Poison Study
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4.2 • 80 Ratings
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- $1.99
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- $1.99
Publisher Description
Choose: a quick death… or slow poison…
Locked deep in the palace dungeon for killing her abuser, Yelena knows she’ll never be free again. The laws in Ixia are strict, and murderers must be executed, no matter the reason. But just as she’s resigned herself to her fate, she’s offered an extraordinary reprieve.
As the food taster, Yelena will eat the best meals, have rooms in the palace — and risk assassination by anyone trying to kill the Commander of Ixia. To make matters worse, the chief of security 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 in order to survive, she must unravel the secrets behind the past she’s been running from.
Previously published.
The Chronicles of Ixia Series by Maria V Snyder
Book One: Poison Study
Book Two: Magic Study
Book Three: Fire Study
Book Four: Storm Glass
Book Five: Sea Glass
Book Six: Spy Glass
Book Seven: Shadow Study
Book Eight: Night Study
Book Nine: Dawn Study
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Shivers, obsession, sleepless nights these are the results not of one of the milder poisons that novice food-taster Yelena must learn during her harrowing job training but of newcomer Snyder's riveting fantasy that unites the intelligent political focus of George R.R. Martin with a subtle yet potent romance. Through a stroke of luck, Yelena escapes execution in exchange for tasting the food of the Commander, ruler of Ixia. Though confined to a dank prison cell and doomed to a painful death, Yelena slowly blooms again, caught up in castle politics. But some people are too impatient to wait for poison to finish off Yelena. With the help of Valek, her steely-nerved, cool-eyed boss and the Commander's head of security, she soon discovers that she has a starring role to play in Ixia's future a role that could lead to her being put to death as a budding magician even if she hits each cue perfectly. The first in a series, this is one of those rare books that will keep readers dreaming long after they've read it.
Customer Reviews
I loved it
When my friend requested this I was like ok but now I’m hooked I finished magic study and I’m reading fire study I would recommend
Yes! Yes! Wait, no.
It was really, really good!—until it wasn’t. There was so much to this story that was truly amazing. Some “story trails” didn’t make a whole lot of sense, but I figured they’d tie in at the end. Everything was paced SO well! I was so invested in the slow burn of Yelena/Valek.
And then we hit the last 50-odd pages and suddenly everything felt RUSHED. Literally my thought process became “... did Snyder run out of time writing this?” The dialogue died and everything became summary and narration. Even the “death sentence” at the end didn’t seem believable in terms of what happened between Yelena + Ambrose in the “dream” where she had JUST forged a blood oath with him.
And then Valek got so cheesy at the end. And part of me’s like “YAAAS” but most of me is like “that doesn’t sound like Valek”.
All in all, I really loved this book until the last 2-3 chapters. Now I’m just disappointed/: