[A quick note: how gorgeous is this cover? I’m swooning. This came in my Owlcrate July box. I’ve heard great things about this author and haven’t yet had a chance to read Cinderella’s Dead. But I adore books with plants/plant magic so I was keen to dive straight into this.]
“𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐤 𝐮𝐩 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐮𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐲 𝐚 𝐟𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐛𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝.”—Kalynn Bayron
Bri’s mere presence makes plants come alive, makes them rip themselves from the earth just to be close to her. An ancient magic lives in her, one she knows little about. But that changes when the death of a long lost biological relative leaves her with a mysterious estate in upstate New York. Laced with plant magic, gothic vibes, and Greek mythology, this riveting read was easy to fall into and hard to put down.
There was so much to love about this book beyond its diverse cast and snarky-snark. The gothic estate vibes with hidden doors and a poison garden captured me from the start. But it was the backbone of Greek mythology pertaining to Hecate and Medea that really excited me. The plot was woven seamlessly and held together by a young woman with plant magic and an incredible ability to work with poison plants. Behind everything lurked a dangerous plot and deep betrayal to steal her family’s greatest secret: a poison plant capable of creating the elixir of life.
I loved the characters. Even the ones that turned out “bad” in the end were relatable. Bri was a strong female protagonist struggling to fit in in a world where her affinity for plants forced her to keep secrets and shy away from friends. When she inherits an old family estate, the time for secrets is over. What ensues is a dangerous quest for answers buried in a long lost family legacy. She transforms from a scared, hesitant bystander to a strong author of her own fate. I loved her arc.
“𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮. 𝐈𝐭’𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐞. 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐭 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐈’𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐨?”—Kalynn Bayron
My favorite characters might have been her parents because of how loving and supportive they were. Especially Mo with her burnt waffles and horrid breakfast skills. There were so many comical moments. The dialogue felt so real and natural. Everything flowed seamlessly.
This book ends on a bit of a cliff hanger that has me craving the second. I will be eagerly awaiting its release. I can’t wait to see how much more Bri grows into her abilities, and how much more she learns about her family legacy. 𝐌𝐘 𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆: 𝟒.𝟓/𝟓⭐️
“𝐂𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐚𝐲. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐢𝐱𝐢𝐧’ 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧’ 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧’. 𝐆𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐚 𝐝𝐨 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭. 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝?”—Kalynn Bayron