Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Daughter of Smoke and Bone, #1) by Laini Taylor

Jan 09, 2012 Kat Kennedy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fun-fantasy, kat-s-book-reviews, leaves-awesomeness-behind, ya-pnr-maddness

Do you remember that Taylor Swift song about Romeo and Juliet, Love Story?

It's lyrics go something like this:

I'm a pretty little girl who knows nothing about literature
So I sing a song about starcrossed lovers
Whose only problem is that Daddy doesn't approve
But it's all good because we get married anyway.
Just like that cliffnote's story about Romeo and Juliet!

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeyyyyy!

Scott Pilgrim gif of girl shooting herself in the head

Scott Pilgrim gif of girl shooting herself in the head

We have a tendency with YA literature today, to have stories with the super duper happiest of h...more

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Sep 01, 2012 Tatiana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, favorites, series-in-progress-still-like, ya, urban-fantasy, ala-ya-2012, b, 2012

As seen on The Readventurer

When I first heard the details of the premise of Laini Taylor's new book, for a moment I thought Laini must have read my review of Personal Demons. In that review I rant about how great story ideas are squandered away. You see, Personal Demons had a very interesting concept - a demon and an angel battling for the soul of a human girl. There are so many creative opportunities in the angel/demon lore, I thought surely the author would make something good out of it. I was...more

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Jul 01, 2012 Cait rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As a P.S. in order to understand this review better if you haven't read the Fallen series, please check out my thoughts on the other book that I will be discussing here.

This book is like some sort of weird alien. When I finished Daughter of Smoke and Bone I wasn't quite sure how to handle it.

What are you, Daughter of Smoke and Bone?

In the synopsis of Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it tells you that this is a story about how a "demon" falls in love with an "angel." So one would think that thi...more

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Jul 22, 2011 Jillian -always aspiring- rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone disillusioned by YA books; THIS BOOK IS FOR YOUR READING PLEASURE.

Shelves: covers-i-love, writer-crush, writing-to-which-i-aspire, out-of-the-box-ideas, paranormal-supernatural-books, prose-envy, wowed-me, 2011-reads, ultimate-favorites, amazing-storytelling, stories-that-challenge-me, soared-above-and-beyond, stories-with-a-message, made-me-cry, wish-i-could-write-a-book-like-this, best-characters, best-couples, best-endings, fab-writing, worth-every-star, world-building-worth-noting, heroines-i-love-and-or-admire, heroes-i-love-and-respect, swoon-worthy-book-crushes, couldn-t-stop-reading-it, forewent-sleep-to-read-it, i-am-not-worthy, reviewed, 2013-reads

Note: Be warned that this is one of those reviews that in no way can do justice to the actual novel, but there's no harm in trying. Regardless, I greatly urge anyone who has even the slightest interest in this book to procure a copy when it's released on September 27, 2011.

Seven Perfect Reasons Why You Should Read Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor:

1. The writing is fantastic, dang it.

Now, I loved Laini Taylor's first young adult offering, Lips Touch: Three Times (You've read it, haven't...more

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Jul 03, 2012 Meg ♥ rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: e-books, cover-lover, z-2012-reads, favs

Finally, a book that lives up to the hype. I haven't read a book that lives up to the hype this well, actually, since Hunger Games. That's a coincidence considering that Karou has quickly earned the number two spot on my list of all-time favorite heroines...Second only to Katniss Everdeen, of course. And no, I'm not comparing this to Hunger Games in any way, just sayin'.

This book came highly recommended to me from a number of people. Ever since it came out in September of 2011 I have heard nothi...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Haleema rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: No. I want this book to myself. MY PRECIOUS.

Recommended to Haleema by: My awesome GR friends... chocolate for everyone!

Shelves: a-chunk-of-chocolate, brilliant-story-telling, can-t-get-you-off-my-mind, complex-world, consumed-my-life, damn-good-writing, das-deep, hello-handsome, disturb-me-and-die, heart-wrenching, i-am-in-love, i-knew-it, need-my-nutella, must-meet-author, my-emotions, tissues-please, omigosh, absolute-favorites, praise-worthy-plots, love-the-quotes, believable-characters

What a normal fangirl would do:
Classmate: Hey, Fangirl! What book are you reading?
Fangirl: OhEMGEE! *flashes her the cover* IT'S SO AMAZING. I CANNOT EVEN--- JUST READ IT!
Classmate: The cover! It's so pretty! I want to read it!
Fangirl: I know, right?! It's so blue and perfect. READ IT! I WANT YOU TO KNOW WHAT I FEEL! YOU WILL LOVE IT!

What Haleema did:
Annoying twit in her class: Hey, Haleema! What book have you got there?
Haleema: *clenches teeth* How dare you disturb me, you rodent-loaf. Can't...more What a normal fangirl would do:
Classmate: Hey, Fangirl! What book are you reading?
Fangirl: OhEMGEE! *flashes her the cover* IT'S SO AMAZING. I CANNOT EVEN--- JUST READ IT!
Classmate: The cover! It's so pretty! I want to read it!
Fangirl: I know, right?! It's so blue and perfect. READ IT! I WANT YOU TO KNOW WHAT I FEEL! YOU WILL LOVE IT!

What Haleema did:
Annoying twit in her class: Hey, Haleema! What book have you got there?
Haleema: *clenches teeth* How dare you disturb me, you rodent-loaf. Can't you see I'm entranced here? Stupid, careless, ridiculous girl. Oh, um. Yeah, it's nothing. It's... not that good. YES, IT IS. IT IS, BUT YOU WILL NEVER KNOW BECAUSE I WILL NEVER TELL YOU THE NAME OF THIS BOOK. I WANT IT ALL TO MYSELF. THIS BOOK IS MINE AND I WILL NEVER SHARE MY HAPPINESS WITH YOU. Yeah, it's not that good. *feels a pang of pain as she says that*
Annoying twit in her class: Oh, really? Man, I'm not going to read it it then beca---
Haleema: My God. Shut up, idiot girl. You talk so much. Just let me be. Go back to your boring, dull life. Be gone. *slowly turns her head down to the book to show the girl that she's not interested in her mundane, Akiva-less life* *annoying girl's voice fades away*

This book is my secret. None of my non-GR friends will know of it. I am selfish... and I like it.

description

Holy fudge... and it's melting on my tongue. This book drove me crazy. I don't know if it is possible to be struck with so many emotions. She did it, though. Laini Taylor hit me with a hammer. She reached a hand down my throat, pulled out the emotions I didn't even know were there in the first place, and set them down in front of me to watch. "There they are," she said, ignoring my wide open mouth. "I knew you had those!" *she saunters away* Why did you just do that? Now I won't stop thinking about this book and one of the most pivotal moments of my life is about to arrive. ~~To hell with graduation, I want Akiva... NOW.~~

Anyway, I know what you're thinking. Okay, Haleema. We get it. Quit fangirling and get to the point. Okay... I will. Gosh.

