Poison Study (Study, #1) in Building a SciFi/Fantasy Library

Jun 20, 2008 Mir rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy

This strong fantasy debut is set in the militarized country of Ixia, where the monarchy has been deposed, magic is outlawed, and a Code details every law and the punishment for any infraction. Yelena has been sentenced to death, but her execution is commuted to a slower fate as the Commander's poison taster, a position which is eventually fatal to whomever holds it (hence the use of condemned criminals). An intelligent and athletic young woman, Yelena strives to learn and find value in her role. This strong fantasy debut is set in the militarized country of Ixia, where the monarchy has been deposed, magic is outlawed, and a Code details every law and the punishment for any infraction. Yelena has been sentenced to death, but her execution is commuted to a slower fate as the Commander's poison taster, a position which is eventually fatal to whomever holds it (hence the use of condemned criminals). An intelligent and athletic young woman, Yelena strives to learn and find value in her role.

To me, the weakest part of the book as a whole was the Commander and surrounding military regime. I didn't understand why people, including Yelena, felt loyalty to this individual and imposed social system. Yes, the new system had some positives (more merit-based promotion, for instance) but also many negatives -- just like the previous monarchy. I didn't get why it was okay that they killed all the upper class and all the people with magical talents. They talk about how the magic users were evil and corrupt, but the ones in the book are sometimes good and sometimes bad, just like ordinary people. I don't see how protecting the populace from them would justify the murders and torture that are carried out by the characters. Here is an example: the king's baker was a friend of the royal family and refused to work for the usurper. So the Commander killed his mother and crippled him so he couldn't run away. And then when he "betrays" the Commander it is a surprise! Yelena is shocked and horrified! Why? Why is she loyal to a regime under which she was essentially a slave all her life? I just didn't get this aspect of the story. Maybe the Commander is like Hitler and has some sort of magnetism that causes people to become blind followers. A more experienced writer might have done this deliberately to set up some sort of ambiguous, sympathetic anti-hero issues, a la Patricia Highsmith et al, but if that was the intention I don't think it was sufficiently thought out.

Still, an entertaining light read if one doesn't think too hard about it. ...more

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Mar 08, 2009 Lorena rated it it was ok

Shelves: fantasy

More of a 2.5 star book, really. I expected to like this one more than I did. It's a good premise for a story and it was reasonably entertaining, but the writing felt a little flat to me. I'll finish out the series at my library because I am interested enough to find out what happens to the characters, but it's not going to be a favorite series. ...more

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Jan 28, 2010 Terri rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy

Yelena was sentenced to death for murder. Right before her execution, she was given the choice of serving as teh Commander's food taster instead. A job she took. One that was to change her life in many ways. Yelena is a very interesting and strong character who has ruthless enemies and makes strong friends. I look forward to her continued adventures in the next book in the series ...more

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Jun 17, 2007 Kimberly rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I was a little nervous about this book, since it came from Harlequin's Luna imprint (n.b. it has switched over to the Mira imprint for the mass market edition). But it's really fun! The story is fast-paced, the heroine is scrappy and determined. Who knew that food tasting was so complex? ...more

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Sep 10, 2007 Schnaucl rated it really liked it

Shelves: fiction, read_2007, owned, series, fantasy, september

This was a fun fantasy book. More enjoyable than the other books I've read under the Luna imprint. The intrigue was well done and I enjoyed the political set up. ...more

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Aug 14, 2010 Jennifer Provost rated it really liked it

I really, really wanted to like this book. I wanted it so badly, I wouldn't admit to myself how much I didn't like it until well past the halfway mark. The plot is good - convicted to hang as a murderer, Yelena is offered a choice: hang as scheduled, or become the Commander's food taster. Yelena chooses life, and is drawn into the Commander's web of intrigue.

Sounds awesome, right? Unique concept, plucky heroine, the suspense of never knowing if her next bite will be her last. Well, it was anyt ...more

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Nov 24, 2014 Tani rated it liked it

Shelves: female-author, fantasy, youngadult, 2014

I think my expectations were a little too high for this one, because I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I'd been expecting to. :( ...more

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May 01, 2009 katayoun Masoodi rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, don-t-own

writing a couple of lines so to explain the three stars, it's definitely three stars because i liked it and i would definitely would be reading the other two. it was an entertaining and fun read, just not "wow" (for four stars) or the perfect five stars! and i would recommend it to anybody just would add that if you were not to read you wouldn't be missing out anything though if you were to read it you'd have some enjoyable hours (except the really bad and funny love paragraph, but then thankful ...more

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Jan 06, 2009 Flitterkit rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

So good!

I very much enjoyed this story and had trouble putting it down. Good, decently rounded characters for a YA. People you were interested in what happened to them.
Can't wait to read the rest of the series. ...more

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