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A Beautiful Poison
Just beyond the Gilded Age, in the mist-covered streets of New York, the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note.
Desperate for answers and dreading her own engagement to a wealthy gentleman, Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help. The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails.
As more of their friends and family die, alliances shift, lives become entangled, and the three begin to suspect everyone—even each other. As they race to find the culprit, Allene, Birdie, and Jasper must once again trust each other, before one of them becomes the next victim.
Desperate for answers and dreading her own engagement to a wealthy gentleman, Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help. The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails.
As more of their friends and family die, alliances shift, lives become entangled, and the three begin to suspect everyone—even each other. As they race to find the culprit, Allene, Birdie, and Jasper must once again trust each other, before one of them becomes the next victim.
350 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2017
7527 people are currently reading
14739 people want to read
About the author
Lydia Kang
23 books2,372 followersI love salt more than chocolate. I'm somewhat small, yet deceptively strong. Sort of like an ant.
I'm a part time doc, full time family member, and if you offer me snacks, I'll be a friend for life.
My adult fiction centers around historical mysteries in New York City, with splashes of forensics, anatomy, apothecary medicine, and chemistry! A BEAUTIFUL POISON takes place in 1918 at the height of the influenza epidemic; THE IMPOSSIBLE GIRL centers around the illegal grave robbing world; and forthcoming in July 2020 is OPIUM AND ABSINTHE, with--you guessed it--opium and absinthe. And possibly vampires!
I have three nonfiction adult titles written with Nate Pederson: QUACKERY: A Short History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything, 2017; PATIENT ZERO: A Curious History of the World's Worst Diseases; and PSEUDOSCIENCE: An Amusing History of Crackpot Ideas and Why We Love Them.
My most recent YA novel is releasing in October 2025, entitled K-Jane (Quill Tree Books) about a Korean American girl who doesn't feel Korean enough and decides to educate herself on all things K-Pop, K-food, K-drama, and things get pretty out of hand! I am also the author of TOXIC, a space opera about a created, teen girl who's abandoned on a biological spaceship, and the mercenary boy doomed to die on it. I've also written THE NOVEMBER GIRL, set on a remote island on Lake Superior. A girl with violence running through her veins meets a boy running away from an abusive home life.
I'm also the author of the Star Wars novel CATACLYSM, which is part of The High Republic series of books that take place several hundred years before the movies begin.
And as always, there are more books to come!
I'm a part time doc, full time family member, and if you offer me snacks, I'll be a friend for life.
My adult fiction centers around historical mysteries in New York City, with splashes of forensics, anatomy, apothecary medicine, and chemistry! A BEAUTIFUL POISON takes place in 1918 at the height of the influenza epidemic; THE IMPOSSIBLE GIRL centers around the illegal grave robbing world; and forthcoming in July 2020 is OPIUM AND ABSINTHE, with--you guessed it--opium and absinthe. And possibly vampires!
I have three nonfiction adult titles written with Nate Pederson: QUACKERY: A Short History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything, 2017; PATIENT ZERO: A Curious History of the World's Worst Diseases; and PSEUDOSCIENCE: An Amusing History of Crackpot Ideas and Why We Love Them.
My most recent YA novel is releasing in October 2025, entitled K-Jane (Quill Tree Books) about a Korean American girl who doesn't feel Korean enough and decides to educate herself on all things K-Pop, K-food, K-drama, and things get pretty out of hand! I am also the author of TOXIC, a space opera about a created, teen girl who's abandoned on a biological spaceship, and the mercenary boy doomed to die on it. I've also written THE NOVEMBER GIRL, set on a remote island on Lake Superior. A girl with violence running through her veins meets a boy running away from an abusive home life.
I'm also the author of the Star Wars novel CATACLYSM, which is part of The High Republic series of books that take place several hundred years before the movies begin.
And as always, there are more books to come!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,420 reviews
August 22, 2017
3.5 The Gilded Age, Manhattan 191, the night of Allene's engagement party, and things have taken a horrible turn. A young woman is found dead, at the bottom of the stairs, a woman many did not like. Was it an accident as it appears on murder? The police think accident, a decision aided by Allene's father, who wants only to avoid a scandal.
When they were younger Jasper, Birdie and Allene had been inseparable, great friends who shared in all kinds of adventures. Now at eighteen things are very different, their lives taking different paths. They will however, join together to solve this mystery, convinced there is poison involved in the death. Allene has a fierce love of chemistry, Birdie working at a radium dial painting factory (this is years before it was known just how dangers this was) and Jasper is working in the mortuary.
I enjoyed the tone of this novel, reminded me a little of a Nancy Drew story for grownups, this was both fun and serious at the same time. The horrible deaths from influenza also plays an important part as more bodies are found, each close to one of the three friends. Thought the author did a very good job combining real history with made up events. Secrets, well yes there are always secrets, are exposed, things you don't expect happen, and all in all I found this a very entertaining read.
ARC from Netgalley.
When they were younger Jasper, Birdie and Allene had been inseparable, great friends who shared in all kinds of adventures. Now at eighteen things are very different, their lives taking different paths. They will however, join together to solve this mystery, convinced there is poison involved in the death. Allene has a fierce love of chemistry, Birdie working at a radium dial painting factory (this is years before it was known just how dangers this was) and Jasper is working in the mortuary.
I enjoyed the tone of this novel, reminded me a little of a Nancy Drew story for grownups, this was both fun and serious at the same time. The horrible deaths from influenza also plays an important part as more bodies are found, each close to one of the three friends. Thought the author did a very good job combining real history with made up events. Secrets, well yes there are always secrets, are exposed, things you don't expect happen, and all in all I found this a very entertaining read.
ARC from Netgalley.
August 15, 2017
Lies come so easily whether you are rich or you are poor. Not even a penny for your thoughts. But, eventually, you may pay with your life......
Manhattan seems to dazzle at the elegant Cutter mansion here in 1918. Allene Cutter and her fiance, Andrew Smythe Biddle, are celebrating their engagement in New York style. Long time friends Birdie Dreyer, Jasper Jones, and Ernie Fielding surround the young couple and champagne glasses are held high. But the laughter is quickly drowned out by a tumble and a crash as debutant, Florence Waxworth, is found dead at the bottom of the winding staircase. Her shattered glass will resemble the broken lives yet to come.
The ugly head of scandal can never rear up at the Cutter residence. A palmed hand containing a bit of green passes from Mr. Cutter to the officer in charge. His idea is to make all of this go away. Mr. Cutter never realizes that this is just the beginning of the body tally.
Lydia Kang presents a story lined with layers of forensic medicine, chemistry components, and the budding science of pathology. Jasper Jones works at Belleview as a custodian even though he has completed two years of college. It is his desire to attend medical school eventually. The family fortune has been lost and money is beyond tight. Dr. Gettler, chief forensics chemist, takes him under his wing and Jasper will have access to the morgue. Jasper's suspicion grows as bodies spin through with telltale signs of poisoning. Who and why?
Kang sets a panoramic stage with headline grabbing events of the time period. The Spanish flu surfaces on American shores with the young being taken at an outrageous rate. Young men must register for the draft as World War I overshadows lives. Death can tap you on the shoulder no matter the social status.
Surely the bloodhounds out there may figure this one out early on. There appears to be a few holes here and there out on the dance floor. Given that, this turns out to be a fun romp with jazzy dialogue and characters who have traded in their dance cards several times over. Kang leans in and makes you change your dance partner just when you think you know. A clever read, indeed.