Her writing:
When I read the first chapter of this book, I said to myself, "Ha, this is excellent writing and I am too dumb to understand this beauty. She's too good for me. I need someone to explain her world to me in ways that a five-year-old can comprehend." Then Brimstone's voice echoed in my mind. Haleema, do not think like that. Hope. You want to hope that you can understand Taylor's wonderful writing. Yeah. Easier said than done, Brim. Have you read her writing? It's regal. I have to bow in front of it so I can show that I'm worthy to be in its graceful presence.

I can see Taylor through her writing. Her emotions, her thoughts, they're there. Her personality just spreads through it like caramel when you add it to vanilla ice cream. *I love it when my similes are delicious. Sa-weet.* I feel like I know a part of her through her writing, and that is very very rare. Her word choices are so unique and so... Taylor-ish when she describes a certain situation, physical descriptions, scenery, emotions, etc. Her writing isn't overdone, purple-prosed, or cliche. What I mean is that Taylor has her own style. Silly, right? Everyone has their own style. Actually, no. I feel like some writers write similarly. They use the same word choices or phrases. "Her lips tasted like honey."

Taylor creates her own words. Words like allness. However, they never distract you from her oh-so-envious-writing. They seem to blend in perfectly. Her words are simple, yet so beautiful in their meaning. Her repetition is impeccable in timing. She knows when to add the right things at the perfect time. I was lost in so many moments that there were those times where I just sat there, reading those paragraphs over and over again, and then cursing myself for not continuing. I enjoyed every bit of her lush writing. I've just never seen anything like it. *salutes Taylor*

Her characters:
Karou: Finally. A heroine that I absolutely loved with every bit of my heart. She was perfect. She did not annoy me. She did not anger me. She was intelligent, crafty, strong, witty, humorous, and so so gentle. Everything about her makes me giddy. Her sketchbook, her attitude, her motives, her thoughts, her goals. She is a well developed character, bursting with energy, light, and beauty. I could see so many sides to her. Her badassery, her loyalty, her trust, her thirst, her loneliness. She isn't perfect, of course. ~~Even though I just said she was in the beginning of this paragraph. Ha!~~ She does not have all the answers. She does not know every way to solve everything. She is not an all-powerful, noble young girl who knows what she's doing. She is utterly beautiful. That's all.

Ahem. And she loves chocolate. A girl who loves chocolate is a girl who will go places in life.

Akiva: *tries to push away her carnal desires for this man and looks deep within his scorching skin and finds his heart* Ah, there it is. Let's talk about him.

Okay, so umm. *twirls a strand of her hair with a finger and smiles sheepishly* This is a man who is tortured, longful *See what I did there? I just made up a word like Taylor* *No, Haleema.* Sorry. This is a man who is tortured, hurt, fearless, and dead. He is an angel who searches for something, but ends up reuniting with his long lost love. It is so painful to read, yet so beautiful. The way he follows her, (I swear, I was not creeped out at all because Taylor can write it so well and not make it sound creepy), the way he observed her, hawklike and fixed. It was so romantic. And it was so... aggravating. How? Gosh, Taylor! The wait! I am not patient. I wanted them together so bad in the middle of the book. All that wait made me so hungry for them. But it was worth it. *sighs and fans herself* I was so completely dazed that I had to close the book and wrap my arms around it, hugging it to my chest. I don't want to let go... So good.

Akiva is a man who is so tortured, yet he possesses a sense of humor and is friendly! Yay! Finally! A guy who isn't a complete jerk because of his past mistakes, and his love life, and blah, blah, blah! His sense of humor is dry, but it's so refreshing. He made me smile. He's so open to Karou and he will say what he feels. The slight banter that occurred between him and Karou = aww. So adorable. And yes. I do have a ridiculous crush on this man and I'm not trying to hide it. *strikes this sentence regardless* Because I love irony.

Their romance was so gentle and subtle, yet so passionate and mesmerizing. I was lost in them, their hopes, their desires. I would want this love story. I would want this to happen to me, and I don't say that often. This romance is special, precious, and so memorable. I will never forget how these two made me feel.

Brimstone: I still cannot figure this creature out. He is so complex. He amazes me. One thing he said that completely made me fangirl:

  Wishes are false. Hope is true. Hope has its own magic.

From now on, all I will do is hope, Brim. *accepts his awkward pat on my back*

Zuzana: She is so adorable! She's like a doll that everyone wants to hold and never let go of. I love her. She's hilarious and so clever. Karou and Zuzana are perfect together as best friends. They're the type of girls who would say:
description

Exactly. Words of wisdom. Cheers.

Her world:
Everything was beautifully written. Yes, I have mentioned that I couldn't face such wonderful writing. However, thanks to Brimstone's advice, I pictured everything so perfectly! My sister has been to Prague and she said it was one of the best places she's ever traveled to. (view spoiler) Her other world is incredible, behind that one door in the shop. Dark and ethereal, imposing fortresses, colorful skies, beautiful scenery. I loved it all. It's fabulous world building.

Gosh, everything about this book was so unimaginably perfect. I don't care that I can't find one single flaw in this book. ~~Okay, maybe there were a few cliches, but Taylor backed it up with just... everything else!~~ I don't even want to give this five stars. Seven billion stars, fools. Dosab, you deserve so much more.

So here's a very dumb picture that accurately describes what I felt. Don't judge, okay?:
description

Ahem... yeah.

(This review so does not do complete justice to the book. I am not a fabulous reviewer when it comes to calmly conveying my emotions in a very mature way. *shrugs* Whatever.)

*proceeds to stalk Laini Taylor on the internet*(less)

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Jul 21, 2011 Catie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Catie by: Tatiana

Shelves: fantasy, read-in-2011, series, ya, favorite-books, for-review

Not just five stars…one million stars, two sister moons, and two pairs of wings in flight. That’s how beautiful this book is. I hope this is a huge hit, and all the kids read it. Listen up kids, this book has everything that you’re looking for: secrets, paranormal creatures, hot guys, best friends; passionate, enduring, forbidden, love…and angst! But unlike all the rest, this one is the real thing.

It’s times like these that I wish I was a real, honest to goodness book fairy, with little wings, a...more

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May 14, 2012 Nataliya rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Nataliya by: Trudi

Shelves: awesome-kickass-heroines, 2012-reads, first-in-a-series

A teeth-gathering blue-haired spunky young woman raised by a Wishmonger gets caught in the middle of the long war waged in the 'Elsewhere'. Pictographically:

Was this book perfect? Not nearly. But I still loved it, even despite the annoying 'classic' YA tropes that it was NOT immune to:

(1) insta-love (actually, it happens twice),
(2) the otherwordly, basically underpants-disintegrating beauty of the male love interest - who initially, of course,
(3) tries to murder our heroine.

Still, Daughter o...more A teeth-gathering blue-haired spunky young woman raised by a Wishmonger gets caught in the middle of the long war waged in the 'Elsewhere'. Pictographically:

Was this book perfect? Not nearly. But I still loved it, even despite the annoying 'classic' YA tropes that it was NOT immune to:

(1) insta-love (actually, it happens twice),
(2) the otherwordly, basically underpants-disintegrating beauty of the male love interest - who initially, of course,
(3) tries to murder our heroine.

Still, Daughter of Smoke and Bone managed to captivate me and convince me to forgive its flaws by making its kickass protagonist, Karou, the girl who I hope my future (hypothetical) daughter will hang out with.

I love that Daughter of Smoke and Bone avoided the easy and tempting pitfall of presenting the heroine as an ordinary unremarkable girl, a blank slate ready for readers' self-insertion, little else but a plot device to make the reader fulfill the desire of experiencing a relationship with an attractive mysterious male love interest. Some popular YA novels with female characters are really the odes to the male lead using the heroine as our eyes to stare at the hero. Daughter of Smoke and Bone thankfully DOES NOT follow this annoying path.

The blue-haired ass-kicking raised-by-chimaera Karou is clearly not your regular high school girl "blessed" to become the object of attentions of a supernatural being. From the beginning, she is established as a remarkably talented, strong and independent young woman, who - shockingly for the YA novels about innocent high-schoolers - is even sexually experienced. She leads a double life, belonging both to the ordinary and the supernatural worlds.

She had been innocent once, a little girl playing with feathers on the floor of a devil’s lair. She wasn’t innocent now, but she didn’t know what to do about it. This was her life: magic and shame and secrets and teeth and a deep, nagging hollow at the center of herself where something was most certainly missing.

And most importantly, unlike the innocent all-talk-no-action young women in many a YA book, Karou does not hesitate to stand up for herself. She does not need a protector and does not hide behind the strong shoulders of the male lead; as a matter of fact, she kicks his ass, almost literally. And even in the evil clutches of required YA insta-love she maintains her identity and independence, does not automatically center her life around her romantic interest, and retains the ability - like any young woman should - to call out her romantic interest on the consequences of his actions without blindly trusting and blindly forgiving.

But something unyielding in her shrank from the promise. He might have chosen her, but that didn’t mean that she would do the same if she were faced with the same choice—against Brimstone, Issa, Yasri, Twiga. She had told Brimstone, “I want you to know I would never just leave you,” and she wouldn’t. She would choose her family. Anything else was unthinkable, though even now the idea of turning and leaving Akiva behind brought on physical pain.

She is not afraid to assert her views and values and stick up for what she believes. She is not afraid to call Akiva out on his hate and, for the lack of a better word, racism.

'So basically,' she said to Akiva, trying to gather all the things he’d told her into a simple strand, 'the seraphim want to rule the world, the chimaera don’t want to be ruled, and that makes them evil.'

To recap my excited bumbling - Karou is strong-willed, rebellious, bold, independent, curious, adventurous, talented, funny, and loyal. Basically, I could not help but imagine her as an older sister of Neil Gaiman's Coraline. My future (hypothetical) daughter can definitely have sleepovers at Karou's flat, that's all I'm sayin'.
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This book also, in a way, attempts to subvert the long-standing trope of equating beauty and goodness. It does not always succeed, as both protagonists are exceptionally beautiful, and their attractiveness is repeatedly emphasized. But at least there is an attempt to make the more traditionally attractive otherwordly race the bad guys, making us root for the chimaera, not the angels.

He can’t see it. It is a condition of monsters that they do not perceive themselves as such. The dragon, you know, hunkered in the village devouring maidens, heard the townsfolk cry ‘Monster!’ and looked behind him.

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I liked Laini Taylor's writing; it's pretty crisp and flows well. The characters (even Akiva, whom I frankly hated) are well fleshed-out and are quite memorable even if their appearances are quite short. I enjoyed that the messages this book was trying to convey went past the "it's great to have a boyfriend" and "romantic love is the only thing you need to be happy" angle that again, I've seen too many times in the books aimed at girls and young women. I like how it emphasizes loyalty, hope, friendship, and even duty. Thumbs up for all that, book!

Hope? Hope can be a powerful force. Maybe there’s no actual magic in it, but when you know what you hope for most and hold it like a light within you, you can make things happen, almost like magic.

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All that said, it's an enjoyable and rather well-executed book with a lovely and refreshingly strong female protagonist. It falls prey to some YA clichés, but recovers from them quite nicely. I will definitely read the second book in the series just to see how my new blue-haired friend Karou is getting along. But I do hope it does not fully devolve into another paranormal love story, because then I will be severely disappointed.

4 stars rounded up from 3.75.

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For my review of the sequel, Days of Blood and Starlight, (five-star alert, by the way!), you can head over here.(less)

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Oct 06, 2011 Lisa O. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Lisa O. by: the whole of GoodReads

Shelves: favorites, fantasy, ya-lit

Laini Taylor has really put me in my place this time.

I was very eager to read Daughter of Smoke and Bone, so much so that I ordered it as soon as it came out. To say that reviews for this book are gushing is a real understatement; they are, in fact, stellar.
Truth be told though, I was more than a bit biased. Lips Touch: Three Times, her short stories collection had collected the same kind of reviews. Not from me.
I'm not crazy about that book. I suspect it has a lot to do with the short story...more

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Nov 11, 2011 Wendy Darling rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, pn-demons, pn-angels, fantasy, mythic-and-fairy-tale-ish, read-2011, 2011-publication

3.5 stars Once upon a time, a fantasy book came unto the young adult world and set it aflame. Long-time fans of the author swooned. Mainstream publications wrote cryptic but positive impressions. And many readers declared that the book was leaps and bounds above all other young adult literature previously published.

It's always a little tricky reading a book that arrives with a crazy amount of hype, even one that's not accompanied by the lavish praise that has been heaped upon this one, as the pr...more 3.5 stars Once upon a time, a fantasy book came unto the young adult world and set it aflame. Long-time fans of the author swooned. Mainstream publications wrote cryptic but positive impressions. And many readers declared that the book was leaps and bounds above all other young adult literature previously published.

It's always a little tricky reading a book that arrives with a crazy amount of hype, even one that's not accompanied by the lavish praise that has been heaped upon this one, as the pressure to love it can be pretty intense. The story of a tattooed, blue-haired orphaned teenager named Karou caught up in an ancient war between angels and demons sounded amazing, however, and I was completely drawn in from the very first page. Karou is a young art student living in Prague, except that the fantastic figures she draws are actually of demons that she has known. She meets them in her strange teeth-collecting errands whenever she's summoned by Brimstone, a beast who has been a father figure to her as long as she can remember.

The first half of the book is simply mesmerizing, with vividly imagined details and the promise of a complex and stirring story. Karou has hamsas tattooed into her palms, she can fulfill small wishes with a necklace with unusual powers, and she dashes through magic portals on her errands to land on the streets of Marrakesh and Paris. But it's a life she has to hide from her best friend Zuzana and everyone at her school, and things get more complicated when black handprints begin appearing on doorways all over the world. Is something brewing in the otherworld that will affect this one?

For me, all that promise remained unfulfilled, however, as the narrative diverted sharply once Akiva, a gorgeous and impossibly perfect angel, appears in the story. He is strangely drawn to Karou, and follows her from place to place until finally they meet in an apparently earth-shattering fashion. “He was the most beautiful thing Karou had ever seen. Her first thought, incongruous but overpowering, was to memorize him so she could draw him later.” Here is the beginning of where I lost interest in the story, as most of the remainder of the book revolves around their overpowering romance, and eventually, why they may not be able to be together.

Readers who find the romance compelling will probably enjoy this book better than I did, but I found it hard to get invested in two such blindingly beautiful and perfect beings for whom there is apparently no other equal--I mean, of course they're going to be attracted to each other! How could they not be? One of the things I found so odd about their relationship is that it seemed to lack any sort of realism or depth; as cartoonishly ridiculous as Karou's ex-boyfriend was, the way she handled him and the dialogue there was at least smart and funny and likably grounded. When Karou and Akiva first meet and all throughout the subsequent chapters when they have their first kiss and so on and so forth, it's written as if the earth is moving and the stars are aligning...but I'm afraid the earth simply didn't move for me. I might have felt differently if their compulsion towards each other was based on something stronger than just physical attraction, but the majority of what I read was about their stunning beauty and their unearthly perfections. Even the promise of "wait, wait, you'll see why they're so drawn together" didn't pay off for me, because I predicted that well ahead of time and (view spoiler) I would like to have seen more time given to any possible number of layers to a relationship, including admiration for how the person behaves in an extraordinary way, noticing subtle and lovely details about someone's personality, uncovering meaning in someone's words, bonding over shared situations, etc, etc. None of that happened here.

Much of the earlier extravagant detailing (except in reference to their relationship) and humor is abandoned in the second half, and things get further derailed when we get thrust into yet another type of story involving a girl named Madrigal. It isn't until the very end that the book finally gets back on course and we get some decent action scenes and some attention paid to the overarching storyline. Even then, I guessed what Akiva's big secret was, however, so I never really regained my initial enjoyment for the book. The ending was also a typical cliffhanger that is written in a way designed to leave readers in the maximum state of shock. I can't say that I admire that much, and I do think it's possible to write an open-ended conclusion in a way that doesn't feel like you've been...well, pushed off a cliff. And told to wait for another year to see if you'll recover from the fall.

While I certainly acknowledge and even respond to some of the author's imaginative worldbuilding, I can't really say that I went into raptures over it. I can't deny that the book is very well-written and I can appreciate the opulent touches and occasional flights of fancy...but unfortunately, this wasn't writing that I personally found to be particularly deep or moving or meaningful. That's just my own taste, however, since I know many of my friends have loved the writing and story much more than I did. I think in the end, it just comes down to what you respond to as a reader, and I'm really disappointed that I just didn't love this as much as I wanted to.

Still, the book is significantly better than most of the YA that's published right now, and it does hold the promise of a fascinating story that will hopefully get back on track in the sequel. I just wish that it wasn't another book that allowed, yet again, for a moony-eyed, long-fated romance to take over the life of another smart and seemingly level-headed heroine.

(less)

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Aug 06, 2012 Stacia ~ Mistress of Mediocrity rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, favorites

This is what happens when Urban Fantasy and Traditional Fantasy collide.

Results :

Epic.
Beautiful.
Tragic.
Captivating.

After finishing this book, I am in awe of this woman's writing skills. For as much as I love books from any fantasy sub-genre, I also have my own personal roadblocks. Very rarely, can an author use as much descriptiveness in a book without me wanting to tear my hair out. Often, writers show off their "words" just for the sake of trying to impress us. I never felt like this was the c...more This is what happens when Urban Fantasy and Traditional Fantasy collide.

Results :

Epic.
Beautiful.
Tragic.
Captivating.

After finishing this book, I am in awe of this woman's writing skills. For as much as I love books from any fantasy sub-genre, I also have my own personal roadblocks. Very rarely, can an author use as much descriptiveness in a book without me wanting to tear my hair out. Often, writers show off their "words" just for the sake of trying to impress us. I never felt like this was the case with Daughter of Smoke and Bone.

Every single word had a purpose. Every single word connected one part of the story to another part of the story. Few authors have the gift to interweave fantasy worlds like this one has accomplished, almost seamlessly.

From the opening scene where Karou had to sketch her ex-boyfriend naked in front on an entire classroom, to the middle scenes where Karou takes flight, to the ending where clues from the beginning of the book finally started to unravel (the revelation of the book's title was brilliant)...it was one incredible journey.

Even the small details were treasures waiting to be found - Teeth. Scuppies. Pain. Horns. Hooves. Hybrids. Enemies. Lovers. Portals. Death. Birth. Betrayal. Hope. A wishbone charm.

Because I read this book over the holiday season, I was unable to sit down and read through it in a short period of time. For most books, this would be the kiss of death. Details are often lost when you can't keep them fresh in your mind. Never once did I have trouble picking the book back up after putting it down for a day or two. Every time I came back to Daughter, I did so with an inner excitement, knowing that something good was coming.

Karou, Akiva, Madrigal, Kaz, Brimstone, Issa...so many fascinating characters sprung up from the pages. I really hope we get to learn more about Kaz in the future. I missed that storyline in the second half of the book

There were no complaints from me about the supposed "genre shift" at the midway point. I kept waiting for one to happen and it never really did for me. The story's focus did shift as the past was brought to the forefront, but many of the early story details were answered in the end, bringing the book full circle. There was more of a "fantasy" focus to start, then the romance crept in midway, becoming a very heavy presence, but the fantasy aspect never died imo. If anything, the world building twisted in and out among itself, pulling in more and more details about the lives and lands of the seraph and the chimera.

