I really wanted to like this book - but the main part of the book seemed to get wrapped up pretty quickly, The rest might be interesting to a history buff, but I was really there for Mary's story. That part is delivered well, and while the story is well written, I think it's geared towards someone who is more interested in history than I am.

Interesting read. Held my interest. Have recommended to others to read. Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the ARC of this book in return for my honest review. Receiving this book in this manner had no bearing on my review.

I am a huge fan of history and while this book sounded like it would be filled with interesting details of a piece of history that I don't know very well at all, I found this book to be rather dry and hard to remain engaged with for the majority of the piece. Crane has clearly done her research and is intimately familiar with the subject matter, but sometimes that's not even enough to retain reader's interest throughout the book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book for review purposes.

As several other reviewers have noted, this book is not primarily a mystery. It is rather a history of life in early 18th century Newport, RI, with a husband's claim that his wife tried to poison him as a central theme.

This book is not a quick read and it does jump around quite a bit. It includes numerous footnotes evidencing the author's extensive scholarly research. Unfortunately, the author, while acknowledging it, goes into discussions that draw inferences using generalizations based on the historic record, but that are not clearly supported with respect to the central characters.

I have rated the book two stars because the title is very misleading and the book deals more with the social and economic aspects of life in early Newport. For those interested in such matters, particularly in the status of women and their rights, it would be perhaps an informative read.

This is a tale about Benedict Arnold and the scandalous doings of his wife, Mary. That’s right, I said Benedict Arnold. Only, it’s not about THE Benedict Arnold who was the hero of Ticonderoga and later become an infamous traitor. It’s not even about his parents, Benedict and Hannah. In fact, it’s hard to tell which member of the Arnold clan it is about. I spent a ridiculous amount of time using independent genealogical sources (amateur genealogist that I am), and couldn’t figure it out. Cornell professor Elaine Forman Crane wants us, the readers, to believe The Poison Plot is about the General’s grandfather.

But wait. In an extensive introduction, Professor Crane suggests that “General Benedict Arnold may not have been an Arnold at all.” Er, what? She also seems to absolve Mary before the narrative gets going, and proceeds to list a number of reasons why Mary might’ve done what she did. Or didn’t. She then describes what’s in each chapter, and it’s apparent that this work is not wholly about the Arnolds. If you’re looking for a chronological narrative from their first meeting through their marriage and subsequent divorce proceedings and accusations of attempted murder, as I thought I would get, this will not be a book for you. Crane’s focus is subject-based rather than chronologically so, and there’s a lot of jumping back and forth in terms of dates.

Because so many men in the Arnold family were named Benedict, the electronic copy I reviewed would’ve benefited from the inclusion of a family tree. As I’ve previously mentioned, I’m an amateur genealogist. I’ve researched both my family and that of my husband. Because of that interest, I dove into the online records available for both the Arnold family and for Rhode Island. I’ve discovered during my family research that the colonies were, in general, pretty good at keeping vital statistics, and Ancestry includes a database of Rhode Island vital statistics from 1636 to 1899. Our Benedict and Mary should’ve been in it, but nowhere could I find anyone with their names whose vitals matched or came remotely close.

Over 25 percent of my electronic copy is comprised of the notes and index. I tend to scan through notes, especially on an e-reader, mainly because I find it more difficult to flip back and forth as with a paper book. Buried in the notes, Crane suggests that maybe our Benedict and Mary weren’t actually married. Crane doesn’t cite any evidence for this, but perhaps it’s the lack of it that serves as proof. Still, that’s a bit of a bombshell to drop in the middle of notes that may or may not be read. It also begs two questions: why didn’t he marry her, and why didn’t her family insist he marry her?

Despite the lack of linear narrative and the genealogy confusion, I did find elements of this book to enjoy. Crane describes early 18th century life in detail, from how Newport residents got their news to what they purchased at various stores. I’ve always wanted to visit Newport, but my interest was in the Gilded Age and the wealthy families who had their summer homes there. Now, I’d like to see Newport’s colonial history as well.

Sadly, the details of Newport society and colonial life weren’t enough to make me enjoy The Poison Plot. Perhaps I’d thought I’d get “a tale” and “an intimate drama,” terms used in the publisher’s overview, focusing specifically on the two main characters. Admittedly, the genealogical issues put me off from almost the beginning because I couldn’t tell for sure if I was reading an alternate history or a fact-based biography. By the time I finished, I felt I’d read a dry, cultural history thesis about women and marriage. For Professor Crane’s students, that might be enough. But for the average reader, it’s anything but entertaining. Oh, and the comment about the General not actually being an Arnold? Crane suggests that maybe Benedict’s first wife was already pregnant with the General’s father when he married her. Regardless of the circumstances, he was named Benedict Arnold and his son became both the hero of Ticonderoga and a traitor to a fledgling republic.

