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A review by monetp
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
4.0
"Tomorrow was the first of October, and the great feast would be held to show honor to our patron and lord. Tomorrow, the Dragon would come." ~ [b:Uprooted|22544764|Uprooted|Naomi Novik|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550135418l/22544764._SX50_.jpg|41876730]
This book has been on my to-read list FOREVER and I'm so glad I finally got around to it. It's definitely an ideal read for autumn; the atmosphere is so Octoberesque. My favorite aspect of this book was Agnieszka, the main heroine. She's spunky, klutzy and loyal to a fault. I love every moment she stands up for herself. When I began this book, it started off feeling like a "Beauty and the Beast" retelling, kind of reminding me of [b:Cruel Beauty|15839984|Cruel Beauty|Rosamund Hodge|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1371652590l/15839984._SY75_.jpg|21580669]. However, it quickly became clear that this novel wasn't about romance. It's about Agnieszka learning magic and I love it! Her relationship with Dragon is so interesting, especially that it's such a slow burn that I wasn't even sure if they liked each other that way!
I love how dynamic and rich the relationships in this novel are; like you never know where the characters stand with each other and that motivated me to keep reading. Also I love how [a:Naomi Novik|8730|Naomi Novik|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206646770p2/8730.jpg] manages to pack so much detailed worldbuilding into a standalone book! The atmosphere is so dangerous, intriguing, and magical. Very rarely did I get lost in all the gorgeous plot. What I admired most was that the author didn't surrender to the classic fantasy trope of sending the main character off to a tower to abandon her friends and fall in love. Agnieszka actively demands that she has control over her own life. Her friendship with Kaisia is everything; it was such a welcome change to have two badass women working together in a fantasy story. Overall I couldn't get enough of this unusual story and I will definitely be reading more of Novik's writing in the future.
Some of my favorite quotes:
"His only extravagance was books. We were well read by the standards of villagers, because he would pay gold for a single great tome, and so the book-peddlers came all this way, even though our valley was at the very edge of Polnya."
"He had told me himself no one had ever been brought out of a heart-tree, no one had ever come out of the Wood—but Jaga had done it, and now I had, too. He could be mistaken; he was mistaken."
"Then I shut my eyes and felt out the shape of his magic: as full of thorns as his illusion, prickly and guarded. I started to murmur my own spell..."
"His name tasted of fire and wings, of curling smoke, of subtlety and strength and the rasping whisper of scales."
I realized she was hammering spells into the steel: her lips moved a little while she worked. It was a strange kind of magic..."
This book has been on my to-read list FOREVER and I'm so glad I finally got around to it. It's definitely an ideal read for autumn; the atmosphere is so Octoberesque. My favorite aspect of this book was Agnieszka, the main heroine. She's spunky, klutzy and loyal to a fault. I love every moment she stands up for herself. When I began this book, it started off feeling like a "Beauty and the Beast" retelling, kind of reminding me of [b:Cruel Beauty|15839984|Cruel Beauty|Rosamund Hodge|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1371652590l/15839984._SY75_.jpg|21580669]. However, it quickly became clear that this novel wasn't about romance. It's about Agnieszka learning magic and I love it! Her relationship with Dragon is so interesting, especially that it's such a slow burn that I wasn't even sure if they liked each other that way!
I love how dynamic and rich the relationships in this novel are; like you never know where the characters stand with each other and that motivated me to keep reading. Also I love how [a:Naomi Novik|8730|Naomi Novik|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206646770p2/8730.jpg] manages to pack so much detailed worldbuilding into a standalone book! The atmosphere is so dangerous, intriguing, and magical. Very rarely did I get lost in all the gorgeous plot. What I admired most was that the author didn't surrender to the classic fantasy trope of sending the main character off to a tower to abandon her friends and fall in love. Agnieszka actively demands that she has control over her own life. Her friendship with Kaisia is everything; it was such a welcome change to have two badass women working together in a fantasy story. Overall I couldn't get enough of this unusual story and I will definitely be reading more of Novik's writing in the future.
Some of my favorite quotes:
"His only extravagance was books. We were well read by the standards of villagers, because he would pay gold for a single great tome, and so the book-peddlers came all this way, even though our valley was at the very edge of Polnya."
"He had told me himself no one had ever been brought out of a heart-tree, no one had ever come out of the Wood—but Jaga had done it, and now I had, too. He could be mistaken; he was mistaken."
"Then I shut my eyes and felt out the shape of his magic: as full of thorns as his illusion, prickly and guarded. I started to murmur my own spell..."
"His name tasted of fire and wings, of curling smoke, of subtlety and strength and the rasping whisper of scales."
I realized she was hammering spells into the steel: her lips moved a little while she worked. It was a strange kind of magic..."