I received a copy of A Beautiful Poison through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to Lydia Kang for the opportunity.
Manhattan seems to dazzle at the elegant Cutter mansion here in 1918. Allene Cutter and her fiance, Andrew Smythe Biddle, are celebrating their engagement in New York style. Long time friends Birdie Dreyer, Jasper Jones, and Ernie Fielding surround the young couple and champagne glasses are held high. But the laughter is quickly drowned out by a tumble and a crash as debutant, Florence Waxworth, is found dead at the bottom of the winding staircase. Her shattered glass will resemble the broken lives yet to come.
The ugly head of scandal can never rear up at the Cutter residence. A palmed hand containing a bit of green passes from Mr. Cutter to the officer in charge. His idea is to make all of this go away. Mr. Cutter never realizes that this is just the beginning of the body tally.
Lydia Kang presents a story lined with layers of forensic medicine, chemistry components, and the budding science of pathology. Jasper Jones works at Belleview as a custodian even though he has completed two years of college. It is his desire to attend medical school eventually. The family fortune has been lost and money is beyond tight. Dr. Gettler, chief forensics chemist, takes him under his wing and Jasper will have access to the morgue. Jasper's suspicion grows as bodies spin through with telltale signs of poisoning. Who and why?
Kang sets a panoramic stage with headline grabbing events of the time period. The Spanish flu surfaces on American shores with the young being taken at an outrageous rate. Young men must register for the draft as World War I overshadows lives. Death can tap you on the shoulder no matter the social status.
Surely the bloodhounds out there may figure this one out early on. There appears to be a few holes here and there out on the dance floor. Given that, this turns out to be a fun romp with jazzy dialogue and characters who have traded in their dance cards several times over. Kang leans in and makes you change your dance partner just when you think you know. A clever read, indeed.
I received a copy of A Beautiful Poison through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to Lydia Kang for the opportunity.
April 15, 2021
This was a mystery suspense Historical fiction novel set in 1918 it involves Allene Cutter & her friends Jasper Jones, Ernie, Birdie & Andrew Biddle Allena's fiancé. Florence Wadworth was found at the bottom of the stairs dead Allene thought she had fallen but after the coroner Dr Norris had done his autopsy he found out it was Murder.
Allene, Jasper Ernie, Birdie & Andrew were horrified, you see Allene was a socialite who lived in the Cutter Mansion & these sort of things don't happen. So When another of their friends Allenes mother dies in strange circumstances they all think she was poisoned but why?
At the time the Spanish influenza is raving New York people are dying left, right, & centre , there are lies deceit & secrets going on in this book that keep you invested in the prose, Birdie goes down with an illness Allene is horrified as she has taken Bidie under her wing she broke her leg & her bones are very frail, Allene has a hold on her ut Birdie is keeping a secret she didn't want exposed!
This was my first read by Lydia Kang & it will not be my last the author has one big twist that i didn't see coming i loved reading about the Spanish influenza was very detailed & well researched so if you like characters who you think you know but don't this book is for you.
Allene, Jasper Ernie, Birdie & Andrew were horrified, you see Allene was a socialite who lived in the Cutter Mansion & these sort of things don't happen. So When another of their friends Allenes mother dies in strange circumstances they all think she was poisoned but why?
At the time the Spanish influenza is raving New York people are dying left, right, & centre , there are lies deceit & secrets going on in this book that keep you invested in the prose, Birdie goes down with an illness Allene is horrified as she has taken Bidie under her wing she broke her leg & her bones are very frail, Allene has a hold on her ut Birdie is keeping a secret she didn't want exposed!
This was my first read by Lydia Kang & it will not be my last the author has one big twist that i didn't see coming i loved reading about the Spanish influenza was very detailed & well researched so if you like characters who you think you know but don't this book is for you.
July 8, 2020
This is a beautifully written book that makes no sense. I'm not quite sure how to rate it. I really enjoyed my first read-through. I liked the author's writing style and found her imagery very lovely. The story takes place in an interesting era, and as a historical fiction, I think it's quite an enjoyable read. And when I got to the twist at the end, my first reaction was positive. It was interesting and dramatic and not an outcome I had been anticipating. So then I reread the whole book (it's a pretty quick read). And the reason I hadn't anticipated the twist was because it really does not make sense with the way the story is told.
SPOILERS (I won't give character names, but you could probably narrow it down significantly from the rest of this review.)
I don't think we can blame an unreliable narrator here. The story is not told in first-person; it's a third-person limited that shifts to the thoughts of different characters with each chapter. There are times when the author tells us something about the private thoughts of a character (not the character's direct words), that just don't make sense if you know who's behind it all and what their overall plan is. On several occasions, the author describes the thoughts and emotions of the murderer reacting to the events unfolding around them that make no sense if you know that character is behind it all. If the story were told from just one character's perspective, it would be more believable, but we actually get a lot of insight into the murderer's private thoughts and feelings, and there were moments that contradicted the eventual twist. It's not one character lying to another; it's the author lying to the reader. The motivations for one or two of the murders in particular are also rather thin, in my opinion. I just didn't buy the character's supposed reasons. There were a few inconsistencies that I think you could probably think up a way to explain away, but I'd rather the author provided better explanations in the first place. My second read-through was very disappointing, because I was hoping to find some little hints woven into the story, but they just weren't there. The twist essentially just rewrites the story.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but the plot fell apart pretty quickly once I starting really thinking about it.
SPOILERS (I won't give character names, but you could probably narrow it down significantly from the rest of this review.)
I don't think we can blame an unreliable narrator here. The story is not told in first-person; it's a third-person limited that shifts to the thoughts of different characters with each chapter. There are times when the author tells us something about the private thoughts of a character (not the character's direct words), that just don't make sense if you know who's behind it all and what their overall plan is. On several occasions, the author describes the thoughts and emotions of the murderer reacting to the events unfolding around them that make no sense if you know that character is behind it all. If the story were told from just one character's perspective, it would be more believable, but we actually get a lot of insight into the murderer's private thoughts and feelings, and there were moments that contradicted the eventual twist. It's not one character lying to another; it's the author lying to the reader. The motivations for one or two of the murders in particular are also rather thin, in my opinion. I just didn't buy the character's supposed reasons. There were a few inconsistencies that I think you could probably think up a way to explain away, but I'd rather the author provided better explanations in the first place. My second read-through was very disappointing, because I was hoping to find some little hints woven into the story, but they just weren't there. The twist essentially just rewrites the story.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but the plot fell apart pretty quickly once I starting really thinking about it.
August 24, 2017
All the poisons!
This was interesting. I felt the book wasn't quite sure what it wanted to be- a mystery? A convoluted love story? A story of friendship?
I did not find the main trio of characters likeable- a trio once friends in childhood and reunited at an engagement party. There follow a string of deaths which unite the three in trying to solve the murders. I was scared at this point that it was going to turn into an Enid Blyton "three solve a murder", but the story takes a darker turn as we get to see parts of their lives, or where their motivations are revealed.
I loved the historical context of this novel- no wheat, no meat days and liberty gardens to save resources during the wartime effort, the outbreak of Spanish flu, the Bellevue and the beginnings of forensic medicine: not a period of American history I'm too familiar with.
An enjoyable read.
Many thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
This was interesting. I felt the book wasn't quite sure what it wanted to be- a mystery? A convoluted love story? A story of friendship?
I did not find the main trio of characters likeable- a trio once friends in childhood and reunited at an engagement party. There follow a string of deaths which unite the three in trying to solve the murders. I was scared at this point that it was going to turn into an Enid Blyton "three solve a murder", but the story takes a darker turn as we get to see parts of their lives, or where their motivations are revealed.
I loved the historical context of this novel- no wheat, no meat days and liberty gardens to save resources during the wartime effort, the outbreak of Spanish flu, the Bellevue and the beginnings of forensic medicine: not a period of American history I'm too familiar with.
An enjoyable read.
Many thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
July 18, 2017
I do love a good mystery!
Lydia Kang's A Beautiful Poison takes place in 1918. Incorporated into the story are interesting historical elements such as the beginnings of forensic medicine, the 1918 influenza pandemic, and factories employing women to paint dials with radium.
With the first page opening immediately with a murder, this book grabbed my attention right away - and didn't let go. Perfect for mystery/historical fans.
Lydia Kang's A Beautiful Poison takes place in 1918. Incorporated into the story are interesting historical elements such as the beginnings of forensic medicine, the 1918 influenza pandemic, and factories employing women to paint dials with radium.
With the first page opening immediately with a murder, this book grabbed my attention right away - and didn't let go. Perfect for mystery/historical fans.
October 3, 2022
This book ended up redeeming itself a little bit in the end, but all the characters were such complete asshats in the beginning I almost put it down (and I'm a big hater of people who don't like books just because the characters are bad people). For example:
Jasper, a main character, on girls: "Like sticks of chewing gum, their sweetness lasted for only so long before he no longer wanted them."
Allene, the privileged young lady who never has to worry about anything, apparently: "There was something odd about the proportion of men to women. She narrowed her eyes. Oh. So many young men had gone to war, of course."
world war I (!)
Allene part 2: "By the fourth floor, she was panting with exertion. She'd never had to climb more than two flights in her entire life, and not in such conditions."
Allene part 3: "Birdie sighed. She opened her satchel and procured two nickels. That was all she had...She handed one five-cent piece to Allene. "Here Allene. You can get home with this. Jasper, you'll have to walk. I'm taking the subway myself."
"What am I to do with one coin?" Allene demanded. Birdie couldn't answer because the question was so utterly stupid."
I guess the characters kind of go through a redemption arc where they learn to be less shitty people, but the author takes more of a "tell" than "show" approach to this. Some things happen and then in the end they have realizations about how they're better people now. I just couldn't relate to any of the characters because a) they're asshats and b) they're obsessed with the murders that the book is centered around in a bad way. Jasper only cares about them because he can use them to advance his career as a doctor. Allene wants something to entertain her before she's locked away into marriage forever. Birdie is happy because the murders bring them together and being closer to Allene means being closer to winning Allene's favor (and more importantly, her money) to help take care of her sister. none of them feel like real people.
The whole thing is just weird.
Jasper, a main character, on girls: "Like sticks of chewing gum, their sweetness lasted for only so long before he no longer wanted them."
Allene, the privileged young lady who never has to worry about anything, apparently: "There was something odd about the proportion of men to women. She narrowed her eyes. Oh. So many young men had gone to war, of course."
world war I (!)
Allene part 2: "By the fourth floor, she was panting with exertion. She'd never had to climb more than two flights in her entire life, and not in such conditions."
Allene part 3: "Birdie sighed. She opened her satchel and procured two nickels. That was all she had...She handed one five-cent piece to Allene. "Here Allene. You can get home with this. Jasper, you'll have to walk. I'm taking the subway myself."
"What am I to do with one coin?" Allene demanded. Birdie couldn't answer because the question was so utterly stupid."
I guess the characters kind of go through a redemption arc where they learn to be less shitty people, but the author takes more of a "tell" than "show" approach to this. Some things happen and then in the end they have realizations about how they're better people now. I just couldn't relate to any of the characters because a) they're asshats and b) they're obsessed with the murders that the book is centered around in a bad way. Jasper only cares about them because he can use them to advance his career as a doctor. Allene wants something to entertain her before she's locked away into marriage forever. Birdie is happy because the murders bring them together and being closer to Allene means being closer to winning Allene's favor (and more importantly, her money) to help take care of her sister. none of them feel like real people.
The whole thing is just weird.
July 18, 2021
3.5 stars
This was an interesting murder mystery. It is set in New York city during the Gilded Age at the time of the Spanish flu epidemic.
Allene and Andrew are celebrating their engagement with a wonderful party when Florence Waxworth falls down the stairs and is found dead.
Was it an accident or murder?
This was the first of many mysterious deaths. One by one people are dying all around Allene.
Is the deadly flu to blame or is it poison?
This was well written with engaging characters, I just didn't care for the ending.
This was an interesting murder mystery. It is set in New York city during the Gilded Age at the time of the Spanish flu epidemic.
Allene and Andrew are celebrating their engagement with a wonderful party when Florence Waxworth falls down the stairs and is found dead.
Was it an accident or murder?
This was the first of many mysterious deaths. One by one people are dying all around Allene.
Is the deadly flu to blame or is it poison?
This was well written with engaging characters, I just didn't care for the ending.
August 31, 2017
I think that this book was a bit all over the place for me to get a very good handle on. We have a lot of characters whose motivations we are not too sure of throughout the book. I think that Kang was trying for some tension to build about who was the murderer, but it was telegraphed at least to me pretty early about who was doing what. I will say that I was a surprised by the ending. I thought for sure that two of the characters were being set up to run away together, so that was a pleasant surprise.
Taking place during the Spanish Influenza in New York, we have a series of murders that revolves around three childhood friends: Allene, Jasper, and Birdie. At one time Jasper and Birdie were extremely close with Allene. But one day, Allene's parents sent Birdie and her mother away (they were companions to Allene's mother's family for generations) and then Jasper was "not our kind dear" when his family left him in financial ruins. When a member of their circle is poisoned, the three friends band together to find out who murdered this person and why. Pretty soon the body count starts to rise and you are left wondering if these three people really know each other at all.
I didn't have a favorite character to root for while reading this. Kang really does not try to develop any of the characters until almost the very end. Maybe it would have worked if she had given us a prologue to them as children all playing together. Instead we start in the middle of a story and we are left to just get that the three characters are friends and know each other so well.
Also I have to say that Kang doesn't paint any of them very well. When you get to the end and get to the final reveal about a lot of people I ended up feeling very sympathetic to Birdie's mother of all people.
The writing was okay, I just wish that there had been more there, there you know. I just found a lot of the bits about chemistry, cyanide, the Spanish flu to be boring. And that should have been the most interesting part of the story.
The flow wasn't great. We kind of shuffle around to Allene, Jasper, and Birdie and back and forth again and again until the end.
Even though the book takes place during the early 1900s, I didn't get a very good sense of New York during this time period. The author mentions clothes, how the young women behave, etc. But I really didn't get a true sense of the time period which was a shame.
As I already said the ending was a surprise so that was nice.
Taking place during the Spanish Influenza in New York, we have a series of murders that revolves around three childhood friends: Allene, Jasper, and Birdie. At one time Jasper and Birdie were extremely close with Allene. But one day, Allene's parents sent Birdie and her mother away (they were companions to Allene's mother's family for generations) and then Jasper was "not our kind dear" when his family left him in financial ruins. When a member of their circle is poisoned, the three friends band together to find out who murdered this person and why. Pretty soon the body count starts to rise and you are left wondering if these three people really know each other at all.
