Daughter of Smoke and Bone

By: Laini Taylor

Narrated by: Khristine Hvam

Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

In a nation on the brink of war, a young art student's star-crossed love begins to bloom in the first book of the New York Times best-selling epic fantasy trilogy by award-winning author Laini Taylor.

Around the world, black handprints 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 grown 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 one of the strangers—beautiful, haunted Akiva—fixes his fire-colored 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?

©2011 Laini Taylor (P)2011 Hachette Audio

Unexpected Gem

To my own greatest surprise, I'm giving the story 5 stars. And it's partly because Laini Taylor sold me on the book even though I was determined not to be sold on it.

I started it with heavy, heavy, heavy skepticism...but it had a 5 star review from practically everyone I follow on GoodReads. What was the deal with this book, I wondered?

And when I started, it wasn't hard to maintain the skepticism. I did immediately notice the high quality writing and the incredible ability to paint pictures with words. But the dialogue...it wasn't bad dialogue, it was just so shallow teenager, it made me cringe so bad!

It's one of those cases where I can't tell if this is a commentary on the shallow-ness of young female teenage minds, or whether it was glorifying it. But yeah, I would expect teenagers to swoon over guys and talk smack about ex-boyfriends like they do in the book. It still makes me cringe. (And it didn't help that the narrator gave Karou a high-pitched nasally voice.)

But then there were moments of pretty good insight into teenage life...

The first half of the novel is essentially a YA novel, and a pretty decent one at that too.

Karou is not quite the "audience surrogate" trope. She is very much involved with the fantasy world and knows more about it than the readers do. So we don't learn about the world as she learns about it. But we try to piece together the world based on Karou's experiences. But then again, there is SO much Karou is unaware of, that it creates quite a compelling mystery. I was pretty invested in the mystery surrounding Brimstone's shop.

The plot of the first half is essentially about Karou running errands for Brimstone; and we the readers, get to learn little by little of the fascinating goings-on of the world. So it doesn't matter that it takes a long time for the main plot to get started - there's a lot to find interesting on the way to the plot.

She travels around the world a lot. And there are rich descriptions of every location woven into the action. The two major locations (in the human world at least) are Prague and Marrakesh. I felt like both were presented as an idealized version of themselves. Having never been to either city, I can't confirm this, but the author really painted both cities in a way to make you want to go there.

One other thing I'd like to mention is that Karou is a very distinct character with a distinct personality unlike most of the blank slates of YA literature, or at least of the "paranormal" sub-genre in YA. Among her many non-paranormal-YA traits, the one that struck me most was how graceful and confident she is.

Speaking of moments of insights into teenage life, there is a portion where Brimstone lectures Karou for having moved too fast with her no-good boyfriend. He said she could do without "inessential penises" in her life. I actually really liked this bit. And there's also a bit later when a character feels really uncomfortable in a revealing outfit and just wants to find a shawl to cover herself.

These tend to lean on the more "conservative" side of messages about sexuality and body-positivity. But I liked this because it's not moralizing or judgmental, but at the same time the author doesn't worry about whether she sounds too "conservative" in case people take her to be moralizing or judgmental. Basically what I mean is, just like there's no shame in being on the "liberal" side of this, there shouldn't be anything wrong about being on the "conservative" side either.

The second half is a Love Story of Star-Crossed Lovers.

I am not a fan of forbidden love or star-crossed lovers-type stories. And this played a lot into my initial skepticism of the book.

Even in the first half, we get to meet Akiva, and get bits and pieces of this thoughts and his backstory. And let me tell you, I really didn't care for it. Another story with a hulking brooding tortured soul moping over the death of the one he loved.

That seems like a set-up for a story where he and Karou would meet, and he would be inexplicably drawn to her, and she would heal his broken heart. And I really didn't care for that.

But it turns out, it wasn't inexplicable, because as a reader, you start to catch on to what is actually going on...and that this isn't the story of him healing his broken heart.

I'll mention one other thing. I did know going in that this wasn't going to end well. That was part of the reason I gave it a chance, because I generally get the sense that stories about star-crossed lovers usually don't work well with happy endings.

Bu then, I also think it's excessive that every story about star-crossed lovers / story about forbidden love gets labeled as a Romeo and Juliet story.

Except this one actually is a Romeo and Juliet story. Right down to the Ironic Tragedy that happens because of Mistakes and Misinformation.

And the point at which I was really sold on this story was when the very first excerpt at the beginning finally clicked in place. And that's when I understood what the book was about.

