(Messy) Book Review: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Title: Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Author: Laini Taylor
Rating: 5/5 stars
Goodreads Synopsis:
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 otherworldly 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 beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery 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?
Review:
[A little bit of context before I get started!]
I got around to reading this book about 3 years ago and being the pretentious little reader that I was, I "enjoyed" the book without having a recollection of what actually happened in the story. I don't think I was in the right mood nor mindset to have picked it up in the first place. I just wanted to see what the hype was all about. So, with the added pressure of having to like the book and first-time exposure to an uncommon, unusual and eccentric genre, I ended up force-reading DoSaB.
I skimmed through multiple chapters and nothing remained in my head. Like I said, I wasn't in the right mood to even being reading it, how was I to engage with an urban fantasy/anger-devil magical realism clash? Well, I didn't. I "finished" the book, remembered nothing of what I just read and went ahead and gave it 4 stars on Goodreads with a short review; "The story was executed so well! The ending was a little abrupt though, but overall so good!"
....you can tell just how clueless I was of the book reading my pathetic 'review' xD
The point of my little story is that I was young and naive back then and it was a mistake on my part to pick it up and lie about my thoughts on the book just so I could fit in with everyone else who simply loved it. Having an unpopular opinion is great! It makes the reading community so much more diverse and interesting. No one is entitled to have one single opinion. No one should be afraid to express what they truly feel. I wish I were more open-minded back then. But we all learn and grow, and fortunately, with a fresher perspective, I fell hard for this book the second time.
I'm so glad to have picked it up again. Daughter of Smoke and Bone is not like anything I've ever read before. It's rich and beautiful and magical in every way possible. It is intense and seductive. It's a love story. There is political intrigue, character depth, a world of hybrid creatures, angels, devils, action, and angst. And yet, so much has not been explored yet (there are still 2 more books in the series).
By the end of this book, you won't feel so content for finishing such a chunky novel. You will instead feel hollow and sad and empty it. You will feel "as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are" (this is part of a quote by Robert Pattinson, and it describes my state perfectly when I finished the book). It's a whirlwind of emotions and you will finish the book feeling mentally drained. But the best books always leave you that way!
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND PICKING IT UP!
if you're interested in buying Daughter of Smoke and Bone, you can click here to shop the book at Book Depository - i receive a small commission if you use the link! :)