Quite literally toxic lesbians.

Gothic, academic, and very supportive of women's wrongs, this book had me hooked very early on. I enjoyed Francesca May's first book though with some caveats, and this book shows her growth as a writer immediately - it's beautifully written and immediately enthralling.

While this is set in a world not dissimilar from an English historical world, the key differences, such as the death rites, were laid out early on and very well-done. Beyond that, the settings came to life, especially Olea's garden.

Where this book focused - and where it shone - was the characters and their relationships between one another. It's best to go into this without knowing much so you can discover the world and discover Olea alongside Thora, but if you're not a character-driven reader, then this may be a bit frustrating for you. If you are a character-driven reader, then can I interest you in sapphics in a poison garden?

I think this would have worked a bit better as a standalone, perhaps - though if you tell me it was a standalone, then I think the ending should have been reworked slightly, so there's just no pleasing me on this matter.

Overall, a captivating and fantastic entry into what is poised to be a toxic lesbian summer.

Thank you to the publisher, Orbit, and to NetGalley for the ARC.

I could not get through this. The writing style is weak, the attempt to make a mystery out of Aurelios death was weak. The first chapter was good and its all downhill from there. The cliche of the outcasts being friends, the cliche of one single woman in power, the cliche of the bad mother in law that inadvertedly does smth nice for the mc, the bad writing style. Idk, this does nothing for me and i will be stopping.

Very hit and miss I felt.
Some really very good stuff in there, but also some not great stuff.
Thora wasn't a character I warmed to, she seemed a bit too stroppy for my liking.
The garden, the poison and its effects were excellent.
I wish it had continued on beyond the end too, as surely there's far more to say now?
Overall I enjoyed it. It had me wondering at what was going on a fair amount, and I enjoy a book that's not too predictable.

if you looked up the definition of gothic fantasy, it would just be a picture of this book.
add in slow burn and this is a feast fit for a king (me, of course)

A darkly gothic tale abut obsession, hunger and the pursuit of knowledge no matter the cost. Decadently vivid prose will carry you off into a world not quite unlike our own and spins the story of ones woman’s desperate pursuit for autonomy and knowledge. There was something about this novel that will sink its teeth into you while you fight to keep the darkness bleeding out between the pages. Haunting and seething with dark desires.

𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞, 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐔𝐊 | 𝐎𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐲 𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐍𝐞𝐭𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐇𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐲 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐲

This book is super dark and heavy...and yet I couldn't put it down. I'm a huge fan of poisons in stories and this was a unique take on the subject. Thora was a wildly complex character and my heart ached for her and Olea throughout the story.

This was just ok for me which was a matter of personal taste rather than there being anything wrong with the book. I found this a little too immature for my taste however the story was interesting and the writing was good, I’m interested in anything with botany so that was a plus. I found the pacing was even and there was enough mystery to keep me intrigued

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc