ARC Tour: Nightshade (Poison Diaries #2)

Welcome to the 1st stop in the Nightshade (Poison Diaries #2) Blog Tour. Thanks to Once Upon a Twilight I was able to read this book before the release date and after the cliffhanger from the first book I could not wait to read it.

A dark, gothic tale of romance... and murder. The lastes book in the grippingly dark series, The Poison Diaries.

Our heroine, Jessamine, has lost her faith in the men she loved, and her innocence as well. She turns to the dark side and plots to kill her father, using his own poisons, before becoming an assassin, a poisoner for hire. Can she recover from her heartache and reunite with her true love, Weed? Find out in this thrilling story where poisons, darkness and horror are a part of everyday life, and love is the only cure. (From Goodreads)

Author: Maryrose Wood & The Duchess of Northumberland

Release Date: October 25, 2011

Publisher: HarperCollins

Now, if you have not read The Poison Diaries then you need to get out there and pick up a copy. I also would like to make it known that I LOVE the cover art. It is what drew me to this series. I started reading The Poison Diaries without even knowing what it was about. I think that makes for a great cover. I liked the first book, but the second book was just packed full of intrigue. Whereas the first book was set all at Jessamine's cottage this one takes you across the English countryside and ends in Italy.

If you have not read the first book I would stop reading now because I cannot promise there will not be a few spoilers to the first book. I will do my best to not give too much away for those that are patiently waiting for October 25th to get here. If you would like to read my review of The Poison Diaries just click here.

The story starts where the other ended. Jessamine is still living with her Father at the cottage, but she no longer has that innocent glow about her. She has been changed by her sickness, the departure of Weed, and has lost all her faith in her father. Weed is sulking far away from Jessamine and seems to have no real purpose now that he has lost Jessamine. The best thing about this book compared to the first is that it is action paced from here on out. I mean it was like overload with all the changes that were taking place. Jessamine makes a deal with Oleander (Prince of Poisons) that if she does what he asks, then Oleander promises to lead her to Weed. But if we learned anything from the first book that is going to come at a steep price.

Jessamine truly becomes a different person as she follows Oleander's instructions. Even changes her name, personality, and physical features (hair, sink color, and dress). It was interested to see how Wood takes Jessamine to these different places and watching her change into what Oleander wants is hard at times. You are cheering for this innocent girl to hang on to all she was, while watching her lose herself. 

The book switches between Jessamine and Weed, which was fantastic because I really enjoyed the little bit of narration we received from his perspective in first book. Weed decides to ignore Oleander and return to Jessamine, but as with most romance books it was too late. His decision to stop wallowing in self pity was what made his changes so great. In the first book he was this scared little weed hiding in the cellar and you start to see him change into this complex man. After reading all of Thomas Luxton's book of horrors it leads him to go to the Orto Botanico di Padova at the University of Padua, Italy. Weed believes that he will find the answer to where Jessamine is and how to help her if he just makes it there, Signora Baglioni does not disappoint.

I do not want to give away too much of the amazing details of Nightshade because I truly believe it is best to take the roller coaster ride yourself. This one ends without a true cliffhanger, but more of a "I have no idea where this story is going!" I would not be surprised to see a certain character show up in the final book, but unless you have read both books I cannot tell you who. Just know you heard it here first if that character does show up. I loved the bits of history included in story, especially the use of Mithradates VI Eupator, King of Pontos. Those who are history people will love how Wood does not vary too much from his actual story.

The Poison Diaries: Nightshade was very enjoyable to read and I think I liked it more than the first book because so much was happening in this book. It will be interesting to see how this series ends which is currently expected to be out in April of 2012, so a great birthday idea for me. 

My Rating: 4

You Should Check Out The Trailer:

Enter the poison garden at http://www.poisondiaries.com/
Like the Poison Diaries at http://www.facebook.com/poisondiaries
Follow the Poison Diaries at http://twitter.com/#!/poisondiaries

THE POISON DIARIES
Amazon: http://amzn.to/nzkpRI
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/p4WYgi
IndieBound: http://bit.ly/q2jBi6

THE POISON DIARIES: NIGHTSHADE
Amazon: http://amzn.to/qlKEhF
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/qFhFJF
IndieBound: http://bit.ly/pkZwSc

Head over to Crystal's blog (My Reading Room) for the 2nd stop on the Book Tour. You won't be disappointed. Brynne (Bookish Delights) is the 3rd stop and her review is up now as well. Check back later for the last two stops on this ARC tour train.

Happy Reading!

Michelle

Tweet This