I received a download of The Poison Plot from Cornell University Press, via NetGalley. My words and opinions are my own.

I love the concept of this book and I'm always a fan of the setting of colonial times. The author clearly did extensive research and used real historical documents to create an interesting and mysterious story based on true events.

The Poison Plot: A Tale of Adultery and Murder in Colonial Newport by Elaine Forman Crane is a mystery novel with a fascinating setting. I love the colonial period and have visited present day Newport. As a result, I loved reading this novel. I think historical fiction has the ability to bring the past alive in ways that history books never could. This novel does not disappoint in that regard. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who loves historical fiction. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

I am not sure why, but I am drawn to stories seemingly like this involving the sensationalized murders committed using (usually) poison. I don't know why this is such a draw - and usually it is Victorian Era cases that I am interested in, but this one went a bit further back, to Colonial Newport in the early 1700s.

I also have to admit that one of the reasons I first requested this book was because I failed to read the subtitle, and when I read the name Benedict Arnold, first assumed it was about THE Benedict Arnold, which made me doubly confused because I thought/knew poisoning was definitely NOT how he died. Oops. Sometimes I am great at reading, sometimes not so much. This is kind of embarrassing, but at the same time, eh, whatever. Everyone at one point or another has done something similar.

This book is marketed as a murder mystery, it says so right there in the subtitle. But the problem with that is, that's not really what the book is about. With so many unknown variables, and the fact that there are no contemporary sources that record Mary Arnold's personal thoughts and feelings, or purpose for her possible actions, it is almost entirely filled with conjecture. A rime example of this appears at 29% where the author states, "Psychological reasons may have bee responsible for Mary's behavior as her life unfolded, although such possibilities are merely conjectural." Seriously, the title of this book should have actually been Conjecture About a Possible Murder and Some Other Stuff About Colonial Newport. It would have been highly accurate, at least.

The death/murder of her husband is dealt with rather swiftly in the first couple chapters of the book. The motive, means, and opportunity are all there, but given how little information there actually is left in any existing records, the author again falls back on the dreaded C-word. The author even states at one point, "Then again, there is no hard evidence that Mary actually tried to poison Benedict or that he was in fact poisoned" (forgot to record what % this was at, sorry!) Well damn, then what was the point of all of this nonsense then anyway?!

My biggest issue really is that the book was not what it purported to be. The drama surrounding Benedict and Mary, he being roughly two decades older than her, she having affairs and burning through his fortune like there's no tomorrow, certainly could make a circumstantial case - especially if Mary might be excluded from receiving anything in her husband's will. All we know for sure is that Benedict became ill. Upon his recovery he filed a divorce petition, indicating the affairs Mary carried on while married was a reason for the divorce. Then Benedict died not long after the divorce was granted. One of the problems is that at that time there was no way to test someone to see if they had been poisoned. So, where is the mystery then? Truthfully, there really isn't one, because there are far too many unknowns.

That the author is a historian, that much is obvious. And I truly enjoyed the dissection of daily life in Colonial Newport far more than I enjoyed the story surrounding the Arnold marriage. We get to see so much of daily life as it would have been for most citizens. The author does a fine job explaining social, political, and economic issues of the period. Perhaps this book would have been better if it had strictly been a biography of the city of Newport, Rhode Island - to be fair, I must say that city biographies are one of my most favorite kinds of books to read, so I would be far interested in that than any "Eh, we don't really know, but maybe?" murder mystery.

As a 'true crime'-ish murder mystery, I can not recommend this book at all. As a snapshot of life in colonial New England, yes, have it. Just ignore the hubbub about the Arnold family.

Essentially, it is the story of a woman seeking her own personal and financial security through the acquisition of goods and property. And, unfortunately for this particular woman, who had a string of lovers, and an elderly husband who dies, gossip ran rife and poison was the word on everyone lips.

So, was Mary Arnold a victim or pawn. We may never know the real truth, as while many other voiced their own opinions, Mary did not give voice to hers, so we we are left with only rumour and speculation.

I like the idea of an incident from history that may be shrouded in mystery and bringing it out into the open. The trouble is, that sometimes these attempts don't always come off they way the author intends. In this instance we know the premise from the outset - an alleged crime, an accusation, a victim, a suspect. But that is all we know - even now we can only hypothosise.

Some authors manage to keep readers entertained - others come off as dry and scholarly, and fail to capture their readers attention. And, unfortunately, this is what happens with this tome. Everything we need to know is contained within the first few chapters - the rest, is just a social and economic history (which I wasn't particulary interested in).

