From the back of the Book:

Like her half-breed mother, young Zarq Darquel can't always hold her tongue. A lowly peasant on a large dragon estate, she goes unnoticed by the Temple of the Dragon - until she accidentally captures the attention of an eccentric and dangerous dragonmaster, unleashing a storm of tragedy. Her clan is plunged into destitution, her beautiful sister, Waivia, sold into slavery, and her mother lost to madness.
Desperate to find Waivia, Zarq and her delirious mother flee through the underworld of their land. Consumed with the desire for revenge, Zarq develops a taste for the highly addictive venom of the dragons she has been taught to revere - and with this poison, she imbibes their memories and glimpses a plot for social revolution. But to achieve it, she must defy not just the sexual taboos and patriarchal conventions, but the Emperor who rules her nation...

TBR

This is my reveal for the February Combo SFF Swap @ BookObsessed. It is reserved for whomever steals it or is holding it at the end of the swap.
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Shaunesay stole the book :)
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young Zarq Darquel can't always hold her tongue. A lowly peasant on a large dragon estate, she goes unnoticed by the Temple of the Dragon - until she accidentally captures the attention of an eccentric and dangerous dragonmaster, unleashing a storm of tragedy

This little blurb from the back of the book is misleading. First of all, Zarq was 5 years old. Second, her childhood friend, trying to act grown up, is the reason the storm of tragedy was unleashed.

Desperate to find Waivia, Zarq and her delirious mother flee through the underworld of their land. Consumed with the desire for revenge, Zarq develops a taste for the highly addictive venom of the dragons she has been taught to revere

This part of the blurb *should* have been: Desperate to buy Waivia back, Zarq and her delirious mother flee through the underworld of their land. As she matures, Zarq develops a taste for the highly addictive venom of the dragons she has been taught to revere. She becomes consumed with the desire for revenge...

Rant over :)

Touched by Venom gets 9 1/2 stars.

I stayed up three nights to finish this book because it had me mesmerized. I hated so much of what was happening yet I kept reading. I didn't want to stop! Some parts had me cursing, some had me frightened, some had me smiling (yes, indeed) and all the while, I was trying to figure out why a story this dark and harrowing, full of anger and depravity, would invoke such passionate reactions in me. The answer is because it is a very well written, incredible story. Zarq's trials scar not only her but the reader as well. Her feelings and actions are understood though not always agreed with. She is in pain mentally and physically, and she is only seventeen at the end of the book. I am eager to read the second book in this saga. It looks exciting (and dreadful!) and I am sure I'll have strong feelings for it, too.

(finished)

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Off to shaunie :)

I was very excited to win this one, it sounds great, Thanks so much Lemmy!

I really have nothing to add to Lemonitsa's previous review, it says it all. I find myself hating this book, yet having to finish it, and dang it, now I have to read the next one to find out what happens! I even had to read a fluffy Mary Janice Davidson in the middle of it because I was having such a stressful week at work I couldn't handle this book on top of it! Brutal, depraved, oppressive and despairing, that is how I would describe this story, but obviously very well written to evoke all those feelings in me!

Thanks, I think, Lemmy for passing this one along! LOL! Next Stop Pepper, let's see what she thinks of it!

It's here! