Status
Checked out
Collection
Publication
Pan (2016), Edition: Main Market, 448 pages
Description
Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life. Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood. The next choosing is fast approaching, and Agnieszka is afraid. She knows--everyone knows--that the Dragon will take Kasia: beautiful, graceful, brave Kasia, all the things Agnieszka isn't, and her dearest friend in the world. And there is no way to save her. But Agnieszka fears the wrong things. For when the Dragon comes, it is not Kasia he will choose.… (more)
Media reviews
Uprooted is not, as I thought it might be after those first three chapters, any of the following: a Beauty and the Beast story; a somewhat quiet tale about learning one’s magical abilities and negotiating a relationship with one’s teacher; or a story that includes intrinsically-gendered magic.
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What it is, is a kingdom-level fantasy with great magic and an engaging narrator—which packs a surprising amount of plot into its single volume. I recommend it highly. Show Less
Slate
The pages turn and the Kindle screens swipe with alacrity. An early expedition into the Wood to rescue a long-missing Queen is particularly white-knuckle. Temeraire fans will be pleased to know that a superb tower-under-siege sequence demonstrates that Novik has lost none of her facility for making
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complex battle scenes clear and exciting. And Agnieszka remains a scrappy, appealing hero throughout. It’s just that one can’t help but be reminded that Novik’s Temeraire series will conclude next year as a nine-novel cycle and wonder why a writer so skilled at pacing a long, complicated chronicle over multiple books has crammed this story into one.
It’s as if Novik is overcorrecting for the kind of Hollywood bloat that causes studios to split fantasy-novel adaptations into multiple films. Here, she packs an entire trilogy into a single book. Agnieszka’s corridors-of-power adventures in Polnya’s capital have kind of a middle-volume vibe to them, while some fascinating late-breaking revelations about the nature of the Wood definitely feel like they deserve their own dedicated installment. I felt this most particularly in Agnieszka’s evolution as a character. While it’s thrilling in the book’s final third to read about her taking control of her own magical identity as a latter-day Baba Yaga, it does feel as though it’s happened without giving her the opportunity to explore a few blind-alley identities on the way there.
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User reviews
LibraryThing member rosalita
Ever since she was a small child, Agnieszka has known that one girl child from her birth year will be chosen by the Dragon, the valley's resident (human) wizard, to be his companion for 10 years. Every girl who has been chosen has ended up leaving the valley forever when her service is over, and
You see where this is going, right? The Dragon chooses Agnieszka to come live in his tower, to everyone's surprise and seemingly against his own will. Once there, she makes a mess of everything the Dragon tries to teach her, until she discovers (to her shock) that she herself is capable of performing magic, though she doesn't understand how it works or how to control it. She's soon called upon to use her newfound power in a series of adventures to save Kasia, the valley, and the kingdom's Queen, who has been trapped in the evil Wood for decades. But the powerful forces at work threaten to destroy not only Agnieszka and her beloved home valley but the kingdom itself if she and the Dragon aren't able to root out and destroy the source of the evil once and for all.
I loved this book, which has strong elements of classic Eastern European fairy tales (the author thanks her Polish grandmother for telling her the stories of Baba Jaga throughout her childhood). One of the most enjoyable elements was that despite the familiarity of many elements of the story, the ways in which Novik employs them felt fresh and unpredictable. The action is episodic and yet builds elegantly on itself in a way that feels completely organic. The characters were suitably appealing or hateful as required, and the evil appropriately menacing and merciless. I was a bit concerned when the epic Battle to End All Battles ended with a chunk of book left to read, but Novik provided a suitable coda that didn't feel tacked on or anticlimactic as so many do.
Strongly recommended for fans of fairy tales and fantasy.
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the younger girls live in dread of leaving their famlies never to return. At least Agnieszka can take comfort in the fact that everyone expects the Dragon to choose her best friend Kasia, the most beautiful girl in the valley, when the day comes. You see where this is going, right? The Dragon chooses Agnieszka to come live in his tower, to everyone's surprise and seemingly against his own will. Once there, she makes a mess of everything the Dragon tries to teach her, until she discovers (to her shock) that she herself is capable of performing magic, though she doesn't understand how it works or how to control it. She's soon called upon to use her newfound power in a series of adventures to save Kasia, the valley, and the kingdom's Queen, who has been trapped in the evil Wood for decades. But the powerful forces at work threaten to destroy not only Agnieszka and her beloved home valley but the kingdom itself if she and the Dragon aren't able to root out and destroy the source of the evil once and for all.
I loved this book, which has strong elements of classic Eastern European fairy tales (the author thanks her Polish grandmother for telling her the stories of Baba Jaga throughout her childhood). One of the most enjoyable elements was that despite the familiarity of many elements of the story, the ways in which Novik employs them felt fresh and unpredictable. The action is episodic and yet builds elegantly on itself in a way that feels completely organic. The characters were suitably appealing or hateful as required, and the evil appropriately menacing and merciless. I was a bit concerned when the epic Battle to End All Battles ended with a chunk of book left to read, but Novik provided a suitable coda that didn't feel tacked on or anticlimactic as so many do.
Strongly recommended for fans of fairy tales and fantasy.
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LibraryThing member pwaites
Trigger warning for attempted sexual assault
If I can restrain my rage about the romance subplot, Uprooted was a very good book.
Agnieszka lives in a valley bordered by an evil woods with strange powers. The valley is protected from the woods by a wizard known as the Dragon, but every ten years he
The wood is growing in power, threatening to overrun the entire valley if not the entire kingdom. Agnieszka will need to draw on her new found magic powers to protect her home and the people she loves.
Before I start ranting on the romance, everything else in this book is really good. This story grabbed me from the first page, sucking me in and not letting me go. It’s has an enchanting beauty and is wonderfully written. The darkness of the woods, the magic… they are all so amazing.
Novik drew on the Polish fairy tales of her childhood to create Uprooted, and in doing so she also created a fantastic world. Everything is so well realized and tangible, particularly the creepiness of the wood!
Agnieszka had magical powers of her own, which was wonderful. She was brave and smart, an excellent heroine. I particularly loved her friendship with Kasia. It’s so rare to see relationships between female characters, and I was delighted by the focus this one got. Seriously, this sort of depth and attention is normally reserved only for love interests. Which brings me to that other thing…
So, yes. The Dragon who kidnaps girls and forces them to work in his tower for ten years is the love interest. Did I mention that he’s a hundred and fifty and she’s seventeen? Oh, and that he’s sort of like her mentor and she his apprentice? It’s just plain creepy that’s what it is. I tried to pretend it wasn’t happening, particularly that sex scene.
Oh, and that attempted sex scene I mentioned up top? The Dragon was pretty darn victim blame-y about that. Urgh, he’s the sort of age old supernatural love interest YA books seem obsessed with. You know, the sort who hurls insults at the protagonist before forcefully kissing her.
