Epic. Sweeping. Heart-breaking. Gut-wrenching. In a word:
Brilliant. It’s going to be a long year waiting for the final book in the
Daughter of Smoke and Bone saga.
The blub on the back of my copy of Days of Blood and Starlight says: ‘Once upon a
time an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a new way of
living.’
Trust me, the world Laini Taylor takes us to could not be
further from Akiva and Karou’s dream. She thrusts us into a war between the seraphim
and the chimaera, waged with barbarism, brutality, and betrayal. No one is
safe.
The book picks up quickly after Karou learns about her past
in Daughter of Smoke and Bone. But instead of remembering Akiva’s plea to love and forgive him for what
he unwittingly did to the chimaera, she is filled with anger, hatred and
vengeance. The exact emotions which led Akiva to harm her people in the first
instance. Learning nothing from his experience, she returns to the chimaera, driven by a relentless thirst to make Akiva and the seraphim pay – with blood if
necessary.
Akiva, too, returns home to his half brother and sister. But he
has undergone a total change of heart. All he wants is peace with Karou and the
chimaera – even if it means he has to betray his own kind in the most brutal
way to achieve it. I loved Akiva in this book. He’s a fascinating, compelling
character who never fails to amaze. He's become one of my favourite book boys.
I wish I felt so kindly towards Karou. I understand her misery
at death of her family, but I could not forgive her mindless hatred of Akiva.
He did everything he could to
convince her he was sorry, but she is set on a course of destruction. It will
take a great deal of effort on her part to win my affection again. She
definitely has work to do in book three. Thankfully, towards the end of Days of Blood and Starlight she begins
to see that the wholesale slaughter of the seraphim is not the answer. I can’t
go into too much detail without giving away spoilers, but I was very impressed
with her final deception. There is hope for her yet. I’m now anxious to see how
this plays out in the final book.
Although Days of Blood and Starlight is brimming with new
characters – all beautifully draw – Akiva, Hazael and Liraz (Akiva’s half brother
and sister) are without doubt my favourites. Their relationship is poignant and
their love and loyalty to each other carries right to the end. It’s in stark
contract to what is happening in Karou’s world.
Be warned, this book is not a light read and I found myself
taking short breaks from the gruesomeness and brutality. (Think Mockingjay by
Suzanne Collins – only on steroids) The only comic relief comes from Zuzane and Mik,
Karou’s two friends, who join her and the chimaera. Their banter and
light-heartedness bring in the only light in this epic of horror, misery and debauchery.
Do I recommend this book? You can bet your life on it. If
you haven’t read it, you are missing out. Big Time. I give it five brilliant
blood-stained stars.
Cheers
Gwynneth
