Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

Karou is unlike anyone else and unless you've read Daughter of Smoke and Bone, you can't begin to understand what I mean. It's not her ultramarine blue hair, or her countless sketchbooks, Prague (where she lives). If anything, it's the uniqueness or unearthliness of who she runs errands for and what said errands usually entail. However, at the same time, it's so much more than that.

I'm coming to terms with the fact that this is going to be an astoundingly short review for me. Why? Because quite frankly Daughter of Smoke and Bone is a book that you need to read for yourself. I can honestly say that I have never read anything like that and I mean that as the highest sort of praise. If you haven't gotten your hands on this book, I'd implore you to rectify said situation immediately.

Why should you read Daughter of Smoke and Bone?

• Laini Taylor's writing style is stunning and because of that particular fact, I was unable to put the book down... at all. 
• Romance! I know, sometimes romance overwhelms the story and you're left with plot deprivation. Daughter of Smoke and Bone? Lots of plot and a healthy heaping of romance. Seriously, I loved Akiva and I hope you will too. 
• Karou's tiny friend of awesomeness, Zuzana. Honestly, it's rare for me to really like minor characters, but I adored Zuzana--and Poison Kitchen (which I'd love to visit, if it were real). 

So there you have it! Honestly, if I were to have any complaints about Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it would be that it had left me hanging! And if you want a very quick (and as such, brief) summary of Daughter of Smoke and Bone, it's this:

Karou seems rather normal at first, but truth be told, she's anything but normal. She runs mysterious errands for Brimstone and lives a double life. The things that she draws in her sketchbooks? Are actually quite real and her errands are anything but normal. But lately, someone has been leaving scorched hand prints on doors that lead to Brimstone's shop and something is up. You see, there's been a war going on for quite some time now, and Karou's about to get caught up in it.

Overall Rating: ★★★★★

Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Author: Laini Taylor

Publisher: Little, Brown & Company

Release Date: September 27, 2011

Edition: Hardcover

* Received for review via publisher.