09/15/2020
What do you need to know about a book before you start it?
I got my mom to read the City of Brass series and as soon as she started, she said, “Okay but you need to read the Daughter of Smoke and Bone series.” (Do you know how many books have almost that exact same title? SO MANY! So confusing!)
Mom came over a few days later and gave me a stack: the second and third in the series she’d mentioned, plus Strange the Dreamer and its sequel (also by Laini Taylor), with 1Q84 thrown in for good measure. I didn’t want to start a series on the second book, and she couldn’t find the first one, so I picked up Strange instead.
It took me a while, but you guys! These books are great.
It really is a slow start. It seems to me that there’s a particular kind of fantasy novel that uses words we all know but changes their meaning entirely. This is definitely one of those books. The first chapter is full of them. It’s so bewildering to know you’re reading words you know but don’t understand, and to just…endure that unmoored feeling. But I endured, and all came clear at some point. And it was well worth the wait!
I don’t need to know much about a book to start it - and I’ll happily put it down if I’m not enjoying it. Influenced by I will avoid the inside covers like the plague. So recommendations from fellow readers make a big impression! In this case, the fact that this recommendation came in return from my recommendation was a no-brainer. And for any or all of you that I’ve told to read the City of Brass series - I agree, this is a great next read. It has the same fun, hopeful, magical wonderland feeling, with great characters.
Okay, that’s enough for now - back to reading!
