Five Stars for the magical story
Though I’m not generally a fan of fantasy, this novel by Laini Taylor, a National Book Award Finalist, is an exception. It’s her use of language that kept me enthralled.
The premise:
“Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well.”
And so begins the story of Karou, the strikingly beautiful blue-haired artist and Akiva, the vengeful angel who is the epitome of beauty. Karou’s past is shrouded in mystery, though her present life is filled with art school and running mysterious errands for the equally mysterious Brimstone. Brimstone is, well, a chimera, a monster. But he and the other chimeras are the only family Karou has ever known.
Enter Akiva, one of the avenging seraphim angels who have been at war with the chimeras for a thousand years. Akiva has a bone to pick (no pun intended)with the chimeras. They killed the love of his life. He is moments away from bringing down his sword on Karou’s head when something about her stays his hand.
Their relationship is complicated, tangled in the mists and rife with torn alliances. Will they end the wars or will they destroy each other?
Laini Taylor takes the star-crossed lovers scenario and makes it her own. Laini’s use of language is magical. I thoroughly enjoyed the novel and can certainly see why she was a National Book Award finalist for her novel, Lips Touch: Three Times targeted for middle and high school age groups.
Kathy Lauren Miller 
I requested this book last night from the library to give it another try 🙂 I was absolutely in love with the writing but somehow got lost in the world and something else got my attention. I’m looking forward to reading it again 🙂 I think you are totally right her writing is magical
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Hi Daniela, yes, her writing is terrific, so creative. I do believe she takes the star-crossed love plot to a better level. I read part of her, Lips Touch: Three Times. A new take on a fairy tale. Great illustrations by her husband. Have a great day. :o)
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I loved the first 2/3 of Karou’s story. I hated the ending. I didn’t like the twist and couldn’t get into it after that. I’m happy you enjoyed it more than I did!
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I know it got really sad, but I think in the sequels it turns out good. We’ll see. :o)
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Ah so glad you liked it- I loved this series!
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Hi Orangutan Librarian, I know, she’s a wonderful storyteller. I’m reading her novel : Lips Touch, Three Times and the illustrations are great. The book is targeted for middle school and up. Happy Sunday!
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I also really enjoyed this one simply because of how unique it was. While I love fantasy I found this book pretty different from other books in the genre and the rest of the books in the series only get better, in my opinion! 🙂
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Hi Alise, glad to know the series of A daughter of smoke and bone gets better. Can’t wait to read.
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I really enjoyed this book as well, the way she writes is very unique. I like how she implemented the star crossed lovers theme. I didn’t like the sequel as much though and still haven’t read the third book.
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I read this one a while back and I liked it well enough, but I’ve never gotten around to the rest of the series. I found the world fascinating – particularly where Brimstone and those guys were concerned – but I just wasn’t that into the romance. I found Akiva kind of annoying to be totally honest. I think the whole ‘starcrossed lovers’ thing just isn’t for me right now.
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