I didn't have a favorite character to root for while reading this. Kang really does not try to develop any of the characters until almost the very end. Maybe it would have worked if she had given us a prologue to them as children all playing together. Instead we start in the middle of a story and we are left to just get that the three characters are friends and know each other so well.
Also I have to say that Kang doesn't paint any of them very well. When you get to the end and get to the final reveal about a lot of people I ended up feeling very sympathetic to Birdie's mother of all people.
The writing was okay, I just wish that there had been more there, there you know. I just found a lot of the bits about chemistry, cyanide, the Spanish flu to be boring. And that should have been the most interesting part of the story.
The flow wasn't great. We kind of shuffle around to Allene, Jasper, and Birdie and back and forth again and again until the end.
Even though the book takes place during the early 1900s, I didn't get a very good sense of New York during this time period. The author mentions clothes, how the young women behave, etc. But I really didn't get a true sense of the time period which was a shame.
As I already said the ending was a surprise so that was nice.
July 1, 2017
A BEAUTIFUL POISON
My Kindle First pick for July, I normally do not read historical fiction- but the other choices did not interest me at all. This book was interesting and entertaining.
There is an odd trio of friends trying to solve some suspicious deaths of friends and relatives, this is all occurring during the great flu epidemic. The book reflects the time period, where woman were discouraged from scientific pursuits - but Allene forges ahead. The ending was quite surprising. Overall, a very satisfying read.
My Kindle First pick for July, I normally do not read historical fiction- but the other choices did not interest me at all. This book was interesting and entertaining.
There is an odd trio of friends trying to solve some suspicious deaths of friends and relatives, this is all occurring during the great flu epidemic. The book reflects the time period, where woman were discouraged from scientific pursuits - but Allene forges ahead. The ending was quite surprising. Overall, a very satisfying read.
August 18, 2017
I kept waiting for the pace of A Beautiful Poison to slow down and get boring, and it never did oblige me. I have this (unreasonable) (unsubstantiated) expectation that historical fiction = slow and quiet, but this book was NOT that. Mayhap I should rethink my assumptions?
Lydia Kang has plucked from history the perfect setting for a murder mystery: 1918 New York City, during the influenza pandemic. Because what better way to cover up the fact that you’re poisoning a bunch of people than to do it when people are dropping like flies already? Allene, a wealthy socialite, notices that people connected to her and her two childhood friends, Jasper and Birdie, keep turning up dead under mysterious circumstances. They decide to investigate the crimes in hopes of unmasking the killer, but they’re going to unmask a bunch of drama and secrets from their own pasts in the process.
That’s what made this story so appealing to me—the character development when it came to the three main players. Allene is a spoiled, entitled princess who can be remarkably obtuse in the face of her friends’ poverty and desperation. The three friends had a falling out and didn’t speak for several years, and though they’re reunited in the opening scene, the reasons behind their estrangement are murky, though sure to be juicy when finally revealed. Birdie is ethereally beautiful but constantly ill due to her job painting radium onto watch faces. (Knowing what we know now, the scenes of Birdie working away at the factory and putting radioactive paintbrushes in her mouth are cringe-inducing indeed.) And Jasper is the boy in between the two girls—half in love with both of them, it seems, which is a dynamic so tense it’s like a boulder teetering on the edge of a cliff.
Come for the murder mystery, stay for the well-drawn setting and fascinating characters.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
Lydia Kang has plucked from history the perfect setting for a murder mystery: 1918 New York City, during the influenza pandemic. Because what better way to cover up the fact that you’re poisoning a bunch of people than to do it when people are dropping like flies already? Allene, a wealthy socialite, notices that people connected to her and her two childhood friends, Jasper and Birdie, keep turning up dead under mysterious circumstances. They decide to investigate the crimes in hopes of unmasking the killer, but they’re going to unmask a bunch of drama and secrets from their own pasts in the process.
That’s what made this story so appealing to me—the character development when it came to the three main players. Allene is a spoiled, entitled princess who can be remarkably obtuse in the face of her friends’ poverty and desperation. The three friends had a falling out and didn’t speak for several years, and though they’re reunited in the opening scene, the reasons behind their estrangement are murky, though sure to be juicy when finally revealed. Birdie is ethereally beautiful but constantly ill due to her job painting radium onto watch faces. (Knowing what we know now, the scenes of Birdie working away at the factory and putting radioactive paintbrushes in her mouth are cringe-inducing indeed.) And Jasper is the boy in between the two girls—half in love with both of them, it seems, which is a dynamic so tense it’s like a boulder teetering on the edge of a cliff.
Come for the murder mystery, stay for the well-drawn setting and fascinating characters.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
May 11, 2019
Just beyond the Gilded Age, in the mist-covered streets of New York, the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note.
A Beautiful Poison is set during WWI amidst the Spanish Influenza outbreak of 1918. For a good portion of the book I didn't like the three characters that this novel follows, and at one point I almost quit reading, however I stuck it out and I'm really glad I did. In the end, thanks to some growth on their part, I actually came to like a couple of them quite a bit.
It seems to be a rare thing of late for a mystery to keep me guessing so hats off to the author. She kept me guessing throughout most of the book. There finally came a point where things clicked into place and I wondered why I didn't see it sooner. This along with the character growth are the reasons I decided to give this book 4 stars. It's always a good thing when an author can take unsavory characters and turn them into likeable ones in the end.
There were a couple of things in this book that were revealed near the end that my mind had touched on as possibilities but then dismissed, mainly because the author was pretty clever. One thing I did guess from the beginning and I thought was pretty obvious was what was poisoning the character Birdie. There are quite a few different poisons used in this book and it made me wonder which poison the title referred to, or if it wasn't one of those poisons at all, but the poisoning of a life and a mind instead.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
A Beautiful Poison is set during WWI amidst the Spanish Influenza outbreak of 1918. For a good portion of the book I didn't like the three characters that this novel follows, and at one point I almost quit reading, however I stuck it out and I'm really glad I did. In the end, thanks to some growth on their part, I actually came to like a couple of them quite a bit.
It seems to be a rare thing of late for a mystery to keep me guessing so hats off to the author. She kept me guessing throughout most of the book. There finally came a point where things clicked into place and I wondered why I didn't see it sooner. This along with the character growth are the reasons I decided to give this book 4 stars. It's always a good thing when an author can take unsavory characters and turn them into likeable ones in the end.
There were a couple of things in this book that were revealed near the end that my mind had touched on as possibilities but then dismissed, mainly because the author was pretty clever. One thing I did guess from the beginning and I thought was pretty obvious was what was poisoning the character Birdie. There are quite a few different poisons used in this book and it made me wonder which poison the title referred to, or if it wasn't one of those poisons at all, but the poisoning of a life and a mind instead.
Review also posted at Writings of a Reader
August 23, 2017
I'm rounding this book up from a 3.5 star rating to a 4 because it's definitely better than my standard 3 star rating but not quite a 4.
Overall, I did really enjoy this book. I felt like it was more than the routine mass market murder mystery and I definitely was kept in suspense and didn't guess the murderer at all. In fact, I probably suspected every other character but I'm not giving anything away!
Also, I liked how although the story is focused around these murders there is more going on within the lives of each of the characters. The reader is exposed to more information of their lives as well as what has happened in the past. It added to the story and kept it more entertaining to know more background information.
