Title: Uprooted
Author: Naomi Novik
Genre: Adult Fantasy
My Rating: 4/5
Agnieszka grew up with the knowledge that, in exchange for protecting her village from The Wood, The Dragon would steal away her best friend for ten years. However, when the day of the choosing comes, the wizard picks Agnieszka out of the lineup of maidens. He takes her back to his tower and tells her that she has the gift of magic and, as such, he is obligated to teach her. The problem is, Agnieszka doesn’t want to be taught and she can’t seem to manage even the simplest spell.
Her attitude changes as The Wood grows more powerful and a brewing war threatens to leave the entire country vulnerable to The Wood’s malevolent influence.
I got Uprooted from my library after reading and loving Spinning Silver. I loved Uprooted as well; the concept was amazing (evil that seeps out of a forest, corrupting those it touches) and the protagonist is a unique, determined character.
I thought the story started pretty quickly; there’s a little bit of explanation of Agnieszka’s past and her deep bond with her friend Kasia and then it gets right into the action when The Dragon (who is actually human–no shapeshifters here) comes to choose his next “sacrifice.” Agnieszka’s reaction to becoming his sort-of-servant / pupil is pretty realistic, considering I would have been totally freaked out as well. She starts to learn magic in a way that doesn’t conform to the “rules” of the world, which I found very satisfying. In a world with magic and magical beings, I don’t think everything should always make sense.
I enjoyed the romance element (which I won’t spoil) mostly because the sexual tension between the characters was palpable. So much so, in fact, that I would have been seriously let down if Novik didn’t see it through to the end. It’s not an easy, rainbows and sunshine relationship, though. The way the characters talk to each other could be considered verbal abuse at times. That made me a little uncomfortable, considering I like my romances to start as friendship with a side of longing, but I overlooked it, for the most part.
The victory of this story is Novik’s characterization of The Wood. It’s a forest that’s not a forest–it seethes with malevolence, is overrun with horrific creatures, and corrupts all it touches. Simply breathing the air will kill a person–but not before they go mad and kill or infect everyone else they touch. The creatures were terrifying and the “heart trees” were grotesque perversions of what trees should be. The descriptions of the forest and its influence sent chills through me in the best way. It was delightfully horrifying.
All in all, Novik remains a must-read author for me and I’d recommend giving her a try.
…truth didn’t mean anything without someone to share it with; you could shout truth into the air forever, and spend your life doing it, if someone didn’t come and listen.
Naomi Novik, Uprooted