Poison Study
By: Maria V. Snyder
Synopsis (From Goodreads):
Choose: A quick death and hell or slow poison and hell. About to be executed for murder, Yelena is offered an extraordinary reprieve. She'll eat the best meals, have rooms in the palace and risk assassination by anyone trying to kill the Commander of Ixia.
And so Yelena chooses to become a food taster. But the chief of security, leaving nothing to chance, deliberately feeds her Butterfly's Dust and only by appearing for her daily antidote will she delay an agonizing death from the poison.
As Yelena tries to escape her new dilemma, disasters keep mounting. Rebels plot to seize Ixia and Yelena develops magical powers she can't control. Her life is threatened again and choices must be made. But this time the outcomes aren't so clear.
My Review:
I was totally sold on the description of this book. And it only got better.
Yelena was imprisoned for a murder that she freely admits to committing, and feels no remorse for. However, it was clear from the beginning that there was more to that story. Yelena is a smart woman that makes an extremely compelling character. The pace of this book never slows down as Yelena deals with problem after problem. Some of her hardships have to do with her new position, but many have to do with her past. The more I learned about Yelena's past, the more respect I had for her as a character. I think many people would be able to relate to Yelena's experience.
Valek was a wonderful character as well, and I really enjoyed the chemistry that Yelena and he shared. I know I say this a lot, but one thing I really look for in a story is good strong relationships between characters, and not just romantic ones. This story has a fair bit of romance in it, but Yelena has relationships with others that aren't romantic, but just as compelling.
Overall, I was very impressed with this story. This is not the type of the book I would just pick up off the shelf. I read it because it was the book of the month for one of my Goodreads book clubs. I'm so glad I did, and I'm very excited to read the sequel.
Book-A-Likes: Goose Girl by Shannon Hale
My Rating:
5 Stars!
Profanity: Mild
Drugs and Alcohol: Mild
Sexuality: Mild; Definitely alluded to, but never described
Violence: Moderate
