Daughter of Smoke and Bone: 5 out of 5

Daughter of Smoke and Bone ended up being a lot better than I expected. After I finished reading the Lunar Chronicles (and loved it!) I wasn't sure this was going to be as good. It Was!

GoodReads synopsis of the book:
"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 had that color. Who is she? That is the Question that haunts her, and she is about to find out.
When beautiful, haunted Avika fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and star-crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself?"

There are many reasons why I loved this book.
The first:
"Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well"
The story goes against ya fantasy norm. There is nothing cliche about it.
The couple does not end up together (and I can say that because that little quote above is the first page of the book, so not really a spoiler)
And it is not just one love story. First we meet Karou...and then we meet 'another' girl...Both love stories are beautifully written and work together perfectly.

Two: the book is not however a love story. It is not about angels or demons. That's what you would expect out of that very first page, but it is not what it is. There are love stories in it, there are angels, monsters, but that is not what the book is about.
Family, friendship, growth, betrayal! Those are the books real themes. And revenge! Lets not forget Revenge.

Three: the characters aren't predictable.
Avika is not the usual good pure angel you would find in books, he is bad-ass set in revenge. His wings burn, he is merciless. He has a very tortured soul...
And Karou is not Devil itself. Neither is her family. They are monsters, but even monsters have a heart! That being said, revenge changes people. We shall see what book two has in store.
The fallen angels are...well... fallen, I wont say more. 'Yuck' is enough!

Anyway... there are many reasons to love Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Those were just a few. Hopefully it gives you enough of a glimpse into a great world and you will not resist the temptation to read it too!

Comments

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