Poppy:Awake

The Deadly Flower #2

by Riana Lucas

In the second book of The Deadly Flower Series, Poppy:Awake, Poppy has a feeling that there is something important she needs to do, but she just cannot remember what it is. After being nearly killed at the hands of Holly, Poppy slowly regains consciousness as a prisoner of the Seelie Court. At least that’s what Poppy believes at first. She cannot help but to wonder why she is being treated so well. She has a luxurious bedroom instead of a cell in the dungeon and a hand maid by the name of Willow who is assigned only to her. To anyone else this would seem to be a perfect arrangement, but it becomes quite clear that the Queen and the entire Seelie Court has a secret. Unfortunately this is not the only problem. Poppy wakes up every morning from horrible dreams that she just cannot seem to remember. But they leave her with a sense of urgency to see her friends Reed and Rho, who she now believes are in trouble over at the Unseelie Court. Will the Queen let Poppy in on the secrets of her Court? Will she ever be allowed to return home? And will she reunite with Reed and Rho and finally discover what is happening with them?

Genres: Fairies, Young Adult

188 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 21, 2014

About the author

Riana Lucas is actually a duo of writers who are best friends and go by the names Nichole and Angela in the real world. Realizing that gobbling up books like hungry caterpillars and then discussing them for hours at a time wasn't fulfilling enough, the team decided to write their first book together. The Deadly Flowers Series was born out of a kernel of an idea and has grown into a four books series. The two have realized their true calling in life and plan to make a career out of writing books with strong characters who evoke true emotion.

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this second book...it starts off RIGHT where the last one ended and keeps going. Totally made my day. Love that. Plus this book has it's own adventure, secrets, romance, new faces...it's just a total 5 star. Well, if my characters don't get to kissing soon, it may not stay 5 star for long...

Disclaimers and such: I received this book from Riana Lucas, herself! She was brave enough to send me 2 books in this series for me to read and review! So although, I received this book for free in exchange for a review, all thoughts are my own.

You know what I love, more than a good story? I love it when authors pick up RIGHT where they left off. Seriously! It's like pressing "pause" on your favorite movie and then being able to go right back and hit "play".

So now...Poppy wakes up in a comfortable bed with servants who attend to her needs, a new wardrobe, amazing food, etc. She is utterly confused as to why the Seelie Queen would treat her so nicely since she's a prisoner. She also knows that she's forgetting something important, that for some reason she needs to do something, but can't quite remember. As Poppy slowly unravels the secrets she finds herself growing more confused and more worried about Reed, who is in the Unseelie prisons while she's at the Seelie court.

First of all...Reed and Poppy...they need to freaking kiss already. I'm DYING for them to do some lip locking action. I want this...shamelessly.

Second of all, I love a good rescue story...especially if the girl has to rescue the boy. Plus Poppy's made some new "friends" at the Seelie court and has an entourage to help her sneak back into familiar Unseelie territory.

Thirdly, this book had A LOT going on. Secrets, journeys, new friends, a death...it's all packed together in this second book! The ending of this book left me satisfied, but still wanting more.

I really enjoyed the second book of the series! I almost think the first book and this one could be worked together to be combined, but it's a good either way! :) I'm in love with faeries! I think I JUST now realized that.

[Gypsy Madden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I adore this series! Poppy has definitely grown as a character from the first book and lost the cold edge I didn’t really care for from before. The only things I thought felt off were we had the major reveal at the end of the last part when Queen Lily called her ‘daughter’, but then it was like Poppy forgot it in the heat of the moment. And there was that not remembering her dreams which seemed clichéd for showing us them and then wiping them from her brain with morning. The other thing that felt off was for Rho to suddenly do what she did since up till that point, she seemed more interested in gossiping and fashion and that Poppy and Rho never seemed that close (good friend, yes, but their relationship seemed superficial), at least as Poppy told it. I still absolutely adore Reed and Willow is also a wonderful addition to the cast. I even loved the chance to get to know Holly better and look forward to uncovering more of her character in the next installment. And I did love seeing the relationship between Poppy and Reed grow.

I can’t wait for the next installment and immediately put the author on follow so I can be notified when the next part releases. I would recommend this to anyone who loves the grown up fairy stories of Melissa Marr, Julie Kagawa, and even Cassandra Clare. These are not the light carefree fairies of one’s childhood, but the darker nature found in the likes of the Legend of Arthur and works of Shakespeare.

[Melanie Adkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poppy has just been rescued by the Queen of Seelie's healers. They have taken care of her and watched over her closely. Poppy remembers bits and pieces of what happened but not enough to understand why she's here. Her dreams tell her something happened to her friends, Reed and Rho. She isn't sure what happened but she can feel it's dangerous. Poppy can't understand why the Queen is so nice to her. She's a prisoner of the Queen's yet she has a lovely room, Willow, another Fae has been assigned to see to her every need and she's able to come and go at will. Holly, the prisoner Poppy had just before the Queen appeared, had the Queen's favor because her parents died in the human world. Now, Holly can't understand why she's being placed second to Poppy. In time all will be explained to both Holly and Poppy. It's a shock Poppy will have to deal with.


In the second book of The Deadly Flower Series, we learn even more about Poppy and her world. The story is action filled and well written. The characters believable and well defined. I find this series to be an easy read and one you could definitely finish in an evening or a day at the beach. I like that these Fae seem so realistic in some ways. I highly recommend these books.


I found no issues.


I gave this one 5 out of 5 books because it was able to keep going as if the story never stopped.

