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inkandplasma 's review for:
This Poison Heart
by Kalynn Bayron
Full review available on my blog June 28th: https://inkandplasma.com/2021/06/28/this-poison-heart/
Thanks to Bloomsbury YA for the eARC of this book. It has not affected my honest review.
Content Warnings: murder, death of a parent, threat, violence, body horror.
I absolutely devoured this book. I didn’t really know what to expect, going into it. I’d picked it up mostly blind, relying on the fact that I adored CINDERELLA IS DEAD from Kalynn Bayron and the fact that the cover for THIS POISON HEART is beyond gorgeous. That was a great way to read this book as I was utterly blindsided by every twist and turn in this contemporary fantasy plot. I didn’t realise this was going to be a series until I got 90% of the way through and had a dawning sense of horror that this wouldn’t be neatly resolved in the pages I had left. And I was right. The ending was spectacular, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel.
The Greek mythology elements threaded throughout! My little Hellenic polytheist heart leapt when I realised the main character was called Briseis, and when Circe and Selene were mentioned? My ears pricked up. I loved the way the mythology was used to support this story. It wasn’t a huge facet of the story, but the inspirations were clear and excellently used. I loved the Medea and Hecate mentions, and it was used in a really clever way.
The gothic atmosphere of this book was glorious. In true gothic thrillery style, it felt like the house and the poison garden were characters all of their own and it built so much suspense and tension throughout the story. The whole novel had big Little Shop of Horrors energy, which is something I didn’t realise I desperately needed in a book. The plant magic was so, so fun. I loved the way it was done, and the way it actually made Briseis’s life difficult rather than just being a gift.
All of the characters were fantastic and the sapphic romance made me squeal but I have a particular soft spot for the family relationships in this book. I adored Briseis and her moms. Their family loyalty was incredible and made my heart grow three sizes. The love between them felt so strong and real that it jumped off the page, and I really loved that Briseis investigating her birth mother didn’t cause conflict between her and her moms.
Thanks to Bloomsbury YA for the eARC of this book. It has not affected my honest review.
Content Warnings: murder, death of a parent, threat, violence, body horror.
I absolutely devoured this book. I didn’t really know what to expect, going into it. I’d picked it up mostly blind, relying on the fact that I adored CINDERELLA IS DEAD from Kalynn Bayron and the fact that the cover for THIS POISON HEART is beyond gorgeous. That was a great way to read this book as I was utterly blindsided by every twist and turn in this contemporary fantasy plot. I didn’t realise this was going to be a series until I got 90% of the way through and had a dawning sense of horror that this wouldn’t be neatly resolved in the pages I had left. And I was right. The ending was spectacular, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel.
The Greek mythology elements threaded throughout! My little Hellenic polytheist heart leapt when I realised the main character was called Briseis, and when Circe and Selene were mentioned? My ears pricked up. I loved the way the mythology was used to support this story. It wasn’t a huge facet of the story, but the inspirations were clear and excellently used. I loved the Medea and Hecate mentions, and it was used in a really clever way.
The gothic atmosphere of this book was glorious. In true gothic thrillery style, it felt like the house and the poison garden were characters all of their own and it built so much suspense and tension throughout the story. The whole novel had big Little Shop of Horrors energy, which is something I didn’t realise I desperately needed in a book. The plant magic was so, so fun. I loved the way it was done, and the way it actually made Briseis’s life difficult rather than just being a gift.
All of the characters were fantastic and the sapphic romance made me squeal but I have a particular soft spot for the family relationships in this book. I adored Briseis and her moms. Their family loyalty was incredible and made my heart grow three sizes. The love between them felt so strong and real that it jumped off the page, and I really loved that Briseis investigating her birth mother didn’t cause conflict between her and her moms.