When girls on the island of San Juan start to appear on the beach, drowned, 17 year old Lucas Knight finds himself being blamed by the people of the island, who are desperate to point the finger at someone. After his latest girlfriend winds up dead, Lucas panics. Frantic, he makes an unlikely friend out of Isabel, a girl cursed with poison, who can kill anything with just a touch. Isabel, who has been confined to the safety of a greenhouse filled with poisonous plants agrees to help him and the two embark on a journey to clear Lucas’ name and uncover the real killer.
A Fierce and Subtle Poison was written by Samantha Mabury, diving into the rich culture and lore of Puerto Rico. It is filled with beautiful description and entices it’s readers into wanting more. That being said, the book is very slow and unevenly paced, and finishes with an ending that is perhaps more annoying than mysterious. By the end of the book, I found myself confused, but happy, as the writing served the story justice, but the plot wasn’t as well thought out as I anticipated. Overall, this book gave a lot of mixed feelings, as it provided memorable, but not fleshed out characters, beautiful descriptions, but a weak plot, and a frustrating ending.
One thing that deserves more praise in this book, is the beautiful cover design, which drew me, and likely many others, to read it. The cover reflects the overall theme of the book exceptionally, and really is just stunning.
Review Written by Lindsey, 9th Grade