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kim_j_dare's review against another edition
4.0
When Nora and her friends help a professor translate some ancient documents, Nora finds a connection with sixteenth-century Elizabeth, whose letters she's translating and who ultimately leads Nora, Adriane, and Max to Prague in search of the Lumen Dei. Although Wasserman doesn't pull any punches on a couple of gory scenes, the story is reminescent of [a:Jennifer Donnelly|36346|Jennifer Donnelly|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351344756p2/36346.jpg]'s [b:Revolution|7558747|Revolution|Jennifer Donnelly|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1320530843s/7558747.jpg|9871439], which also involves a compelling protagonist who forms a personal connection with a teenager from the past. A fast-paced, dynamic novel with plenty of twists and turns.
threegoodrats's review
4.0
I'm pretty sure this is what The Da Vinci Code wanted to be. My review is here.
ingo_lembcke's review
Either I have the beginning of Alzheimer's or the book with too much jumping between times and deaths and names I did not remember after turning a page as they have not enough (back)story (I tend to lean more towards numbers, names I often do not remember IRL), but this book starts confusing. The main story about the decoding and translating of a book is interesting enough, but also jumps back in time towards the time where the book and letters by then decoders/translators where written. As it is now, it reminds me of [b:The Club Dumas|7194|The Club Dumas|Arturo Pérez-Reverte|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327896341s/7194.jpg|372756], not sure wether that is good or bad.
One reason I bought this book is, that part of it plays in Prague, one of the few cities I have been to ca. 1985, it was still behind the iron curtain and the country was then called Czechoslovakia - even though it is not very accessible for a wheelchair. Given that I will probably not visit it again.
One reason I bought this book is, that part of it plays in Prague, one of the few cities I have been to ca. 1985, it was still behind the iron curtain and the country was then called Czechoslovakia - even though it is not very accessible for a wheelchair. Given that I will probably not visit it again.
protoman21's review against another edition
3.0
This started out very strong for me, but I lost more and more interest as the story unfolded. I was never interested in the story that unfolded through the letters Nora was translating, and the trip to Prague hinged on things from the past which I just didn't care about. Whatever intrigue there was with relationships was lost early on when one of the characters dies and leaves the others in no position to be thinking about going to the prom. I'm just glad this isn't the first book in a series.
abaugher's review against another edition
5.0
Wasserman does it again! i'm not even done just yet, but I've loved this book! looking back on it, i probably would have totally enjoyed this on audio because of the Czech names used so frequently. I think i'll try listening to parts of it for the auditory "taste", as it were.
***Done! amazing! If you enjoy epic mysteries, this one is for you: spanning several centuries, countries,and people from widely varied backgrounds, all converging in one horrific battle for power. From ancient Prague to modern America and back again, this has got to be one of the most awesome, beautifully confusing, and thrilling books I've read in decades!
***Done! amazing! If you enjoy epic mysteries, this one is for you: spanning several centuries, countries,and people from widely varied backgrounds, all converging in one horrific battle for power. From ancient Prague to modern America and back again, this has got to be one of the most awesome, beautifully confusing, and thrilling books I've read in decades!
renuked's review against another edition
2.0
I don't know it just didn't strike me the way I thought it would. It was too slow in the beginning, there were so many twists it got repetitive, the characters didn't make my heart beat faster, and though I can see how many people could like it, it wasn't for me. Disappointing.
bookishmadness's review against another edition
2.0
I wish I could say I loved this book. Believe me, I really wanted to. Let's start with the fact that it took me the space of 8 days to actually read the whole book. By that I meant, it took me 8 days to get through 55 odd pages. After that, I spent one day powering through.
The start was slow. I was bored from the beginning which was a bad indication. But after reading all the 5-star reviews, I just had to keep going.
I loved all the characters from the start, mostly Elizabeth - the dead girl from the letters. But as the story continued, I just wanted to shake everyone. WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THESE PEOPLE?!
I haven't read the Da Vinci Code, although this book has been compared to it many times. Religion, mystery and all that jazz? Yep, this book certainly has it. I love my history, but the way it was gilded was too much for me. There is plenty of betrayal, and a killer ending, but unfortunately it wasn't enough for me.
I wish I could write more for this review, but I really don't know what to say.
But don't take my word for it, try reading it for yourselves!
The start was slow. I was bored from the beginning which was a bad indication. But after reading all the 5-star reviews, I just had to keep going.
I loved all the characters from the start, mostly Elizabeth - the dead girl from the letters. But as the story continued, I just wanted to shake everyone. WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THESE PEOPLE?!
I haven't read the Da Vinci Code, although this book has been compared to it many times. Religion, mystery and all that jazz? Yep, this book certainly has it. I love my history, but the way it was gilded was too much for me. There is plenty of betrayal, and a killer ending, but unfortunately it wasn't enough for me.
I wish I could write more for this review, but I really don't know what to say.
But don't take my word for it, try reading it for yourselves!
christiana's review against another edition
4.0
I could not finish this book fast enough. Every time I was doing something else, I found myself annoyed that I wasn't with this book instead. I definitely get why this book was being touted as a teen DaVinci Code. The suspense and mystery are similar, and reading it made me desperate to know more about the setting (Prague-so hot right now) and the other aspects of the plot (which you'll just have to find out for yourself). The characters are well developed and despite the length of the book, I wanted to take in every word.
I never saw the end coming.
Fun read for high school and later middle school, especially 8th grade (I actually wish I could read this with my 7th grade book group, but I think the length is a bit off putting for a group).
I never saw the end coming.