Would this have worked much better as a work of fiction, or something in the style of the "true crime" or popularist genre, quite possibly. Short and snappy - give me the alleged crime, the suspects, the investigation, the outcome. “Just the facts, ma’am.”

I enjoyed this book but probably more as a portrait of the times than as a murder mystery per se. There are just too few facts available to tell if Benedict Arnold was even murdered much less that his wife Mary was the murderer. It’s basically all conjecture which ,although interesting, is insufficient to really make a case one way or another. The author is an historian and I felt the book was stronger in that aspect.
My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Corruption, greed, rampant consumerism, affairs, and attempted murder. These all seem like the trappings of modern life, but they were just as present in 18th century Newport, Connecticut. In The Poison Plot by Elaine Crane, all of these elements come together in a tale that is told and retold from multiple angles.

Unusual for a book that is describing a murder plot, the introduction outlines the themes of each chapter, with little attempt to stage a “reveal” of any of the prominent players or plot points. The text sometimes reads like an academic thesis, with some turns of phrase working (“The Benedict who is the protagonist of this narrative is wedged somewhere between a governor and a turncoat.”) and others not (“Mary absented herself from the group of raconteurs.”)

Central to this narrative is Benedict Arnold, a man nearly 20 years older than his wife, who he feared was poisoning him. This is not the Benedict Arnold made famous in American History texts, but instead his grandfather of the same name. No fewer than 5 Benedict Arnolds appear in these pages.

Mary Arnold, the other central figure in The Poison Plot, was a product of the changing consumer habits in the 1720s and 1730s in Newport. At the beginning of that time period advertising was minimal and shops were quiet places of business. By the end, overseas trade had grown significantly, with luxury fabrics and other fine goods coveted by society’s elite. As a side effect of these changes theft and counterfeiting became part of the landscape, requiring shops to offer a variety of locks to try and prevent theft, and a variety of rewards to try to recover that which was already stolen.

The plot at the center of this story, a poisoning, reveals a fascinating change in the law over the centuries. At that time it was fuzzy regarding attempted crimes. No death = no crime seems one interpretation, almost incomprehensible in a time where “collusion” is a household word.

Throughout The Poison Plot, the story suffers from a dearth of hard facts. How old is Walter Motley, lover of Mary Arnold? Crane does not know. Why did Mary buy masks to wear: had she suffered the scars of smallpox? Again, the author only speculates, although to her credit she is clear in stating when she is doing so. Sometimes she even vents her frustrations directly, describing the conflicting or ambiguous accounts found in original source material. These asides mostly serve to distract from the narrative, which never quite comes into sharp focus.

Worse, though, is the lack of a clear timetable. By organizing the book by topics, the pivotal poisoning, divorce, and death appear first. Later, effectively traveling back in time, we are provided with some limited back story on Mary, including the early years of her marriage to Benedict. While Crane has attempted to weave as much information available from a large number of sources, the resulting narrative is somewhat threadbare.

This was an interesting read, but must say it wasn't really what i was expecting. I think this is the kind of book that if i were to read it again, it would have to be in the quiet with nothing to distract me. There were parts that i really enjoyed and parts that had me wanting to skip a few pages.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy.

In 1738, in the bustling town of Newport, Rhode Island, Mary Arnold allegedly attempted to murder her husband Benedict, a man considerably older than herself. Her reasons, as revealed in the divorce petition her husband filed in December 1738, included financial gain and her adulterous affairs. Benedict Arnold was certainly sick, and when he recovered he divorced his wife although he died soon after the divorce was granted.

Domestic murders are not rare, in fact, outside of armed conflicts, in most places and times a person is more likely to be murdered by someone he or she knows than by a stranger. An intimate partner is always the person the police look to first when a murder has occurred. There is no reason to believe that this was different hundreds of years ago.

Until the nineteenth century, when a test for the presence of arsenic in a body was developed, there was no sure way of proving someone had been poisoned. Many of the symptoms of poisoning are the same as a number of natural maladies, such as vomiting, bloody stools, and the like. There is really no way of telling how many inconvenient relatives were done away with over the centuries, and we equally do not know how many people were suspected of poisonings of which they were entirely innocent.

Due to the paucity of real information about Mary Arnold’s life, a lot of this book is speculation. That does not make it bad, in fact, it is very interesting, but the reader should be aware of this. The author describes the economic, social and cultural milieu in which Mary Arnold lived. The view of New England during the first part of the eighteenth century is fascinating. If you are curious, as I was, about whether the infamous traitor Benedict Arnold was a member of this family, the author says that he was the grandson of Mary’s husband Benedict by his first wife, Mary being his second.


