i have to say this book has gotten some pretty good reviews and i win't be the exception. From all the books that i have read, i don't think that i have stumbled upon a unique book quite like this one. Just looking at the cover art i was immediately asking myself and wondering captivatingly mysterious girl behind the peacock blue mask was. At first thought, just by looking at it. i thought it would have something to do with (big surprise) a masquerade ball and some kind of magical curse put on the girl with the mask,therego the tite Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but i was completely mistaken! I am in awe at the kind creative imagination Ms. Taylor has.The the mystery, eccentric places, monsters and magic are amazing not to mention the geat deatil she goes in to describing her characters and their world. At times, i thought i was pretty sure where the book was headed but then it would go on about a totally different direction, and just shock me leaving me wanting to read more and more. Sayng that, Ms. Taylor tops it off by adding this beautiful love story about star-crossed lovers (and not your traditonal star-crossed couple either), who lost each other and are now enemy's. One, not knowing who she really is , feeling like something is missing inside of her. The other lost in anguish for the love he lost trying to end a war, who finds himself drawn to this beautiful girl with bright blue hair. (view spoiler)[I immediatley loved Karou's character a few pages into the book. Karou is a tough, spunky, eclectic 17 year old (if i'm not mistaken) talented, orphan artist with bright peacock-blue hair studying at an art school in Pargue! How incredibly awesome is that! Prague?!? She is so talented, that her friends think that the weird looking monsters and stories she draws in her sketch-book are just figments of her eccentric imagination, but in true are her foster family. One of them being Brimstone who is liek her foster father. Karou doesn't know a lot about him or why he always sends her to run errands were she ends up bringing him weird things like teeth. She only really knows that he is some kind of sorcerror. Brimstone has been the only family she has ever known and Karou doesn't want to jeoperdize her realtionship with him asking questions that might end up hurting her. Later in the book, we meet Akiva. He is a seraphim soldier set out to end with the chimaerae. At first, he is cold -hearted only set on completing his mission no matter what, since he feels this way he in some sort of way avenging his lost love's death. Until he meets Karou, he doesn't know what in her is making him so drawn towards her. When he finally sets out to find out, it is only too late that he finds out that Karou is the love he lost long ago reincarnated. Who would have thought that after Ll that Karou and Akiva went through , they still would not be able to be together, and now even more than ever. (hide spoiler)] This book left my heart aching so desperately for Karou and Akiva. I was devastated by the turning of events at the end. I just hope that the next book is even better than the first.