TW: self-harm, gore, blood, description of illnesses, poisoning, parental neglect, past suicide attempts

I was so pleasantly surprised by this.

Belladonna is a gothic mystery that follows Signa Farrow, a girl who cannot die no matter how she tries. Orphaned as a baby, she has been sent from home to home as each of her guardians die.

Her remaining relatives, the Hawthornes, are her last chance at entering society and securing a good reputation, as she has been plagued by Death. Metaphorically and physically...

She knows Death exists and has seen him as she grew. However, people believe her to be an ill omen as the people around her have died. At her new home, she discovers her cousin is terminally ill and she will do everything she can to prevent her death.

Belladonna is the perfect book for fans of Allison Saft, and those who have been eager for more gothic inspired novels. From the mystery surrounding the Hawthornes, even Signa's existence, to the romantic elements, and Death itself, it's a gripping narrative that will immerse you in its world.

I think it's a decent, intriguing book. It's predictable to an extent and sometimes leans into more generic narrative devices, but it is no doubt well-written. The characters were good, but over time I feel like I will forget them. They are simply not memorable enough nor are they very unique as characters. The atmosphere was good and the writing was better than the author's previous works.

Wow. This is my first Adalyn Grace book, I've yet to read All The Stars and Teeth (though I've been meaning to for so long!!)

This book was incredible. A mix of fantasy, murder mystery contemporary, it was amazing. I love the world and Signa and Deaths relationship! The plot was so well done and my gosh, that e n d i n g!!!!

I hope there's a book two? I need a book two.. The book was well rounded and the main plots were filled but the last chapter?! Don't leave me hanging for that one!

Highly recommended!

This book made me so excited! I have not felt this giddy about a book for a while.

Right from the prologue I was bewitched by this amazing story.

This book made me forget everything around me existed, I gave up sleep because I needed to finish the book to find out what happened! (I have 5 kids so usually need as much sleep as possible 🤣)

The story was so we written, I loved that it was set in victorian times, one of my favourite era's to read about. This book had mystery, friendship, coming of age, finding one's self, love and so much more!

The book follows Signa who was orphaned as a baby, she is passed from guardian to guardian as she grows. The story really begins when she is placed with the Hawthorns, a distant relative of her late mother.

Not is all as it seems at the Hawthorns home, Thorn Grove, but then Signa is not all she seems either. With the help of the Stable boy Signa gets to work at putting all the puzzle pieces together to solve the mystery!

This book will 100% be going down as a 2022 top 5 book ❤️

AHHHHHHHHHHH oh my GOSH I loved this. I just finished it and I'm still sitting here giggling like a schoolgirl. Hello??? Spooky murder mystery with steamy magic romance and kickass female characters? I read this all in a few hours. I am also immensely relieved to know there will be a sequel because I am NOT satiated. This was so good!! I'm in love!! 
First of all, the characters. Signa is amazing. I love her. She starts off a little confused and trying to find her place in the world, as we all do. She matures and learns throughout the book and she develops into a wonderful woman. She's smart, witty, and bold. It's so easy for protagonists like her to be obnoxious and overly naive, but Grace doesn't have that problem with her main character. Signa is able to realize that what society wants from her may not be what she truly wants and she can acknowledge this through the help of the people around her. She also doesn't have a lot of dithering about mortality and morality which I like.  Blythe is also fantastic. She already knows how she wants her life to go and she's not shy about declaring it. I love her.
Death is.... well. He is something else entirely. Usually with stories like this I get an ick from characters like Death. Age-old being who's known the girl since she was a baby? That's gross. But Death isn't! He's written in such a unique way so he's not creepy or even excessively mature. And even though he's known Signa since she was a baby, he still keeps his distance so it's not a weird grooming situation. I am such a picky reader when it comes to dynamics like this and I was ready to be grossed out by it but I am so glad that was not the case. He's such a perfect YA fantasy boy and I'm glad he exists. I want him for myself. 
The cover? Beautiful! It's muted tones and elegant illustration give the impression of mature gothic, which fits the vibe. Obviously the belladonna berries go along with the title and story, but the bird (yellow bellied warbler?) was harder to understand until I actually read the book. It's such an aesthetic image on its own but it also does a wonderful job of hinting at the story inside without revealing too much.
The plot: magnificent. Several times I thought "Oh, I know where this is going. I can see this twist coming." I was wrong. There were a couple of things I halfway figured out, so my ego was still boosted, but I was still deliciously surprised by the way the story unfolded. There were so many clues but I still wasn't able to fit all the pieces together, like a true crime story. 
Belladonna meshes together horror, fantasy, romance, murder mysteries, historical drama, and YA storytelling in one book that truly delivers everything it promises. If you like Bridgerton, Agatha Christie, soft paranormal, and confident female leads, you'll probably like Belladonna. I cannot wait for the next book, Foxglove and I'm hoping there will be more to come after that too. I read this as a free digital ARC from netgalley, but I loved it so much I may need to buy a physical copy for my shelf. Plus again, the beautiful cover makes me want a physical copy too.

I’ve been a huge fan of Adalyn Grace ever since I read All the Stars and Teeth in 2020 and when I saw the cover reveal for Belladonna and how Adalyn Grace herself described the book to be “as much a dark and lush romance with Death as it is a ruthless murder mystery that involves spirits, autumnal gardens, and an eerie Victorian manor that’s home to the eccentric Hawthorne family”, I knew I had to read this book.

Just like All the Stars and Teeth, Belladonna is a captivating and fast-paced YA/NA fantasy book with beautiful descriptions and intriguing characters. Throw some mysteries, dark secret and slowburn romance into the mix and there you have it.

I’ve already heard that there’s a upcoming sequel which is really great since I like both the characters and the overall idea of Belladonna way too much for it to be a standalone. But while I anxiously wait for the sequel, I’m so eager to hear everyones opinions and follow the discussions about Belladonna.

— As of now, Belladonna is expected to be published on August 23 this year! —

*** Thank you so much to Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an eARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review! ***

I want to keep it simple and say that I adored this book. There's not a single detail in this book that felt unnecessary, not a single moment of uneventfulness or boredom. It's hard to properly appreciate the book without revealing vital plot points but I'll try my best.

The book opens with a Gothic, somewhat spooky (but not to be confused with horror) mood and sustains the atmosphere throughout while adding sprinkles of romance, gloom and mystery at appropriate places. With a murder mystery at its core and a protagonist who can communicate with the Reaper (Death) himself, the story has all the ingredients of deliciousness. I was particularly impressed with the suspense as it kept me guessing till the end (I mean a lot of crime thrillers are quite predictable these days). But this one wasn't, so that's already a winner for me. If that isn't enough though, the characters Sylas and Death were mysteries in themselves. I was in love with both of them and thank God, I wasn't the one who had to do the choosing. XD All this with a touch of Victorianism and we have a very promising read which also actually delivers.

It's quite the page turner and I'm most definitely looking forward to the sequel!

I didn’t realise I needed a gothic fantasy death romance in my life until this.

I loved how the plot intrigue starts early so I was super hooked but I AM NOT HAPPY ABOUT THE CLIFFHANGER DAMN IT.

Signa and Death have such good chemistry, I loved their banter but they also had such adorable moments together.

The romance- immaculate
The plot- exquisite
The characters- sublime
The mystery- phenomenal

Adalyn Grace has some of the best descriptions I’ve ever read and I will forever read everything and anything she writes because I adore it every time.

A beautifully written book. Really enjoyed reading this. Thanks to publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read

Despite the promise of a murder mystery and a romance with Death, I'm sad to say that this book left me indifferent.

I had two major issues with this book, the first being the romance with Death. It was a disservice to have the relationship between Death and Signa already established. She hates him, he likes her. They "know" each other and they are cooperating when Signa is in danger. There was no build-up thus I couldn't feel the spark or the tension of a first encounter. Also, their romance was on a physical level and not an emotional one. At least, it didn't feel like they shared deep feelings... On the contrary, Signa's attraction to Sylas was way more compelling: with the right amount of sexual and antagonistic tension. Unfortunately for me, Death's scenes were more prominent than those with Sylas.

