ANTICIPATED RELEASE: SEPTEMBER 27, 2011
Summary: 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 grown 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 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 one of the strangers–beautiful, haunted Akiva–fixes his fire-colored 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?
Lo says: I just reread that summary and squealed out loud. I’m in my thirties, guys. This is…special.
Anyway, I will be the first to admit that I’m easy.
Back up the truck. I mean that I’m easily entertained. I’m not always a super critical reader when I’m in it for the enjoyment. I generally try to find the fun in any read, and if it offers more then, sign me up.
Now, this isn’t to say I can’t be critical. It doesn’t mean that I don’t see flaws in books, or see where the plot falls short, the characters act inconsistently, the romance feels trite. It’s just that I’d rather focus on the good. Optimisim, yeah?
It also doesn’t mean that all good books rank equally. I can count on one hand the books that I feel have truly transformed my life. (This doesn’t count neuroscience texts, of course. #nerdalert.)
But, guys? Come closer. DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE by Laini Taylor? Yeah, you’ll have to pry this copy out of my cold dead hands. This book ranks in the very very few that I will read over and over and over.
Come to think of it, this book is the first of Lo’s Epic Yearly Reread List. This list contains the books that I will reread once a year. So far, this list contains one book.
This one.
Some books have amazing prose, or a badass chick, or a swoony boy, or the hottest kiss that you have to read a million times a few times before moving on. Some books may lack strong characters but the concept is so powerful you can’t stop reading. Some *gasp* may have more than one of these qualities. But DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONE has them all.
The prose is so rich I can pretty much use any gooey delicious chocolate metaphor and you’ll get my point. I see the world she’s built, I can imagine every bridge, every cloud, every brightly colored building, every tiny inch of Zuzana. I can imagine Brimstone and the teeth, as if I’ve seen these things. In fact, I feel lame trying to describe the seriously INTENSE prose with my cheesy metaphors. MOVING ON! Hey look over there!
The characters, oh! The characters! Karou, please be my bestie? I will totally put on a puppet show for you and find the quirkiest coffin-filled cafes for your mealtime enjoyment. I LOVE KAROU! Blue-haired, inquisitive, searching, hard-as-nails and vulnerable Karou. I feel like I know her, and I know how that sounds (hello, cliche! raise your hand if you rolled your eyes… okay settle down guys my feelings are fragile) but it’s true. Karou is badass and swoony and tender and strong. How does Taylor do that? *shakes fist at sky*
And the boy? There is swoon. MAJOR swoon.
Hello there tiger eyes, I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced.
I don’t think it’s possible to say the name Akiva with anything other than a shaky-breath sigh, like Ahhhkivvvaaaaaahhhhh. I may tremble a little when I say it, too. Don’t judge, you’ll see.
So what’s the story? Well, the book isn’t out yet, so that’s a secret. I’m not a fan of spoilers and the summary is actually perfectly uninformative while being completely true and telling. Evil or fantastic? You let me know.
There are some lines in this book that I am considering painting on my wall. They are so beautiful and gripping and PERFECT that I kind of want to grab Laini Taylor and put on some nerdy glasses that allow me to see her brain. WHAT? THEY TOTALLY EXIST.
I give this:
Straight to the Favorites Pile
Badass Chick on Board
Swoony Boy Alert
And: I Will Reswoon Soon
Trust me, you want to read this one as soon as you can get your swoony little hands on it.
About the Author: Laini Taylor is the author of the National Book Award finalist Lips Touch, as well as the novels Blackbringer, which Kirkus said “belongs at the top of everyone’s fantasy must-read list,” and Silksinger. She lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband, illustrator Jim Di Bartolo, and their daughter, Clementine.
Also? Laini was on the What’s Hot in Young Adult Fiction panel at San Diego Comic Con! I met her! She was amazing! (Probably still is). YAY US that we get to read her words!
Want your very own ARC of this amazing book? Keep watching the blog to find out how…
Susan says
This review made my night XD
JEALOUS THAT YOU HAVE IT ALREADY. :3
~Susan
Laini says
Best. Review. Ever. Thank you!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
Pam says
I love this review just as much as I loved the book!
Emma says
God I want this book so bad! And September's not so far away, is it??!! Thanks Lo for the kick ass review 😉
Ruthie says
I haven't even read it but your swoon was contagious.You had me at "Hello there tiger eyes"
Oh myyyy.. Can September get here already?!
TwiSherry says
I want this book badly. Now I want it more!!!
Evie says
I was lucky enough to get an ARC of this as well. Let's swoon in unison! Where can I get a pair of those glasses, because I've often wondered how her synapses can come up with such exquisite prose. I'm in awe of her imagination. And don't forget Lips Touch Three Times. Epic love.
Your review was So. Much. Fun.
JennieE says
Finally got this book from the library and I knew I had to come back to this site to read the review. Agreed and double-swoon.
Pam says
FINALLY had the time to read and was totally blown away. Can not wait for the next book.
Myg says
Okay, well it's only March, a good six months plus since this was released and I'm finally reading it and OH MY GOD OH MY GOD is it good.
I rarely get this excited about a book. I'm not optimistic like you, Lo. I do not have the mental strength to read something if it's got a lot of "issues" for me. (I couldn't even get through Catching Fire.) This? I am at the 85% mark and all-out distressed that I'm going to have to wait, what? Six more months? For the next book. I don't have the strength to put this down and then finish it say, the day before the release of the next one, so I will just have to suffer, and possibly re-read as soon as I finish the first time through. It's that good.
I want Laini Taylor to MAKE ALL THE MONEY and get all the love in the world for creating this work and putting it out there for us.
Thanks for letting the world (and me) know about it! I'm off to insist that everyone I know buy it.
Latchkey Wife says
Just finished this because Myg and Jenny Jerkface told me to! So good! Can’t wait for the next one. Akiva is so amazingly yummy….
Damon says
Thank you, I’m glad you liked the review. You know, I’m alomst always doing something else while listening to a book but I just couldn’t do it with this one. I started out multi-tasking but after several instances where I found my motion completely arrested while absorbing the descriptions and word choices I quit trying to do other things and just listened when I could be still.On the positive side, think of all the excellent story you still have ahead of you.