Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright

I listened to the unabridged audio version of Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright, which was very well narrated by Leslie Howard.

Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright is a work of nonfiction and it marks my eighth read of 2025! There's a general introduction for this book, which is followed by each plant presented in alphabetical order. For each poisonous plant listed, there is first a quote about the poisonous plant, followed by information on what makes the plant poisonous, the plant's place in history, its folklore, and what it had been used for historically. I found the information fascinating! I enjoyed how the information was presented by the author. 

Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants is a great read for those that who are gardeners, lovers of botany, lovers of folklore, and readers of nonfiction. I would highly recommend this book.

Listening time for Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright is 7 hours, 15 minutes.

Below is the publisher's summary for Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright, which I found on Amazon's website:

Discover the folklore and history of our most toxic plants.

"If you drink much from a bottle marked 'poison,' it is almost certain to disagree with you, sooner or later." (Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland)

In both history and fiction, some of the most dramatic, notorious deaths have been through poisonings. Concealed and deliberate, it's a crime that requires advance planning and that for many centuries could go virtually undetected. And yet there is a fine line between healing and killing: The difference lies only in the dosage!

In Botanical Curses and Poisons, Fez Inkwright returns to folkloric and historical archives to reveal the fascinating, untold stories behind a variety of lethal plants, witching herbs, and funghi. Going from A to Z, she covers everything from apple (think of the poisoned fruit in "Snow White") and the hallucinogenic angel's trumpet to laurel, which emits toxic fumes, to oleander (a deadly ornamental shrub), with each plant beautifully illustrated by the author herself. This enthralling treasury is packed with insight, lore, and the revealed mysteries of everyday flora-including the prevalence of poisoning in ancient Rome, its use in religion and magic, and common antidotes - making this perfect for gardeners, writers, folklorists, witches, and scientists alike!

I am giving Botanical Curses and Poisons: The Shadow-Lives of Plants by Fez Inkwright a rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post, happy reading!

Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson

 

I listened to the unabridged audio version of Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson, which well narrated by Lindsey Dorcus. Fly With The Arrow is the first novel in the 'Bluebeard's Secret' series. 

Listening time for Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson is 7 hours, 53 minutes.

I was able to download Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson for FREE through the Chirp Audiobooks website. Below is my honest, unbiased review.

Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson was an unexpected read for me. I'd never heard of the author or the series before. I decided to take a chance on the novel and was pleasantly surprised. Fly With The Arrow falls into the young adult, romantic fantasy genre. Are you familiar with Bluebeard tale? I'm not versed with the Bluebeard tale itself, so I can't quite say this novel is a Bluebeard retelling or not. I can say that I enjoyed the storyline, the writing, and the characters. If you like the fantasy and young adult genres with a touch of romance, then you might find this novel a fun read. I did like the world building for Fly With The Arrow. 

As much as I liked reading Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson, I can't say as I'll continue reading the series.

Below is the publisher's summary for Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson found on Chirp's website:

A STOLEN BRIDE. A TERRIFYING BRIDEGROOM. THE GAME THAT WILL DETERMINE THEIR FATES.

I’m a practical girl. I can resign myself to an unwanted marriage – and I had. I just didn’t expect my first potential bridegroom to be murdered by the second and all because I broke the Law of Greeting.

No one warned me the law existed. No one told me breaking it would mean I’d be swept up into the arms of a powerful and beautiful immortal bent on taking me as his sixteenth bride and dragging me off to his strange world. That’s a bit much to ask of a person.

But I’m not the kind of girl to just give up. Not even if it means facing all the strange mystery and magic of this mad fae world with nothing but my common sense.

I will not mope in my room, or go crazy, or let myself be killed by one of his rivals.

And I absolutely WILL NOT fall in love with him.

Not even when he keeps surprising me with depths and kindness I didn’t expect. Not even if it turns out he actually might have a good reason for all of this.

After all, he’s had fifteen wives before me and it’s not a case of “the more the merrier.”

Especially not now, when it turns out he’s playing a game for the fate of my nation. Failure in this world will mean the desolation of everyone I love.

The stakes couldn’t be higher. But I have a crafty husband, a severed head best friend who gives surprisingly good advice, and the common sense my mother gave me, and if that isn’t enough to take on the whole of this fae world … well, they’ll just have to be. That’s all there is to it. Because I’m not dying unless I have a very good reason.

Come along on a wild romantic fantasy adventure with USA Today bestselling author Sarah K. L. Wilson, guaranteed to enthrall, delight, and maybe even surprise you.

I am giving Fly With The Arrow by Sarah K L Wilson a rating of 3 stars out of 5 stars.

Until my next post happy, reading!!