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csemjoro's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Blood, Trafficking, War, Gore, and Slavery
Moderate: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, and Animal death
chalkletters's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
I was excited by Master of Poisons’ promise of heroes in exile and rhythms of folklore and storytelling, and Andrea Hairston did deliver on all of those things, just not quite in the way I’d imagined. Perhaps this dreamy epic was the wrong novel to follow Inherent Vice’s psychedelic density, because I had similar difficulties trying to get to grips with both.
Master of Poisons’ cast felt very fluid, with motivations which were so tied to the ethereal magic of Smokeland that they became hard to pin down. Hezram was the villain, sacrificing children and bleeding transgressors to power dream gates, but it was tricky to remember what the dream gates did, and how (or if) they connected to the fiends who attacked Awa. The prose descriptions of Smokeland were beautiful, elevating Awa’s point-of-view sections above those of Djola, but the connection to the everyday world and the conflict going on there could have been clearer.
Djola’s quest was clearer and gave the story the momentum it needed for a while, but sadly fell prey to Djola’s reliance on magical drugs which left his narration unreliable and disorientated. Perhaps a sharper reader would have fared better, and not got so discombobulated that they missed the link between Awa’s friend Bal and Djola’s daughter.
One thing which stood out amidst the confusion were the animals, both as perspective characters and as companions to the main cast. Bees are a theme throughout the novel, and Andrea Hairston uses them in a far more lifelike way than The Starless Sea. The whales (or behemoths) were also a highlight.
The lyrical prose and fluid morally grey characters are deliberate features of Master of Poisons, but may keep some readers at a remove from the story.
Content Warnings
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Child death, Death, and Slavery
boglord's review
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Torture, Blood, Xenophobia, Violence, Trafficking, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Death
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Child death, and Transphobia
Minor: Rape, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, and Vomit
laurareads87's review
adventurous
dark
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Master of Poisons is epic fantasy on a grand scale -- many locations, many years passing, multiple dimensions even -- inspired by African Traditional Religions + folklore and following Djola, the title Master Of Poisons, as he attempts to save his homeland from dangers that are simultaneously environmental, political, and magical. I appreciate a lot about this book. The characters are diverse (lots of LGBTQ+ representation here), and even many of the secondary characters are well developed as complex + nuanced. The worldbuilding is fantastic -- Hairston's rich descriptions are vibrant and the setting feels entirely real -- and the writing beautiful. I did struggle with the pace at times: I actually really enjoyed the elements of the story that some other reviewers have described as 'slow burn' as strong character development really held my attention, but some of the more 'fast action' parts almost felt so abrupt that I had to backtrack and re-read to find my footing and fully know what was going on. All in all, a highly original fantasy with excellent characters and world-building; I'll be happy to read more of Hairston's work in the future.
Content warnings: violence, blood, slavery, kidnapping, torture, transphobic violence, mention of sexual violence
Content warnings: violence, blood, slavery, kidnapping, torture, transphobic violence, mention of sexual violence
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Slavery
Moderate: Transphobia, Kidnapping, and Torture
Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Rape
lighterthaneyre's review against another edition
I found it really hard to connect to the writing style. It felt a little disjointed, and like I was thrown into the deep end of world building without doing some transition first.
Seems more like a personal taste thing than the fault of the book
Seems more like a personal taste thing than the fault of the book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery
multiplyoctopi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Torture, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Grief, Drug abuse, Death, Body horror, Blood, and Slavery
foreverinastory's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Thank you to Macmillian Audio who provided me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Full disclosure: I shouldn't have listened to this as fast as I did. I am very unfamiliar with the names and I wish I had taken the time to slow down so I could absorb them (mainly for side characters). That being said, I did not take any stars off for this as it is solely my own damn fault. But I do plan to reread this in the future either physically or in conjunction with the audiobook.
First off, this book is a stunning and epic high fantasy. Do not go into this book expecting anything different. This book is long and the world building is immense, but all of it is necessary. The plot is slow moving and covers very large swaths of time so be prepared.
Master of Poisons follows Djola and Awa. Djola is the Master of poisons until he is blamed for an attempted rebellion and poison sand corrupting his homeland. Exiled from the Arkhysian Empire, he must find answers in old alchemical texts with the aid of pirates. Awa is a young woman training to become a griot after being sold by her family--may be wrong in this but I think she is of a caste or supernatural being that is the object of oppression?? There's something here if I can't remember exactly because I remember her being the object of a lot of slurs.
This book is full of folklore and mythology similar to The Priory of the Orange Tree or Raybearer. It is a vibrant world full of magic, conflict and blooming relationships. There is also a large part of the world that is nonbinary. These characters are known as vesons and use the neopronoun vie. I definitely thought this book was the beginning of a series, but I am glad it was not. The ending was wild and I absolutely loved it.
Full disclosure: I shouldn't have listened to this as fast as I did. I am very unfamiliar with the names and I wish I had taken the time to slow down so I could absorb them (mainly for side characters). That being said, I did not take any stars off for this as it is solely my own damn fault. But I do plan to reread this in the future either physically or in conjunction with the audiobook.
First off, this book is a stunning and epic high fantasy. Do not go into this book expecting anything different. This book is long and the world building is immense, but all of it is necessary. The plot is slow moving and covers very large swaths of time so be prepared.
Master of Poisons follows Djola and Awa. Djola is the Master of poisons until he is blamed for an attempted rebellion and poison sand corrupting his homeland. Exiled from the Arkhysian Empire, he must find answers in old alchemical texts with the aid of pirates. Awa is a young woman training to become a griot after being sold by her family--may be wrong in this but I think she is of a caste or supernatural being that is the object of oppression?? There's something here if I can't remember exactly because I remember her being the object of a lot of slurs.
This book is full of folklore and mythology similar to The Priory of the Orange Tree or Raybearer. It is a vibrant world full of magic, conflict and blooming relationships. There is also a large part of the world that is nonbinary. These characters are known as vesons and use the neopronoun vie. I definitely thought this book was the beginning of a series, but I am glad it was not. The ending was wild and I absolutely loved it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Slavery, and Violence
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