I am completely thrilled that this book will become a series. The ending left me wanting for more.(less)

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Mar 30, 2012 Emily May rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone, everyone

Shelves: ya-na, paranormal-uf, arc, 2011, angels, fave-ya, insta-love, coverly-love

Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone tells the age-old tale of forbidden love with a beautifully constructed mythological twist. Karou and Akiva are a Romeo and Juliet unlike any other and Laini Taylor has managed to encapture love, loneliness and desperation in a masterpiece of a novel that deserves to be read by anyone of any age who truly appreciates quality writing and story-telling.

Karou is a 17 year old art student living in...more

72 likes · like · see review

Oct 31, 2011 Steph Sinclair rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Steph by: Jillian -always aspiring-

Shelves: fantasy, 2011-reads, action-packed, angels, awesome, beautiful-prose, best-characters, best-relationships, ebook, epic, all-time-favorites, gimme-gimme-gimme, i-didn-t-see-that-coming, i-loved-it, i-need-it-like-a-fat-kid-needs-cake, i-need-to-buy-this-book, i-really-enjoyed-it, left-me-in-a-sad-emotional-state, made-me-think, mind-blowing-good, oh-yeah-baby, omg-that-ending, original-and-creative, pure-win, smart-heroine, so-glad-i-read-this, superb-world-building, surprised-me, yeah-baby-5-stars, deserves-every-one-of-those-stars, 2-am-or-later, young-adult, 2011-favs, just-take-my-heart-already

You know that book you're reading right now? How about all those books on your "TBR" list? FORGET ABOUT 'EM!

I first stumbled across Laini Taylor when I was encouraged by several of my GoodReader friends to read Lips Touch. So, I read it and while I enjoyed it, I wasn't blown away. However, I think it was a "It's not you, it's me" situation because anthologies and I don't really get along. I went into this book thinking it was just another PNR, Angel style. I couldn't have been more wrong. If Ro...more

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Oct 02, 2011 Giselle rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, fantasy

Woooeey. If you need a vacation from reality, this is the book that will haul you inside its pages and make you live inside its story! Laini Taylor created a world like you've never imagined. Seriously, I would love to get a glimpse inside this woman's mind. How she came up with this stuff is beyond me. It's incredible. I loved it!

This is among one of the best written books I've read this year, if not ever. The creative aspect is beyond amazing. I was enthralled by every detail. The wonderful su...more Woooeey. If you need a vacation from reality, this is the book that will haul you inside its pages and make you live inside its story! Laini Taylor created a world like you've never imagined. Seriously, I would love to get a glimpse inside this woman's mind. How she came up with this stuff is beyond me. It's incredible. I loved it!

This is among one of the best written books I've read this year, if not ever. The creative aspect is beyond amazing. I was enthralled by every detail. The wonderful surrounding with extraordinary characters all come to life before your eyes and it's so… ugh… I can't even put it in words. So let's just say that it's outstanding!

I'll be totally honest and say that I picked this up because of the hype alone. I had read the blurb, but that only gave me a very vague idea what the book was about - basically that it was strange and it involved monsters. So I had no idea what to expect, plot-wise. My thoughts now: it was brilliant. It has this gothic/fantasy feel with a sweet romance and yes, monsters. The politics of the world can get a little complicated; some passages I had to re-read because there are several worlds, species, and myths to take in, but I got the gist of it and even if you don't catch it all, it'll make sense once you get passed a certain point.

The mystery behind Karou and Brimstone is really interesting. I would have never guessed what he used the teeth for and who Karou is. I couldn't even come up with any theories that made any sort of sense. So I didn't bother trying and just let the story unfold and overcome me. The romance plays a good part in this novel as well. It's very sweet and tragic. I loved Akiva's devotion and Karou's stubbornness.

So yeah… get this book! It deserve each and every 5 star rating that it has been getting. You haven't read anything quite like this before, I can promise you that!

And since everyone is adding it to their review and I don't want to be an outcast . ~~All I want is to fit in :(~~

Once upon a time,
an angel and a devil fell in love.

It did not end well.

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47 likes · like · see review

May 05, 2012 Dija rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, buddy-slash-group-read, ya, uf-or-pnr, authors-i-stalk, my-reviews, first-in-series

The ending!

There are already many, many in-depth and detailed reviews for Daughter of Smoke and Bone, and because no one wants to read a review where I gush on and on about how much I loved this or adored that, I'll avoid being boring and keep this short and simple.

I loved:
1. Karou
2. Akiva.
3. The writing.
4. The setting.
5. Karou.
6. The book title.
7. Zuzana.
8. Akiva and Karou's love.
9. Brimstone.
10. The chapter titles.

I disliked:
1. The cover.
2. Kaz.
3. Madrigal.
4. The pacing.
5. The ending.

I h...more

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Jan 13, 2012 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of Night Circus, fantasy romantics

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult, urban-fantasy-ya, my-library, awards

A very long time ago, a good friend and I sat down for an early afternoon drink on Hotel del Coranado's patio. The sun warmed our shoulders, the sky was flawlessly blue, and we were indulgent with escaping the end of the school year. It was agreeable and innocuous, and then I tried a refreshing-sounding drink made up of lemonade, white grape juice, vodka, and probably ambrosia. It was delicious, and after chatting awhile, I realized I was thoroughly, benevolently drunk. Eventually we adjourned f...more A very long time ago, a good friend and I sat down for an early afternoon drink on Hotel del Coranado's patio. The sun warmed our shoulders, the sky was flawlessly blue, and we were indulgent with escaping the end of the school year. It was agreeable and innocuous, and then I tried a refreshing-sounding drink made up of lemonade, white grape juice, vodka, and probably ambrosia. It was delicious, and after chatting awhile, I realized I was thoroughly, benevolently drunk. Eventually we adjourned for a walk on the ocean beach, and the day went from pleasant to astonishing.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a lot like that drink.

There is so much to love here, from dialogue that hits the late-teen years spot-on, to the beautiful setting of Prague, to inventive language that almost sounds like it was translated. I found myself torn between lingering on phrasing or speed-reading for plot. Unusual ideas include wishes that come in denominations, created with teeth--potential coming from loss and death. Penises come in inessential varieties, and an obnoxious ex is called a "scandalous rodent-loaf" by a naga-woman. An elderly artist's model is known as an "unwrapped mummy," the young women regularly meet for meals at the Poison Kitchen, and vomiting stomach butterflies are responsible for those strange feelings when in love. I was drinking in Karou's story and getting to know Prague when all of a sudden Taylor turns the story sideways and sends us to another world where we are immersed in fighting angels and chimaera, and the origins of an immeasurable tragedy.

