872 reviews for:

Poison Princess

Kresley Cole

3.9 AVERAGE


OH MY GOD I LOVED THIS SO MUCH I CAN'T BELIEVE I WAITED SO LONG TO READ THIS I'LL PROBABLY HAVE A REVIEW UP SOON

Why did I have to wait so long to try and read Cole's YA series? I had just read "The Warlord wants forever" when this one caught my attention. I decided the try the audiobook and I LOVED IT!
Maybe because there is a mystery behind why the world ended? Maybe because Evie has visions and dreams which in the end came true? Maybe, just maybe Jack is a Cajun and he is swoon-worthy?

When the world ends in fire smoke and plague, which turns most of the population into zombies, Evie with Jack's help will embark on a journey in order to find her grandmother as also answers to the reasons behind Evie's mysterious powers.

The story had many twists, it was very emotional and I liked the way Jack and Evie struggled. There was action and enemies everywhere which levitated the fact that both protagonists tried to understand each other and had many misunderstandings.

Using also the Arcana Tarot cards as the plot base was also very original and I hadn't seen it before. The combination between the post apocalyptic world, the zombies and the touch of reincarnation created a stunning world building!
Without wanting to spoiler I would recommend this one to all those who want both the adventure and the sexy romantic moments!
numnub's profile picture

numnub's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 13%

Wasn’t in that kinda dark mood. Tried a couple of times but just couldn’t 
adventurous dark medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Review from Elysian Fields Reviews.
5 out of 5 Stars
My Thoughts
Holy hell! I really have no explanation why this book sat on my TBR shelf for so long, almost two years in fact. Sigh. I have no excuses, and I am more than thankful that I finally read it. I loved every. single. thing. about this book. The plot line was beyond original; it was creative and masterful, each card of the major Arcana in the Tarot is a person somewhere in the world. How phenomenal is that..?! Miss Cole didn't make it as weird as it sounds, in fact, the plot line flowed so well that I didn't even question it. Tarot cards are people; check. Totally acceptable! I fell in love with each of the characters, and connected with every single one of them. Evie is an exceptionally strong, wonderfully written protagonist. She doesn't whine very much, even though her entire world, literally, is falling apart around her. She had visions of the coming apocalypse, yet did nothing about it, believing herself insane. She does blame herself for her friends' deaths, but she doesn't let it control her. I tend to get really irritated at the self loathing, guilt ridden characters, and thankfully, Evie is not that girl at all! Jackson's character is my favorite, though. He is the male character that I tend to find myself falling in love with. The irritating, cocky asshole male- with a well hidden soft side. He is strong, powerful, and totally sexy, of course! The Moon Card- the bringer of doubt, is the only character I really didn't like, and that's only because she's trying to sleep with Jackson, even though she knows that Evie cares about him. Selena also lied to Evie about a lot of things, and I don't think she is a card to be trusted; although she did help them out and saved their lives a few times. Matthew is crazy like a fox, literally! I think his character is intricate and mysterious, and the way that he talks in riddles drives Evie crazy, as well as me. It adds an extra layer to his personality that I find intriguing. Like Jackson, I love solving puzzles, and I cannot wait to find out more about his character in the next book.

The world building is incredible - a post apocalyptic setting that sounds terrifying, yet intriguing all the same. After the Flash, basically a solar storm that killed most of the humans on the planet, the world has changed completely. No one can be trusted. There is little food or water, let alone transportation. Everything acquired must be fought for, and a typical day is spent searching for nourishment, fighting off slavers and bagmen- humans transformed by a virus that turns them rabid, and fighting through the constant wind storms that sweep across the desert-like landscapes. Plants do not grow anymore, and most of the water was flash evaporated during the solar storm that hit earth. It is a desolate life, but Evie is happy to just be alive. I love that her character tries to find the good in everything; everything except her gifts that she has as the Empress Card. She can communicate with all plant life, as well as grow thorns from her fingernails to use as weapons. These so-called gifts terrify her, and she has no idea how to use them. I am looking forward to her learning more of her powers throughout the rest of the series, as well as solving the puzzle of Jackson and his brooding personality!

