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A review by rallythereaders
Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder
5.0
Also posted on Rally the Readers.
Ah, Poison Study. I first read this about four years ago, after much exhorting from my cousin Ally. As usual, Ally was right: this was amazing! I had borrowed her copy of the book because I wasn’t sure how I would like it; let’s just say that it wasn’t long before I ordered my own copy plus copies of the rest of the books in the series.
With a brand new Study book releasing, I figured that a reread of the original trilogy was a good idea, especially since I’d read it pre-blog. Rereads of books that I loved make me a little nervous—will I still love them just as much, or will my opinion have changed?
Well, Poison Study has withstood the test of time. I admit that I carried a good deal of sentiment in my heart for it before the reread, so this review is even more subjective than usual. Four years ago, Ally and I talked and talked and talked about this book, plus we persuaded other family members and my best friend to read it, too. So, yes, there are some feelings!
Sometimes you start reading a book and it’s instantly addictive; Poison Study is that type of book. We’re immediately introduced to Yelena and her predicament: she’s to be executed for killing a general’s son unless she opts to take the job of food taster to the Commander of Ixia—a position that’s vacant due to the previous food taster’s untimely demise. So Yelena is essentially trading certain death for possible death. Of course her training, under the tutelage of Ixia’s ace spy/assassin Valek, involves learning to recognize different poisons, and I was totally absorbed by the details. Not that I was taking notes for future reference or anything.
Yelena’s character evolves so much over the course of the novel, and it’s such a well paced development. In the beginning, she’s both physically and mentally weak from years of torture at the hands of General Brazell and his psychopathic son, Reyad, the man whom Yelena has been sentenced to death for killing. Justice is all-or-nothing in Ixia and does not allow for extenuating circumstances. Slowly, though, Yelena gains strength and confidence, and you’ll find yourself cheering her on when she starts taking self-defense lessons. By the end of the book, she’s a complete badass.
Speaking of badasses—Valek. He epitomizes the word with his commanding presence and ridiculously awe-inspiring fighting and spying skills. Seriously—he is NOT a man to be trifled with. But then there’s the side of Valek that carves intricately detailed statues from rocks. What I’m telling you is, I love him love him love him. And oh man, the slow burn between him and Yelena is exquisite. It is absolutely my favorite thing about the book and the entire series.
While the world of Poison Study isn’t overly complex compared to other fantasies, it’s very well thought out. The magic element is nicely applied as well, with neither too light nor too heavy a hand. One more bit of last minute gushing: I grinned like a dork when two of my favorite secondary characters, Ari and Janco, made their first appearance. I love the friendship that develops between them and Yelena. To me, the best rereads are the ones where you feel like you’re catching up with old friends you haven’t seen in a while, and that exactly sums up my reread of Poison Study.
Ah, Poison Study. I first read this about four years ago, after much exhorting from my cousin Ally. As usual, Ally was right: this was amazing! I had borrowed her copy of the book because I wasn’t sure how I would like it; let’s just say that it wasn’t long before I ordered my own copy plus copies of the rest of the books in the series.
With a brand new Study book releasing, I figured that a reread of the original trilogy was a good idea, especially since I’d read it pre-blog. Rereads of books that I loved make me a little nervous—will I still love them just as much, or will my opinion have changed?
Well, Poison Study has withstood the test of time. I admit that I carried a good deal of sentiment in my heart for it before the reread, so this review is even more subjective than usual. Four years ago, Ally and I talked and talked and talked about this book, plus we persuaded other family members and my best friend to read it, too. So, yes, there are some feelings!
Sometimes you start reading a book and it’s instantly addictive; Poison Study is that type of book. We’re immediately introduced to Yelena and her predicament: she’s to be executed for killing a general’s son unless she opts to take the job of food taster to the Commander of Ixia—a position that’s vacant due to the previous food taster’s untimely demise. So Yelena is essentially trading certain death for possible death. Of course her training, under the tutelage of Ixia’s ace spy/assassin Valek, involves learning to recognize different poisons, and I was totally absorbed by the details. Not that I was taking notes for future reference or anything.
Yelena’s character evolves so much over the course of the novel, and it’s such a well paced development. In the beginning, she’s both physically and mentally weak from years of torture at the hands of General Brazell and his psychopathic son, Reyad, the man whom Yelena has been sentenced to death for killing. Justice is all-or-nothing in Ixia and does not allow for extenuating circumstances. Slowly, though, Yelena gains strength and confidence, and you’ll find yourself cheering her on when she starts taking self-defense lessons. By the end of the book, she’s a complete badass.
Speaking of badasses—Valek. He epitomizes the word with his commanding presence and ridiculously awe-inspiring fighting and spying skills. Seriously—he is NOT a man to be trifled with. But then there’s the side of Valek that carves intricately detailed statues from rocks. What I’m telling you is, I love him love him love him. And oh man, the slow burn between him and Yelena is exquisite. It is absolutely my favorite thing about the book and the entire series.
While the world of Poison Study isn’t overly complex compared to other fantasies, it’s very well thought out. The magic element is nicely applied as well, with neither too light nor too heavy a hand. One more bit of last minute gushing: I grinned like a dork when two of my favorite secondary characters, Ari and Janco, made their first appearance. I love the friendship that develops between them and Yelena. To me, the best rereads are the ones where you feel like you’re catching up with old friends you haven’t seen in a while, and that exactly sums up my reread of Poison Study.