Uprooted – Naomi Novik

Title: Uprooted

Author: Naomi Novik

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: Every ten years, the Dragon picks a girl to be his servant. When the girl’s ten years are up, they’re free to go. Agnieska is eigible but everyone thinks her close friend Kasia will be chosen. Instead, the Dragon chooses Agnieska. The Dragon is a stern master. At his tower, she learns she has a magical ability. Though it’s hard for to learn, she has a true talent. The more Agnieska learns, the more she learns of the Wood’s dark intent. The Wood is sentient and plans on taking over Agnieska’s county. Does she have enough power to stop the Wood? Can anyone help her? Can she convince anyone of the truth?

Rating: 4.0 – a different type of fairy tale

Opinion: This was an interesting book. I did some research and learned this book was based off real fairy tales. Some of the words and all the names were based of Eastern European languages. The author offered the pronunciation of Agnieska’s name in her acknowledgment at the end of book, but no one else’s . I enjoyed the magic of the book and thought it was really well built. It’s really nice when the magic has limits and costs. It makes it feel a little more realistic. The book has super smooth transitions and fast paced. It took me a second to catch up to all of transitions. Fortunately, or unfortunately, lots of the transitions happened at chapter breaks. Even though it was fast paced, it had steady pace. There were very few slumps in the book. There ending wasn’t as happy as I expected it to be. Though it was a good ending. I do wish everything had been wrapped up a little more. I enjoyed the book more than I thought I would. I recommend this book to everyone who loves a different style of fairy tale.