To wrap up this review, I loved everything about this book. It was phenomenal; the characters, the world-building, the plot line- everything flowed so perfectly! Thank you, Miss Cole, for this refreshingly original story! I recommend this to everyone, EVERYONE! Read it now, right now!

I absolutely LOVED Poison Princess.

I had been on the fence about buying it since it came out. I’ve never read any Kresley Cole books, but I know she’s a popular adult paranormal romance author, so I figured Poison Princess would be a fairly PG rated version of the same old alpha male paranormal thing and be disappointing. But I was continuously drawn to the cover and the synopsis. After dealing with the internal battle of whether it would be awesome or horrible for months, I finally broke down and bought it and I am SO glad I did. It was great!

Poison Princess is a post apocalyptic paranormal romance novel and I loved the mixture of some of my favorite elements: zombies, the end of the world, magic, fate, Tarot cards, and romance! I loved how the story jumped from past to present because I was especially curious how everything would go down. I knew she would end up at the stranger’s house after the Flash, since the book started that way, but I enjoyed watching the story eventually get there. I wasn’t sure what to expect.

A generous section of the book took place before the Flash, as Evie was telling her story to the stranger in the beginning of the novel. Some readers found that section to be boring and pointless, but I really enjoyed it because it really helped me to get to know Evie and figure out what she was like and how the craziness/visions affected her. I also got a clear picture of her relationship with her boyfriend at the time and the complications that began as soon as Jackson came into the picture.
I absolutely LOVED Jackson. As far as accents go, I have always been crazy intrigued by Cajun accents. I think it’s the only weird accent that I find hot and masculine, as I’m not the biggest fan of British accents and what not. Accents don’t really do it for me, but the author happened to pick the one that intrigues me the most. I loved the use of Cajun french and how Jackson used it without knowing that Evie understood it.

But I also loved Jackson’s character. He was tough, hard working, intelligent, and caring. When I say he’s protective, I don’t mean in that annoying alpha male kind of way that makes me crazy. While there was a little bit of that, I thought he was mostly protective in a good way. Though there were moments when he put Evie down, I feel like it was a defense mechanism because so much how she treated him and the things she said to him were interpreted as insulting by him due to his class, since Evie was a little rich girl. All of the negative traits about Jackson really aren’t bad at all considering how things must have felt from his point of view. He didn’t insult Evie to be a jerk and nothing about his behavior made me feel like he was that kind of guy. I have huge issues with the majority of romantic love interests in PNR, so I will totally defend Jackson because he was not that jerk/borderline abusive kind of hero at all. He was just a little rough around the edges and thought so many times that Evie felt that she was too good for him. While most of the novel was from Evie’s point of view, I think even she knew the way he interpreted a lot of her behavior and comments.

I loved the plot in Poison Princess. I didn’t know how everything would unfold and what role Evie had in the Flash and the events after it, but I knew there were important pieces to a bigger puzzle and she was trying to figure it all out. I loved the inclusion of the Tarot in the After Flash events. It was so intriguing and clever of the author to blend an apocalypse with elements of magic.

The tension between Jackson and Evie was addicting. The mystery about her role and visions was equally addicting. I could not put the book down. It was one of those books I started in the afternoon on my day off and found myself up until 2 am still reading. And I’m so glad I waited to read it because I was able to One-Click Buy book two for Kindle immediately after finishing.

I thought the author did a marvelous job of mixing my favorite elements in fiction. Though the post apocalyptic details weren’t plentiful, I still thought it was done well. So many authors attempt to mix a decaying world with terrifying creatures with romance and it falls flat and feels like a B horror movie, but I think Poison Princess did a wonderful job. The lover of post apocalyptic horror wanted a tad bit more from the world building, but I also really love it when I don’t know all the details and I have to use my imagination and keep reading to get the big picture.

I highly recommend the book and I’m definitely going to crack open book two here in a couple of minutes after writing this review!

On a hilarious side note: I think it’s so funny that her name is Evangeline and Jackson is Cajun because every time he says her full name I think of the little lightning bug from the Disney movie The Princess and the Frog talking about his one true love, Evangeline.

