Poison Study (Study, #1) in Shut Up & Read

Jan 01, 2013 Elise rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

This is one of my favorite books. The plot was original and fun. The characters were deep and mysterious. The author did an incredible job creating this world and the rules and intricacies of it. I loved how this book started. Yelena is trapped in a dungeon waiting for her execution because in Maria's world the penalty for killing another human being whether in self defense, by accident, or murder you get executed. Yelena had killed Read son of General Brazell to save the other children from her ...more

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Jul 23, 2018 Carrie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mgr, young-adult, fantasy, own, heroine-i-adore, assassin

So why did it take me this long to read this book??? I have had it for ages in my cubes.

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Aug 26, 2008 Laura rated it it was amazing

Amazing...if you haven't read this yet, go read it NOW! ...more

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Dec 08, 2011 Sarah-Jayne Briggs rated it it was amazing

So, I have a tendency to look for cheap books, so I don't possibly end up wasting money on a book I really don't like. Near where I live is a second-hand bookshop and that's where I found Poison Study.

The copy I found was creased, which is probably what drew my attention to it. I tend to wait for books to 'jump' out at me and that's what happened with this one. It was cheap - and right from the first page, I was hooked.

I immediately identified with Yelena and she was a good character to have as ...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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Oct 18, 2012 Sunny rated it really liked it

I can understand the hype. Fantastic characters, strong relationships, introduction of magic. Looking forward to the next book.

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Dec 20, 2020 Marla rated it really liked it

Shelves: paranormal, mystery, young-adult, zz-2020, girl-power, magic, award-winner, adventure, with-reservations, adult

. This book got mixed reviews from my GoodReads friends, but I was totally a fan. It bogged down a bit when Yelena's learning and training, but I enjoyed her making friends and it takes lots of hard work to learn self-defense. Also her poison training was interesting, but I would much rather do a lab test than a taste test.

I am "an eye for an eye" kind of girl and I struggle with forgiveness and divine justice. So I didn't agree with executing anyone who took a life, even if it was an accident o ...more

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Feb 18, 2012 Sasha rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Poison Study was a book that completely enthralled me in its uniqueness. The premise was absolutely intriguing: the idea of a woman being saved from certain death by execution. The catch? She has to serve as a poison taste-tester for the Commander of her country, a job that puts her life in danger on a daily basis. Furthermore, to prevent her from reneging on her deal, each day she is fed a poison called Butterfly’s Dust, ensuring that she must appear for her antidote in order to live.

Like most Poison Study was a book that completely enthralled me in its uniqueness. The premise was absolutely intriguing: the idea of a woman being saved from certain death by execution. The catch? She has to serve as a poison taste-tester for the Commander of her country, a job that puts her life in danger on a daily basis. Furthermore, to prevent her from reneging on her deal, each day she is fed a poison called Butterfly’s Dust, ensuring that she must appear for her antidote in order to live.

Like most female protagonists of a fantasy series, Yelena is no ordinary girl. Her resilience and quick thinking on her feet is not the only thing that gets her out of several life-or-death situations; it is also the fact that she is unknowingly one of the last possessors of magic in Ixia, a place which forbids the use of any magical abilities on punishment of death. I really liked this element of the story, especially the fact that the neighboring country to Ixia is a magic-using country, which causes all kinds of problems politically. Another thing I really appreciated about Yelena as a character was that she didn’t stand by and let others do the fighting for her. Once she was freed from prison, she began learning how to defend herself from those who wanted to harm her. She took charge of her situation as best she could and that, combined with her intelligence, ended up saving not only her life on several occasions but also the lives of her countrymen. You know me; I love my strong female characters! Yelena is no exception, and that made this book all the more enjoyable to read.

Snyder’s prose is simplistic and to-the-point. There is no need for flowery speech or eloquence, and for some reason that makes the story better, somehow. It proves that you don’t have to be longwinded in order to construct a wonderfully dynamic set of characters and a detailed world with your words. The world of Ixia isn’t as fully developed as I would have liked to read about, but by paying attention to the details you read about, you could pick up enough to discover a world with lots of potential to be explored. I hope that Ixia and the surrounding countries are delved into more deeply in future books.

The dynamic between Yelena and her somewhat captor, sometimes champion Valek is an interesting one. The battle of wills between the two of them is white-hot, and the respect between them is what drives their chemistry, which they try and fail to deny by the end of the book. The other characters are equally interesting to read about, such as Yelena’s guard friends Ari and Jenko, or the mysterious mage Irys, who attempts to teach Yelena about her abilities. I hope to see more of them in future books.

Poison Study was a quick, fun read that kept me eagerly turning the pages. You can read this book in one sitting, and it contains all the elements necessary for a good read: action, romance, a strong heroine, a compelling love interest, and a rich world in which the plot takes place. Snyder has created something quite special here, and I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

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For more book reviews, visit my blog The Bookshelf! ...more

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Nov 24, 2014 Tani rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, youngadult, female-author, 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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Nov 29, 2010 Cheer Papworth rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ya, top-5-of-2011

I REALLY enjoyed this book and rushed to read the second one...still waiting for the third to come in from the library. Hidden magic gifts, intrigue, romance, lots of action and great characters...truly a fun book! Although Snyder is not super descriptive and flowery, her story-telling is unique and really keeps the reader intrigued. This is the kind of book that Twilight and Hunger Games fans would enjoy.

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Mar 16, 2009 Angie Taylor rated it liked it

This was a really fun book, and I am excited to read the next two in the series. It isn't the best written book ever, and some of the details with resolving problems and relationships were rushed, especially at the end, but it is still a fun read. ...more

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