A Beautiful Poison

By: Lydia Kang

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld

Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

Just beyond the Gilded Age, in the mist-covered streets of New York, the deadly Spanish influenza ripples through the city. But with so many victims in her close circle, young socialite Allene questions if the flu is really to blame. All appear to have been poisoned - and every death was accompanied by a mysterious note.

Desperate for answers and dreading her own engagement to a wealthy gentleman, Allene returns to her passion for scientific discovery and recruits her long-lost friends, Jasper and Birdie, for help. The investigation brings her closer to Jasper, an apprentice medical examiner at Bellevue Hospital who still holds her heart, and offers the delicate Birdie a last-ditch chance to find a safe haven before her fragile health fails.

As more of their friends and family die, alliances shift, lives become entangled, and the three begin to suspect everyone - even each other. As they race to find the culprit, Allene, Birdie, and Jasper must once again trust each other, before one of them becomes the next victim.

©2017 Lydia Kang (P)2017 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved. Excerpt from “Two Fusiliers” by Robert Graves, from The Complete Poems Volume I, edited by Beryl Graves and Dunstan Ward. Reprinted with kind permission of Carcanet Press Limited, Manchester, UK. © 1995 The Robert Graves Copyright Trust.

Interesting, lovely story

It took a bit for the story to evolve but I would not call it a romance story.
Those were turbulent times in the US, World War I and the influenza epidemic.
There was a mystery, tragedy, death and yes a bit of romance. Not a complicated story, not a YA story, even though the characters were under 19.

There's no car chases, shoot outs, any whiz bang, just a basic historical mystery.

Saskia Maarleveld adds a great deal to the story. Even though it took me a while to figure out which male character is speaking, it took nothing away from the story or her performance. I find myself taking a chance on a new author, if the synopsis sounds interesting AND Ms. Maarleveld is reading.

A lot of chemistry talk, which to be honest, for me did not add or detract from the story, just a part of it.

If you like period/historical, low key mysteries, you surely will enjoy it thoroughly, I did.

Starts off slow

Be patient it starts slow but if you give it time you’ll want to keep listening. Twists you don’t see coming ended up being worth the listen to.

Character driven historical medical mystery

At first I found the writing a bit too flowery, but as I got into it, the murders and plot twists pulled me in. The narrator was good, but I couldn't always tell one character from the other by voice alone. Overall, a good story and well worth a credit.

It is the details that solve the mystery

The story of three childhood friends coming together for a dinner and the death of a guest set them on a search to solve the murder. It is set in New York City during World War I . The characters are varied and well developed so your interested is held throughout the tale. The question to answer is what and who are killing all these characters.

Wonderful story

What a well-written, well-read story! Engaging!A must read. The prose is beautiful and the narrator was great!

Just ok

I have mi è feelings about this book. The ending was great but I feel like the characters were weak. I liked the historical part of the story but the story was slooooow. Overall not bad.

Highly recommend

What a great novel. A beautiful poison consistently kept me captivated in its characters and in the era which it takes place. I’m personally a nerd for biology and chemistry as well as mystery novels so many key elements were right up my alley. It’s a quick read so I recommend trying it!

outstanding thriller

I had no idea until the very end who the culprit was! excrllant excellent reading!

A Beautiful Poison....by Lydia King

To think I ordered this awesome novel by accident because I am blind in one eye. That was the best mistake I ever made.

Historical details, intriguing story & characters

There was a bit of a slow start because the characters seemed flat at first, but isn't that true with getting to know people in general? You can't really either like or dislike a person based only on first impressions. The characters grew as the story progressed and as they learned more about life and themselves. The mystery kept me guessing until the end and was not what I would have expected--certainly not a typical "romance" (somehow I think the reviewers that said it was did not actually listen to the whole book). The ending was actually better than I would have predicted and exactly fit the characters and the plot details that had been unfolding all along. I would highly recommend this book and would listen to another by this author. I thought the narrator did an excellent job also.