A positive aspect about this novel that I appreciated is that you could definitely tell that this book was written by someone in the medical profession with a scientific background. For me, that added an extra element to the story that I'm not used to because although it's fiction it appeared well researched and that the author knew what she was writing about.
I definitely would recommend this one to those who love mysteries, especially murder mysteries. I'm interested to know how many people guessed the murderer correctly as well as some of the major surprises that were revealed in the end.
**Thank you to the publisher for supplying me with a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**
Overall, I did really enjoy this book. I felt like it was more than the routine mass market murder mystery and I definitely was kept in suspense and didn't guess the murderer at all. In fact, I probably suspected every other character but I'm not giving anything away!
Also, I liked how although the story is focused around these murders there is more going on within the lives of each of the characters. The reader is exposed to more information of their lives as well as what has happened in the past. It added to the story and kept it more entertaining to know more background information.
A positive aspect about this novel that I appreciated is that you could definitely tell that this book was written by someone in the medical profession with a scientific background. For me, that added an extra element to the story that I'm not used to because although it's fiction it appeared well researched and that the author knew what she was writing about.
I definitely would recommend this one to those who love mysteries, especially murder mysteries. I'm interested to know how many people guessed the murderer correctly as well as some of the major surprises that were revealed in the end.
**Thank you to the publisher for supplying me with a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**
April 24, 2018
3.5 stars
A murder mystery set in New York during the Gilded Age. When three childhood friends meet again (after several years separation) to celebrate the engagement of one of the friends a dark plot begins to emerge around them. Their loved ones fall victims to poisoning, and each time the deaths are accompanied by a note stating "You're welcome." The three friends take on the position of amateur sleuths to solve the crimes, but as tensions rise can their newly rekindled friendship survive the complex world they find themselves in?
This was an interesting book. I enjoyed the time period it was set in and the characters were okay. It gets 3.5 stars because at times certain aspects of the characters became too cliche and tedious.
A murder mystery set in New York during the Gilded Age. When three childhood friends meet again (after several years separation) to celebrate the engagement of one of the friends a dark plot begins to emerge around them. Their loved ones fall victims to poisoning, and each time the deaths are accompanied by a note stating "You're welcome." The three friends take on the position of amateur sleuths to solve the crimes, but as tensions rise can their newly rekindled friendship survive the complex world they find themselves in?
This was an interesting book. I enjoyed the time period it was set in and the characters were okay. It gets 3.5 stars because at times certain aspects of the characters became too cliche and tedious.
August 20, 2017
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Descriptively well written. I particularly enjoyed the sections on medical pathology, and the historical aspects appeared accurate (although I'm by no means an expert in this field). I liked the descriptions on upper class social life during this time, and the brief insight into the medical history of New York. I would have liked more of this, as the research behind it was obviously done with care and thought.
The overall plot is ok. It's your usual run of the mill murder mystery in a historical setting. While attending the engagement party of Allene, socialite Florence is found dead at the bottom of the stairs. Brushed off as an accident, it soon transpires that she has been murdered. As other incidents occur, three old friends - socialite Allene, future medical student Jasper and the beautiful yet fragile Birdie, must unite to identify who is behind the incident. The plot followed the usual pattern of investigation and slow unravelling of information that leads to the discovery of the culprit, with various (predictable) twists and turns along the way. Holly's past was predictably obvious right from the start. However, it was the ending that really destroyed this for me. The eventual discovery of the murderer and their motives were just so out of character and unrealistic, especially when compared to their behaviour throughout the novel before hand. It was far fetched, and ultimately I felt a little cheated out of a proper ending as it completely changed the tone of the whole novel.
There's also some kind of weird love triangle aspect interspersed throughout the novel. These three supposedly 'good friends' had no chemistry, and I didn't like Allene or Jasper. Jasper comes across as a know it all, with little to no respect or understanding for his friends. He's more interested in dissecting people than spending time with Birdie and Allene. Allene is completely naive, spoilt and self involved, to the point where several times throughout the novel I wanted to shake her. Her supposed love of Jasper felt really forced, and very unrealistic. The kiss that occurs between them half way through the novel fell flat to me and cringy - although not as uncomfortable as the kiss somehow shared between all three characters at the beginning. This whole aspect of the novel just felt weirdly off and I felt that, basically, all the main characters secretly hated each other rather than care about each other. There was no emotional connection at all. This was seemingly confirmed by the fact that both Jasper and Allene seemed to share a complete ignorance to Birdie's predicaments, which feels so out of character in someone who is suppose to be a genuine friend. In the end I didn't care about either of them.
Birdie was by far the most interesting character, however I felt a lot of her problems were skimmed over to make way for other matters in the books - which was a shame, and on conclusion didn't exactly help the novel explain its reasonings behind the killers motives. I would have liked to have read more about the 'radium girls' in the factory, and a social commentary on the lower classes would have been much more interesting than Allene and her 'uptown' house dramas.
Unfortunately I think this could be best described as a beautiful mess.
Descriptively well written. I particularly enjoyed the sections on medical pathology, and the historical aspects appeared accurate (although I'm by no means an expert in this field). I liked the descriptions on upper class social life during this time, and the brief insight into the medical history of New York. I would have liked more of this, as the research behind it was obviously done with care and thought.
The overall plot is ok. It's your usual run of the mill murder mystery in a historical setting. While attending the engagement party of Allene, socialite Florence is found dead at the bottom of the stairs. Brushed off as an accident, it soon transpires that she has been murdered. As other incidents occur, three old friends - socialite Allene, future medical student Jasper and the beautiful yet fragile Birdie, must unite to identify who is behind the incident. The plot followed the usual pattern of investigation and slow unravelling of information that leads to the discovery of the culprit, with various (predictable) twists and turns along the way. Holly's past was predictably obvious right from the start. However, it was the ending that really destroyed this for me. The eventual discovery of the murderer and their motives were just so out of character and unrealistic, especially when compared to their behaviour throughout the novel before hand. It was far fetched, and ultimately I felt a little cheated out of a proper ending as it completely changed the tone of the whole novel.
There's also some kind of weird love triangle aspect interspersed throughout the novel. These three supposedly 'good friends' had no chemistry, and I didn't like Allene or Jasper. Jasper comes across as a know it all, with little to no respect or understanding for his friends. He's more interested in dissecting people than spending time with Birdie and Allene. Allene is completely naive, spoilt and self involved, to the point where several times throughout the novel I wanted to shake her. Her supposed love of Jasper felt really forced, and very unrealistic. The kiss that occurs between them half way through the novel fell flat to me and cringy - although not as uncomfortable as the kiss somehow shared between all three characters at the beginning. This whole aspect of the novel just felt weirdly off and I felt that, basically, all the main characters secretly hated each other rather than care about each other. There was no emotional connection at all. This was seemingly confirmed by the fact that both Jasper and Allene seemed to share a complete ignorance to Birdie's predicaments, which feels so out of character in someone who is suppose to be a genuine friend. In the end I didn't care about either of them.
Birdie was by far the most interesting character, however I felt a lot of her problems were skimmed over to make way for other matters in the books - which was a shame, and on conclusion didn't exactly help the novel explain its reasonings behind the killers motives. I would have liked to have read more about the 'radium girls' in the factory, and a social commentary on the lower classes would have been much more interesting than Allene and her 'uptown' house dramas.