I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although I am not convinced that Mary Arnold actually tried to murder her husband. Certainly, it is possible, and it seems that the author thinks she may have done it, but if I were on a jury I would have reasonable doubt. Not that I think she was an angel, or incapable of trying to poison her husband, but there just is not enough evidence nearly three hundred years later to say for certain one way or the other. The lack of a specific test for arsenic, and the hints that Benedict may have been suffering from a sexually transmitted disease of long-standing, make the decision impossible, at least for me.

"malevolent wives, betrayed husbands, and poisonous solutions" Who knew this was going on back in the 18th century? A fascinating, well documented look at life in the 1700s.

I was extremely disappointed in this book. First, the title is completely misleading. It should be something like: A History of Questionable Behaviour in Colonial Newport. Why? Because the discussion regarding Mary Arnold poisoning her husband is but a minor part of the book that is basically the history of a particular small town. Yes Benedict Arnold died. Yes he thought his wife did it. But beyond that and a few overly emphasized events, there is nothing in the book that actually debates the topic. The book is full of supposition. I didn't do a word count but got overwhelmed with the constant use of "if," "likely," and "probably" throughout the book. The author tried to potentially reconstruct what Mary's life might possibly have been like if she perhaps maybe saw/thought/liked certain things. Sadly there was nothing to hold this book to its stated plot. However, I did give it an extra star because it was an interesting look at life prior to the Revolutionary War. I felt Ms. Crane did know that subject well. Too bad she had to pretend there was information regarding what may or may not have been a murder included in her topic.

This book was interesting and entertaining. A bit weird at part it was a nice reading and I enjoyed it.
Many thanks to Cornell University Press and Netgalley

Many thanks go to Elaine Foreman Crane, Cornell University Press, and Netgalley for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review. This is one of those nonfiction accounts with the format I slightly detest. The author decides to tell the entire story in the first two chapters-BAM!!! Whodunnit and why etc all laid out. Then he decides to fill in the blanks with facts about the village and various statistics for the remainder of the book, but now I’m just not as interested in climate change, population spikes, and whatnot outside of the real details of the story. Everything is segmented instead of one steady, flowing narrative. I guess I just want to be told a story.

Fact: the blurb of The Poison Plot immediately had me under its spell. I enjoy a good non fiction read every once in a while and the promise of a murder plot and a 18th century setting sounded like a perfect match. So even though I had seen mixed reviews before I started it, I had still high hopes for The Poison Plot. Sadly, I did not have the positive reaction I was hoping to have to the story. In fact, I struggled right from the start and after several tries and careful consideration I had no other option than to make this book my second DNF this year. Am I sad to have to make this difficult decision? Yes. But I will try to explain below why. First of all, the writing style is dry, formal and hard to get into. This made it considerably harder to keep reading. Also, the whole mystery around the case is basically revealed in the prologue, leaving little to look forward to in the rest of the book. And as has been stated various times in the book, there is no hard evidence Mary tried to poison Benedict or that he even was poisoned at all. Doesn’t that mean that the whole ‘poison plot’ this book is based on is actually nonexistent? Especially since this is supposed to be a NON fiction account based on facts. Related to this is the cheer amount of guesswork about Mary’s life in general and what happened with all the if, would, probably, may have... I understand there are not that many details available of that era, but no facts means no accurate account of the supposed ‘poison plot’ and Mary’s life can be given. This guesswork really bothered me and I would have preferred this being converted in a historical fiction read based on available information instead. This would probably make the story a lot more readable as well. Another thing that made me DNF The Poison Plot were the constant and repeatedly mentions of random details and facts of the time period without it having a solid connection to Mary. There is an overdose of unimportant details and information of the era, and honestly I don’t really care about the minute weather details or what someone may or may not could have bought and when. Especially since most of the time there was no direct link to Mary or the other key characters. I tried really hard to keep reading, as I wanted to learn more about the supposed murder plot and what really happened. Unfortunately, between the writing style, guesswork, unimportant detail overdose and lack of connection of most of the content to the main characters, I found myself having no other option than to DNF it.

To be frank, the format of this book with it's strange chapters was not appealing. I would have loved more of a developing story whether it's non fiction or not. When I was interested the writing was really good and painted a grim picture of life in the New England colonies of 1738.

This is more of 1.5.

This book tries to make interesting a case of attempted murder by poison in 18th century Newport, but it fails short. The author is firmly in between writing a dissertation on the topic and writing a fictional mistery, and it doesn't work.
It's a pity, because the writing style is very enjoyable and quite funny: I would be interested in reading more from this author, because I feel it's more a topic problem.