Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor

Release Date: 27th September, 2011

Publisher: Little Brown

Pages: 420pgs

The Story

Around the world, the 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 streets 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 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?

The Review

Karou is an art student in Prague and unknown to her closest friends, she has a secret life as the foster-daughter and errand-runner for a demon. You see, Karou has grown up in a shop of a chimera named Brimstone, who collects teeth (for whatever reason Karou is unaware of) and pays for them in wishes. But Karou doesn't know who she is. There is this hollow emptiness that lies inside of her - where instead, there should be something more. And everything changes when she crosses paths with an angel of fiery eyes - an angel who tries to kill her but does not succeed.

Now pardon my lack of words, but I'm still gathering my thoughts after finishing this book and there is so much to say, and it's hard enough putting it into words alone. What I can say is that I enjoyed - no, wait - I devoured this book so slowly, because I wanted to take in every vivid depiction of this story. The breath-taking storyline, the ever-so-fascinating characters, the tangled-portal streets of Prague, the never-ending twists that all connect to one thing: Karou. Laini Taylor has created a world that you never want to leave and it's no wonder why so many readers have fell in love with the devil and with the angels themselves. This book surprised me in so many ways. But who am I kidding? Judging by the cover, which is absolutely beautiful and one of the most stunning book covers I've ever seen on a young adult book, there's no mistake that DAUGHTER OF SMOKE & BONE must be read by anyone and everyone who loves an epic high-fantasy adventure.

And the romance - oh yes, the heart-pounding romance. The forbidden star-crossed love romance was the compelling point of the entire book but it was so much more than that. So much more between Karou and Akiva. The characters are rich and full of life to a point you wished these characters were real. I mean, each character name was well-thought out and it makes me wonder how Taylor does it. Her magic is in her writing. Karou was the perfect heroine through my eyes. Her strength is shown at the very beginning and I love her fighting spirit as her character develops throughout the course of the book. Akiva's character was just as spine-chilling as Karou was. He was everything that made the book what is it - both powerful and unique. How can Laini Taylor make the word "Hello" sound so sexy and swoon-worthy each time a character says it? Who knows. I believe magic is involved.

Honestly, I'm running out of words here because there's so much to say but so little to elaborate on because, as a reader, you will need to experience this epic adventure for yourself to truly understand the power of words. The world-building took me to a whole new dimension that exists within our own - a world of life, death, magic, war, and love. Love that is at its ultimate best. This is by far one of my favourite 2011 books and if you haven't opened the 'Godly' book of the DAUGHTER OF SMOKE & BONE, then you are missing out on an adventure that can - and will - make you lusting and longing for more!

The Rating

5/5 stars