Unfortunately I think this could be best described as a beautiful mess.
Read
June 29, 2018Abandonado al 6% de la lectura. La forma de escribir de la autora me resulto demasiado pretenciosa y los personajes hablaban y pensaban como si estuvieran en el Siglo XXI a pesar de que el libro está ambientado a finales del 1800. Tiene una premisa interesante, pero sólo dos capítulos fueron suficientes para confirmar que esta historia no es para mí.
August 4, 2017
This. Book.
I've just finished it and am really in a bit of awe over it.
The writing was impeccable. A tight plot with just the right amount of red herrings, solid writing, distinct characters with fascinating relationships, and some of the best historical anchoring I've come across in all my years of reading.
There were two things that I had figured out/correctly predicted, but neither of them were related to the core plot of the murder mystery, which left me feeling wholly satisfied with this novel.
As a historical fiction novel, it was set during my favorite period of American history, with a backdrop of setting and place in time that's rich with events that I'm familiar with maybe a bit more than a non-history buff or someone who did not grow up in the New York metropolitan area would be. Ms. Kang chose several bits and pieces, but the book never felt crowded, nor drowned in detail. Everything was done pitch-perfectly, and her author's note at the end was a delight to read.
The novel is told in alternating chapters that follow our three leads: Allene, Birdie, and Jasper. While written in third person each POV still had a distinct flavor, while maintaining the same even voice throughout. I enjoyed all characters equally, which was another joy.
Everyone, do yourself a favor and read this book. You won't regret it.
I've just finished it and am really in a bit of awe over it.
The writing was impeccable. A tight plot with just the right amount of red herrings, solid writing, distinct characters with fascinating relationships, and some of the best historical anchoring I've come across in all my years of reading.
There were two things that I had figured out/correctly predicted, but neither of them were related to the core plot of the murder mystery, which left me feeling wholly satisfied with this novel.
As a historical fiction novel, it was set during my favorite period of American history, with a backdrop of setting and place in time that's rich with events that I'm familiar with maybe a bit more than a non-history buff or someone who did not grow up in the New York metropolitan area would be. Ms. Kang chose several bits and pieces, but the book never felt crowded, nor drowned in detail. Everything was done pitch-perfectly, and her author's note at the end was a delight to read.
The novel is told in alternating chapters that follow our three leads: Allene, Birdie, and Jasper. While written in third person each POV still had a distinct flavor, while maintaining the same even voice throughout. I enjoyed all characters equally, which was another joy.
Everyone, do yourself a favor and read this book. You won't regret it.
May 9, 2019
It was an okay story, unfortunately I didn´t really get into it and was tempted to save myself some time and just jump ahead. The pace picked up at the end though, there were quite a few plot twists that I hadn´t expected and the book ended on a positive note for me.
As for the audio, I quite enjoyed the narrator`s voice and her interpretation of the characters.
As for the audio, I quite enjoyed the narrator`s voice and her interpretation of the characters.
August 26, 2017
Mini Review: A well plotted murder mystery set in the underutilized time period of the Gilded Age, the first book I've read from that period. While I thought the writing was pretty good and the mystery intriguing, so much of this book revolves around a love triangle. The characters obsess over each other constantly, but they also seemed so bitter towards each other. If a historical murder mystery sounds interesting to you and you're okay with love triangles, I do think this book has a lot to offer.
ARC provided by Netgalley
"It always came back to the three of them. Together, the girls gave him direction, like the triangular point of an arrow telling him where to be." A bit on the nose...
ARC provided by Netgalley
August 28, 2017
This book was okay, but it really lacked a kind of coherence and consistency. The main characters didn't seem to know who they were or what their relationships were. Either the different aspects of their personalities were never presented as coexisting and making up a single person's personality in a believable way or the author never had a good sense of who the characters really were. In this way, the different behaviors of the characters comes off more as schizophrenic than well-developed. They really seemed all over the place. The investigation plot at many times seemed secondary, and their motivation for beginning to investigate the first murder themselves seemed weak. The setting and historical aspects of the book were the most interesting parts.
I've re-read the blurb for this book, and I must say that I find it inaccurate. "the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note." Nope. The flu does not appear in the book until much later. Very mild, vague spoiler: And the friends, together at the beginning of the story, decide to investigate right away, after the first death, and even before the mysterious note is found.
"Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help." Her passion for scientific discovery seems weak, or at least it doesn't seem to fit well with the rest of her. The book keeps telling us she loves chemistry but doesn't do a good job of *showing* it, which makes it less believable. (I may be biased, because one of my favorite series features a young girl who is truly enamored of chemistry: The Flavia de Luce books. Now THAT shows someone with a passion for chemistry and scientific discovery.)
"The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails." The feelings between Allene and Jasper, and Jasper and anyone else, are very inconsistent and confusing. Birdie's description seems accurate.
To be honest, the blurb sounds more interesting and cohesive than the actual book. This quote from the book is a good description of itself: “It’s like there are two loose ends on a story that barely makes sense."
I've re-read the blurb for this book, and I must say that I find it inaccurate. "the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned—and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note." Nope. The flu does not appear in the book until much later. Very mild, vague spoiler: And the friends, together at the beginning of the story, decide to investigate right away, after the first death, and even before the mysterious note is found.
"Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help." Her passion for scientific discovery seems weak, or at least it doesn't seem to fit well with the rest of her. The book keeps telling us she loves chemistry but doesn't do a good job of *showing* it, which makes it less believable. (I may be biased, because one of my favorite series features a young girl who is truly enamored of chemistry: The Flavia de Luce books. Now THAT shows someone with a passion for chemistry and scientific discovery.)
"The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails." The feelings between Allene and Jasper, and Jasper and anyone else, are very inconsistent and confusing. Birdie's description seems accurate.
To be honest, the blurb sounds more interesting and cohesive than the actual book. This quote from the book is a good description of itself: “It’s like there are two loose ends on a story that barely makes sense."
July 15, 2017
Whilst I liked the style of writing the plot was crazy. The ending was so far fetched it was laughable
June 5, 2018
2.5⭐️
March 13, 2019
I won a Kindle copy of
A Beautiful Poison
from a Goodreads Giveaway.
I'm not a fan of historical fiction but the blurb intrigued me; if its a murder mystery, I'll give it a whirl!
I needed a few days to consider how to write a review for this book because the tone was so odd, I would call it disturbing and not in a good Tim Burton kind of way, but more of an Eli Roth kind of way.
The basic premise isn't complicated: a young woman dies unexpectedly at the engagement party of socialite Allene and her fiancé.
When her best friend Jasper determines it is murder, he, mutual friend Birdie and Allene try to solve the mystery, which entails them sneaking into the morgue late at night (ooh, spooky), Allene stealing evidence at a murder scene and basically the threesome acting like a ridiculous parody of The Three Stooges, instead of The Lone Gunmen.
The strangeness stems from the description of the three characters. Follow along if you can:
1. Allene is described as a young woman interested in chemistry and science but the only scientific thing about her is her name.
She enjoys reading scientific textbooks and spouts from memory whatever she just read.
She never demonstrates her seemingly big brain or intelligence but rather is a narcissistic, self-centered, bratty only child who continually insists on having Jaspar and Birdie close to her because she doesn't want to be alone.
She mocks people for their poor fashion sense, their lack of decorum and manners and, okay, its not her fault she is this way. Its her parents' fault.
