Book Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Title: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Author: Laini Taylor

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Modern Fairytale

Book Blurb: 

Around the world, black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.

In a dark and dusty shop, a devil’s supply of human teeth grows dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherwordly war.

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she’s prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hairactually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she’s about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?

Review:

Fact: This is a re-read for me.

Fact: I loved this book 100X more reading it the second time around

Fact: I have made up my mind to read the rest of the trilogy

Where do I begin this review? Should I start with the title, the plot, the characters or the cover--all of which are alluring to the eye and mind?  I guess I will start with the plot. The plot surprisingly doesn't cover a lot of ground given the size of the book--yet at the same time, you don't feel like the book is moving along at a slow pace. I think the reason why is because there is quite a bit of jumping back and forth from the present and the past in Daughter of Smoke and Bone, particularly in the second half of the book. I think that is also the reason why I didn't enjoy the book much the first time I read the book--I found the tense shifts to be rather confusing. However, since I was better prepared for it the second time around, I knew exactly what was going on.

Another thing about the plot: it is unlike anything I have ever read. I mean, okay, angels vs demons in a great war (and thus causing a ripple effect in the mortal world) isn't completely unheard of, but a demon that got turned into a girl and lost her memories because she fell in love with an angel? Now that's different!

Karou, Karou, Karou....you constantly surprise me. Where else am I going to find a (naturally) blue haired girl who collects languages the way people collect coins or stamps? I love her artistic streak and her eccentricness (is that even a word?) She's a character you can't help falling in love with--she's out of the world (both literally and figuratively.)

The writing style of the book is quite unique--and so is the setting. It has almost a quaint feel to it (I'm referring to both the setting and the writing style.) I would highly recommend this book if you're looking for something a bit different to read, something that pushes the boundaries but isn't totally unfamiliar.

Rating:

4.5 stars

(for some reason I can't insert the star images I usually use for reviews--my laptop is acting up)