Poison by Bridget Zinn
3.5/5 stars
Hyperion, 2013
276 pages
YA Fantasy Humor
Source: Received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Everything about this book seemed like something I'd love: publisher I associate with humorous books; a poisoner; a sweet pig; a kickass heroine. So I entered this novel with pretty high expectations. I fully anticipated loving this book unreservedly. While for the most part I had fun, I found myself wanting something extra to take it to the next level.
Kyra is a young but incredibly talented potion master who, on a quest to save her kingdom, attempted to assassinate the princess, who was also her best friend. Now on the run, Kyra must use her wits to unravel a tangled plot along with the aid of a sweet pig and the bumbling but oh so charming Fred.
Upon reflection, probably the biggest element for concern for me was that although this has been marketed as a YA novel (from what I can discern), it felt younger, falling in-between middle-grade and YA. The characters were a bit old and had some more adult concerns (like marriage) for MG but the danger and intensity I tend to associate with YA was most definitely lacking. I also felt like some challenges were oh-so-conveniently handled when more struggle would have given Kyra more depth.
Saying that, I did really have fun reading this especially once the SPOILER (see below) was disclosed. Everything after that part was a delight. I really liked Kyra who is very determined and smart. She's a fast thinker and although she gets in some ridiculous situations, she is able to quickly formulate a plan to get herself out of that trouble. I also must cite the pig, Rosie, just for being adorable. The romance (because of course there is) is very clean and cute.
Overall: I consider this very fairy-tale-esque in the best way and I think there will be a lot of fans of it.
Other Opinions:
In which Ems reviews books
Jen Ryland/YA Romantics
Supernatural Snark
SPOILER DISCUSSION
This made so much sense once it was revealed but it wasn't something I had figured out on my own: that Kyra was the cousin to Arianna and thus the daughter of the scary Duchess. This twist made me so happy and love their relationship even more. Everything that followed that revelation was great to me-it just took a while to get there.
