Daughter of Smoke and Bone    by Laini Taylor Order:  USA  Can Little, Brown & Co., 2012 (2012) Hardcover, CD, e-Book Read an Excerpt      Reviewed by Ricki Marking-Camuto Angels, both fallen and faithful, are now the all the rage in YA fantasy. Laini Taylor, however, puts her own unique spin on the subgenre with a complex alternate world accessed through many doors all over our world, including Prague, the main setting for Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Karou has always known she was different. As long as she can remember, she was raised by Brimstone, the Wishmonger chimera who collected teeth of all kinds for a reason unknown to Karou. As a child, she always lived in Brimstone's shop in an alternate dimension but accessible by many doors throughout the world. However, after years of constantly changing schools to avoid detection by various authorities, Karou has settled in Prague with her own apartment as she attends a private art high school. While she has sketchbooks filled with pictures of Brimstone and the other three chimera in the shop, no one knows they are actually real, not even Karou's best friend Zuzana. However, all of that is about to change as Karou's world crumbles when angels come to earth, leaving Karou to question all she has ever known about who is right and who is wrong ... and who she herself is. Taylor has created an elaborate dark fantasy world totally different from anything else out there. Taking from both religions and ancient myth as well as her own imagination, Taylor has formed creatures and circumstances that seem real no matter how improbable they are. As with her Dreamdark novels for younger readers, Daughter of Smoke and Bone is deftly woven with plenty of twists and turns that keep the reader on edge despite the greater length of this novel. Daughter of Smoke and Bone is an excellent choice for anyone looking for something new in YA fantasy. Laini Taylor has given us a dark and engrossing tale that will leave readers wanting more of her work. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Teens books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews