From the Bookshelf of Read. Sleep. Repeat.'s TBR Takedown…

Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke & Bone, #2)

Laini Taylor

Start date: June 10, 2013

Finish date: June 30, 2013

Discussion: Poll Winners

Why we're reading this: The 2nd winner of the "What Should I Read Next Poll"!! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!…more
[close] The 2nd winner of the "What Should I Read Next Poll"!! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!

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Poll Winners

The Art if Wishing by Lindsay Ribar
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last updated Jun 09, 2013 10:21PM

My 1st Read!
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last updated May 30, 2013 09:18PM

What Members Thought

Jan 31, 2012 Shannon (Twilight Sleep) rated it really liked it

Wow. Book 3 please.

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Sep 10, 2013 Christine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own-it

It has been a long while since a book has left me very much incoherent. This is even more noteworthy considering that Daughter of Smoke & Bone, its predecessor, did not leave me this enthralled. Days of Blood & Starlight is perhaps one of the best young adult novels I have ever read. It is riddled with powerful themes of loyalty and war and packaged in the most delicate, captivating prose. Taylor is truly an exquisite novelist.

Days of Blood & Starlight returns with the determined Karou who is no It has been a long while since a book has left me very much incoherent. This is even more noteworthy considering that Daughter of Smoke & Bone, its predecessor, did not leave me this enthralled. Days of Blood & Starlight is perhaps one of the best young adult novels I have ever read. It is riddled with powerful themes of loyalty and war and packaged in the most delicate, captivating prose. Taylor is truly an exquisite novelist.

Days of Blood & Starlight returns with the determined Karou who is now assuming the responsibilities her adopted father left behind - resurrecting her people. Their world has been compromised and endangered, leaving them with the only option to retaliate as fiery seraphim seek their extinction. Unfortunately, not only is Karous estranged from her friends and grieving her family - she is a pariah to her own. Her involvement with Akiva in the Daughter of Smoke & Bone has left the Chimarea reeling in bitterness. They do not trust her even though her inherited abilities are ensuring their survival. Readers find Karou with a sense of remorse and humiliation for her involvement, and this deadly duo takes much toll on her, physically and emotionally. Despite this, Karou is still that strong heroine most came to admire in her first adventures.

This morbid background gives Days of Blood & Starlight a hopelessness that exudes on every page. Days of Blood & Starlight does not ring with that sense of romance and hope as its prequel did; rather, it is reeking of despair. This novel realistically tells of the effects of war - the slaughtering of innocents, the breakdown of trust, and the general violence and aggression that comes with it. This commentary is parallel to our own world with its authentic portrayal. In Days of Blood & Starlight, the notion of unity is one that can be the end of a century old war, but its occuring is near impossible with so much bitterness on each opposing side. How familiar is that?

With the theme of war pulsing across each page, Taylor provides readers with over-the-edge world-building. Her rich backdrop of Prague returns, alongside the opposing territories of Eretz and the desert sands of Adgz. Not only are her locations well-developed. but so is the atmosphere. The only relief from sky-high tension in this novel is the light-hearted romance between Zuzana and Mik. Their romantic endeavors and overall loyalty to each other and their friend Karou, alleviate readers as they turn between pages of bloodshed and fear. Unlike Daughter of Smoke and Bone, there is no romance clouding and distracting the plot, and the introduction or expansion of more characters means that readers see more motivations and more subplots that all lead to a climatic ending that really gripped me. We see characters redeem themselves, and we see some that we wish Brimstone's worst magic on.

This enthralling content is superbly handled via Taylor's signature lyrical prose. At this point, I would likely buy a short story of Taylor describing her Benedict eggs. Her writing is not of the rudimentary kind often associated with books intended for teens. Her writing is beautiful, multi-layered - an overall honor to feast my eyes upon. This elegant, intelligent hand of hers is a great contribution to today's literature.

To end, I must say that I loved Days of Blood & Starli ght. This is the most apt way to summarize my unforgettable experience in Taylor's fantasy world. ...more

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