Bitter Bones is Holly Blacks DOLL BONES meets J.A White's NIGHTBOOKS, with all the fun and creepiness of K.R. Alexander. Thirteen-year-old Clay has always known two things deep down in his marrow: 1. He was born with a disorder that gave him too many bones 2. His mother was absolutely not killed by her dolls. An infamous toy maker, she disappeared eight years ago amid outlandish rumors of foul play, hauntings, and creations come to life.

But Clay knows she's just your average deadbeat runaway, though that doesn't stop him from submitting his horror stories to her website chat feature, hoping she will see he is talented enough to help create the spooky books accompanying her dolls. Or possibly even come home. When Clay receives a cryptic plea for help from his mom who is not only very much alive, but in danger, he rallies a group of friends to help him find where she is and who's taken her. But the deeper he digs, the more twisted the investigation grows. From the incident reports exposing the creepy, cult-like collectors to the online forums rife with disturbing urban legends surrounding the dolls themselves. Not to mention, Clay believes he's being stalked by a mysterious figure. A figure only known as the Button-Eyed Man. Clay won't abandon his mom the way he always thought she did to him.

To find her in time, he'll track down ex-employees with secrets, investigate abandoned toys shops, and brave the darkest corners of her world. Clay will leave no road untaken.