Anyway, if you can erase that particularly noxious romance from your mind, Uprooted is quite a good book.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
If I can restrain my rage about the romance subplot, Uprooted was a very good book.
Agnieszka lives in a valley bordered by an evil woods with strange powers. The valley is protected from the woods by a wizard known as the Dragon, but every ten years he
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takes a girl into his tower. This year, Agnieszka is picked.The wood is growing in power, threatening to overrun the entire valley if not the entire kingdom. Agnieszka will need to draw on her new found magic powers to protect her home and the people she loves.
Before I start ranting on the romance, everything else in this book is really good. This story grabbed me from the first page, sucking me in and not letting me go. It’s has an enchanting beauty and is wonderfully written. The darkness of the woods, the magic… they are all so amazing.
Novik drew on the Polish fairy tales of her childhood to create Uprooted, and in doing so she also created a fantastic world. Everything is so well realized and tangible, particularly the creepiness of the wood!
Agnieszka had magical powers of her own, which was wonderful. She was brave and smart, an excellent heroine. I particularly loved her friendship with Kasia. It’s so rare to see relationships between female characters, and I was delighted by the focus this one got. Seriously, this sort of depth and attention is normally reserved only for love interests. Which brings me to that other thing…
So, yes. The Dragon who kidnaps girls and forces them to work in his tower for ten years is the love interest. Did I mention that he’s a hundred and fifty and she’s seventeen? Oh, and that he’s sort of like her mentor and she his apprentice? It’s just plain creepy that’s what it is. I tried to pretend it wasn’t happening, particularly that sex scene.
Oh, and that attempted sex scene I mentioned up top? The Dragon was pretty darn victim blame-y about that. Urgh, he’s the sort of age old supernatural love interest YA books seem obsessed with. You know, the sort who hurls insults at the protagonist before forcefully kissing her.
Anyway, if you can erase that particularly noxious romance from your mind, Uprooted is quite a good book.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
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LibraryThing member ThePortPorts
This book makes me think of donuts: very tasty, easy to gorge on, and, in the end, not very filling.
So yes, I liked it okay. It zipped by in a most enjoyable way. I liked the main character, though I thought she went from "wimper" to "I'm casting super powerful spells!" in no time at all. I enjoyed
There are some interesting characters here (Alosha!), but the Dragon just didn't quite do it for me. Stereotypical brooding guy, basically. We get a little bit of an explanation as to why wizards are, basically, jerks... but it didn't interest me, really. Seemed too easy.
But, in the end, people grow, even the Dragon (bugs me that it's capitalized, even with the "the..."). And in the end, things promise to come together in a somewhat tidy package.
As if Agnieszka could ever be tidy.
So yes, I liked it okay. It zipped by in a most enjoyable way. I liked the main character, though I thought she went from "wimper" to "I'm casting super powerful spells!" in no time at all. I enjoyed
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the friendship between Kasia and Agnieszka - especially how it developed as each girl came into her own strength. There are some interesting characters here (Alosha!), but the Dragon just didn't quite do it for me. Stereotypical brooding guy, basically. We get a little bit of an explanation as to why wizards are, basically, jerks... but it didn't interest me, really. Seemed too easy.
But, in the end, people grow, even the Dragon (bugs me that it's capitalized, even with the "the..."). And in the end, things promise to come together in a somewhat tidy package.
As if Agnieszka could ever be tidy.
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LibraryThing member JBD1
Naomi Novik, but no Temeraire? Hmm. Okay, I'll bite. Novik's deep interest in Slavic folklore and fairy tales are at the base of this new novel, which, while perhaps not as good overall as the Temeraire series, is still a really impressive and enjoyable read. The world-building is extremely well
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done, as one would expect, and although there are some darker bits that were rather tough to get through, the book was hard to put down. Perhaps most noteworthy is the main malevolent force, which is different from the usual fare. Show Less
LibraryThing member ladycato
I received an early copy of this book via Netgalley.
This young adult book was far darker and grittier than I expected, so I would definitely advise this for older readers. There's a lot to like here. Novik has created a deep new fantasy world where a picturesque valley is plagued by a malevolent,
But. BUT.
The beginning of the book frustrated me deeply. Much of the early conflict with the Dragon could have been resolved by asking a few straightforward questions. "Hey. Why am I here? What's the point of this?" But then there was the biggest issue of all for me. Agnieszka is almost raped by another character. The Dragon blames her for this. I almost stopped reading right there, but because the magic system intrigued me, I read on. I kept hoping beyond hope, though, that if a romance developed in the book, it was not with the Dragon. Suffice to say, my wishes didn't come true. His character does improve in the course of the book but I still could not forgive him for that earlier incident.
Read the book because of the intensely dark fairy tale. For the valiant, bloody fight against the Wood. For the delightful magic and the lacing-in of the Baba Yaga myth. But if you do have trigger issues, stay clear of this one or you won't get far.
This young adult book was far darker and grittier than I expected, so I would definitely advise this for older readers. There's a lot to like here. Novik has created a deep new fantasy world where a picturesque valley is plagued by a malevolent,
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sentient forest. Agnieszka begins as simply a timid village girl, but after she is chosen by the powerful Wizard known as Dragon, she evolves into a powerful witch. She's a very relatable protagonist, and I think the magic of the book was extraordinary. But. BUT.
The beginning of the book frustrated me deeply. Much of the early conflict with the Dragon could have been resolved by asking a few straightforward questions. "Hey. Why am I here? What's the point of this?" But then there was the biggest issue of all for me. Agnieszka is almost raped by another character. The Dragon blames her for this. I almost stopped reading right there, but because the magic system intrigued me, I read on. I kept hoping beyond hope, though, that if a romance developed in the book, it was not with the Dragon. Suffice to say, my wishes didn't come true. His character does improve in the course of the book but I still could not forgive him for that earlier incident.
Read the book because of the intensely dark fairy tale. For the valiant, bloody fight against the Wood. For the delightful magic and the lacing-in of the Baba Yaga myth. But if you do have trigger issues, stay clear of this one or you won't get far.
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LibraryThing member Carol_W
This is an interesting fantasy and fairly impressive for what I believe may be a first effort. There is some indication that it may have been intended to take place in our world, but it felt more like an invented one to me. Both the magic and the politics were too conspicuous to have been missed if
The story has a number of pleasing elements. The non-simple nature of the evil that besets the forest and the valley is refreshing. The fairy-tale set-up of the taking of one girl at a time from the villages of the valley to dwell with the mysterious wizard named Dragon is given an interesting twist. The explanation doesn’t bear close scrutiny, in my opinion, but is good enough for the purposes of the story. The relationship between the central character, Agnieshka, and Dragon is well-developed and fun to watch unfold.