Review originally published at Love, Literature, Art, and Reason book review blog

Wow. The ending was just so awesome. I did not see that coming. Arther is one creepy S.O.B. Evie is just a 16 year old girl who has been having these hallucinations. Matthew is a kid who keeps appearing to Evie and saying they are friends. So the book takes place in the present, but has been overcome with storms caused by solar flares. Most people have been wiped out and others have turned into Bagmen/Bogeymen. So, Arther sees this girl and invites her inside and asks her what her story is. And thats when the book actually begins. Evie tells her story starting from 7 days before The Flare. That takes 13 chapters. Then we see one chapter in the present from Arthers POV. Then Evie continues the story. Then when she tells the story and it catches up to where she is in the present. Then Arther has a chapter in his point of view, and then Evie.
Jackson is a juevinile delinquint. JD for short. He has a French accent and is most likely a pervert. Hes got mood swings, and hes really hot. Evie and Jack have this weird relationship of I hate you but at the same time are attracted to eachother. I dont hate Selena, but I dont like her. I like Finn, but Im mad at him. Matthew is crazy like a fox, and Arther is a crazy psychopath. Amazing book. "Remember my titles? I don't get poisoned, I do the poisoning. I'm the princess of it."

*3.5

Fair, a bit spoilery, warning for the 3 books. Not gonna bother myself to read the rest. The main character is a twat. The love interest is a twat. The Holy Grail of Love Triangles will begin around mid book 2. This is the worst love triangle I've read about in years. I mean it. So if you're like me and you hate this shit then I suggest you save yourself the anger and frustration and just skip this series. Go do something better with your time. Read something better. Make something yum to eat. Drink some coffee. Coffee's good, isn't it? Go do that.

Fuck this series and this fucking stupid love triangle.

Twats.

3,5 ✨

Evie es la adolescente modelo: súper popular, guapísima, rubísima y sale con el típico capitán del equipo de fútbol (muy -ísimo también).

Acaba de volver de unas ‘’vacaciones’’ algo diferentes: ha estado todo el verano internada en un centro psiquiátrico luchando contra las macabras alucinaciones que sufre.

En su primer día todo debería de salir perfecto, es lo que todos esperan de ella (incluso ella misma), pero todo se verá truncado por la aparición de los cajúnes en su perfecto instituto, en especial de uno de ellos: Jackson Deveaux, con el que más adelante tendrá que compartir situaciones para las que no va a estar preparada.

No tenía ni idea de lo que iba a encontrarme en este libro y me ha sorprendido mucho, tanto para bien como para mal.

Entramos en la historia con un prólogo que te deja sin aliento y que te promete una lectura de la que no vas a poder despegarte, y así ha sido.

Tenemos un poco de todo: salseo de instituto, romance, fantasía, apocalipsis y todo junto ha funcionado tan bien que no podía dejar de leer, pese a tener unos cuantos fallos.

Los protagonistas tienen bastantes clichés, no es algo que me moleste especialmente sobre todo porque fue escrito en 2012, y desde entonces la literatura juvenil ha cambiado mucho. Dicho esto, lo que sí me ha molestado ha sido la actitud de Jackson, su forma de tratar a Evie es moralmente cuestionable. Evie está demasiado entregada a gustar y sus reflexiones internas me daban ganas de gritarle que espabilara.

Por otro lado, la intensidad de las visiones de Evie, el cómo están descritas, lo desconcertantes y macabras que son hacen un contrapunto muy interesante con su personalidad y creo que estos tintes van a darnos un desarrollo de personaje positivo en los próximos libros.

La trama postapocalíptica entrelazada con fantasía, que se juegue con flashbacks y el no tener la total certeza de que lo que ocurre es real, me tenía enganchadísima.
La introducción del tarot como elemento fantástico me ha parecido súper original, le da un punto de intriga que, mezclado con la acción del apocalipsis ha hecho que la historia funcione increíblemente bien, además durante todo el viaje de los protagonistas, se introducen nuevos personajes que dan vidilla y plantan su semilla en la historia para dejarte con un gran ‘’wow’’ al final. Y es que… ¡qué final! No me lo esperé para nada y me dejó deseando empezar el segundo.