The beginning of the book was fantastic, but the latter half lost my interest and attention. I will definitely try more Alex Marwood books, but this one just didn't thrill me.

The Poison Garden is a story about Romy, a girl raised in a cult, who has been chosen to produce another heir to the leader of The Ark. As the leader of the Ark starts to become focused on conflict, and the Ark prepares for the end of days, Romy must decide what is best for her and her baby.

This story was only ok for me. I found the premise to be intriguing but the story itself fell flat. It was a little slow and the end result was not a great enough pay off for me to really want to recommend it to anyone. It had some good elements of mystery but overall, this book was underwhelming for me.

What happens to the living children of a now defunct cult? Especially when they didn't leave willingly? The Poison Garden will take you on that journey into the mind of former cult member who hasn't given up on the ideas of her cult.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

If you put The Hunger Games, Scientology and The Jonestown Massacre all in a blender and hit the mix button The Poison Garden would come pouring out. It depicts the mentality of the “cult” culture and its lasting effects.  Even though the outside world is more comfortable or you’ve been away from the cult and been living in the outside world the characters fall back into old habits and the comfort of the family. But hierarchies exist in all families and this group has its share of movers and shakers. You may think life is safe within the bosom of the family, but you’d better be always looking over your shoulder.

Romy, young and pregnant, grew up in doomsday cult but following the mass death of virtually all member, finds herself in the real world. We learn about the inner workings of the commune and how she and the other members exist and are mentally groomed to believe in the word of their leader. An interesting look into the culture and how deeply rooted the beliefs can be as her survivalist instincts continue beyond the boundaries of the commune.

A bleak but fascinating look into the life of Romy, who was raised in a cult. I found it unnerving and tense, and I had to finish it as soon as I could. It made for slightly depressing reading given the current circumstances. Compared to the other Alex Marwood books I’ve read this was not one of my favorites although a good read.

It had been over twenty years since Sarah Byrne last saw her sister, Alison. She had no idea where Alison had been for the last two decades until she saw her picture in the paper. Along with nearly a hundred other pictures of people poisoned at the compound of a doomsday cult. Sarah suddenly has custody of her sister's two young children, Eden and Ilo. Taking in two young children would be tough, no matter what the situation, but these children have been sequestered away from the world their entire lives. Their older sister, Romy, also survived the poisoning and has been recovering at a half-way house, as hard as it has been for her siblings to adjust to life "outside", it has been worse for Romy. But Romy has a plan that will give her the power that is her right because of the baby she carries. Will her plan give her everything she wants or will it destroy everything?

I love Alex Marwood and recommend her every chance I get. The Poison Garden was a bit of a deviation from her other books. The book is told from alternating perspectives in alternating timelines. There is Sarah after she takes custody of her niece and nephew. And then there is Romy before the death and after she has re-entered society. One thing is clear, life inside the cult was messed up beyond belief. This is why it throws me when Romy seems like a normal twenty-something woman, well as normal as one can be after emerging from a cult, but then something happens and you realize that Romy doesn't want to be on the outside. In fact, she will do anything to get back to the safety of the inside. - CLICK HERE FOR SPOILERS. I was so shocked by the ending of this book like it was the darkest and twisted thing I have read in a long time.

Bottom Line - While The Poison Garden doesn't start off looking like a typical book from Alex Marwood, it soon morphs into the dark and twisted story that we have come to expect from the talented author. And I loved every page of it.

DETAILS:

The Poison Garden by Alex Marwood
On Instagram
Pages: 400
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Publication Date: 1/14/2020
Buy it Here!
Thank you to NetGalley for the book in exchange for a review.

I am a sucker for cult novels, and this one did not disappoint. Easily tops my list of favorite cult fiction and kept me on the edge of my seat. The characters were well developed, and at times the plot was intense. I am hoping for a sequel - as the ending leads to the possibility.
The power of a "cult leader" and the group mentality sharing has always fascinated me, and this explores that somewhat even spreading to other family members. I highly recommend this for mystery, thriller fiction readers. Loved it!

Ah, you run-of-the-mill popular thrillers and your writers. I think it's time we broke up for good.