I have a couple of minor quibbles, especially the cliff-hanger ending. My initial objection to lurve-at-first-sight was cleverly averted by Taylor's plotting. This and the sequel Days of Blood & Starlight win a spot in my space-constrained library.

Enjoyable quotes:

"Her own eyebrows did not function independently of each other, which handicapped her expressions of suspicion and disdain."

"For the way loneliness is worse when you return to it after a reprieve--like the soul's version of putting on a wet bathing suit, clammy and miserable."

"As she walked, clock towers across Prague started arguing midnight, and the long, fraught Monday came at last to a close."

"It was like stepping into the pages of a book--a book alive with color and fragrance, filth and chaos--and the blue-haired girl moved through it all like a fairy through a story, the light treating her differently than it did others, the air seeming to gather around her like held breath."

Cross posted at http://clsiewert.wordpress.com/2013/0...
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28 likes · like · see review

Jun 21, 2011 karen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: why-yes-i-ya

this book is astonishingly good.

this is the book i should have been handed when i first expressed an interest in exploring the world of the fantasy novel. never mind that isn't not going to be published for three more months (thank you to the girl with BEA access for getting this for me), it should have happened somehow.

this is the most pure example of fantasy that i have seen so far.
and it is nearly perfect.

once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. it did not end well.

a fantastic...more

106 likes · like · see review

Oct 21, 2011 Rane rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, fantasy, urban-fantasy

I'm not fond overly fond of YA books, the few I've read just never really reached me, that was thrown out the window with Daughter of Smoke and Bone.
Laini Taylor wrote at times a poetic story with a lead that is very much a teen, dealing with the at times rapid changes all teens go through in life, sometimes bitchy, selfish, heartbreaking going down the path to adulthood Karou goes through this and more, growing up in the little shop that deals out wishes for teeth, raised by chimera. She use...more I'm not fond overly fond of YA books, the few I've read just never really reached me, that was thrown out the window with Daughter of Smoke and Bone.
Laini Taylor wrote at times a poetic story with a lead that is very much a teen, dealing with the at times rapid changes all teens go through in life, sometimes bitchy, selfish, heartbreaking going down the path to adulthood Karou goes through this and more, growing up in the little shop that deals out wishes for teeth, raised by chimera. She uses the magic of the shop to travel the world in order to gather all of these teeth. Karou goes through life between the world of chimera and her everyday life, the balance act she tries to live with topples when she runs across a fiery angel by the name of Akiva. All the blinders she's lived with is torn from her eyes, and in a short time her life is changed.

I really loved Karou, she wasn't overly emotional, but she did have her moments- which I think anyone whom remembers their teens years can understand perfectly. I loved that, as it was easy to step into her shoes and understand where she came from. There's alot of learning curve Karou deals with as her chimera family has kept her in the dark for good reason, and when everything comes out, it knocks in the wind out of the reader, but makes a sad beautiful sense.

The story also dealt with the issue of prejudice. Which was done wonderfully, because like the old saying You never know a man unless you walk in their shoes. When Karou meets Akiva this issue pops up, and Taylor does a great job of showing all sides of the issue without sugar coating it, but giving the reader a chance to see more then the black and white but the whole picture.

Laini Taylor shows what an amazing author by portraying the flip side of love and the instant-soup- love that's so pronounce in many YA books, that not everything is so rose-colored as they seem to be.

What truly capture me was the setting, the jewel-box Prague and it’s nooks and how LT gave feeling, depth to every place and person. Her description at times alone were just amazing

“Her other brother had shocked the family by going into the army, but Zuzana had puppets in the bllod and was carrying on the family tradition”

The ending was a suckerpunch in the gut, the feeling of dread has the reader guessing as to what will be reveled and is it a doozy! But yet leaves you wanting to see what would happen next!

The Daughter of Smoke and Bone made me a fan easy of Laini Taylor and renewed my faith in the YA genre!(less)

28 likes · like · see review

Sep 30, 2011 Ariana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, paranormal, angels, favorites, great-books, series, beloved, rereading-material, best-of

For a better visual effect, see the full review at ReadingAfterMidnight.com

"Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love.
It did not end well."

I was hooked from the very first page.. yes, I can say that again.
My mind is full of beautiful stories of angels and demons (is that the right word?), stories of love and hope, stories of mythical creatures in a war as old as the world itself... My mind is screaming: I want more, I need more!

One word: Hope
Two words: Amazing story
Three words: I LOVE...more

30 likes · like · see review

Dec 06, 2011 Kay rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: life-after-death, quite-the-romantic, teens-tweens-and-ya, urban-fantasy, angel-poop

Ooh. OOOH! Meh... Mehhhhhhhhh...........

Which basically summarizes my reaction throughout the novel.

I hate it when things like this happen, when books start out so strong with an intriguing world and a growing character. But before you know it, it goes splat into a big mud puddle of Cliche and Predictability and WowThisRemindsMeOfTheseSixOtherBooksIRead.

The Ooh.

The book started out very, very strong. The premise was very interesting: Karou, an orphaned human girl adopted by demon magicians, i...more

23 likes · like · see review

Feb 25, 2012 Janina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-fiction, urban-fantasy, covers-i-love, art, cliffhanger, read-in-2012, on-my-shelf, series-in-progress

Somewhere between three and four stars

I am very indecisive about my rating here. It depends very much on my current mood, so if you ask me on two different days, you might actually get four different answers. I loved so many aspects of the story, yet, I was also deeply disappointed by others.

First and foremost, I can safely say that I adored the setting. I have never been to Prague (although it is only a few hours from here), but should definitely redeem that. Even if real Prague is only half a...more Somewhere between three and four stars

I am very indecisive about my rating here. It depends very much on my current mood, so if you ask me on two different days, you might actually get four different answers. I loved so many aspects of the story, yet, I was also deeply disappointed by others.

First and foremost, I can safely say that I adored the setting. I have never been to Prague (although it is only a few hours from here), but should definitely redeem that. Even if real Prague is only half as magical as Karou's Prague, I still imagine it to be one of the most fascinating cities in the world. Laini Taylor's writing brought to life small and dark alleys, warm lamplight shining on snowflakes, colours and fantastic creatures that seemed so at home in a present-day setting with a kind of medieval charm.

The cast of supporting characters is beyond fantastic: Brimstone, his chimeara employees and the secret behind the teeth – Zuzana the puppeteer and her violinist – even Kazimir and his deliciously strange vampire tours. Karou balances on a thin line between artsy and a little too artsy, but I really admired her strength and her loyalty towards her chimeara “family”.

The biggest drawback undoubtedly was the love story. I never connected with Akiva, and found Karou's infatuation with him hard to understand. He always remained distant and colourless compared to the other characters, and his relationship to Karou was too clichéd – especially because the rest of the story was exceptionally different from other paranormals. There was no chemistry present between these two, and the story of star-crossed lovers has simply been done too many times. There was an explanation for the feelings arising so quickly between them, but it was an explanation I am wary about. It came with a transformation of the heroine's character that I'm not fond of and is the reason I'm awaiting the sequel with mixed feelings. Summed up, Karou's feelings for Akiva made me like her less and disrupted the picture I had of her at the beginning (view spoiler)

Despite all that, I have to admit that I've grown quite fond of and feel a strange protectiveness towards this book. I have to have it on my shelf, and only partly because I like the cover so much. My book collection just wouldn't feel complete without it. (less)

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Apr 23, 2012 Heidi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Five Stars: This is a literary masterpiece. Do not miss this book!

This is the story of an extraordinary girl. A girl with aquamarine hair, who lives between two worlds; two distinct existences separated by magical doors. Behind the doors is the mystical workshop of the sorcerer Brimstone. He is a chimaera, a being that is a conglomerate of animals. In his secluded and shrouded shop he strings together wishes, for he is the Wishmonger. Caught in a world embroiled in war he clings to a shred of ho...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Stephanie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, 2012

Laini Taylor has PINK hair, really pink hair. freaking fantastic, that hair. Oh, and she is a visual artist as well, so I liked her before I read a word.

Anyway......

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is unique, no vampires in the whole darn book.

Karou is a young, blue haired, art student in Prague. She is a bit of a mystery, not only to her friends, but to herself. She has no idea who she is. All she remembers is growing up in a shop populated by those she considers her family, chimera, beings that are...more Laini Taylor has PINK hair, really pink hair. freaking fantastic, that hair. Oh, and she is a visual artist as well, so I liked her before I read a word.

Anyway......

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is unique, no vampires in the whole darn book.

Karou is a young, blue haired, art student in Prague. She is a bit of a mystery, not only to her friends, but to herself. She has no idea who she is. All she remembers is growing up in a shop populated by those she considers her family, chimera, beings that are part beast, part human. Her father figure, Brimstone, collects teeth (eww) for reasons unknown to Karou. He also manufactures wishes that are in the form of coins in different levels of denomination. Some are small but useful, like causing uncomfortable itches. A little bigger and you can have yourself blue hair….bigger still and you can fly. Many people want these wishes so they trade teeth for them and not necessarily their own.

Brimstone sends Karou through portholes that empty to different places around the world, on “errands” to get these teeth for him and his work. On one such errand she runs into an angel, or seraphim, which are the Chimeras mortal enemies. So of course Karou and Akiva (angel) fall in love instantly…..because he is beautiful and has tiger eyes and flaming wings. What else can a girl ask for? I know I am long past fifteen, and this stuff sells to that demographic…..but come on! As my friend Amanda points out in her review, it would be a good thing to keep the female lead character kick ass and independent a while before she melts into a puddle of goo the minute some good looking angel walks into the room.

I really enjoyed this book from an artist’s point of view. You can tell the author was an art student herself by the mere mention of sketch books. Karou always had a sketch book and was filling them up one after another which chronicled her life. She was on number 93! It was always stressed to me by fellow artists I admired to always have a sketch book and work to fill them up as fast as you can. One such artist, who constantly was drawing in his sketch book now has an Oscar to show for it. I, who was too lazy or not that interested in filling sketch books , do not.
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Sep 22, 2012 Trudi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, fantasy, 2011-reads, angels-and-demons, prose-that-sings, books-i-want-to-marry, love-the-title, my-heart-beats-for-you, secrets, kick-ass-heroines, my-desert-island, rusa-reads, 2012-reads, re-reads, awesome-audio, audiobook

I wanted to read this gorgeous book again before the sequel's November release, and went with the audio version just to hear the sumptuous prose aloud. Laini Taylor's epic narrative has swept me up in its arms and carried me away for a second time, despite knowing all of its secrets. I just lost my mind over this book when I read it last year, and I didn't think it would be possible to recapture that initial gush of adoration, but here it is. I'm completely ga-ga all over again.

The fabric of th...more

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Aug 22, 2011 Sparrow rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fantasiers and romancers

Recommended to Sparrow by: thomas tomato

Shelves: girls-rule, young-adult, utopia-dystopia, pacific-northwest-glory, motherless-daughters, classic-young-adult, slaves, remember-that-conceptual-spoiler, reviewed, chosen-girls, monsters, want-a-hardcover-of-my-very-own

A wise woman, while brushing her hair demurely in front of a mirror, once mocked another wise woman saying, “Remember that time I wrote a book with a conceptual spoiler?” Well, Laini Taylor, I now picture you in that room with the other wise authors chatting each other up about your conceptual spoilers. Because, holy shit. How do you even talk about this book?

I’ve been marinating in it for a couple of days, while getting caught in apocalyptic electrical storms, losing luggage, stumbling around a...more A wise woman, while brushing her hair demurely in front of a mirror, once mocked another wise woman saying, “Remember that time I wrote a book with a conceptual spoiler?” Well, Laini Taylor, I now picture you in that room with the other wise authors chatting each other up about your conceptual spoilers. Because, holy shit. How do you even talk about this book?

I’ve been marinating in it for a couple of days, while getting caught in apocalyptic electrical storms, losing luggage, stumbling around airports and homes and streets trying to get ready for school to start. In the midst of this busyness, I’ve been letting the story sink into my brain, but really I keep coming back to the fact that all of this story, the whole crux of the character development and plot of the entire thing, is in the last, maybe, three pages of the book. That may sound bad to you, but I’m telling you, it’s completely genius. That’s just my opinion, but it’s true.

The first page of the book says, “Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.” And that lovely beginning, a thesis really, which tells you the entire story in two short sentences, echoed through my head the entire time I was reading. Well done. Just masterful. That is the way you should give away your story.