Other elements are a bit less satisfactory. It’s a little too predictable and convenient that Agnieshka’s magic is different and special in just such a way as to allow her to succeed. The character of her friend Kasia, who all too easily steps into the role of warrior-woman/super hero, is not explored psychologically in sufficient depth and also feels a bit convenient. And the bloody-minded badness and stupidity of some of the human villains also seems too shallow to be entirely believable. (I thought the body count at the end was unnecessarily high.)
The writing is quite strong overall, and the descriptions often rich and beautiful, contributing to the power of the story and the pleasure of reading it. Altogether, in spite of the issues mentioned, I enjoyed reading this story and would consider other works by this author.
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they had ever actually happened.The story has a number of pleasing elements. The non-simple nature of the evil that besets the forest and the valley is refreshing. The fairy-tale set-up of the taking of one girl at a time from the villages of the valley to dwell with the mysterious wizard named Dragon is given an interesting twist. The explanation doesn’t bear close scrutiny, in my opinion, but is good enough for the purposes of the story. The relationship between the central character, Agnieshka, and Dragon is well-developed and fun to watch unfold.
Other elements are a bit less satisfactory. It’s a little too predictable and convenient that Agnieshka’s magic is different and special in just such a way as to allow her to succeed. The character of her friend Kasia, who all too easily steps into the role of warrior-woman/super hero, is not explored psychologically in sufficient depth and also feels a bit convenient. And the bloody-minded badness and stupidity of some of the human villains also seems too shallow to be entirely believable. (I thought the body count at the end was unnecessarily high.)
The writing is quite strong overall, and the descriptions often rich and beautiful, contributing to the power of the story and the pleasure of reading it. Altogether, in spite of the issues mentioned, I enjoyed reading this story and would consider other works by this author.
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LibraryThing member lavaturtle
Read this because it was on the Hugo ballot. I liked the description of different approaches to magic, and the idea of this community that lives on the brink of the evil woods and has a lot of traditions around dealing with that. There were a number of well-drawn characters, and frustrating court Prince Marek's foolishness wasn't because he was possessed by the Wood, it was just because he was an arrogant self-serving person with no regard for other people's lives . It really bothered me that Agnieshka fell in love with the Dragon after months of emotional abuse. This is such a damaging high-fantasy trope and I wish people would stop promoting it. I wish that Agnieshka had gotten romantically involved with Kasia instead. They were so obviously in love.
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politics were frustrating. I was glad that in the end, Show Less
LibraryThing member Herenya
Uprooted begins like a fairytale.
Every one is convinced that the next 17 year old girl the Dragon takes will be Agnieszka's best friend, Kasia; no one is prepared for Agnieszka to be chosen instead.
However, Uprooted isn't just about Agnieszka adjusting to a life away from her beloved valley, shut
I didn't want to put this book down. I stayed up reading much longer than I should have, and then the following morning felt frustrated with work, because it was preventing me from finishing the book. (Not a problem I usually have a work.)
I love the fairytale-ish of Uprooted, and the way it isn't limited to repeating a fairytale plot. I love how central Agnieszka's friendship with Kasia is to the story (although I wish we had gotten to know Kasia better). I love the moments when Agnieszka challenges the Dragon's perspective - and how, despite his grumpiness, he can be open-minded and supportive. I love the moments when they are able to work together as a team. And the prose is gorgeous.
[...] my own magic was offering his an invitation, and little by little he began to read - not any less sharply, but to the beat I gave. He was leaving room for my improvisations, giving them air. We turned the page together and kept on without pause, and halfway down the page a line flowed out of us that was music, his voice crisply carrying the words while I sang them along, high and low, and abruptly, shockingly, it was easy.
I read Uprooted at least two and a half times in the space of a month. It's not perfect but it's so close and I love it.
Every one is convinced that the next 17 year old girl the Dragon takes will be Agnieszka's best friend, Kasia; no one is prepared for Agnieszka to be chosen instead.
However, Uprooted isn't just about Agnieszka adjusting to a life away from her beloved valley, shut
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up in a tower with a grumpy recluse. It's about what Agnieszka learns in that tower, and how she uses what she learns to save people she cares about. It's about consequences - of approaching magic intuitively rather than by-the-book, and of doing things that are supposed to be impossible.I didn't want to put this book down. I stayed up reading much longer than I should have, and then the following morning felt frustrated with work, because it was preventing me from finishing the book. (Not a problem I usually have a work.)
I love the fairytale-ish of Uprooted, and the way it isn't limited to repeating a fairytale plot. I love how central Agnieszka's friendship with Kasia is to the story (although I wish we had gotten to know Kasia better). I love the moments when Agnieszka challenges the Dragon's perspective - and how, despite his grumpiness, he can be open-minded and supportive. I love the moments when they are able to work together as a team. And the prose is gorgeous.
[...] my own magic was offering his an invitation, and little by little he began to read - not any less sharply, but to the beat I gave. He was leaving room for my improvisations, giving them air. We turned the page together and kept on without pause, and halfway down the page a line flowed out of us that was music, his voice crisply carrying the words while I sang them along, high and low, and abruptly, shockingly, it was easy.
I read Uprooted at least two and a half times in the space of a month. It's not perfect but it's so close and I love it.
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LibraryThing member Dokfintong
I have not thought about Baba Yaga in years! Lucky Ms Novik grew up with family who told her these stories but poor little me, I had to search them out in "Highlights for Children" in the dentist offices of my childhood. Ms Novik's Agnieszka is not Baba Yaga but the witch Jaga lived in the forest
"Uprooted" is a great book and it is a self-contained book. Ms Novik has gone against the tide and put a whole fantasy novel in one book! Hooray. There is room for more stories about these characters, if she feels like writing, but with "Uprooted" you don't have to wade through (or pay for) 3 paper doorstops.
"Uprooted" is great, too, because all of the women – all of the peasant women, and the royal women, and the kids – are strong and equal. Not all of them are people you want to spend time with, but every woman acts on her own desires and acts unselfconsciously, not like the "look at me" girls in movies and most books.
I am, as of this writing, the only person who has downgraded the cover. The reason I did that is because the cover is too generic, too much like other covers. And the cover is too innocent, too sweet, and it might trick someone into buying the book for a kid. There is only one sex scene in the book, but it is a well-written, sensuous, very adult sex scene (whew!) that blasts the book waaay out of the "appropriate for all ages" category. Yet the cover radiates teen appeal.
I received a review copy of "Uprooted" by Naomi Novik (Random House - Del Rey Spectra) through NetGalley.com.
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near Agnieszka's house."Uprooted" is a great book and it is a self-contained book. Ms Novik has gone against the tide and put a whole fantasy novel in one book! Hooray. There is room for more stories about these characters, if she feels like writing, but with "Uprooted" you don't have to wade through (or pay for) 3 paper doorstops.
