Book Review: Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Liani Taylor

Published September 27th, 2011
Little, Brown & Company
417 pages (Hardcover)

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 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? (From Goodreads)

First there was this...

Then there was this...

Guys, this book was amazing.  No joke on the tears.  That ending destroyed me a little.

The writing matched the setting perfectly.  Prague is know for it's magical beauty, and the writing reflected that perfectly.  There was a whimsical quality in the text that added to the whole experience.  All of the backstory that was developed was complex and whimsical and fantastic.

Then there are the characters!  Karou is different from every other protagonist right now.  I was drawn to the quirky relationship between her and Zuzana.  Then there is fatally attractive Akiva, who I clearly loved.  I think it's the swords.  I have a weapon weakness...

My one issue with this book: flashbacks.  Y'all know I hate flashbacks.  Half of this book was one giant flashback to another time, with flashback intermingled with that.  It wasn't the worst case of flashbacks ever, as there were enough differences to separate the situations.  Still, I just wanted to get back to the main story. And kissing.  Yes, that is what I wanted.

So if you haven't read Daughter of Smoke & Bone yet, READ IT.  I really, really, really enjoyed this book an it's ending, and can't wait to get my hands on Days of Blood & Starlight!

Much love, Samantha