I dug this book. Karou is a cool character. She's ready to fight deadly battles in an instant but is still gentle, and trustful. I loved the Chimera! Half animal / reptile, half human, these are the creatures that make up Karou's family. She loves them, even if they do hide secrets that could destroy her. And, and I'm surprised as much as anyone about this, I didn't even mind the love story. Yes, I could always do without it, but Akiva and Karou were "ok" with their silly soulmate-ness. Oh, Akiva is an angel who is in the middle of the war w/ Chimera that Karou knows nothing about...so there you go, angst...check. I loved the idea of this - the mysterious blue-haired teenager in art school, who has a whole dark, serious, and magical aspect to her life, which can be seen in her drawings (which everyone thinks are make-believe - but no, they are based in her bizarre reality!), but also has the regular teenage concerns of zits and snobby kids at school, and actually has some limited magical powers to zap zits and exort bizarre, humorous revenges on people she doesn't like. She's this cool, mysterious, powerful kid at school, but a vulnerable, confused kid in the odd underworld of her 'home'. This whole concept totally intrigued and amused me, and the author sets it up quite brilliantly, full of details to tease the imagination.But then we move further away from the art school and into the magical world more fully, and suddenly all the fun quirks are gone, and replaced by a rather boring story, full of stereotypes and extremes, and it's an oh-so-conventional love story, with a totally dull boy with no quirks or individuality, just perfection of strength, courage and beauty. Karou (the blue haired teenager) loses all her quirks out of the backdrop of a school setting, and also becomes dull. There's a bit of suspense - there's a whole mysterious story behind all this that we need to find out, but gosh, it's drawn out in such a convoluted way that it's quite an anti-climax when we get to the end. And oh, it's not the end - this is just part one, of course, so we have to read the whole series to know what really happens. Except, by the time I got to the end, I really didn't care.Two stars might be a little harsh - maybe I'd have given it three if I'd reviewed it straight after reading, but now a few months have passed, and I have more of a 'whole picture' view of it in my mind, I really can't say more than that 'it was okay'. There's nothing of any substance in it.
What do You think about Daughter Of Smoke & Bone (2011)?
Still a lil' bit confused. But it's good! Can't wait to read the next book!
—Ange
Well written. The passion and adventure ooze out of the book.
—Benj
Beautiful concepts, loved all the interweaving story lines.
—Lee
Made my eyeballs lick the page with her descriptions!
—Saulpaugh