2. Jasper is the man between this Twilight love triangle for Allene and Birdie. There is an unsettling sexual tension between all three characters and I wonder if Ms. Kang did this deliberately or forgot what her true intentions were.
Jasper doesn't hide the fact that he would marry Allene if she had proposed the idea but keeps a picture of Birdie in a book.
There is a Sapphic moment between the girls when they are sleeping in the same bed. Heck, I don't mind sexual tension but even I'm not sure what the point of all this was.
3, Poor Birdie. She is the girl next door in this twisted story about love and poison. The child of the maid in Allene's household, the girls grew up together until a scandal and Allene's mother forced them out of the house, causing Birdie's mother to turn to prostitution to make ends meet.
When Allene's duplicitous fiancé falls for Birdie, she finds herself in her mother's shoes, but needs the man's influence, money and connections to keep her small, struggling family afloat.
And can you blame the poor girl? No!
At the same time, she is slowly succumbing to radium poisoning, due to her job at a clockworks factory. I knew this already because I read Radium Girls! Pick it up! It's a very good read!
People close to the gruesome threesome begin dropping like flies and all signs point to (gasp!) poison.
Who is removing all these problematic people in their lives?
And to make matters worse, a virulent flu has settled over the city at the same time, claiming people close to Allene.
Poison is the method of choice for female murderers! (Hint! Hint!)
When the murderer and the motive behind these vengeful acts is revealed, it is satisfying in that only vengeance can make sense and does require a bit of disbelief suspension (take that, pedophile sicko!) and yet typical because you can guess the events that led the person down this path and how it all started.
A cast of deeply unlikeable and forgetable characters combined with a bit of a convoluted plot left me wanting less, not more of A Beautiful Poison.
I'm not a fan of historical fiction but the blurb intrigued me; if its a murder mystery, I'll give it a whirl!
I needed a few days to consider how to write a review for this book because the tone was so odd, I would call it disturbing and not in a good Tim Burton kind of way, but more of an Eli Roth kind of way.
The basic premise isn't complicated: a young woman dies unexpectedly at the engagement party of socialite Allene and her fiancé.
When her best friend Jasper determines it is murder, he, mutual friend Birdie and Allene try to solve the mystery, which entails them sneaking into the morgue late at night (ooh, spooky), Allene stealing evidence at a murder scene and basically the threesome acting like a ridiculous parody of The Three Stooges, instead of The Lone Gunmen.
The strangeness stems from the description of the three characters. Follow along if you can:
1. Allene is described as a young woman interested in chemistry and science but the only scientific thing about her is her name.
She enjoys reading scientific textbooks and spouts from memory whatever she just read.
She never demonstrates her seemingly big brain or intelligence but rather is a narcissistic, self-centered, bratty only child who continually insists on having Jaspar and Birdie close to her because she doesn't want to be alone.
She mocks people for their poor fashion sense, their lack of decorum and manners and, okay, its not her fault she is this way. Its her parents' fault.
2. Jasper is the man between this Twilight love triangle for Allene and Birdie. There is an unsettling sexual tension between all three characters and I wonder if Ms. Kang did this deliberately or forgot what her true intentions were.
Jasper doesn't hide the fact that he would marry Allene if she had proposed the idea but keeps a picture of Birdie in a book.
There is a Sapphic moment between the girls when they are sleeping in the same bed. Heck, I don't mind sexual tension but even I'm not sure what the point of all this was.
3, Poor Birdie. She is the girl next door in this twisted story about love and poison. The child of the maid in Allene's household, the girls grew up together until a scandal and Allene's mother forced them out of the house, causing Birdie's mother to turn to prostitution to make ends meet.
When Allene's duplicitous fiancé falls for Birdie, she finds herself in her mother's shoes, but needs the man's influence, money and connections to keep her small, struggling family afloat.
And can you blame the poor girl? No!
At the same time, she is slowly succumbing to radium poisoning, due to her job at a clockworks factory. I knew this already because I read Radium Girls! Pick it up! It's a very good read!
People close to the gruesome threesome begin dropping like flies and all signs point to (gasp!) poison.
Who is removing all these problematic people in their lives?
And to make matters worse, a virulent flu has settled over the city at the same time, claiming people close to Allene.
Poison is the method of choice for female murderers! (Hint! Hint!)
When the murderer and the motive behind these vengeful acts is revealed, it is satisfying in that only vengeance can make sense and does require a bit of disbelief suspension (take that, pedophile sicko!) and yet typical because you can guess the events that led the person down this path and how it all started.
A cast of deeply unlikeable and forgetable characters combined with a bit of a convoluted plot left me wanting less, not more of A Beautiful Poison.
July 7, 2017
Macabre
I was very excited to read this book. Soon after starting it the excitement turned to confusion, which then morphed into mild loathing... Of the characters. The writing is pretty superb. The story while dragging a bit here and there, was full of twists and turns. The big twist in the end shocked me, and the second to last death scene was brutal but satisfying.
Back to the characters. None of the main characters were likable until the last third of the book. The story is told from their different points of view throughout the book, and their inner monologues made them atrocious to me. Beautiful people with ugly, selfish hearts. Allene surprised me at the end, for which I am grateful. It was hard for me to connect with the characters, because the whole time I'm thinking what big jerks they all are, but regardless the book was enjoyable.
I was very excited to read this book. Soon after starting it the excitement turned to confusion, which then morphed into mild loathing... Of the characters. The writing is pretty superb. The story while dragging a bit here and there, was full of twists and turns. The big twist in the end shocked me, and the second to last death scene was brutal but satisfying.
Back to the characters. None of the main characters were likable until the last third of the book. The story is told from their different points of view throughout the book, and their inner monologues made them atrocious to me. Beautiful people with ugly, selfish hearts. Allene surprised me at the end, for which I am grateful. It was hard for me to connect with the characters, because the whole time I'm thinking what big jerks they all are, but regardless the book was enjoyable.
October 18, 2017
my focus and mood are not great at the moment, so this was a very good choice as a quick-reading distraction. i really enjoyed the era and the science and medical aspects of this novel, as well as all the flawed characters. (so. many. flaws. heh!) but i found it all a little bit... twee? maybe? there were some pretty clunky moments and the red herrings were too obvious. yet it was still a good bit of fun.
June 5, 2018
3.5 stars I wrote a review of this book right after I finished it. It was a wonderful review. It was a great review. But I wrote it on my phone and then chaos happened and it was lost. This is the second time I am writing this review and it won't be as good. I want to say what I said in the first review, so that keeps running into the flow of what I am saying now and it's going to be a mess. But, it will be a review.
Before I started reading as many books as I do now, I was a book snob and tended to only read literary fiction. I still hold a bit of that snobbishness in me and look down my nose at books which are published by Amazon or one of its many subsidiaries. I was an early adopter of the Kindle First (now First to Read or something like that) program and initially read some of those Amazon published books. Most of them were bad. Very bad. And I kept collecting the books but had no intention of reading them. Now, for various reasons, I need to listen to light books from time to time and this fit the bill. It's not a genre I normally listen to, but I try to diversify my reading (my blog used to be called Diversifying Perspective) and this is diverse because it's not a genre I listen to and also because the author is a person of color. All of this is a long way of explaining why I picked it up and listened to it even though I had very low expectations of it. Which is important context for what I am about to say next; this is a work of literary fiction. The way things are described are incredible. For readers who love interesting depictions, I can recommend this book to you on simply that alone. The phrases she uses evoked so many emotions and I found myself completely engaged simply because of how it was written. That alone is enough to recommend this book.
