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mercoledì 17 marzo 2021

Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Daughter of Smoke and Bone #1

AuthorLaini Taylor
Published: 27th September 2011
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Number of pages: 418
Format: Hardback
Source: Library
PurchaseAmazonB&NTBD

From Goodreads:
Around the world, black hand prints 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 otherworldly 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 hair actually 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?

My Review

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is the first installment in what promises to be another favorite series of mine. I approached this book with no expectations, if not the vague memory of this title being very popular years ago.

Laini Taylor is a wonderful writer, let’s start this way. The first thing that will grasp your interest in this book is certainly the world the author created. I’ve personally read a lot of fantasy novels up until now, and I have to say that I rarely had the pleasure of entering such a magnificent setting. In Daughter of Smoke and Bone in fact, there are many fantasy creatures that appear, - like angels and devils, or chimeras - there is a lot of magic, there are two worlds colliding, yet everything manages to mantain a strong link to reality. It’s really difficult to explain what I felt with this book, but let’s just say that usually, with books of this genre, I’m always afraid that an excessive fantasy background might compromise my feeling towards the whole novel, since I prefer when a story doesn’t get too far-fetched. Laini Taylor though, presents the reader with this beautiful and unique setting, without depriving her characters of such humanity, that it will be impossible for the reader to separate with them.

Karou, our protagonist, represents the link between magic and reality, she’s human, yet she has been raised by chimeras. It’s really easy to create a bond with her: she’s mature, she’s funny, she’s real and incredibly honest. I’ve never felt frustrated with her, even if she was 17 years old. I loved the fact that she was an artist because it certainly gave the reader the opportunity to see everything through a meticolous eye: Karou’s sensitivity mixed with Laini Taylor’s writing skills make for a wonderful explosion of impressions. It was incredibly challenging to try and keep up with the number of images the author sends the reader, like the various species and forms chimeras had, the incredible accuracy with which Akira is described, the collection of postcards from the cities Karou visits.

The maturity of the writing, of the characters’ building, also reflects on the importance relationships have in this book. The concept of family and diversity occupies a central place in this novel and I loved to see Karou interact with her family of “monsters”. I found this particular link between the characters to be even more captivating than the romance itself, which was really good but touched me less than Karou’s relationship with Brimstone. While Akiva and Karou’s passion is so strong that exudes from their every interaction, the affection of Brimstone towards little Karou is rarely displayed and will be fully appreciated by the reader at the end of the story. Speaking of Akiva and Karou, something I have read in another review that I agree with completely, is that the romance  between our two protagonists is very sensual even if it is rarely physical and when it does get physical, it is in the sweetest and most tender way.

There are no negative aspects about this book, nothing I would change or didn’t enjoy. My only regret is that I started it during a moment when I was not really present so it took me a while to finish this story. I am sure that in another occasion, I would have dived into this book and would not have stopped until I had everything revealed.

For the perstitence it still has in my head, Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a 5 star read for me. I just can’t wait to discover how Karou’s journey will continue and meet her again in Taylor’s wonderful world

Rated

2 commenti:

  1. I'm glad you loved this book so much. Back when I read it (it's been a hot minute) I wasn't the biggest fan and didn't continue the series, sadly enough.

    RispondiElimina
    Risposte
    1. I'm so sad you didn't like it but that happens to me too with popular series!
      I'm actually really excited about continuing the series, I'll just wait and buy the beautiful new editions I've found online :)

      Thank you for stopping by! xx

      Elimina