And I’m not saying that the 400-whatever pages that precede the pivotal last three aren’t enjoyable – they are absolute fun and action packed for the most part. They were strangely ordinary, though. When you read the book, you’ll laugh that I said that because they are very un-ordinary looking in most ways. But, there is a lot of furniture and clothing and staring-into-smoldering-eyes and yearning for completeness, and other things u see in ur romance novels. After Lips Touch, which is three sharp kicks to the gut, the meandering descriptions and sudden brainless passion were weird. I still think there could have been less “their hearts were so one that they didn’t need to communicate with words” business. Like, you know, “she knew by his sideways glance that he had eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich earlier, gotten heartburn, decided to drink a glass of water, and then felt better, after which he watched TV for a little while and then took a walk.” I mean, at some point, the silent communication of soul mates is just not entertaining to read. Even after the last three pages, I think you could have cut some of that, but I could actually be dead wrong. Maybe you need all that to get to the end. Anyway, it was so worth it to me when I was done.

Also, the clothing and furniture were good. Like, usually, everyone’s walking around in damask and chemises, or, like, jean skirts and velour jogging suits, or whatever, and it’s itchy and boring. And all their furniture is so uneventful. Here, I kind of wanted to know what Karou’s furniture was like and what she was wearing that day. Plus, blue hair is almost always a good idea. I had blue hair for a while, and it was very pretty. I’m sure Karou’s is, too. It might be petty, but I think it’s worth a wish.

The other . . . criticism? . . . I have is that I’m not totally positive who this narrator is. Taylor wrote the book in a very distant, omniscient third person, but that raises some questions for me because the narrator is obviously from Earth and American. The dialogue is American slang, even though, when the characters are even on Earth, they are in Prague, speaking Czech. Also, the devils in the book are part human, part animal. But . . . the only logical conclusions from the way the characters discuss the devils is that Earth is the reference point for their species. For example, a half-human, half-wolf dude is called that. A hummingbird with moth wings is called that. But, if you only grew up with a hummingbird with moth wings, and you had no reference-point in Earth, would you know that it’s wings belonged to something else? Wouldn’t you get to earth and say our hummingbirds are weird? So, at certain points, when characters were staring into each other’s eyes, I got to thinking about how the narrator is this teenage American girl behind the curtain. I just wanted her to out herself and be like, “I’m off shopping at a thrift store on weekends,” so that I could orient myself to the source of the story. That is over-analyzing, I know, but there were narrative pauses to think about stuff like that.

I loved how this book undermines. I love the fantasy and romance mythos that it breaths and destroys. I love that it looks straight in the face of what angels and devils could be, what they are, and what love is, in a cultural sense. I agree, but also disagree, with Taylor about one of the fundamentals of her world, but that is kind of a spoiler – I disagree that (view spoiler). But, in the way that magic is commerce in this story, and the way that is just factually true of industrial capitalism, I have to agree with Taylor. It is not a lecture in the way she presents that reality, but it is fundamental to the story in a respectable way. And I am left, days later, turning that fundamental over and pondering both sides of it.

So, you are obviously going to read this anyway, but I am here to tell you that I think you will not regret it. It’s got style and action, and then a kick to the gut in the end. Some of you will get hives from the middle of this book, and some will get hives from the end, and I think that is because the story is luring and elusive, but, really, only because it is actually being rather brutal the whole time.

_________________________

I read an ARC copy of this, and it was lovely although the cover leaves something to be desired.

P.S. Ethnocentrism is no good, kids. Don't try it at home.(less)

53 likes · like · see review

Mar 23, 2013 kristina rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: angels, fantasy, young-adult

“Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.”

Karou

Karou is a girl that runs errands to an inhuman creature , Brimstone , who is the closest thing she has to family.
She has blue hair and she is pretty much a badass girl .

Akiva

He is an angel but not so angelic. He is a warrior and fights the chimaera. He is good and an obedient soldier but when he lays his eyes on Karou he makes an exception for her.

“Once upon a time, an angel lay dying in the mist.

And a devil knelt o...more

34 likes · like · see review

Jun 23, 2012 Lisa Kay rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-ya-young-adult, genre-paranormal, authors-l, authors-t, m-audible-dot-com, zzcover-blue, xyzcover-masque, well-narrated, genre-urban-fantasy, setting-prague, vocation-artist, 2012-in-2012-group-challenge, all-time-favorites, has-a-movie-in-the-works

*

★★★★★ (This is a review of the audiobook.) Whoa. Babe. Khristine Hvam elevated this book – which started out very much a Young Adult Paranormal – to a sophisticated, thought-provoking Fantasy with mythological and religious overtones. Her narration is Exceptional, with a capital “E.” She delivers Ms. Taylor’s lyrical prose effortlessly while infusing the voices of human, seraphim, chimaera, and other magical creatures with distinct characteristics and a variety of multicultural accents. Each ha...more

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May 12, 2013 9 3/4 rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: own, 2012-favorites

Full of weird tattoos, giant puppets, vintage ballet costumes, a painting school, a bar that everyone is wearing mustaches, crescent knives, naked former lovers, revenge, a betrayed love and a frantic dance with masks and bodies sprinkled with sugar.

When I saw the cover and the beautiful title of this book, I knew immediately that I wanted to read it. The praise for this was huge and it sounded so much promising. I tried not to have high expectations but I expected something good. Right now, onl...more

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Feb 26, 2013 Nessa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, review, not-my-cup-of-earl-grey-tea

Oh, Daughter of Smoke and Bone. What a beautiful read you were. How I enjoyed Karou's witticisms! Her double life as a tooth collector for a wish-mongering chimera, who also happens to be her father figure! How I loved the geographical descriptions of Prague, Marrakesh, and Elsewhere! The severe punishments fallen angels like Razgut go through! The magic system! The imagination involved with all the chimera! I tip my hat, Laini Taylor.

I then put it squarely back on my head when we talk about Aki...more

21 likes · like · see review

Jan 01, 2013 AJ rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, series, series-faves-book-1, fantasy, favorites, 6-shining-stars, romantic

ABSOLUTELY FREAKING INCREDIBLE!!!

Utterly and absolutely spellbounding, this isn’t a book, it’s an experience. And after I finished it, I sat clutching it to my chest, my heart pounding and just staring off into the distance, totally gobsmacked and shaking my head in awe of it all. Seriously, one of the most beautifully written, captivating books I have ever read!

" Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love.
It did not end well. "

It is the story of Karou, a 17 year old art student living...more

17 likes · like · see review

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Young Adult Book ...: Daughter of Smoke and Bone	1	1	May 10, 2013 06:20am
Shut Up & Read: Sheri's Reviews	188	366	May 06, 2013 08:55pm
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13600168-daughter-of-smoke-and-bone?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1334320707l/13600168.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13600168-daughter-of-smoke-and-bone?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor[/url]

Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Daughter of Smoke & Bone #1)

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