Reviews

Uprooted by Naomi Novik

geekwayne's review

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4.0

'Uproooted' by Naomi Novik takes the idea of Eastern European fairytales and weaves a totally new and interesting story while still feeling like something old.

In a small village on the edge of a mysterious and dangerous wood, a dragon (really a man who is a wizard) comes to town and chooses a girl on a regular basis. Everyone thinks he will choose Kasia, even her parents who have groomed her for just such a day. When the dragon chooses unkempt Agnieszka instead, everyone is shocked, even the dragon. In the days that follow, Agnieszka finds her life has changed and she has to adapt to life in a new place with this strange and surly man. There are many mysteries to be uncovered. Why does the dragon choose girls from the village? What causes the woods to enact horrible acts on the nearby villages? Can the queen who was trapped in the woods in earlier years be saved?

I liked the way the story unfolded, but there were times when it felt a little long. Much of what happens to Agnieszka seemed a bit predictable, and I got a bit tired of her always describing the stains on her dress and her unkempt appearance. But, I did like how things unfolded and I loved that old magic books by Baba Yaga feature into the growth of Agnieszka, and that the story is a sort of nod to the story of 'Beauty and the Beast.'

I received a review copy of this ebook from Spectra, Del Rey, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

mefromson's review against another edition

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5.0

This was amazing! I picked it up because I've enjoyed some of [a:Naomi Novik|8730|Naomi Novik|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1206646770p2/8730.jpg]'s other books. I saw the description and figured it was a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Jeez was I wrong! There's some grouchy/sweet to it, yes, but this is NOT a retelling! This is an amazing story I didn't see coming in any way, shape, or form. I'm going to add all of her other books to my to-read list, and I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone!

selunadrake's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Beautiful imagery and descriptions. Great world building but some of the drawn out battle scenes and lore dumps felt tedious by the end. I was really pulled in by the enemies to lovers romance but it was too hot and cold for me. All that work for one kiss and one intimate scene. The end was a bit underwhelming to me, a little unsatisfying. Also, why can everyone seem to read/respond to her mind? 

tortevscake's review

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

This book was close to hitting the mark for me. It was very Howls Moving Castle at the beginning. A young girl swept away by a wizard. The magic system was cool and it had a lot of really interesting elements to it. However, the wizard had no personality, yet the reader is expected to buy that the main character is drawn to him. Also so much happens at a certain point that I stopped caring about the plot. This book either needed to cut some stuff out or expand on the characters and plot to make it more engaging. 

I liked this book for its ideas and world but it fell flat with the characters. 

livlovesbooks06's review

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adventurous dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

kaylaheleese's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

thegablesrat's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

akeller5's review

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5.0

Loved it. This has a very similar feel to spinning silver. 

cogentsummoner's review

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adventurous dark fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

gorillaz's review

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adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.5