My original rating of this on first read was 5 stars. I bumped it down to 4.5 after second read. After fourth read, it's back up to 5 lol

Daughter of Smoke and Bone may enjoy the benefit of being one of the last things I'll read in 2012, perhaps standing out so much to me by virtue of comparison. But also, it is a unique, beautifully written story with characters I felt for page after page.

I liked our heroine, Karou from page one. I didn't know that it was possible in YA anymore, but as the start of our story we see Karou... STANDING UP FOR HERSELF. AGAINST A BOY. Her ex-boyfriend is self centered and treats her badly, and though it hurts her heart, she resists him and separates herself and thus instantly wins me over.

From that point we are introduced to the life of our blue-haired protagonist. She's an art student in Prague who was raised by four monster-like creatures. She travels in and out of this world and the one that houses those chimaera she knows very little about.

Things change as black hand prints start appearing on the doorways to Brimstone's shop. Things change when Karou lays eyes on the angel Akiva. Things change when Karou is cut off from the only family she's ever known, and must fight a way back to them and back to the truth of who -or what- she is.

Again, Karou is a brilliant character. She stands out as tough, but not cartoonishly so. She has weaknesses, she hurts, she is defeated, but she is smart, she thinks things through, she plans and she corrects herself so that she will not be defeated again.

The world-building in this book is exceptional. Not only does the author introduce us to the fantasy elements of this story but the "real world" elements set in Prague, Marrakesh and Paris are beautifully described and exceptionally vivid. Things are slowly shown, and each new piece of the plot also becomes a new piece of the world, revealing a rich tapestry of history and creatures. While the first half of the novel is more action focused, the second half reaches a certain revelation and all action stops. Halts. All that follows is a pretty outpouring, a fill in the blanks as we see the back story that brought us to this point. It's a pacing thing that may bother some readers, but that felt interesting and needed in terms of answering all of our questions.

The elements that could've been cliched were far from it. Angels, demons, war, good, bad - nothing was absolute in this book. There wasn't a good side, or a bad one. There wasn't an absolute truth. War created monsters of both sides, and yet, most notably in our protagonists, there was good, or hope of good on both sides.

Some of the "big reveals" were easy to figure out, specifically about who Karou was and how the book ended. It felt on the predictable side, but still, Laini Taylor is a gifted author, and she wove her story in rich details and lyrical writing. Every moment she connected to a previous one, from blue hair to an instant love and attraction, was satisfying.

I liked Akiva, and though it would be easy to forget in a story as nice as this one, the romance found here is a case of insta-love. Boy sees girl, girl gets under boys skin, girl and boy are meant to be together. Not my favorite thing in the world, but relatively well done. Their romance feeds a larger story and a larger purpose, and that was nice. There was a reason why they felt connected and that reason grounds this trope in a way I ultimately found enjoyable.

If any of you are a little late to the game, as I was, and are fans of urban fantasy, do yourself the favor of losing yourself in the world of Daughter of Smoke and Bone.

It was truly worth it.

[May 26, 2015] Marking for re-read.

I'm going to finish off the series but wanted to revisit the first entry since I remembered it in bits and pieces and rated it so highly the first time around.

I was pleasantly surprised in that I still agree with most of my assessment above. There is something about the ease of the story and Laini Taylor's vivid writing that bumps this up from generic YA Fantasy into something better. I was reading this alongside #ACOTAR, and the stark contrast in quality of writing made me appreciate this even more.

The trappings of the genre were still in play, from the insta-love to the beauty on beauty on beauty, but they seemed to serve a larger purpose and narrative, at least.

It was a really good road trip read, too. I've been struggling with YA recently so it was nice to at least pick one up that was fun.

[August 26, 2017] Marking for re-read.

Read it super quickly as the story really does flow with so much ease and grace. Laini Taylor makes me love things I hate in other books. She does so with skill and by providing us layered and fleshed out characters. Karou is both tough, but vulnerable. She's strong, but Taylor doesn't make her so at the cost of cutting her off from connection or people or friendships or other women. Upon third (lol) read, my least favorite parts to revisit were those of Madrigal, but only because they very much are the revelation and mystery parts, which have to lose a bit of their luster when you know the ending. Still, a pleasant experience and one of my favorite YA first books in a favorite YA series.

[January 29, 2021] Marking for re-read.

Reading this to cover the trilogy on Snark Squad Pod. I honestly could talk about this series for so long at this point and reading this back, it's amazing to me all the bits I loved that I've never really mentioned: Zuzanna and her excellent friendship with Karou! The dialogue that brings to much levity and light to a really tragic story! Brimstone as an adoptive father and the exploration of grief this ends up being!

I know that Taylor's writing is a make it or break it element here because it is flowery and she favors descriptions and has created something very epic based on a star-crossed lovers trope. I get why that isn't everyone's cup of tea, but man. It's decadent. I love immersing myself in this world!