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A review by dovesfalling
The Poison Tree by Erin Kelly
4.0
I thought this was going to have a lesbian romance, and I am sorely, sorely disappointed that it didn't.
Let's just get that out of the way. Because, what a waste. Karen and Biba would have been so much more interesting than Karen and Rex. Sulky, mopey, manly Rex, ugh.
Anyway.
The Poison Tree hits a lot of sweet spots for me. It has enigmatic characters. A crumbling mansion. The altered perceptions of wine soaked days. Tragic, secretive pasts. In short, it is basically full of tropes, but they're GOOD tropes. Entertaining ones. I read this book in a day, and it was satisfying in a very particular way.
When Karen meets Biba, she very quickly becomes part of her 'pack' - moving in with her and her brother Rex (see above) and beginning a wild, wild summer that will change her life forever. She falls in love with Rex, and with Biba too, and becomes embroiled in their various machinations and familial difficulties. Biba is a bit off her rocker, and she's always bringing strange men into the house, and things get a bit crazy for a while, on all fronts, until everything culminates in an ending that made me queasy.
Never let it be said that Erin Kelly is afraid of going there. She isn't.
Let's just get that out of the way. Because, what a waste. Karen and Biba would have been so much more interesting than Karen and Rex. Sulky, mopey, manly Rex, ugh.
Anyway.
The Poison Tree hits a lot of sweet spots for me. It has enigmatic characters. A crumbling mansion. The altered perceptions of wine soaked days. Tragic, secretive pasts. In short, it is basically full of tropes, but they're GOOD tropes. Entertaining ones. I read this book in a day, and it was satisfying in a very particular way.
When Karen meets Biba, she very quickly becomes part of her 'pack' - moving in with her and her brother Rex (see above) and beginning a wild, wild summer that will change her life forever. She falls in love with Rex, and with Biba too, and becomes embroiled in their various machinations and familial difficulties. Biba is a bit off her rocker, and she's always bringing strange men into the house, and things get a bit crazy for a while, on all fronts, until everything culminates in an ending that made me queasy.
Never let it be said that Erin Kelly is afraid of going there. She isn't.