About to be executed for murder, Yelena is offered an extraordinary reprieve. She’ll eat the best meals, have rooma 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…
Forewarned is forearmed, right? So then make sure before you start Poison Study you have Magic Study close to hand. I didn’t and am now chafing at the knowledge that I’ll have to wait who knows how long to see how Yelena’s story continues.
Though vastly different, Poison Study was slightly reminiscent of Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series; they are both grounded in a rich historical atmosphere that occasionally takes precedence over the fantasy elements of the story. In this installment of Snyder’s series, magic takes a backseat to intrigue, tactics and politics; as a result, tension is tight throughout, and the reader wonders along with Yelena if she’ll survive another day. That wonder was only one of many things that kept me racing through this novel.
Adept with characterization, Snyder created a cast that runs the gamut from sympathetic to repugnant; while some are fleshed out better than others, there isn’t one that doesn’t seem to lift from the pages, able to walk in our world as easily as they do in their own. Of particular interest, of course, is Yelena who is a study in contrasting personalities; she is at once believably naïve and cynical, brave yet foolish, intelligent if daunted by things she knows nothing about. In short, she’s human. Also of note is Valek, the Commander’s right hand man and the one responsible for giving Yelena a choice; I don’t want to go into detail here because it would spoil the discovery, but Snyder handled his character with a subtle touch that makes the resolution of the story rewarding rather than unrealistic.
I sat down with this book yesterday afternoon and by midnight it was finished; the problem was I wanted to go back because without Magic Study I couldn’t go forward. Luckily, a quick trip to Snyder’s website revealed a short story that takes up events immediately after the conclusion of Poison Study, focusing on Valek. {If you plan on reading this one, you may want to bookmark the story now.}
Suffice to say, I thoroughly enjoyed Poison Study. What a fantastic and satisfying way to start off Once Upon a Time II!!
I hadn’t heard of this before. It sounds like a very rich world and a satisfying read.
this is new to me, but sounds intriguing, I’m adding it to my tbr pile.
I just added this one to my TBR list recently, I was hoping it would be good, because it sounded so interesting! Yay!
Nymeth ~ It was a very satisfying read, moreso even then I thought it was going to be. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series to see how Snyder deepens the world she created in Poison Study.
cafeshree ~ It’s a great addition! And, hey, if you like it there are two more to add.
Corinne ~ I hope – once you get around to it – you enjoy it as much as I did. I’ll be interested to hear your thoughts when you do.
I have had an ARC of the second book in this series for awhile but never got around to reading it. Glad you enjoyed the first!!!
I have heard many good things about this book and about Maria Snyder. It is a high compliment to a book when you pick it up and cannot put it down. Your passion for it certainly makes me want to pick it up soon. I hope the next one is equally thrilling for you.
Love this series! Very thrilling and sexy!