"Uprooted" is great, too, because all of the women – all of the peasant women, and the royal women, and the kids – are strong and equal. Not all of them are people you want to spend time with, but every woman acts on her own desires and acts unselfconsciously, not like the "look at me" girls in movies and most books.
I am, as of this writing, the only person who has downgraded the cover. The reason I did that is because the cover is too generic, too much like other covers. And the cover is too innocent, too sweet, and it might trick someone into buying the book for a kid. There is only one sex scene in the book, but it is a well-written, sensuous, very adult sex scene (whew!) that blasts the book waaay out of the "appropriate for all ages" category. Yet the cover radiates teen appeal.
I received a review copy of "Uprooted" by Naomi Novik (Random House - Del Rey Spectra) through NetGalley.com.
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LibraryThing member Kristymk18
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
I don't know if I just had too many high expectations going into this book based off of the multitude of rave reviews, but I found myself struggling many times to get through this book. While there are definite parts of the book that are fast paced and action packed, there
This is not to say I didn't enjoy Uprooted. I did. I found the Wood fascinating and the Dragon enthralling, but I thought many of the other characters were blasé. In the scenes where Agnieszka and the Dragon are bickering or when the fighting takes place, I was riveted and excited. But then there would be pages of dull (in my opinion) narration about people and things I didn't care about. Maybe it was my lack of connection to all the characters that caused me to find some of this burdensome.
I would definitely recommend this to fantasy lovers and those who love narration deeply entrenched in lore. It is robustly descriptive and in a way reminded me of Lord of the Rings (but this just may be because I read so few high fantasy books).
I don't know if I just had too many high expectations going into this book based off of the multitude of rave reviews, but I found myself struggling many times to get through this book. While there are definite parts of the book that are fast paced and action packed, there
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are also many that lag and seem to go on and on with nothing whatsoever happening. In many instances, I felt there was too much descriptive language that could have been cut down or taken out completely without it detracting from the story. This is not to say I didn't enjoy Uprooted. I did. I found the Wood fascinating and the Dragon enthralling, but I thought many of the other characters were blasé. In the scenes where Agnieszka and the Dragon are bickering or when the fighting takes place, I was riveted and excited. But then there would be pages of dull (in my opinion) narration about people and things I didn't care about. Maybe it was my lack of connection to all the characters that caused me to find some of this burdensome.
I would definitely recommend this to fantasy lovers and those who love narration deeply entrenched in lore. It is robustly descriptive and in a way reminded me of Lord of the Rings (but this just may be because I read so few high fantasy books).
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LibraryThing member LisaMaria_C
Now, this isn't undying literature--but it's hardly shoddy either. But I admit, for personal reasons, this is my crack. Partly this is because of one character in the book that so strongly reminds me of a favorite character in a certain famous fantasy series. I won't name him, since a great deal of
I loved Novik's Temeraire books--dragons in an alt-universe Napoleonic Wars. I loved this one even more. Not just the characters, but I loved the world Novik plunged me into from the first twist on the dragon and the sacrificial maiden tales. There's a heroine to identify with and root for--and she isn't a beauty with purple eyes. There's friendship; there are villains who turn out to be heroes, and seeming heroes who even as villains you feel some sympathy for. There's a dark, well-imagined fairy-tale world--but not the Disney kind--more like the original Grimm tales. And I loved the ending on several levels. This was a delightful and consuming read. A gift from a friend, and a greatly appreciated one--she knew just what would brighten my days :-)
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my first shock of pleasure was in recognizing him.I loved Novik's Temeraire books--dragons in an alt-universe Napoleonic Wars. I loved this one even more. Not just the characters, but I loved the world Novik plunged me into from the first twist on the dragon and the sacrificial maiden tales. There's a heroine to identify with and root for--and she isn't a beauty with purple eyes. There's friendship; there are villains who turn out to be heroes, and seeming heroes who even as villains you feel some sympathy for. There's a dark, well-imagined fairy-tale world--but not the Disney kind--more like the original Grimm tales. And I loved the ending on several levels. This was a delightful and consuming read. A gift from a friend, and a greatly appreciated one--she knew just what would brighten my days :-)
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LibraryThing member LadyDarbanville
In Uprooted Novik paints a rich fairy tale landscape, breaking the tradition of some tropes and embracing others. In it we meet the girls Agnieszka and Kasia, best friends born in the village of Dvernik in a country named Polnya, a fantastical and slightly twisted depiction of historical Poland.
Uprooted reminded me slightly of Jeff Vandermeer’s Annihilation with the dreamlike/nightmarish description the wood. But while Annihilation is a book of the new weird sub-genre, depicting the search for a scientific explanation for the change that has happened to Area X, Uprooted is more a tale of the old weird, fondly taking inspiration from European folk lore and firmly rooting its horror in the realm of magic and fantasy.
This was a greatly enjoyable book; engaging, quick and easy to read. It’s a fairy tale portraying real characters with real motivations. No one in this novel is truly evil, but very human with human flaws and making human mistakes. They each have their own agendas, but the things that drive them are things you can understand and sometimes sympathise with. Maybe even cry when you learn of the tragedies that lies behind it all.
And yet I do not give this book a full five stars because, while entertaining, it failed to really “wow” me. The world didn’t stay with me the times I put the book down, however much I enjoyed it while reading. I didn’t go through my day pondering it’s riddles. This may, of course, not have been the book’s intention to begin with, but I did expect it’s setting to awe me more than it ended up doing.
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Every ten years Dvernik has to sacrifice a young maiden to a dragon in return for his protection from a dark, corrupted wood. In some parts a very recognizable premise which this book shapes to its own purposes and creates a dragon which is not a dragon, but a man. An ageless wizard. Everyone expect him to choose the beautiful Kasia as his servant, but instead chooses awkward, earthly would-be-witch Agnieszka. Little does she knows the role she will play in stopping the crawling borders of the wood, and the intricate traps within traps the wood will set for her as revenge. Uprooted reminded me slightly of Jeff Vandermeer’s Annihilation with the dreamlike/nightmarish description the wood. But while Annihilation is a book of the new weird sub-genre, depicting the search for a scientific explanation for the change that has happened to Area X, Uprooted is more a tale of the old weird, fondly taking inspiration from European folk lore and firmly rooting its horror in the realm of magic and fantasy.
This was a greatly enjoyable book; engaging, quick and easy to read. It’s a fairy tale portraying real characters with real motivations. No one in this novel is truly evil, but very human with human flaws and making human mistakes. They each have their own agendas, but the things that drive them are things you can understand and sometimes sympathise with. Maybe even cry when you learn of the tragedies that lies behind it all.
