Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Laini Taylor

Publisher: Little Brown & Company

Release Date: September 27, 2011

Series or Standalone:  Daughter of Smoke and Bones #1

ISBN: 9780316134026

Format: ARC

Pages: 432

Source: BEA

Websites:

Laini Taylor – Blog

Laini Taylor – Twitter

Daughter of Smoke and Bone - Official Website

Rating: 5 Stars

Daughter of Smoke and Bone  is a beautiful magical book. Laini Taylor will leave you awestruck after you read this, it’s that good.

When I started Daughter of Smoke and Bone I told myself I was just going to read a few chapters and go to sleep. Well, a few chapters turned into a few more chapters, and then a few more, until I ended up reading the book in one sitting. I got so drawn into this book I couldn’t put it down. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. It was addicting.

Everything was perfect in this book. There was nothing I did not like. The writing was breathtakingly beautiful. Laini Taylor has a way with words that just leaves you sitting there in awe. Her descriptions were vivid and beautiful. I felt like I was in the story with the character in the fairy tale. I was in awe of the writing. I think It can seriously give classic authors a run for their money.

Not only is the writing beautiful, the storytelling is spot on. This book I a modern fairy. The world building seemed effortless and you could truly see and understand Karou’s world. I really loved how the story was revealed, as you were reading everything slowly came together in like layers until the big picture was revealed. The pacing of the plot was spot on, it was not to fast and not too slow and there was a perfect balance of action, drama, romance and mystery. I was engrossed by Karou’s story and wanted to know more about the mystery surrounding her. When it was time for the “big reveal” as I’ll call it, I kind of just sat there staring at the book because once it was mystery was revealed it seemed so obvious, but when you first read it, it’s not. I was amazed at how Laini Taylor was able to take all the puzzle pieces and clues and make them come together. Everything just clicked. When everything clicked that was when I had my “ah-ha” moment and understood what the title really meant and how the title was staring me in the face the whole time. The balance of the supernatural (angels/demons) was perfect, it felt like just a part of the story.

I really loved the characters in this book. Each character was fully developed and played a role in the story. Karou was definitely a different type of protagonist. I mean she had blue hair (AWESOME) and was part of this world full of strange, monster like creatures that other people would run screaming away from. One think I really liked about Karou was that she was willing to take risks to find out more about herself, even if the truth was painful. And then there is Akiva, an angel. But these aren’t the typical angels. He’s here for a purpose, and from the point of view of Karou, not exactly a good guy at first (he did try to kill her…). He is a warrior and is frightening at first. As the story progresses we learn more about Akiva and he really grows on you. You begin to understand more about him and how Karou and him are connected. You sympathize with him and really like his character by the end.

Daughter of Smoke and Bone is beautiful, haunting, lyrical and romantic. I feel like my review cannot do it justice. I know you hear time and time again that a book is unique, but truly, this book is unlike anything I’ve read before. It take elements that appear commonly in books, but makes this completely new story that has never been told before. Daughter of Smoke and Bone is truly a modern fairy tale and what every fairy tale should aspire to be.