Waiting on Wednesday: Dreams of Gods & Monsters

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases.

Dreams of Gods & Monsters
Daughter of Smoke & Bone #3

by Laini Taylor

Coming April 1, 2014

Little, Brown & Company

Summary:

By way of a staggering deception, Karou has taken control of the chimaera rebellion and is intent on steering its course away from dead-end vengeance. The future rests on her, if there can even be a future for the chimaera in war-ravaged Eretz.Common enemy, common cause.
When Jael's brutal seraph army trespasses into the human world, the unthinkable becomes essential, and Karou and Akiva must ally their enemy armies against the threat. It is a twisted version of their long-ago dream, and they begin to hope that it might forge a way forward for their people.

And, perhaps, for themselves. Toward a new way of living, and maybe even love.

But there are bigger threats than Jael in the offing. A vicious queen is hunting Akiva, and, in the skies of Eretz ... something is happening. Massive stains are spreading like bruises from horizon to horizon; the great winged stormhunters are gathering as if summoned, ceaselessly circling, and a deep sense of wrong pervades the world.What power can bruise the sky?

From the streets of Rome to the caves of the Kirin and beyond, humans, chimaera and seraphim will fight, strive, love, and die in an epic theater that transcends good and evil, right and wrong, friend and enemy.

At the very barriers of space and time, what do gods and monsters dream of? And does anything else matter?

Why I want it:

I discovered Daughter of Smoke and Bone just last year when a good childhood friend whom I've reconnected with over our mutual love of books absolutely raved about it. I wasn't sure about the premise, and it seemed very different from anything I'd read before. Well, it was different, but it was different in the best way. Laini's writing is poetic, meaningful, imaginitive. Each word is very specific; I can tell she wrote each with great purpose, that nothing is accidental, and it's absolutely stunning. The stories of Karou, Zuzana, Akiva, Madrigal, and all the rest of their friends, loved ones, cohorts, and enemies span years and worlds, yet they are intimately intertwined, creating one whole and wholly flawless tale. I don't think I talk about this series enough, but it's absolute perfection. Laini has mastered the English language as well as many others, including some of her own creation, and it shows. I see with perfect clarity every character, every scene to the largest and smallest detail. I feel entirely every emotion, from the highest elation to the lowest sorrow. I had hoped that this, the final installment would be released in the fall, like the first two, but that is sadly not the case. However, I'm happy to wait for perfection, even if it's another six and a half months away. 

Okay, well, not happy, per se, but I accept it. Begrudgingly.

Why I think you should want it:

If you have not yet read Daughter of Smoke and Bone and Days of Blood and Starlight, I absolutely insist that you do so. Immediately. You'll come for the brave heroine with blue hair and a journal full of strange drawings. You'll come for the glorious warrior angel. You'll come for the intricate mystery of it all. You'll stay for the star-crossed romance, for the forbidden magic, for the lyrical language, for the riveting epic, for the world-destroying tale you won't be able to tear your eyes from. You'll stay for the gods. You'll stay for the monsters. You'll stay because you'll want to be part of that world. You'll stay because part of you wishes it were true. 

Maybe it is.