And yet I do not give this book a full five stars because, while entertaining, it failed to really “wow” me. The world didn’t stay with me the times I put the book down, however much I enjoyed it while reading. I didn’t go through my day pondering it’s riddles. This may, of course, not have been the book’s intention to begin with, but I did expect it’s setting to awe me more than it ended up doing.
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LibraryThing member BrittneyRossie
After all of the raving reviews I read about this book, I was thoroughly disappointed. I bought this book with the intent of reading a retelling of an Old European Dark Fairy Tale that would be Lord of the Rings-ish with a romantic twist. Nope. That’s not what it was.
The author herself is gifted
I simply do not like the story line of an awkward strong willed girl with rare natural talent coerced into a relationship with the older, crotchety, harsh man. There was no personal or relational redemption at all in this story.
There is so much emotional, verbal, physical abuse in the guise of “romance” in this story. The heroine in spite of it all falls in love with the abuser. There is nothing attractive about “The Dragon” as a romantic interest. It perpetuates the idea that if a person yields to threats, the consequence of abuse will disappear as a reward for doing what the abuser wants. This isn’t love. This isn’t romantic. It’s twisted and it's warping people's idea of love.
The other ‘love interest’, Sarkan, was not interesting at all. I also did not expect so much witchcraft/spell descriptions and I did not like it either. It took up to much time and attention away from the story itself.
The Wood, evil personified, was unique and fresh. It was a truly dark and an evil presence to be reckoned with. Well done, with that description and twist of its creation. It was like something out of Lord of the Rings.
I also appreciate the element of the heroine having a beautiful friendship with a girl from her village. I tire of the lone heroine archtype in young adult novels these days.
I cannot recommend this book. I believe it’s negative qualities outweigh it’s positive elements. It’s a shame. I think the author has great writing ability. Please write about something better than an abusive relationship being portrayed as love.
The author herself is gifted
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and talented. My critique is NOT of the author’s writing ability at all.I simply do not like the story line of an awkward strong willed girl with rare natural talent coerced into a relationship with the older, crotchety, harsh man. There was no personal or relational redemption at all in this story.
There is so much emotional, verbal, physical abuse in the guise of “romance” in this story. The heroine in spite of it all falls in love with the abuser. There is nothing attractive about “The Dragon” as a romantic interest. It perpetuates the idea that if a person yields to threats, the consequence of abuse will disappear as a reward for doing what the abuser wants. This isn’t love. This isn’t romantic. It’s twisted and it's warping people's idea of love.
The other ‘love interest’, Sarkan, was not interesting at all. I also did not expect so much witchcraft/spell descriptions and I did not like it either. It took up to much time and attention away from the story itself.
The Wood, evil personified, was unique and fresh. It was a truly dark and an evil presence to be reckoned with. Well done, with that description and twist of its creation. It was like something out of Lord of the Rings.
I also appreciate the element of the heroine having a beautiful friendship with a girl from her village. I tire of the lone heroine archtype in young adult novels these days.
I cannot recommend this book. I believe it’s negative qualities outweigh it’s positive elements. It’s a shame. I think the author has great writing ability. Please write about something better than an abusive relationship being portrayed as love.
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LibraryThing member LibraryCin
Every 10 years, the Dragon comes to the valley to select a 17-year old girl to go with him. She is not seen again for the next 10 years. The people allow this because the Dragon makes sure the evil in the Wood that surrounds them stays at bay. Growing up, Agnieszka (and everyone else) always knew But, it’s not Kasia who is chosen. It’s Agnieszka.
I really enjoyed this. This one has (Baba) Jaga mentioned – she’s not a character, as she is long-dead, but she is mentioned and her effects are felt. Many know that I am not always a fantasy fan (depends on the type of fantasy), but I do like fairy tales. This one had a lot going on – not all at once, but one thing after another. Lots of adventure in this one.
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it would be her smart, beautiful best friend, Kasia, who is chosen. Possible spoiler, though it happens in the first couple of chapters: I really enjoyed this. This one has (Baba) Jaga mentioned – she’s not a character, as she is long-dead, but she is mentioned and her effects are felt. Many know that I am not always a fantasy fan (depends on the type of fantasy), but I do like fairy tales. This one had a lot going on – not all at once, but one thing after another. Lots of adventure in this one.
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LibraryThing member Alliebadger
Ugh. Flat characters, zero chemistry, broken rules of magic with no consequences, a confusing enemy, poor editing, and enough eye-rolling moments to make you lose a contact lens. (So frustrating when I loved the first Temeraire book so much... but perhaps not surprising since every Temeraire book
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after that gets progressively worse.) Anyway, I liked the premise, and I liked the ending. Just wish the 90% between those two things was good. Show Less
LibraryThing member swingdancefan
Approximate Lexile: 550
This book was difficult for me. I had trouble wanting to interact with other human beings, cook dinner for my family, put my child to bed…you get the idea.
The Wood dominates the life of everyone in Polya, not just Agnieszka’s part of it. It threatens neighboring Rosya, as
Much to clumsy Agniezka’s surprise, he chooses her. As she finds out, it’s because she is a witch. But her way of doing magic is very different from the formal, precisely recited spells of the local wizard community. Her spells are more instinctive and more bound to nature. This sets her up as a key figure in the battle against the Wood.
The Dragon’s impatience with Agniezka is understandable—she, quite frankly, messes everything up, until she learns to trust her magical instincts (and he learns to let her). Agniezka’s best friend, Kasia, also undergoes a transformation—from the beautiful, talented young woman whom everyone knows the Dragon will choose, into a warrior. I was pleased that she was able to move from being appreciated only for her beauty.
The title, Uprooted, has multiple levels of significance as we progress through the story. The plot had me on an emotional roller-coaster—every time you think things might just be resolved, Novik yanks the rug out from under you.
The conclusion, however, was a little bit out of left field, but satisfying in its own way.
Possible Objectionable Material: Lots and lots of violence. An attempted (but humorously foiled) rape. A bedroom scene that, while unnecessarily descriptive, stops just shy of being graphic.
Who Would Like This Book: Lovers of fantasy and magic. It hearkens back to eastern European folk tales. Those who like conflict between good and evil. Those who like a little bit of romance. It is being marketed as “women’s fiction,” but, apart from the aforementioned bedroom scene, it would be suitable for the YA audience, given the lower Lexile level and that the protagonist is a fairly typical 17-year-old girl.
I read an E-book ARC provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you!
This book was difficult for me. I had trouble wanting to interact with other human beings, cook dinner for my family, put my child to bed…you get the idea.
