The Poison Season
Teen & Young Adult Dark Fantasy
Inkyard Press (December 6, 2022)
353 pages
Outsiders are always given a choice: the Forest or the lake. Either way, they’re never heard from again.
Leelo has spent her entire life on Endla, coexisting with the bloodthirsty Forest and respecting the poisonous lake that protects her island from outsiders who seek to destroy it. But as much as Leelo cares for her community, she struggles to accept that her younger brother will be exiled by his next birthday, unless he gains the magic of enchanted song so vital to Endla.
When Leelo sees a young outsider on the verge of drowning in the lake, she knows exactly what she’s supposed to do. But in a moment that will change everything, Leelo betrays her family, her best friend, and Endla by making an unthinkable choice.
Discovery could lead to devastating consequences for both Leelo and the outsider, Jaren, but as they grow closer, Leelo realizes that not all danger comes from beyond the lake—and they can only survive if Leelo is willing to question the very fabric of her society, her people, and herself.
In The Poison Season, we’re taken through the life of a young woman in a sheltered community that live in a sinister forest. Leelo has been raised to protect their magical forest at all costs. Their people are protected by the forest, and in turn they must guard it from outsiders. Between her home and the land of outsiders is a large poisonous lake. Nothing that touches the lake water survives. Leelo and others like her keep watch over the lake during the winter to ensure no outsiders walk across while it’s frozen. Anyone who crosses to their forest from the outside must be sacrificed to the forest.
The forest demands many sacrifices…
The people who live in the magical forest have magical voices. I don’t recall that the origin of their magic voices was fully described in the story; however, the people have a song for many things. They sing during celebrations, but they also have a “killing” song. When sung, creatures of the forest cannot resist the temptation to follow the sound. Ultimately, they are “fed” to the forest. The song is so powerful that it cannot be sung while the lake is frozen. Human outsiders can’t resist the song either.
The story had a lot of potential but I think that it lacked character depth. When Leelo finds love, their interactions and conversations do not get played out well for readers. It left me wondering why either of them liked each other at all. Their relationship wasn’t properly explored. Also, her cousin seems borderline obsessed with Leelo. Why she has such strong feelings isn’t explained. Did she have abandonment issues? She acted as though Leelo was such a thorn in her side, but then would be desperate to keep her around and to herself. Why? There was a level of family dysfunction that wasn’t quite clear between them.
The Poison Season is a dark fantasy tale with a deceiving cover.
While I love the beauty of the cover, it doesn’t quite match the darkness in this book. Sure, the description tells us of a bloodthirsty forest. It was the bloodthirsty people I found to be a little bit shocking. I won’t give away the truly darkest scene of this book, but it was definitely a depiction of a horror movie scene. I thought it was a bit much for a teen fantasy, but maybe I’m just a little sensitive.
Kristin lives in the PNW with her husband, and three kids. She loves to read YA fiction, fantasy, and romance. She enjoys a few side-hustles, including creating bookreels/booktoks for authors. The only shows she watches are re-runs, and if she’s not reading a book, she’s listening to one.