However, despite being finally sold on the book, I actually don't know if I want to continue with the series. I don't know that I am particularly interested in an epic battle between the Chimera and the Seraphim. We did learn about the history of the war and such, but that was not the fantasy aspect that I had found compelling. What I had found compelling was the smaller story of Brimstone's shop, Brimstone's family, and the girl who ran errands for them.

Surprisingly wonderful, I loved this book!

This book is really great. I loved world and am waiting on pins and needles for book 2. I would recommend this listen to scifi fans.

Engrossing and Magical

I must say, the story and narration were a magical combination. I would walk in my neighborhood listening, so enthralled by the performance and story that people would smile at me, likely wondering, “what has put such a dreamy gaze in her eyes?” Pure delight with an extremely compelling ending.

Taylor's use of figurative language shines

Where does Daughter of Smoke and Bone rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I am an educator who reads and/or listens to lots of YA literature. Laini Taylor's writing is beautiful, and while I often find good writing in teen contemporary literature, it is a rare occasion when I find such strong writing in "popular" romantic fantasy, dystopian, etc. fiction. Because of that, I rank this book high on my list of YA literature.

What other book might you compare Daughter of Smoke and Bone to and why?

Taylor's work ranks much higher than the Twilight series, and I prefer her novels to the Hunger Games trilogy because her beautiful writing and memorable characters sweep readers off to Prague and the lands of angels and demons. I also love Taylor's humor. In spite of tragic events, there is a layer of humor that endears those characters to readers. Love Zuzanna especially!

Which scene was your favorite?

Difficult to decide, and so I'll move on to the next question.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laugh out loud almost every time Zuzanna enters a scene. Love that little "assassin"!

Any additional comments?

Kristine Hvam is my new favorite narrator. From Brimstone to Mik and Zuzanna, she captures every characters' personalities perfectly! Love her accents - spot on!

great fantasy that draws you in!

I really liked this one, it drew me in with the different world and vibrant characters! there isn't alot of fast paced action but the story moved quickly for me. i felt it was unique, and Laini Taylor is a great story teller. the narration was very good for me, i liked her differnet accents, they were distinct between characters, i thought she did a good job. Yes the romance was definately of the romeo juliet kind, both from different "familes" but unique that it wasn't boring. the end left you wanting more, cant wait to find out what happens next.

I loved every minute

Imagine a really imaginative, paranormal retelling of Romeo and Juliet, but so much more! I plan on listening to not only the next two, but everything I can listen to by Laini Taylor!
The narrator is one of my favorites, Khristine Hvam. She is a brilliant narrator who makes the beautiful, tragic story of love and loss and redemption and some more love fly. She is a great narrator, in fact I picked this series because Khristine Hvam had said in an interview it was one if her favorite books that she narrated ! I had to listen to it then, and I wasn't disappointed!

This book was like a kaleidoscope for my senses

What did you love best about Daughter of Smoke and Bone?

EVERYTHING! The depth and breadth of the world Laini Taylor created had me awestruck from start to finish.

What did you like best about this story?

Every single character was rich and colorful. The story and characters melded together and formed a rich tapestry.

Have you listened to any of Khristine Hvam’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Never, but she is WAY up there on my list of favorite narrators.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

YES! I could not wait to go back to this world.

Any additional comments?

This book may be labeled as YA, but believe me, it is not just for Young Adults. This book is a novel that happens to have a teenage main character. If you like colorful, exciting, magical and compelling narratives then read this. Loved it loved it loved it!

Great story for adults too!

I initially didn’t read this book when I heard of it because it was billed as a young adult book. I’m an adult with a doctorate and I enjoyed the audio book very much.. It’s a quick and easy read, but very enjoyable. I liked it enough to forgo my next library book and buy the second book in the sequel.

I cant wait for the next one!!!

What other book might you compare Daughter of Smoke and Bone to and why?

Here's the thing, it is its own book. I cant put a comparison on it for the life of me. Completely unique experience.

What about Khristine Hvam’s performance did you like?

I like how she breaths life into the story, her voice is very expressive. That shows in all of the wonderfully accented voices she gives us in this performance.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The dance and the sugar devouring shawl.

Any additional comments?

MORE PLEASE!!!

Perfect narration, fantastic book

After reading, and rereading this book in print I purchased it through audible. The narration is perfect. This is one you'll listen to over and over for the quality and complexity of the storytelling, the novelty of the setting, and the enjoyment of Khristine Hvam's narration.