The Wood dominates the life of everyone in Polya, not just Agnieszka’s part of it. It threatens neighboring Rosya, as
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well. It doesn’t help that Polya and Rosya are also at war with each other. Why don’t the people of Agnieszka’s province move? Because they are tied to the land. It is home, and they love it. Besides…the Dragon has helped them keep the Wood back. And all he wants in exchange is a 17-year-old girl every ten years. Much to clumsy Agniezka’s surprise, he chooses her. As she finds out, it’s because she is a witch. But her way of doing magic is very different from the formal, precisely recited spells of the local wizard community. Her spells are more instinctive and more bound to nature. This sets her up as a key figure in the battle against the Wood.
The Dragon’s impatience with Agniezka is understandable—she, quite frankly, messes everything up, until she learns to trust her magical instincts (and he learns to let her). Agniezka’s best friend, Kasia, also undergoes a transformation—from the beautiful, talented young woman whom everyone knows the Dragon will choose, into a warrior. I was pleased that she was able to move from being appreciated only for her beauty.
The title, Uprooted, has multiple levels of significance as we progress through the story. The plot had me on an emotional roller-coaster—every time you think things might just be resolved, Novik yanks the rug out from under you.
The conclusion, however, was a little bit out of left field, but satisfying in its own way.
Possible Objectionable Material: Lots and lots of violence. An attempted (but humorously foiled) rape. A bedroom scene that, while unnecessarily descriptive, stops just shy of being graphic.
Who Would Like This Book: Lovers of fantasy and magic. It hearkens back to eastern European folk tales. Those who like conflict between good and evil. Those who like a little bit of romance. It is being marketed as “women’s fiction,” but, apart from the aforementioned bedroom scene, it would be suitable for the YA audience, given the lower Lexile level and that the protagonist is a fairly typical 17-year-old girl.
I read an E-book ARC provided by NetGalley for review. Thank you!
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LibraryThing member 2wonderY
Oops. I should have reviewed as soon as I read this. Details are slipping away. However, I recall that this is a satisfyingly complex story. There is maturation in multiple characters, surprise developments and a very satisfying end. A cut or two above much of the current fantasy crop.
LibraryThing member lamotamant
Being in desperate need of a hefty dose of fantasy, whimsy, and myth the last time I was at the library, I picked up Naomi Novik's Uprooted along with a couple other books. Uprooted scaled the heights of my TBR pinnacle last year upon its release. A Dragon, an encroaching and malevolent Wood, and a
Novik splatters a bold, wet swath of intrigue on her canvas from the first:
"Our Dragon doesn't eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley... He doesn't devour them really; it only feels that way. He takes a girl to his tower, and ten years later he lets her go, but by then she's someone different."
With this the doors to the Dragon's tower open onto his lands and we're introduced to Agnieszka, our heroine. Agnieszka, a seventeen year old girl from Dvernik that stands on the precipice of maturity and impending tradition, feeds the reader on the fruits of her valley and illumines the skeleton of its nature. It is through her eyes that we first encounter the stern Dragon, a wizard that stands oddly and intimidatingly apart from his community while offering protection from the parasitic thrusts of corruption The Wood deploys. As a condition of this protection, the Dragon chooses a seventeen year old girl every ten years from the surrounding villages. The girl lives with him for ten years and, upon her release, she comes back to her home and family only to find that she doesn't fit there any more and she chooses to move on to other things, another life.
Agnieszka, along with the rest of her village, assumes that her best friend, Kasia, will be chosen by the Dragon. She is torn between grief and gratefulness because of this until, reluctantly, the Dragon chooses her.
Enter the swell of the Dun Dun Duns as the heroine is abruptly wrenched from everything she knows and let it fade to a few instrumental lines of "We're Off to See the Wizard" as our story tilts and stabilizes.
Though expected, more and more so as the reader is made aware of the odd glimmer of 'just your average yet not average at all' trope catching on the hems of Agnieszka's always muddied and ripped dress, it's a standard for a reason. We want the reds and golds to pop up and shock us from the depths of the earth tones; we want the melodrama of the grand reveal. We are fantasy lovers after all, are we not?
Often what makes a 'good fantasy novel' isn't solely the bare bones of the thing - it's the nuance. The way a world is shaped, the way a character arc shoots off into the distance from an author's bow, can be just as enticing as its initial existence.
Unfortunately Novik's nuance in Uprooted fell far flat for me. While there were a couple plot devices that caught my attention, they weren't nurtured well and tended to sink into the jumble with everything else. For instance, I was hooked by the idea of magic being worked in different ways by different people - that Agnieszka would find magic within her that yearns to be shaped differently than the Dragon's own magic. While Novik repeats this premise throughout the book, repetition is not expansion. Instead it felt like this rich plot point became just as drained and exhausted as Agnieszka is when she first begins to fumble her way through cantrips.
I think this is what most struck me throughout the book, so much of the book's plot points and characters suffered from underdevelopment. The Wood is an imposing presence that suffuses every part and particle of this book and yet the story behind it is rushed and delivered in brief flashes. The depth of action in the burning back of The Wood or the battle at The Dragon's tower is either entirely based on the reader's supposition or divined through stumbling accounts which seem riddled with holes.
Novak does apply a bit of character development and psychology in the relationship between Agnieszka and Kasia at one point and it was enjoyable to have a taste of that layering. It didn't last, however, and Novik doesn't employ the same in other relationships that would have largely benefited from it.
Relationships such as the one between Agnieszka and The Dragon which I found thoroughly disappointing and too standard to merit any interest. It reads like your average (bad) YA romance; the older yet thoroughly immature partner communicates through rampant verbal abuse and neglect while the younger, inexperienced partner's insides effervesce questioningly and seemingly without any intelligent provocation while in the vicinity of said crank. And...
Logic be damned, they kiss. And we, the readers, get a lot of pages of "heat" and tension-inducing touches, shudders, and meaningful looks (again, oh my!).
The only difference being, in this instance, Novik adds a random and thoroughly awkward sex scene after our heroine acid-trips her way down The Dragon's spell security system hallway. I can only presume that this was added in an effort to uproot Uprooted from a YA designation so it could go play with the adult fiction books.
Sometimes I wonder if some creative writing teachers got together for a blistering bender and decided they were going to teach all their students that awkwardness is a synonym of chemistry for kicks and giggles. But then it caught like fiendfyre and now they're just trying to wipe their fingerprints from the crime scene before anyone catches on and realizes verbal abuse and awkwardness aren't foreplay to well developed relationships, in life or on page.
Between such undeveloped characters, the ties that bind them, and surface-skimming plot points, the parts of Uprooted I was drawn to got a bit buried. But there were parts I wanted more of or I found interesting, as much as my previous ranting might suggest otherwise.
