Novel brings to life blue-haired heroine

Marcy Diaz/Columnist

Closing portals, demon made wishes and a blue-haired girl prowling the streets of Prague to fulfill unworldly deeds are only beginning glimpses of Laini Taylor’s “The Daughter of Smoke and Bone.” This novel will definitely send readers into a whirlwind of imagination and fast paced action; however, Taylor frequently falls into common character and plot cliches that often time distract from her creative qualities.

Karou, the story’s protagonist, is a tough, karate-kicking 17 year-old who has been living a mysterious life among monsters, more specifically named chimaera. Student by day and down world teeth collector by night, the blue-haired heroine is then abruptly separated from the strange world she grew up in and left with no indication of how to get back.

Her prayers to how she can find her family, ironically, are answered by an angel, though not the expected glittery winged being with warm salutations from above.

No, Karou’s only hope is to rely on the angel of death, Akiva, who first enters her life in a fit of fire and swords ablaze. After two battles ensue and major injuries were sustained, an unexplained instant connection occurs and the two find themselves in, admittedly, overdone, “forbidden love-type” romance.

Still, Taylor attempts to keep the mystery and action alive with many touch-and-go battle scenes and internal conflict, so that independent Karou does not lose her signature edge to gooey romance.

Today’s readers are fairly well-versed on the subject that angels and demons cannot seem to get along. It’s safe to say that a majority of readers will find parts of the novel’s background and plot a little predictable.

What makes the reading worthwhile though, especially for the younger crowd, are the refreshing twists of humorous characters and beings within Taylor’s universe. Even Brimstone, brute monster and father-figure to Karou, manages to pry an unexpected smile on readers as he solemnly tries to comprehend his adopted daughter’s antics. With extremely short chapters and a speeding storyline, it’s a fast read for new coming and experienced readers alike.

If you are looking for a one-stop read, I’m afraid that this novel is not it. Just as it started with questions that needed to be answered, that is exactly how it ends.  As Taylor gave readers answers to burning questions within the final chapters, she simultaneously tacked on more mystery to Karou’s extravagant tale.

So if you are interested, be prepared for book two and even suspected book three, because the novel ends in a big cliffhanger.

Cover to Cover is a bi-weekly book review column. Email at marcy.diaz@fiusm.com