I get excited when books are set somewhere I’ve been or I live, so you can imagine how happy I was when I found out “Poison Princess” by Kresley Cole was set in Louisiana. The Cajun culture is deeply rooted in this book through the hero, Jackson Deveaux. The higher class culture is brought into play by the heroine Evangeline Greene. I love seeing some of the contrasting cultures I experience every day in a book the whole world can read.
The beginning third of the book is set in pre-apocalyptic small town Louisiana. Evangeline is fresh out of a psych ward for the dreams of death and destruction she keeps having. The dreams have gone away until she starts school again. She also meets the new student — Jack. When the apocalypse hits, it’s only the two of them who survive in her town. She soon finds out she’s not having visions, but they are being sent to her by someone else. She has been warned of her destiny her whole life, but has ignored it. With the help of more characters like her who she meets, she finds out who she is, and what she must do.
The plot and concept of this book made me eerily happy. I’m never this satisfied with a book. Cole takes an idea from mythologies and tarot cards and weaves a story that held me captivated. There were also zombies in this book that were created from the “Flash.” I don’t want to go into further details because I don’t want to spoil the book, but if you’re into the characters that reside in tarot cards and their meaning, I would highly suggest you read this book. It has an element to it that sets it apart from all other books in the future/apocalyptic world genre.
The characters Cole created for this book were amazing. The heroine is identifiable, and I’m sure every girl would do some of the same things she did when faced with the situations she went through. The hero made you want him — as all main boy characters should. Sometimes you hate him, sometimes you love him, but isn’t that the truth in real life as well? I was 100 percent invested in their journey together because it was (and in the future it will be) hard. Nothing about this book is easy, and I appreciate that. I also like the struggle Evie had with the other characters, the ones she meets after the apocalypse. She meets a friend, a flirt and another girl, who possesses a threat to her relationship with Jack.
The ending had me wanting the second book in my hands the second I was done with it. This book has something for every audience — action, suspense, romance and of course
zombies. I give it four and a half stars