The Wood was immense. As a world, a character, etc. it made me think of Neil Gaiman and had me wanting to plunge right in. I wanted to see more of its inhabitants; at the very end of the book Novik does develop one of these creatures a bit more and I loved it. I love the idea of magic differing and of someone who has magic responding to a certain kind more intensely. I think Novik put more thought of psychology into relationship with magic than into character relationships. I like that Novik plays with eastern european mythologies and seems to have based the words of her spells in a language that is representative of the time and place her book draws from. Although I wish there had been more connection to be made because I think being able to translate the incantations would have added interest. I really enjoyed the idea of Agnieszka responding so much to nature and seeing its beauty and value.
All in all I don't think I would recommend Uprooted to anyone looking for a new fantasy experience. I'd say it is a middling novel that includes some superb ideas that might merit intriguing fanfiction as well as some genre trope rants similar to the above.
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story that draws on eastern european magic and myth (oh my!); talk about an intriguing come-hither for the fantasy lover! Novik splatters a bold, wet swath of intrigue on her canvas from the first:
"Our Dragon doesn't eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley... He doesn't devour them really; it only feels that way. He takes a girl to his tower, and ten years later he lets her go, but by then she's someone different."
With this the doors to the Dragon's tower open onto his lands and we're introduced to Agnieszka, our heroine. Agnieszka, a seventeen year old girl from Dvernik that stands on the precipice of maturity and impending tradition, feeds the reader on the fruits of her valley and illumines the skeleton of its nature. It is through her eyes that we first encounter the stern Dragon, a wizard that stands oddly and intimidatingly apart from his community while offering protection from the parasitic thrusts of corruption The Wood deploys. As a condition of this protection, the Dragon chooses a seventeen year old girl every ten years from the surrounding villages. The girl lives with him for ten years and, upon her release, she comes back to her home and family only to find that she doesn't fit there any more and she chooses to move on to other things, another life.
Agnieszka, along with the rest of her village, assumes that her best friend, Kasia, will be chosen by the Dragon. She is torn between grief and gratefulness because of this until, reluctantly, the Dragon chooses her.
Enter the swell of the Dun Dun Duns as the heroine is abruptly wrenched from everything she knows and let it fade to a few instrumental lines of "We're Off to See the Wizard" as our story tilts and stabilizes.
Though expected, more and more so as the reader is made aware of the odd glimmer of 'just your average yet not average at all' trope catching on the hems of Agnieszka's always muddied and ripped dress, it's a standard for a reason. We want the reds and golds to pop up and shock us from the depths of the earth tones; we want the melodrama of the grand reveal. We are fantasy lovers after all, are we not?
Often what makes a 'good fantasy novel' isn't solely the bare bones of the thing - it's the nuance. The way a world is shaped, the way a character arc shoots off into the distance from an author's bow, can be just as enticing as its initial existence.
Unfortunately Novik's nuance in Uprooted fell far flat for me. While there were a couple plot devices that caught my attention, they weren't nurtured well and tended to sink into the jumble with everything else. For instance, I was hooked by the idea of magic being worked in different ways by different people - that Agnieszka would find magic within her that yearns to be shaped differently than the Dragon's own magic. While Novik repeats this premise throughout the book, repetition is not expansion. Instead it felt like this rich plot point became just as drained and exhausted as Agnieszka is when she first begins to fumble her way through cantrips.
I think this is what most struck me throughout the book, so much of the book's plot points and characters suffered from underdevelopment. The Wood is an imposing presence that suffuses every part and particle of this book and yet the story behind it is rushed and delivered in brief flashes. The depth of action in the burning back of The Wood or the battle at The Dragon's tower is either entirely based on the reader's supposition or divined through stumbling accounts which seem riddled with holes.
Novak does apply a bit of character development and psychology in the relationship between Agnieszka and Kasia at one point and it was enjoyable to have a taste of that layering. It didn't last, however, and Novik doesn't employ the same in other relationships that would have largely benefited from it.
Relationships such as the one between Agnieszka and The Dragon which I found thoroughly disappointing and too standard to merit any interest. It reads like your average (bad) YA romance; the older yet thoroughly immature partner communicates through rampant verbal abuse and neglect while the younger, inexperienced partner's insides effervesce questioningly and seemingly without any intelligent provocation while in the vicinity of said crank. And...
Logic be damned, they kiss. And we, the readers, get a lot of pages of "heat" and tension-inducing touches, shudders, and meaningful looks (again, oh my!).
The only difference being, in this instance, Novik adds a random and thoroughly awkward sex scene after our heroine acid-trips her way down The Dragon's spell security system hallway. I can only presume that this was added in an effort to uproot Uprooted from a YA designation so it could go play with the adult fiction books.
Sometimes I wonder if some creative writing teachers got together for a blistering bender and decided they were going to teach all their students that awkwardness is a synonym of chemistry for kicks and giggles. But then it caught like fiendfyre and now they're just trying to wipe their fingerprints from the crime scene before anyone catches on and realizes verbal abuse and awkwardness aren't foreplay to well developed relationships, in life or on page.
Between such undeveloped characters, the ties that bind them, and surface-skimming plot points, the parts of Uprooted I was drawn to got a bit buried. But there were parts I wanted more of or I found interesting, as much as my previous ranting might suggest otherwise.
The Wood was immense. As a world, a character, etc. it made me think of Neil Gaiman and had me wanting to plunge right in. I wanted to see more of its inhabitants; at the very end of the book Novik does develop one of these creatures a bit more and I loved it. I love the idea of magic differing and of someone who has magic responding to a certain kind more intensely. I think Novik put more thought of psychology into relationship with magic than into character relationships. I like that Novik plays with eastern european mythologies and seems to have based the words of her spells in a language that is representative of the time and place her book draws from. Although I wish there had been more connection to be made because I think being able to translate the incantations would have added interest. I really enjoyed the idea of Agnieszka responding so much to nature and seeing its beauty and value.
All in all I don't think I would recommend Uprooted to anyone looking for a new fantasy experience. I'd say it is a middling novel that includes some superb ideas that might merit intriguing fanfiction as well as some genre trope rants similar to the above.
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LibraryThing member bookwyrmm
While there may be bits and pieces of other fairy tales woven in, Novik makes it feel fresh and unique yet rooted in tradition.
LibraryThing member Awfki
2015-11-14/15%: Interesting so far and surprisingly actionless. Not that it's not without action, but it's rom-com action rather than action movie action. No overblown combat BS or save the world shit. I'm really tired of the world needing to be saved so hopefully this one will stick to that. Just
2015-11-16/100%: That was quite good. I want to give it five stars, but I'm hesitant.
2015-11-17: Things that make me hesitate to give the coveted five stars:
It seems unfair to bullet point the things I didn't like and not the things I liked. I'll give it a try but I think the things I like are more general, they're the things I'd like about any story.
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an interesting story about interesting people doing interesting things. If you're an author and your characters are trying to save the world then you, as a writer, aren't trying hard enough. Stories about saving the world are boring dime-a-dozen schlock churned out by lazy writers. Scale it down. Make it more intimate. Have them save the town, or some strangers, or themselves.2015-11-16/100%: That was quite good. I want to give it five stars, but I'm hesitant.
