Daughter of Smoke and Bone

Laini Taylor's new book, "Daughter of Smoke & Bone," comes out in September and has already been nominated for Best Fiction.  Even though I haven't read it yet (because one of the teens in my neighborhood stole my advance copy), I am looking forward to reading it!

Last month, at the ALA Conference in New Orleans, Little Brown Books/Hachette Books threw a terrific "launch" party for this book which I was lucky enough to be invited to. It was a such a fun evening, complete with "smoke," masks, fortune tellers, and bone readers. New Orleans was a perfect setting for this event, and it was great to meet the amazing Laini Taylor!

The book promises to be a terrifically creepy read, set in a unique world. "Black handprints are appearing on doorways, scorched there by winged strangers who have crept through a slit in the sky.
In a dark and dusty shop, a devil's supply of human teeth grown dangerously low.

And in the tangled lanes of Prague, a young art student is about to be caught up in a brutal otherworldly war.

Karou fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real; she's prone to disappearing on mysterious "errands"; she speaks many languages—not all of them human; and her bright blue hair actually grows out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out."

By the way, here is a picture of me in my mask from the event. Of course, my daughter confiscated the mask as soon as she found it in my suitcase, so I will never see it again. But it was fun while it lasted!

Have you read the book? I'd love to know what you think...