Priest of Bones

War for the Rose Throne, Book 1

By: Peter McLean

Narrated by: John Lee

The war is over, and army priest Tomas Piety heads home with Sergeant Bloody Anne at his side. But things have changed while he was away: His crime empire has been stolen, and the people of Ellinburg - his people - have run out of food, hope, and places to hide. Tomas sets out to reclaim what was his with help from Anne, his brother, Jochan, and his new gang: the Pious Men. But when he finds himself dragged into a web of political intrigue once again, everything gets more complicated.

As the Pious Men fight shadowy foreign infiltrators in the back-street taverns, brothels, and gambling dens of Tomas' old life, it becomes clear: The war is only just beginning.

©2018 Peter McLean (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"The first in an unmissable series, Priest of Bones is a fresh and compelling take on grimdark fantasy. Mashing together soldiers, gangsters, magic and war into a heady mix that is a hulking big brother to The Lies of Locke Lamora." (Anna Stephens, author of Godblind)

Unexpected and original

The world felt real to me and lived in
And the characters Relatable and endearing

This book was the love child between Godfather and Robin Hood and a touch of blackmail

Broken People

Thomas Piety returns from one war to fight another. The characters are not compelling or original, but the author uses the archetypes to their fullest.

Familiar but well done

This book is at some points a 1 to 1 screen to print retelling of Peaky Blinders. However, it brings enough to the table for it to hold it’s own as a solid book.
If you enjoy low/grim fantasy settings and gangster mob stories, this is the book for you. It’s also narrated extremely well.

I loved it

I've followed Peter McLean for a while now on social media because he's smart and he's funny, but I took a woefully long time to read one of his books. I hesitated because I thought something called "grimdark" might be too dark for me. But I shouldn't have hesitated because it wasn't too dark. And just like Peter's social media posts, "Priest of Bones" is both smart & funny.

"Priest of Bones" is about Thomas Piety, the leader of a criminal gang called the Pious Men. Before the war, Thomas controlled the typical assortment of organized crime businesses like brothels, taverns, and gambling dens in an industrial city called Ellinberg. But along with every other man between under the age of 40, he was conscripted into the army to fight in a brutal war that lasted three long years. He survived, but like most veterans, he was left with some deep emotional scars.
At the beginning of Priest of Bones, the war is over at last and Thomas heads home, determined to pick up where he left off. But he returns to the city to find that another gang had stolen his turf and there's nothing left of his once prosperous criminal enterprise. So, with the help of his sergeant, Bloody Anne, and his crazy brother, Jochan, Thomas sets about the task of taking back his businesses.

What follows is the fast-paced, exciting, and fun story of how Thomas methodically and brutally reclaims his territory, one illicit business at a time. The keys to his success are putting the right man (or woman) in the right job, enforcing his zero-tolerance policy for violence against women and child abuse and retribution for incursions into his territory. Anyone who steps over those lines will face harsh justice.

This story is told in first person from Thomas's point of view. He's got a unique and very distinctive voice. Even though he's a foul-mouthed and ruthless criminal who wouldn't hesitate to cut someone's throat when the need arises, I love Thomas Piety.

I highly recommend this audiobook, not just for the story, but also for the excellent narration by John Lee. He was able to give each character a very distinctive voice. It was also refreshing to listen to a book that was done with a Yorkshire accent (similar to Sean Bean) rather than a London accent.

An entertaining listen

Found this a bit refreshing. The hero is basically a mob boss with a bit a honor. A bit meaning he won't kill you just because, but he will kill you if you need killing.

A Sly And Engrossing Novel

A fantastic performance for a captivating novel. A must have for the genre. No reader will be disappointed. On par with The First Law series.

Now this is a must read! 5 Stars

I picked this up because of John Lee and I was not disappointed with the story or narration. This was nothing less than a masterpiece that I have been overlooking all this time. I know they say the narrator doesn’t add much to the books, but those were the old days. Now I look at the narrator especially if I listen to the sample and read the little synopsis and can’t tell if I like it, they make the final call for me. John Lee caused me to pick this up and he carried the story with his narration, but the story was majestic in its own way. This story caused me to be so focus and drawn in that I purchased all 4 books right after finishing the first half of this one. I was locked in, and I normally don’t do that. The only bad thing is that they didn’t have John Lee do the last two books, but the story was still enchanting from chapter 1 book 1 to the last.

PS: This isn’t a children’s book, it’s dark and real with the violence, which is woven in to make it seamless, which I love.

A great book for a slump

I can really drag my feet with new books, especially the start of a new series, but this story gripped right away. It is very much “Peaky Blinders but fantasy”- but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. It felt a little familiar, and made it easy to jump in. I’m in the middle of the third book in the series now, and can confidently recommend diving in. I cant wait to listen more tomorrow.

Fantasy version of Peaky Blinders

If you took the script for Peaky Blinders and rewrote a fantasy version you would get War for the Rose Throne.
And this is not a bad thing. Peter McLean writes in all the grit and attitude of Peaky Blinders with several familiar plot lines. Small family crime business. Brothers back from the war. Ambitious brother wanting to make it bigger. Reckless drunk brother. Female secret agent behind the bar. Gang wars, opium, corrupt men at arms, secret government intrigue. Its all here. Well written with flawed believable characters.

John Lee delivers per his usual excellence. He is without a doubt one of the top 3 narrators of fantasy in the business.

Fantasy Peaky Blinders

I was a bit leery of this title during the first chapter, being somewhat burnt out on grimdark fantasy, but I'm glad I stuck with it.

It's like fantasy Peaky Blinders with a slice of The Black Company and Gentleman Bastards. Quite an original mash up, even if the plot itself is not exactly full of surprises.

McLean completely hits the mark with Tomas Piety's voice -- I've caught myself saying "I could not let that pass," throughout my day when someone irks me -- and Lee brings the account to life with his Northern accented recitation.

I heartily recommend this for fans of dark fantasy and gangster fiction alike, although be warned that it deals with veteran's PTSD and child abuse among other traumas.