Ex Libris Audio: Days of Blood and Starlight

15 December, 2012 / / 5 Birds, Ex Libris Audio, Fantasy, Laini Taylor, Little Brown, Young Adult / 82 comments Share:
Days of Blood and Starlight
Author: Laini Taylor
Narrator: Khristine Hvam
Performance: Excellent
Publisher: Hachette Audio
Available Now
Art student and monster’s apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another truth she would give anything to undo: She loved the enemy and he betrayed her, and a world suffered for it. In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke & Bone, Karou must decide how far she’ll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, secrets and impossible choices, Days of Blood & Starlight finds Karou and Akiva on opposing sides as an age-old war stirs back to life. While Karou and her allies build a monstrous army in a land of dust and starlight, Akiva wages a different sort of battle: a battle for redemption. For hope. But can any hope be salvaged from the ashes of their broken dream?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Days of Blood and Starlight lives up to its name because, above all, it is a story of war.  There is a lot of bloodshed  in this book and Laini Taylor’s beautiful writing does much to illustrate every death and every harsh reality.  The book is told in alternating viewpoints between Karou, Akiva and many other characters.  In fact, we meet a lot of new angels and chimera in book two and I really felt that all of those viewpoints brought so much more depth to the story.  I think a few of my favorites were Zuzana and Mik and Akiva’s sister, Liraz, who turned out to be so much more than I thought she would be.  You should definitely expect twists and turns and be prepared to have your heart broken as everyone is stripped down to their rawest emotional forms in this book.  It was amazing to me, and a true testament of Taylor’s writing, that in such a violent book there could be so many profoundly touching and tender moments.  Akiva and Karou spend most of this book apart from each other, but only in a physical sense, because their connection is still strong.  Even as Karou deals with her sense of betrayal and Akiva grieves, it is impossible to believe that they are completely broken.  The ending was satisfying with a large dose of cliffhanger and I cannot wait for the third book so that I can go back into the world that has so captured my imagination.

This audiobook was narrated by Khristine Hvam, who also narrated book one.  She does a phenomenal job of bringing the characters to life.  Each voice and inflection really put you in the middle of the story.  She is  a popular narrator, so I knew it was going to be good, but I was not prepared for how good it was.  I highly recommend listening to this book for the brilliant narration and the obvious understanding of the characters and the story.

Find out more information about this feature and my ratings here.

signature_exlibris

 

Kate

Related Posts

82 responses to “Ex Libris Audio: Days of Blood and Starlight”

  1. Sara @ Forever 17 Books

    I have never listened to an audio book! One huge reason is, well it would be hard for me since I work at home with kids. But I would be worried that the narrators wouldn’t capture the story in the right way. It is really awesome that you loved it so much for such a book as this. I still need to catch up on the series, but I do look forward to! And perhaps I will have to find a way to try out an audio book in the future. 🙂

    ~Sara @ Forever 17 Books

    Reply
  5. carmen electrica

    The Absent Game…

    Concerning me and my husband we have owned far more MP3 players through the years than I can count, together with Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of gamers….

    Reply
  11. visions electronics

    best buy electronics…

    Perfect do the job you’ve got finished, this site is admittedly awesome with amazing information. Time is God’s way of trying to keep everything from happening directly….

    Reply
  14. Check this out

    You should check this out…

    […] Wonderful story, reckoned we could combine a few unrelated data, nevertheless really worth taking a look, whoa did one learn about Mid East has got more problerms as well […]……

    Reply
  31. watch breaking bad online

    Third Flower…

    My spouse and that i are already now delighted that Albert could carry out his reports as a result of the suggestions he had as a result of your web content. It’s from time to time perplexing to just always be giving away actions which a lot of people…

    Reply
  78. Dating Tester

    The Absent Game…

    Among me and my husband we’ve owned additional MP3 gamers over the years than I can count, together with Sansas, iRivers, iPods (traditional & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few a long time I’ve settled down to one line of players….

    Reply
  82. cellulitis

    After looking at a handful օf the articles оn youг website,
    I honestly аppreciate yyour ѡay of blogging. I saved it tto my bookmark website list аnd will Ьe checking baсk
    in the near future. Pleаse visit my website tⲟo andd tｅll mе yoᥙr
    opinion.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

(Enter your URL then click here to include a link to one of your blog posts.)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.