The other problem was the plot. The difficulty with manor mysteries is that you won't have a lot of people and thus only a few potential culprits can be considered. Especially when some suspects appear sporadically, it's hard to take them as serious threats. Because of that, the reveal didn't surprise me (the details were nicely plotted though. I wasn't expecting this). All this made the pacing slow. I wasn't sold on Signa being the only person to investigate the mysterious disease however. The family has a library and doesn't do research, and the doctors are oblivious to the existence of poisons apparently... I wasn't convinced.

Sometimes I liked Signa. Sometimes she frustrated me. She was petty when she didn't want to learn more about her powers just because she hated Death... Speaking of that, her hating him for collecting dead people's souls was childish. He's Death.

On the positive side, I liked that the author included ghosts in the story. The ending - or rather the cliffhanger - was delicious. It's a pity I'm not sold on the characters and the romance because it made me want to read the sequel.

A wonderful murder mystery with gothic elements, I always enjoy stories with Death as a character and this did not let me down. Signa Farrow as a character was compelling, the plot was a delight and this gave me Jane Eyre vibes for most of the time. Do give it a try!.
Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for the arc. ❤️

It is one of my most anticipated release of 2022, and I'm always nervous when I dig in with expectations because it sometimes turns out to be disappointing. This time it was better than expected! Twisty, dark, quirky and sexy too!
I really enjoyed it: the writing, the dialogues, it was such an easy read!
Who doesn't love a good banter and a dark love interest? The guy's protective and teasing, loved him!
I enjoyed the murder mystery and all the original elements: the ghosts, Death, the glimpse behind the veil and the poisons too!
Towards the end, there's this one thing that I liked less (didn't affect my enjoyment of the book but made it less perfect to me) and also some aspects of the resolution are a bit overlooked, or too easy(...that the mystery reader in me talking). Still, I really enjoyed it and can't wait to read the sequel.
That's the kind of books that you can read as a standalone, no cliffhanger or anything but just a possibility for more (a bit like the Stalking Jack the ripper series).
100% recommend!

What a dark and wonderful treat Belladonna turned out to be, I was captivated through this read and connected deeply with the main character.
Thank you for providing me with an early addition, I was extremely happy reading this!
If your looking for a fantasy meets mystery with a toe curling plot and gothic vibes look no further!

A huge thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of Belladonna by Adalyn Grace.

Belladonna follows a girl, Signa, who has been followed by death her entire life. Since being an infant people around her have died of odd circumstances, causing Signa to be passed around to various caretakers until she comes of age to inherit her estate. It also causes people to fear her and call her a witch. Little do they know that there is more to her than meets the eye.

Signa has a love/hate relationship with death. She blames him for causing her pain and suffering. But she also finds that she might have more in common with him than she thought. Luckily Signa gets sent to her cousin's house after her aunt passes away unexpectedly. She finds out that her mother's sister passed away shortly before from an unknown illness and that her cousin is now suffering with the same affliction that killed her mother. Signa realises that there might be more sinister plans afoot...

The book was really refreshing. The main character was wholly loveable and struggles with finding her place in the world that does not understand how to handle anyone that does not conform to the societal norms of the day. We see how Signa is hoping for friendship and companionship and how she finds it in the most unexpected places.

This was such a pleasure to read, and the twists come from nowhere. All of the characters are intriguing and I cannot wait for the next book to come out!

One word: WOW. This is how I felt after reading Belladonna.
It's deliciously dark with a slice of Death on the side 😉
It was toe curlingly addictive. I couldn't put it down. I read ever page , cover to cover . No page skips or end of story readings. I love gothic romances ❤️❤️
The story flow and the direction was very smooth and the male protagonists were varyingly interesting while simultaneously the being embodiment of the traditional male specimen (not all of them).
I'm not the biggest fan of this female protagonist but I did enjoy seeing her character grow and blossom. I especially liked seeing her realize her own independence ,how she didn't have to confine herself in society's norm and that she could be happy being just herself. A modern realisation unusual but definitely pleasing in a bygone era.
That twist at the end was the extra chocolate chips on top of an already delicious chocolate ice cream for sure.
I look forward enormously to reading a sequel ❤️
My thanks to @netgalley for sending me this arc in exchange for my honest review and legitimately unique opinions.
@authoradalyngrace thank you for another wonderful story ❤️

I still can't believe I got an ARC! I'm a member of Netgalley for years now but I never got approved, so I was so surprised when I had a chance to read one of my most anticipated reads this year.