Well, I absolutely could not stop reading this book once I started. This book was an absolute page-turner that had me hooked immediately! This is what I expect from this Alex Marwood, but even more so with this one because I am drawn to any dark story of cults and survivors. The book is exactly that: about a cult and the lives of the members. When the majority are found dead, it's revealed that some have escaped into the real world which is also referred to as "the dead." I wouldn’t say there are many twists and turns, but this is a solid dark story and strangely believable like you might catch on an episode of Dateline. The author has the skill of writing in that you really feel as though you know the characters. The strangest thing is, after reading the book, the death of some of the characters living in the “dead”, and their reasoning is crazily relateable. I definitely recommend this as well as her others. Thanks, Net Galley & publishers for allowing me to read this in exchange for my honest review.

This sounded so promising. A cult. A massacre. A survivor trying to live in the real world. Children being exposed to civilization for the first time. But it never really came together for me. The parts were all there. They just never pulled me in like they should have and I don't know why. Often, the ending brings these parts together for me but I found this one to be unsatisfying. Again, the parts were there. But something was missing in how they were put together.

I went into this book really hoping to love it after seeing what many others thought of the book but it ultimately did not work for me. The changing story lines and from past to present gave me a harder time keeping up than I expected. The premise is interesting but some things on how the case was handled did not make sense to me.
Thank you Penguin, Netgalley and Alex Marwood for the ARC for my review.

To Whom It May Concern:
It is with pleasure that I write this letter of recommendation for Mr. Phuong Vo in support of his application to this scholarship. Phuong was my student in an AP Biology/CU Succeed Biology class when he was a junior at Westminster High School. He studied under the CU Succeed program and received credit for General Biology I and II through the University of Colorado Denver.
As a student Phuong was amazing; he was always prepared, kept up with the heaviest workload and asked great questions. He was definitely in the top 5% of students I have ever taught. His GPA was a solid 4.0 and he graduated with honors . As a senior, he was already taking all of his classes at Front Range Community College and he had completed our Project Lead the Way Program in the Medical Sciences. He earned his Associates Degree from Front Range , the same day he graduated high school.
Phuong was also a winner of a QuestBridge scholarship, which allowed him to match with several universities across the United States. He is currently studying biochemistry and psychology at the University of Houston.
Phuong wants to be a doctor in Neuroscience, and he will be a wonderful addition to the medical or research field. We have had many conversations about university choices and medical study and what his future will hold.
I believe that he would be an excellent choice for your scholarship and I recommend him highly.
Sincerely,

I have no idea what this book was doing sitting in my queue for so long. I loved by inches until I loved it entirely.

Alex Marwood is a master at creating atmospheric suspense. This had a gothic feel to it and the plot was refreshing and original. An all-around winner.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Penguin Books and Alex Marwood for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

After dozens of dead bodies are discovered at the compound of a survivalist cult in a remote area of Wales, police find one adult and a few children are the only survivors. Romy is the single adult to survive. She is pregnant and hiding her pregnancy because she fears that the police won’t let her go if they find out. Romy and her two younger siblings are taken in by their aunt, their only living relative, who grew up in a fundamentalist religious colony outside London. But as soon as Romy is away from the prying eyes of authority, she begins searching for other cult members who were either absent at the time of the murder/suicide, or left the compound years earlier.

Who doesn’t love a good cult book? This has overtones of the mass suicide at the Jonestown compound in 1978, although it is a survivalist cult rather than religious. It's not exactly a mystery or a thriller, but there is plenty of suspense. The description of life inside the cult was quite interesting, although I hope a good editor went through the text before publication and cleaned up some of the errors (for example, Romy was in the hospital for several weeks after being removed from the compound – since the present day section of the book is set in 2016, a blood test or physical exam would almost certainly have revealed her pregnancy).

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC in return for a review.

I was immediately captivated by this book. The parallels between the religious fanaticism and cult life were very intriguing. The detailed survival and daily life of those on the compound was well researched and depicted in a realistic fashion. This won't be my last book from this author. The Poison Garden is a wild ride of how twisted reality can be. I'd also like to commend the author on her ability to give each character their own 'voice', something that many books and authors struggle with. In the Poison Garden I was able to follow each character's journey independently despite the jumping of timelines.

The Poison Garden begins with a scene straight out of Jonestown, Guyana. A very few cult members have been rescued; however, they are completely unfamiliar with the world outside their gates.

The Poison Garden is the story of their struggle to survive in the modern world as they try to return to the "safety" of their cult. It also chronicles their memories of their life in the cult through rose-colored glasses.

This story kept me turning pages until I finished it in one sitting. I would highly recommend this title to anyone interested in reading cult fiction.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received a free digital copy of this title to review from Net Galley.

#ThePoisonGarden#NetGalley

Marwood is not for me. I keep trying because I know people that love his work, but it never quite jives for me.