Calla’s journey through treacherous Wolf kingdoms, monster-filled realms, and the depths of their own heart in this thrilling romantic fantasy.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2023 A.K. Mulford (P)2023 HarperCollins Publishers

Awesome book!

I loved this book! The narrator was excellent. I purchased this because I got a little behind on reviews and I needed to read and the review the second book in the series quickly. So I thought I’d save a little time by getting the audiobook. I’m so glad I did. Listening to the story gave it a depth I might have missed otherwise. I feel like I learned something about myself too. Happy listening!

Such a beautiful expression of inclusivity and discovering oneself

I have been looking for a good, multifaceted adult fantasy for a long time. This book satisfied that need and more. It is inclusive, beautifully written, and narrated in a wonderful way. I cannot wait to listen to the second book in this series.

Amazing A gender novel

This book blew me out of the water it was so unique and amazing I had never had the point of view of someone that didn't identify as one gender and this definitely made me see their perspective in a whole new way.  I absolutely cannot wait for more in the series and more like this book to come out.

Unity was good!

I picked this one up because I received an ARC of the third book and figured—why not start at the beginning? There’s definitely a solid plot buried in here, and I can see why readers might be hooked on the concept. It could have been a compelling read. Could being the operative word.

But let’s talk execution. I started with the audiobook, and oof—the narrator was… not it. Especially when voicing male characters. Painfully awkward. I’m hoping the next book has a different voice actor, or at least a significant improvement, because it genuinely impacted immersion.

The biggest letdown, though? The writing itself. The story is repetitive. Same beats, same internal monologues, same flowery over-description hammered in again and again. At some point, it stopped feeling like storytelling and started feeling like padding the word count. There’s potential here—good bones, if you will—but they’re buried under layers of redundant prose.

If this book had trimmed the fluff and trusted the plot to stand on its own, it could have been something sharp, tight, and memorable. I’m tentatively moving on to Book 2, hoping for better pacing, stronger narration, and fewer déjà vu momen

Wonderful adventure + perfect performance by Vico

I really resonated with this novel & enjoyed the fantasy elements. Vico Ortiz did a fantastic job voicing so many characters, I found the narrative easy to follow due to their dynamic voicing. Great work all around!

great read! great listen! wonderful story!

I loved following calla through her journey of love, self discovery, family secrets, friendships, war & woofdom. redefining each term as she went. she is everything you could hope for in a lead character with a wonderful supporting cast along for the ride.

the good guys were good. the bad guys were bad but all of them had their own story and reason for their side. I loved the world building, Magic, queer characters, and plot twisting storyline. I choose this book for its cover. I stayed for the ending! I can't wait to read the next book!

narration couldn't be better! Bravo!

Fun.

I need more story. The worldbuilding was fun but I wanted more story. Also the villain is a real life villain

Excellent Performance!!

This voice actor really turned into the different characters flawlessly and so much like how I imagined them !

A Nonstop Read

AK Mulford’s writing style hits every single box for me. Her writing feels plot driven while still maintaining the romance. This leads to a story with fast pacing you cannot set down. I adored her Five Crowns of Okrith series and while “wolf shifter” is outside of my normal reading selections I knew this book was worth a shot given how much I have enjoyed her other works. My expectations were surpassed as Mulford continues to write a diverse cast of characters who feel genuine and make you invested in their stories (you will not find heroines who are so tiny and lithe they ought to be pushed over by a strong breeze - a blessed reprieve in this fantasy genre). And while this book does contain some tropes they are presented in a way that makes you eat up the book rather than feeling cliche and predictable. I look forward to Mulford’s further works and to read the next story in the series.

My favorite book I've read in a long time...

The cover is stunning. The story is pulling. The inclusion and fairytale twists just make it that much better. I really enjoyed this book, I took my time listening and got so involved with the story. I loved that it wasn't just smut and had a plot, while letting you get to know the characters before getting spicy. I love the LGBTQ+ aspects of the storyline and it was well-written overall. Definitely one of my favorites.