The Silence of Bones
The Silence of Bones
“What did you see?” she said to me.
For a moment I fought confusion. Just books, meaningless to me. But I felt the test in her voice.
“I saw nothing at all,” I said.
She nodded, her approval gentle. “You may go on your way now.”
I wondered if this was a trap, for I couldn’t understand why a noblewoman would be so kind. I crafted my response carefully. “I cannot run. There is nowhere for me to go.”
“You have a home.”
“Home is the first place slave hunters are sent,” I said. And it was far from my brother’s grave. My promise had to be kept. “So I have no home, now. I must be what I was bred to be.”
“And what is that?”
“A servant. I belong to the police bureau, so I should return. I will be obedient,” I assured her.
“A servant, you say. Look at your wrists! I see no master chained to them.”
“I am branded.”
“Old scars can be burned off.”
My heart beat, low and strong. Her talk was dangerous, rebellious, yet sweet as honey. “Burned off?”
“No one’s fate is written in stone, child.” She accompanied me further down the road, which cut through a field of grass swaying in the breeze. Soon she would return to her servants and I’d have to walk this path alone. “Slave Jang Yeongsil, he knew this and ascended to officialdom as a renowned engineer in the time of King Sejong. Even in ancient times, many slaves rose up to become generals because of their courage. No one was born into their glorious position, just as no one is born to be a slave.”
Who was this woman? I watched as she moved to tuck something back into her robe. A beaded necklace bearing an odd ornament: two wooden pieces crossing one over the other. A crooked and misshapen cross.
Seol, just 16, is living in the city far from her home village and indentured to the local police bureau. When a noblewoman is brutally murdered, Seol is asked to assist Han, a well-respected young inspector. But as the investigation continues and evidence begins to appear, Seol wonders if Han should be a suspect in the crime rather than an investigator. She feels loyalty toward him, yet wants to find the truth. This determination and curiosity are admirable, but they may also prove deadly as Seol finds herself in the midst of political secrets and intrigue.
Seol is an interesting and likeable main character. On the one hand, she is a servant and so is expected to be seen and not heard and to complete her duties without being noticed. Readers soon realize that other characters in the novel have greatly underestimated this young woman. When she must, she shows bravery and determination unknown in someone of her years and social class. Seol is ambitious and inventive, often getting herself out of dangerous situations. Her curiosity drives her to solve the murder; her ingenuity keeps her from being one of the victims.
June Hur’s debut novel plunges her readers into a new and likely unknown environment. The year is 1800, the place is Korea. Hur has based her novel on historical people and events which occurred during the Joseon dynasty, the last and longest dynasty of Korean history, beginning in 1372 and ending in 1897. Hur places her novel in a time of political and religious strife, particularly highlighting the tensions between Confucianism and the western upstart, Catholicism.
Readers who enjoy historical fiction will find that Hur’s descriptions are rich and detailed. Readers will see events in the city, in the countryside and in small villages, and sights, smells and sounds create a world which draws in readers and immerses them in an entirely different place and time. The roles of men and women are vastly different from the present day, and the lines between social classes are sharply drawn. Cruelty among humans and cruelty to animals seem to be normal. Hur’s writing is evocative and descriptive, a pleasure to read.
The novel revolves around a murder mystery, and fans of this genre will not be disappointed. Suspects and motives are woven throughout the story, and only at the very end is the case solved. The detective story is complicated and detailed, and keeping the various characters straight can be a challenge, particularly at the beginning of the story. They become more clearly delineated as the novel continues.
Another facet of the book is the theme of family. The author repeats the importance of keeping family together and of having loyalty between family members. This is particularly true of Seol and her family, but the theme is echoed within other relationships in the novel.
Mystery and mayhem, plus a cast of interesting characters in a fascinating and exotic time and place! June Hur has given readers a wonderful novel in The Silence of Bones.
Ann Ketcheson, a retired high school teacher-librarian and classroom teacher of English and French, lives in Ottawa, Ontario.