Uprooted: the Stand-Alone I Wish Was the Start of a Series

I bought Uprooted last year as a treat to myself for having graduated from university. I was drawn to it because I’d previously read and enjoyed Naomi Novik’s Temeraire series (if you haven’t read them already, go do so, it’s a fantastic series) and because I love a good fairytale story. I wasn’t disappointed.

Uprooted follows the protagonist, Agnieszka, as she strives to protect her home from the contaminating evil of the Wood. The story starts as Agnieszka’s valley is due to offer up all the eligible women to the Dragon who will then choose one to take away and serve him for the next 10 years. Sounds pretty typical for a fairytale, doesn’t it? Remind you of Beauty and the Beast at all? It even has a damn rose on the front cover! I’ll admit, I thought I had the story pretty much sussed out as I read the first chapter but as you read on, you’ll find that this isn’t quite the book you were expecting. There are some Brothers Grimm-esque scenes with some really rather disturbing concepts involved and the plot has much more to it than its beauty-and-the-beast sounding blurb.

One of the things I like most about Uprooted is the relationship between Agnieszka and her best friend Kasia. Kasia is supposedly beyond beautiful and everybody from the valley knows without a doubt that the Dragon will choose her. Yet, inexplicably (to all but the reader), Agnieszka is chosen instead; a girl who is incapable of remaining neat and tidy for more than a minute and has no notable skills. I fully expected their relationship to be a one-sided affair. I imagined Agnieszka as always looking up, admiringly while her friend would remain coolly indifferent. I couldn’t be more wrong, there is real love on both sides of this friendship which I really enjoy. Particularly because, while there is a slight romantic love story in this book, it is far from the overriding theme and we see how familial love and friendship are just as important. My boyfriend will tell you how much I hate it when books and films shoe-horn in a romance when it just isn’t needed.

Novik gives us some beautiful descriptions throughout this book. My favourite being when Agnieszka and the Dragon work their magic together for the first time; “…I began to glimpse his spell: almost exactly like that strange clockwork on the middle of his table, all shining moving parts. On an impulse I tried to align our workings: I envisioned his like the water-wheel of a mill, and mine the rushing stream driving it around.”

If I were to find fault in Uprooted, it would be that I sometimes felt that the supporting characters appeared flat. Also, there were a couple of moments in the plot which I would consider a big enough climax to base an entire book around. I felt that Uprooted could have been extended over two or three books so that each development could be explored in more detail.

That’s not the only reason I want Uprooted to be extended, however. I actually cried out in frustration when I finished reading because I wanted the magic to go on and on and on! I absolutely loved this book and I wish it could have been the start of a series instead of a stand-alone book. If you enjoy fantasy stories or know someone who does, I would definitely recommend buying Uprooted. Just make sure you don’t have any pressing jobs to do because once you start reading, you won’t be able to do anything else until you’ve finished.

4/5 stars

Have you read Uprooted? Let me know your thoughts!