Fun read for high school and later middle school, especially 8th grade (I actually wish I could read this with my 7th grade book group, but I think the length is a bit off putting for a group).
tippyloohoo's review against another edition
4.0
I am a nearly daily user of a website called Random Buzzers which is an online book community for Random House publishing geared toward teens. So when they started looking for people willing to promote some of their new books I jumped at the chance. The book they chose for me was The Book of Blood and Shadow by Robin Wasserman, a book I had planned on reading anyway, it was sitting on the top of my "To Read" pile of books I had checked out from work. Let me tell you, I am so happy to have been chosen to spread the word about this book.
For Nora Cane there are certain undisputed truths. She has two best friends: Chris and Adriane, who are the perfect couple. She has a boyfriend, Max, who loves her. Her brother is dead, but no one except Chris knows about it. And Latin always makes sense. But soon everything Nora thought she knew will be tested. Chris will die. Max will be blamed. And Nora and Adriane will be left to solve the mystery of a book that has driven a man insane. The plan is simple; go to Prague, save Max, clear his name, and learn to with without Chris. But nothing is ever that simple and soon they will find themselves in the middle of a centuries old mystery that only Nora can solve. They will have help but no one is what they seem. The only thing Nora can trust are the words of a long dead woman, written in Latin, and the clues they leave to a machine that may be better left unsolved.
I can not even begin to explain how amazing this book was. Every time I thought I knew what was going on and who was who, it was all switched up and I was left guessing, racing to get to the next page. Wasserman's use of real historical figures only adds to the amazing story she has woven. This is a must read!
For Nora Cane there are certain undisputed truths. She has two best friends: Chris and Adriane, who are the perfect couple. She has a boyfriend, Max, who loves her. Her brother is dead, but no one except Chris knows about it. And Latin always makes sense. But soon everything Nora thought she knew will be tested. Chris will die. Max will be blamed. And Nora and Adriane will be left to solve the mystery of a book that has driven a man insane. The plan is simple; go to Prague, save Max, clear his name, and learn to with without Chris. But nothing is ever that simple and soon they will find themselves in the middle of a centuries old mystery that only Nora can solve. They will have help but no one is what they seem. The only thing Nora can trust are the words of a long dead woman, written in Latin, and the clues they leave to a machine that may be better left unsolved.
I can not even begin to explain how amazing this book was. Every time I thought I knew what was going on and who was who, it was all switched up and I was left guessing, racing to get to the next page. Wasserman's use of real historical figures only adds to the amazing story she has woven. This is a must read!
jadeeby's review against another edition
3.0
Originally posted on my blog Chasing Empty Pavements
This book was floating around the blogosphere like crazy last year, and I *finally* got around to reading it. I remembered people getting confused because it came in the rush of books with similar titles-- Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (which I've read and reviewed) and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (which I haven't). I felt like people had great things to say about all three of these titles and I can see why this book got great reviews.
The first half of this book BLEW. ME. AWAY. The opening line! The characters! The beautiful, lyrical sentences! I fell for it all. Especially Nora. I really fell in love with her. She was an atypical character for me--a girl who was more concerned with ancient Latin than boys. A girl obsessed with letters from a dead girl instead of drinking or partying. I just loved it. I loved that there was a very creepy, mysterious element to the story right away and that Wasserman worked up to the action. I love historical, mystery type of novels so this one really hit the spot for me.
While I LOVED the first half of this novel, the second half started to sag. I felt bored and skimmed a lot. It's like once the action started--it didn't make things go faster--it slowed it WAY down. Also once the mystery started unfolding--I hate to admit that it started to go above my head a little bit. I felt like I was constantly missing some important piece of information that would make it all make sense but that never came. I had a feeling who the killer was but once it was confirmed--it almost felt anti-climatic. I wish that could have been hyped up some more.
verall, I enjoyed reading this novel. It reminded me of the YA version of The Da Vinci Code which I liked. So if you're a fan of books like The Da Vinci Code or the movie National Treasure (yes, I just went there), you'll LOVE this book. It's a bit different from the other YA stuff out there right now so I recommend giving this one a try!
**I received this book free from the publisher through www.netgalley.com. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
This book was floating around the blogosphere like crazy last year, and I *finally* got around to reading it. I remembered people getting confused because it came in the rush of books with similar titles-- Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor (which I've read and reviewed) and Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (which I haven't). I felt like people had great things to say about all three of these titles and I can see why this book got great reviews.
The first half of this book BLEW. ME. AWAY. The opening line! The characters! The beautiful, lyrical sentences! I fell for it all. Especially Nora. I really fell in love with her. She was an atypical character for me--a girl who was more concerned with ancient Latin than boys. A girl obsessed with letters from a dead girl instead of drinking or partying. I just loved it. I loved that there was a very creepy, mysterious element to the story right away and that Wasserman worked up to the action. I love historical, mystery type of novels so this one really hit the spot for me.
While I LOVED the first half of this novel, the second half started to sag. I felt bored and skimmed a lot. It's like once the action started--it didn't make things go faster--it slowed it WAY down. Also once the mystery started unfolding--I hate to admit that it started to go above my head a little bit. I felt like I was constantly missing some important piece of information that would make it all make sense but that never came. I had a feeling who the killer was but once it was confirmed--it almost felt anti-climatic. I wish that could have been hyped up some more.
verall, I enjoyed reading this novel. It reminded me of the YA version of The Da Vinci Code which I liked. So if you're a fan of books like The Da Vinci Code or the movie National Treasure (yes, I just went there), you'll LOVE this book. It's a bit different from the other YA stuff out there right now so I recommend giving this one a try!
**I received this book free from the publisher through www.netgalley.com. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.