[Nereid · Rating 5 out of 5]

I devoured this book and finished it in one day. I would have liked to make it last longer but once I started reading I could not put it down. This book starts off where Poppy awakes to find herself in the Seelie Court after being injured in her fight with Holly. She is unsure of why she is being looked after as prisoners in the Unseelie Court would be in chains in the dungeon and she is in a wonderful room being tended by a member of the Fae court. Whilst I could guess some of the plot, there was still enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. I do not want to give anything away but this series is fast becoming one of my favorites.

Some minor editing still needs to be done but that did not detract from the story whatsoever. Then there is that cliff hanger, how could you Riana? I will be anxiously awaiting the next book to see what happens to Poppy and her friends and what plot Damien has in store for them.

[Jamee Pritchard · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book of the Deadly Flowers Series, Poppy Awake, is even better than the first. Author Riana Lucas has really stepped up her game. Her description and storytelling ability are on point, making this book a one-sit read. Poppy continues to evolve, and while a lot of secrets have been exposed, so many more questions need to be answered. Again, Lucas writes an amazing ending to this sequel, leaving me impatient for the next book in the series.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

To compound my sins I read the rest of the series.

It didn't get much better.

[Yianna Yiannacou · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book just fell a little bit too short for me – and I don’t mean in length. I felt like I just wanted to slap Poppy at her inability to realize the truth and what’s right in front of her face. I almost stopped reading because I couldn't handle the fact that she was just so (sorry to say) stupid.

It begins with Poppy waking up badly injured by Holly in the last book and is being healed in the Seelie Court. Poppy is welcomed in the Seelie court and she is a little skeptic at why everyone, including the Queen, is being so nice to her. We all know at this point that the Queen s Poppy’s mother. Every single character as well as the reader knows this. I just wished that Poppy could have realized this. If the Queen had been holding a sign that said, “You are my daughter,” Poppy still wouldn't have figured it out. Anyway, so Poppy has this dream and she knows that she has to go and save Reed and Rho from the Unseelie dungeons since they were kept prisoner and bait for Poppy to come save. I found the unicorn part rather cheesy because I feel that if it was so rare, it wouldn't be kept in a stable. Magnificent beings like that are not kept caged up. And the fact that it wasn't even shackled down or something means that it wasn't kept there against its will. If the author added that it was trapped, helpless and sad, then that would have been a much better scenario (hint hint Riana).

This review could go on forever but I will stop myself. The one part that I liked the most was the burial. That felt like the most realistic part in the book. That's about it. Also, it took me so long to read this book because I had to force myself to read it. The pull just wasn't there. On to the last one now. Wish me luck.

Merged review:

This book just fell a little bit too short for me – and I don’t mean in length. I felt like I just wanted to slap Poppy at her inability to realize the truth and what’s right in front of her face. I almost stopped reading because I couldn't handle the fact that she was just so (sorry to say) stupid.

It begins with Poppy waking up badly injured by Holly in the last book and is being healed in the Seelie Court. Poppy is welcomed in the Seelie court and she is a little skeptic at why everyone, including the Queen, is being so nice to her. We all know at this point that the Queen s Poppy’s mother. Every single character as well as the reader knows this. I just wished that Poppy could have realized this. If the Queen had been holding a sign that said, “You are my daughter,” Poppy still wouldn't have figured it out. Anyway, so Poppy has this dream and she knows that she has to go and save Reed and Rho from the Unseelie dungeons since they were kept prisoner and bait for Poppy to come save. I found the unicorn part rather cheesy because I feel that if it was so rare, it wouldn't be kept in a stable. Magnificent beings like that are not kept caged up. And the fact that it wasn't even shackled down or something means that it wasn't kept there against its will. If the author added that it was trapped, helpless and sad, then that would have been a much better scenario (hint hint Riana).

This review could go on forever but I will stop myself. The one part that I liked the most was the burial. That felt like the most realistic part in the book. That's about it. Also, it took me so long to read this book because I had to force myself to read it. The pull just wasn't there. On to the last one now. Wish me luck.

[Yianna Yiannacou · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book just fell a little bit too short for me – and I don’t mean in length. I felt like I just wanted to slap Poppy at her inability to realize the truth and what’s right in front of her face. I almost stopped reading because I couldn’t handle the fact that she was just so (sorry to say) stupid.

It begins with Poppy waking up badly injured by Holly in the last book and is being healed in the Seelie Court. Poppy is welcomed in the Seelie court and she is a little skeptic at why everyone, including the Queen, is being so nice to her. We all know at this point that the Queen s Poppy’s mother. Every single character as well as the reader knows this. I just wished that Poppy could have realized this. If the Queen had been holding a sign that said, “You are my daughter,” Poppy still wouldn’t have figured it out. Anyway, so Poppy has this dream and she knows that she has to go and save Reed and Rho from the Unseelie dungeons since they were kept prisoner and bait for Poppy to come save. I found the unicorn part rather cheesy because I feel that if it was so rare, it wouldn’t be kept in a stable. Magnificent beings like that are not kept caged up. And the fact that it wasn’t even shackled down or something means that it wasn’t kept there against its will. If the author added that it was trapped, helpless and sad, then that would have been a much better scenario (hint hint Riana).

This review could go on forever but I will stop myself. The one part that I liked the most was the burial. That felt like the most realistic part in the book. That's about it. Also, it took me so long to read this book because I had to force myself to read it. The pull just wasn't there. On to the last one now. Wish me luck.

[Jennifer Henry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it.