Ossified is a doomed man's story of self-destruction remedied by retribution. Aiden grapples with the remnants of his life after dying in a fire that leaves him a man only of bone and a newly acting denizen of the natural world. The novel begins with cold realism before descending into the darker themes of fantasy and folklore. Aiden's journey causes him to encounter new terrors, while the wild beauty of Appalachia acts as a backdrop for his actions.