I have to confess that I'm not utterly satisfied. One of my favorite tropes is Death as a love interest, and I was so excited to read Belladonna because of it. I haven't read this kind of book for years, and there are even more interesting aspects of the story: Poisonous plants, the victorian era, ghosts, and a murder mystery. Everything was given to an amazing story, but I felt that the execution was flat and shallow. Signa and Death's romance was rushed. In one moment Signa hated Death in the other she fantasized about Him. I would have liked a slower progression. (There is even a slight love triangle which I would hate if I didn't read ahead.)
The murderer's identity was not so obvious so that was nice, even though their motive was not so logical. I would have preferred a more fleshed-out story, and motive for it.
It will be perfect autumn read for many people, especially for fans of Hades- Persephone and gothic mysteries. Some parts lack depth, but I'm hopeful that the sequel Foxglove will be much better as I tend to like the second book in duologies more. And I'm eager to know more about Signa's powers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was ok, but it wasn't quite for me. I found it quite slow, and didn't connect with the story unfortunately

This is a young adult, Victorian-inspired fantasy, gothic romance and murder mystery all rolled into one.

Signa Farrow is an orphaned heiress who has moved from guardian to guardian as they have an unfortunate habit of dying. Unsurprisingly, the numerous deaths in her vicinity leads to a certain amount of gossip.
Unexpectedly, she is invited into the care of the wealthy family of a distant and deceased relative. Elijah Hawthorne, still grieving for his wife, throws rowdy, lavish parties whilst his daughter, Blythe's health starts to fail. Signa finds the illnesses in the household suspicious and starts to investigate the death of Lillian, whilst trying to keep a watchful eye on Blythe.

I really enjoyed the combination of a classic murder mystery, family drama in a grand gothic mansion along with the more supernatural elements. Signa can see spirits and Death, who she has a rather spiky relationship with, at least to start with 😉.

I liked Signa as a character- she starts off desperate to fit in with societal expectations, hating her ability to see Death and spirits, but her acceptance of her differences and also gradual understanding that not all young ladies are as financially safe as herself, is well done - although there is still a bit of "not-like-other-girls" about her. She's an active, headstrong protagonist, not waiting to answers to fall into her lap but also aware of her limitations.
I haven't really spoken about the romance, but it is a strong element in the story and will be enjoyed by those who like the Death and the Maiden trope.

A really great combination of murder mystery and gothic supernatural romance with a plenty of twists and a decadent Victorian aesthetic.
4.5/5

This book was a slow reading, one of those that you stop to taste each word, it is very richly written and paint a very deep picture, the feeling of grief, despair and love very well portrait. The mystery solving wasn't as interesting as the relationships and feelings part of the story, it was quite predictable but still very entertaining, for me it doesn't matter that I have already figured out the ending as the enjoyment of reading some amazing characters going through it. I very much enjoyed this book and would love to read the second book. I like that there is not the kind clifhanger that get you in a chock hold till you read the next book, what it does nonetheless is opening the door for a new mystery and get you in enough curiosity to wait eagerly for the next book.
The only complaint I have is the "spicy" scene, it was quite confusing and had no idea what was happening, I would have love more detailing or just skip it completely.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an eARC of this book to review.

I was so intrigued by the concept here before picking this up and now, after finishing it, the main thing I'm frustrated with is the long wait until book 2!

This was highly enjoyable and such a page turner - while some aspects of the plot were quitepredictable, it didn't take away from the fun and I found the majority of the characters incredibly likeable and well developed.

I'll definitely continue with the series and will be adding a physical copy to my shelf later in the year - I'm hoping Fairyloot or Illumicrate might do a special edition because that cover is already to die for!