"Daughter of Smoke and Bone" written by author Laini Taylor is a novel that tells the story of Karou and the journey she takes to balance two separate lives, to find out who she really is and to come into her own.

The novel begins by introducing Karou, a seventeen year old, blue-haired, tattooed artist who lives in Prague. At first, she seems to have the life of a normal seventeen year old however, as the story progresses through the next 20 chapters, it becomes clear that Karou's life is anything but normal.

The plot soon reveals that the fantasy characters- Brimstone, Issa, Yasri and Twiga-that Karou draws about in her many sketchbooks are actually real- they are chimaera and they have raised her from birth. As the story progresses, the reader learns that Karou is leading two separate lives, one in Prague and one in Elsewhere, where she goes around the world running errands for Brimstone.

Also during these first 20 chapters, the reader is introduced to the seraphim and, in particular, Akiva, who are at war with the chimaera. Akiva and his people are trying to end the war by closing off all of the portals that Brimstone uses to enter the human world and collect the teeth that are the source of his magical powers. At the end of chapter 20, Karou's life changes when she is forever cut off from her chimaera family by the burning of the portal doors.

Throughout chapters 21-34, Karou goes to great lengths in order to try and gain entry into the one remaining portal so that she can find Brimstone. But what she doesn't know is that Akiva has been following her and, when the two meet for the second time, Karou is ready to fight him, as Akiva tried to kill her during their first encounter.

But Akiva doesn't want to fight and it isn't long before Karou and Akiva realize their feelings for each other. Despite the odds being against them, they stay together and their connection grows stronger. But, at the end of chapter 34, Akiva discovers that Karou has a wishbone around her neck and he falls to his knees crying because he knows exactly who she is.

During chapters 34- 60, the reader and Karou begin to learn who Karou truly is. After a battle with Akiva's siblings, who are trying to hurt Karou and bring Akiva back to their world, Akiva convinces Karou that she must break her wishbone in order to find out the truth. After the wishbone is broken, Karou understands everything that Brimstone has done.

She knows that she used to be Madrigal, a beautiful chimaera who saved Akiva's life, fell in love with and had a relationship with him, dreamed of creating a peaceful world with him and was executed by her people for falling in love with the enemy. However, because of Madrigal's close relationship with Brimstone, Brimstone secretly saved her soul, gave her a human form so that she could safely live a new life in a different, peaceful world and saved all of her memories in a wishbone.

In the last chapter, Karou (Madrigal) and Akiva finally understand the mysterious pull they've been feeling towards each other and they are ready to begin their relationship again. Karou is now more excited than ever to see Brimstone however Akiva is forced to tell Karou that he didn't know Brimstone had saved her and that, if he had, he wouldn't have killed him, Issa, Yasri and Twiga.

The epilogue reveals that, despite her anger, Karou doesn't kill Akiva. Instead she leaves him, which she also finds difficult to do, in order to go through the portal she's been searching for, as Karou believes that this isn't over.