Then there's the characters. The three main characters are all flushed out and all show some growth. I was particularly impressed with how real the growth felt and how clear the characters were. I could tell when the point of view shifted and that's not something which occurs often. The main characters were well thought out, with maybe one exception. While character development was at my highest level of standard, it's still good enough that I recommend this book on that alone.
But for those of you who like plot way more than character development and writing. Well, this is where the book falls short. I don't write spoilers into my reviews, so there's not a ton I can say except that there are some pretty typical devices of this genre used. Remember, I don't normally read mysteries and I recognized these devices. I also figured out nearly the entire plot before it wrapped up. But I'm not a reader who cares as much about the plot as I do the writing and the characters, so this wasn't a deal breaker for me. However, if I was a reader who cared a great deal about the plot, the rating would be more like 2.5 stars.
If, like me, you have this book taking up space in your Kindle, and are looking for an easy and interesting read, consider giving this book a go. I doubt you have come across phrasing like this!
Before I started reading as many books as I do now, I was a book snob and tended to only read literary fiction. I still hold a bit of that snobbishness in me and look down my nose at books which are published by Amazon or one of its many subsidiaries. I was an early adopter of the Kindle First (now First to Read or something like that) program and initially read some of those Amazon published books. Most of them were bad. Very bad. And I kept collecting the books but had no intention of reading them. Now, for various reasons, I need to listen to light books from time to time and this fit the bill. It's not a genre I normally listen to, but I try to diversify my reading (my blog used to be called Diversifying Perspective) and this is diverse because it's not a genre I listen to and also because the author is a person of color. All of this is a long way of explaining why I picked it up and listened to it even though I had very low expectations of it. Which is important context for what I am about to say next; this is a work of literary fiction. The way things are described are incredible. For readers who love interesting depictions, I can recommend this book to you on simply that alone. The phrases she uses evoked so many emotions and I found myself completely engaged simply because of how it was written. That alone is enough to recommend this book.
Then there's the characters. The three main characters are all flushed out and all show some growth. I was particularly impressed with how real the growth felt and how clear the characters were. I could tell when the point of view shifted and that's not something which occurs often. The main characters were well thought out, with maybe one exception. While character development was at my highest level of standard, it's still good enough that I recommend this book on that alone.
But for those of you who like plot way more than character development and writing. Well, this is where the book falls short. I don't write spoilers into my reviews, so there's not a ton I can say except that there are some pretty typical devices of this genre used. Remember, I don't normally read mysteries and I recognized these devices. I also figured out nearly the entire plot before it wrapped up. But I'm not a reader who cares as much about the plot as I do the writing and the characters, so this wasn't a deal breaker for me. However, if I was a reader who cared a great deal about the plot, the rating would be more like 2.5 stars.
If, like me, you have this book taking up space in your Kindle, and are looking for an easy and interesting read, consider giving this book a go. I doubt you have come across phrasing like this!
May 10, 2019
2,5 ⭐
July 30, 2017
I think overall I was disappointed with this book. I was really looking forward to it. I felt it had so much potential but during the first half I was kind of bored. It picked up during the second half and I was interested in finding out the identity of the murderer and I will admit I didn't even suspect it to be who it was, but it was still rather anticlimactic. I knew it had to be someone in the circle, but it could have been any one of them for any number of reasons and all it would have felt like was humdrum.
The biggest miss for me was the lack of detail. The whole setting, NYC during the Spanish flu epidemic, could have been riveting. It just wasn't. There were very few scenes that illustrated the magnitude of deaths it caused and there wasn't any real feeling of impending doom or dread that came across. I didn't think there was nearly enough description of what the city was like, the buildings, the homes, the automobiles, or even descriptions of clothing. I had to rely on Google quite a bit.
At some point, the lack of action led me to believe that this was intended to be more character driven than anything else and I was okay with that. But that was also lacking. All three main characters were selfish and despicable to each other and that was the most interesting thing about them. I like to read about characters I can't stand if it's entertaining but once again it just fell short.
The biggest miss for me was the lack of detail. The whole setting, NYC during the Spanish flu epidemic, could have been riveting. It just wasn't. There were very few scenes that illustrated the magnitude of deaths it caused and there wasn't any real feeling of impending doom or dread that came across. I didn't think there was nearly enough description of what the city was like, the buildings, the homes, the automobiles, or even descriptions of clothing. I had to rely on Google quite a bit.
At some point, the lack of action led me to believe that this was intended to be more character driven than anything else and I was okay with that. But that was also lacking. All three main characters were selfish and despicable to each other and that was the most interesting thing about them. I like to read about characters I can't stand if it's entertaining but once again it just fell short.
January 31, 2019
Historical Mystery (TW suicide/ pedophile–not graphic)
I loved Kang’s last novel, The Impossible Girl, so as soon as I finished that I went looking for more of her writing–and now I have a new author to love. This is set in New York in 1918 and follows three childhood friends, who have lost touch, brought back together to solve a murder. Allene is wealthy, engaged, and bored–so clearly the one who wants to play detective. Birdie is working at a factory, struggling to feed her little sister, and Jasper is working as a janitor, hoping to go to medical school one day and avoid the draft. While the deadly Spanish influenza is killing people Allene, Jasper, and Birdie are realizing that some deaths are murder and not sickness… This was a great read that showed you each character’s private struggles along with how childhood bonds evolve, break, repair, and change through life–all while staying focused on the mystery and teaching you some chemistry along the way.
--from Book Riot's Unusual Suspects newsletter: https://link.bookriot.com/view/56a820...
I loved Kang’s last novel, The Impossible Girl, so as soon as I finished that I went looking for more of her writing–and now I have a new author to love. This is set in New York in 1918 and follows three childhood friends, who have lost touch, brought back together to solve a murder. Allene is wealthy, engaged, and bored–so clearly the one who wants to play detective. Birdie is working at a factory, struggling to feed her little sister, and Jasper is working as a janitor, hoping to go to medical school one day and avoid the draft. While the deadly Spanish influenza is killing people Allene, Jasper, and Birdie are realizing that some deaths are murder and not sickness… This was a great read that showed you each character’s private struggles along with how childhood bonds evolve, break, repair, and change through life–all while staying focused on the mystery and teaching you some chemistry along the way.
--from Book Riot's Unusual Suspects newsletter: https://link.bookriot.com/view/56a820...
October 27, 2018
More like a 3.5 for me.
A Beautiful Poison is a wonderfully written book that examines all the situations we get ourselves into. There is an element of choice, but also almost a destiny-esque feel to it. The whole book sort of unfolds and you find yourself being welcomed into the mystery. A Beautiful Poison revolves around a circle of friends. There has been time passed and no one is really who they used to be. But one fateful night changes their lives forever. Some secrets can’t stay buried. They stretch, reaching to break out, crying for justice.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
A Beautiful Poison is a wonderfully written book that examines all the situations we get ourselves into. There is an element of choice, but also almost a destiny-esque feel to it. The whole book sort of unfolds and you find yourself being welcomed into the mystery. A Beautiful Poison revolves around a circle of friends. There has been time passed and no one is really who they used to be. But one fateful night changes their lives forever. Some secrets can’t stay buried. They stretch, reaching to break out, crying for justice.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
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