Review--A Taste of Poison by Tessonja Odette

A Snow White Retelling

A runaway princess wanted for murder.
A deadly huntsman who’s after her heart…

Half-fae Astrid Snow is used to being disliked. With magic that makes her mirror back one’s worst qualities, she has more enemies than friends. And when she’s accused of poisoning her father, her stepmother—the formidable Spring Queen—becomes her greatest enemy yet. Forced into hiding, she finds solace at the Seven Sins Hotel. It provides the perfect subterfuge she needs. For who could ever find an outlaw in a hotel famed for sin?

Bear shifter Torben Davenport lost everything to the gambling halls. To pay off his debts, he serves the fae royals as their personal Huntsman, locating hard-to-find fugitives with his scent-based magic. When the Spring Queen offers him a bargain that will erase his debts for good, he’s willing to do what it takes—even if it means finding the queen’s runaway stepdaughter and cutting out her heart.

Astrid won’t go down without a fight, even if her assailant is a strikingly handsome Huntsman. If she can evade the bear-shifter’s claws, maybe she can make him an ally. It’s easier said than done, especially after she accidentally gets herself handcuffed to her infuriating captor.

Can Astrid cut through Torben’s icy demeanor and convince him to help her find the real killer? Or will she lose her heart in more ways than one?

ACOTAR meets Kingdom of the Wicked in this standalone fairytale retelling of Snow White. If you like brooding heroes, just one bed, and grumpy sunshine romances, then you’ll love this swoon-worthy story in the Entangled with Fae series.

*NOTE this book is upper YA/NA featuring mature situations, moderate violence and gore, substance abuse, and some adult language. The romance is slow burn but leads to moderate steam.

A Taste of Poison is a complete stand-alone novel set in the same world as The Fair Isle Trilogy. Journey back to Faerwyvae or begin your adventure for the first time with this enchanting tale. Each book in the Entangled with Fae series can be read on its own and in any order. Happily ever after guaranteed!

Finally diving back into Tessonja Odette's Entangled with Fae series in which each standalone book is a fairy tale retelling! The books all take place in the same world and characters from other books interact, so this is a fun series to read at any pace! A Taste of Poison, as you probably guessed, is a Snow White retelling and was a sensational read!

Astrid Snow is on the run and in hiding. She's been accused of murdering her father by her stepmother, the queen and Astrid has been trying to stay under the radar. But then the queen hires the Huntsman. Torben is a young man who made poor gambling choices and is now indebted to the fae royals as their hunter. He basically does whatever he's told as part of their 100 year agreement. After that time, he would be a free man. Then Astrid's stepmother, Tris, agrees to get his punishment lifted if he brings her Astrid's heart.

When the two collide, Astrid tries to plea her case that she's innocent and when she tells him her side of the story, Torben finds that he believes her. Now the two must work together to figure out who would've wanted to kill the king.

There were quite a few nods to the original Snow White fairy tale in this one that were fun to find! Plus the rest that was added all gives way to the fairy tale vibes. If you've read any of Tessonja's other books in this series, you'll know what I mean. There's a certain kind of magic to these books and the world the characters live in and it's so fun to return to time and again! I still must venture back to the very beginning and read the first trilogy that set this series on its course!

I love the edgy modern take fairy tale retellings are going these days. We have heroes becoming the villain, the villain being the hero and getting the girl...it makes for great reading material that's for sure! So naturally, the romance that develops between Snow White and the huntsman was positively toe curling. Astrid and Torben didn't have the insta love vibes like you normally get in fairy tales, but more of an adversaries turned reluctant allies to something more and it was beautiful!

There's a bit of mystery involved in this one with the true whodunit! There were definitely some twists I did not see coming and it was jaw-dropping! This book was just filled with surprises! Of course it all leads up to its heartwarmingly happily ever after, for as we know, that's how fairy tales end!

The ending was sweet and nice and felt fitting to the story. I have one last Entangled with Fae fairy tale to read and I am sadden by its end, but remind myself there's still more to come from this world...I just have to go backwards! Lol. If you're looking for a fairy tale retelling with actual faeries involved, then be sure to pick this series up! You can truly pick any of these retellings up in whichever order, your only spoiler will be knowing the names of previous couples, but it's kind of a given if you look at each of the books beforehand! 

Overall Rating 4.5/5 stars