2015-11-17: Things that make me hesitate to give the coveted five stars:
- It did kind of devolve in a save-the-world scenario but it did it so smoothly that I didn't mind too much.
- Once you heard
the Wood-Queen 's story it was obvious that the ending would benon-violent . I don't mind that it was, I just mind that it was telegraphed. - The villain felt over powered which meant the ending had be deus ex to some extent. I don't like that, or rather, I'm really tired of that.
- What happened to fulmia (the earthquake spell)? That seemed easier for her than lightning but she didn't break that out after her test.
- When they were re-directing the arrows why didn't they re-direct them at the bad guys instead of at a wall?
- That her apprenticeship ended so abruptly and everyone seemed cool with that. Shouldn't other wizards have insisted she get more training? Shouldn't she have insisted she get more training?
- I disliked when the story changed from being about two people fighting the mysterious woods to save the valley into two people fighting to save the world from the uber-competent uber-woods. Yeah, I know I said it didn't bother me too much but I've changed my mind. I had about a half day pause in the reading when Neishka hit the road to the capital. I knew the story was changing and I didn't want it too. That's the exact point when she went wrong. Chapter 17, or rather, the end of 16 was where she lost that fifth star.
It seems unfair to bullet point the things I didn't like and not the things I liked. I'll give it a try but I think the things I like are more general, they're the things I'd like about any story.
- The characters were likable.
- I liked that Kasia was invulnerable but also untrained.
- At the end I liked Sarkan's walls and that Neishka
went her own way and let him go his . I liked that she wasn't sappy or maudlin. - I liked that Neishka's take on magic was different from everyone else's, though some exploration of why/how would have been nice.
- I liked the ending, though I thought the
romance should have been left hang. It wasn't needed.
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LibraryThing member Pretear
This book was delightful and unexpected. I'm not sure it's fair to categorize this as YA. Sure, when you read the summary blurb, it's almost eye-roll inducing for the YA indoctrinated*. A young girl is handed over to a "dragon" every ten years, a bestest best friend forever, blah blah blah. Okay,
*I know it sounds like I hate YA, I don't. I really love it.
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but the typical YA archetypes and cliches end there. This reads like a folktale with a refreshingly atypical heroine - she's not the uber competent, absurdly beautiful (or absurdly plain) girl who somehow manages to instantly capture the attentions of every ridiculously hot male in sight. She's not suddenly good at everything, her struggles are legitimate and compelling. The love story is realistic. The villain is scary. The characters have depth and exhibit growth throughout the story. And the best part... THIS ISN'T A GODFORSAKEN TRILOGY. I mean, really, go read this now. And make sure you read until the one scene. You'll know which one I mean when you get to it. *wiggly eyebrows**I know it sounds like I hate YA, I don't. I really love it.
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LibraryThing member KarenIrelandPhillips
Engaging and sensitive YA. Ms. Novik does have a dragon in this rollicking fairy tale, but not the kind you would think. The protagonist, Agnieszka, is a prickly, carefree young woman living with her family in the shadow of a deadly wood. The worst of the wood's damages are kept back only by the
In the best tradition of fairy tales, Agnieszka explores magic, friendship, family and love; and underlying all, the roots of place and self. Highly recommended.
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sorcercer in the tower. Every ten years the sorcerer chooses the most beautiful, accomplished, strongest young woman from the surrounding villages to live in his tower. These women never return. Agnieszka is shocked when she is chosen, instead of her best friend. In the best tradition of fairy tales, Agnieszka explores magic, friendship, family and love; and underlying all, the roots of place and self. Highly recommended.
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LibraryThing member kinwolf
Liked it, but didn't "love" it. It's a nice story, but it almost felt like I was reading a theater play. The reason is that you had stuff happening in one location, lots of conversations, then the character would move to another remote location, but the travel wasn't described, so it's like they
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were moving from one scene to another without living the transition. It also made the world feel very, very small, and un-descriptive. The tone was nice though, and the description of the Wood was almost scary. The ending is very poetic. This story is not fantasy, it's really more a fairy tale. Show Less
LibraryThing member melissarochelle
Read from December 23, 2015 to January 03, 2016
After hearing a lot of good buzziness about this one, I finally checked it out. I liked it, I didn't love it. I would put it down one night and not pick it up again for a couple of days. While I was reading it, I was IN IT. I was IN Agnieszka's world,
Don't get me wrong, it IS a beautifully written fairy tale for adults. The characters are compelling, the world is fascinating, and the villain (The Wood) is terrifying (and the backstory there is great). But there was just *something* missing and I don't know what it was...thus 3.5 stars instead of a solid 4.
After hearing a lot of good buzziness about this one, I finally checked it out. I liked it, I didn't love it. I would put it down one night and not pick it up again for a couple of days. While I was reading it, I was IN IT. I was IN Agnieszka's world,
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but there was no pull. Often while reading it, I thought I was missing something because things never felt explained -- SPOILER --like why was Agnieszka's magic different? Was it because she was one of the tree people? Don't get me wrong, it IS a beautifully written fairy tale for adults. The characters are compelling, the world is fascinating, and the villain (The Wood) is terrifying (and the backstory there is great). But there was just *something* missing and I don't know what it was...thus 3.5 stars instead of a solid 4.
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LibraryThing member Maydacat
Once upon a time, there was an author who thought that you never outgrew fairy tales. And so one day, she started writing about maidens in a village and a wizard called The Dragon, about kingdoms and magic, and about the evil that was The Wood. And that is why we who grew up reading fairy tales and
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then went on to Middle Earth now have Uprooted to enjoy. This tale of good versus evil is told with lavish detail and imagery. In the story, The Dragon chooses a maiden to live with him in his tower for ten years. In meeting Agnieszka, he senses the magic in her that no one else has recognized, even though she has always seemed a little different from the others. Thus begins a relationship that steadily grows, just as their powers together make each stronger. A lovely tale, delightful in its language, compelling in its power. Show Less
Awards
Hugo Award (Nominee — Novel — 2016)
Nebula Award (Nominee — Novel — 2015)
Mythopoeic Awards (Finalist — Adult Literature — 2016)
Locus Award (Finalist — Fantasy Novel — 2016)
World Fantasy Award (Nominee — Novel — 2016)
British Fantasy Award (Winner — Robert Holdstock Award — 2016)
RUSA CODES Reading List (Winner — Fantasy — 2016)
NPR: Books We Love (2015)
Lariat Adult Fiction Reading List (Selection — 2016)
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Adults (Selection — Fiction — 2015)
Original language
English
Original publication date
2015-05-19
Physical description
7.76 inches
ISBN
1447294149 / 9781447294146