A quick death…
Or slow poison...
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...
When I started reading Poison Study, I didn't have high expectations but halfway through the book, I decided that I wanted the rest of the series. I also read it in a day and now I just don't want to read anything else until I get my hands on the second one.
I loved it! Maria V. Snyder writes in a captivating way but she has also created great and well-developed strong characters whom I loved. I didn't know what to expect from the plot, I couldn't take my eyes off the pages and wanted to just keep reading until I realised I'd finished the book.
I won't go into details about the plot since I've got the synopsis. I'll just say that it kept me guessing what was going to happen next, the world was well-described with no info-dumps or holes in its structure. I believe that with the next books we'll learn more about Sitia and Ixia, and maybe about the relationship between the countries.
One of the most important things in a book for me is the characters. I love strong characters so I always look for them in a novel and Snyder didn't disappoint me but what's more, I loved Yelena more than I expected to. She's been through so much in her life and in the beginning of Poison Study she's almost broken but throughout the whole book she grows as a person and starts to stand up for herself, learns how to fight and I just loved her development. Even when she chose risky life as a food taster before the noose I loved her! And on top of that, she got some pretty powerful friends just by standing up for them and I loved her (and the book) even more for that (and for her loyalty).
Who doesn't love a good assassin as a character in a book, especially if he is one of the main characters? I loved Valek, I loved how he taught Yelena the different kinds of poisons and never seemed to mind when she decided to investigate her surroundings. I loved how their relationship developed and how loyal they are to each other. I also appreciate the fact that there was no insta-love but everything happened with a normal speed which added a touch of reality.
The novel is action-packed, I loved every sentence of it and I can't really seem to be able to write anything good today.
I also loved Janco and Ari- they are the best friends she might have ever made. Once she stood up for them, they became her loyal friends and agreed to train her. They are so lovely, I want to read and learn more about them.
Yelena goes through many challenges in this book and judging from the synopsis of the second one, even more, await her. Her life was complex enough before the end of Poison Study but I have a feeling that it'll become even more complicated than before. I loved everything, and the last 100 pages were among the most intense parts of the whole novel.
What about you? Have you read Poison Study?
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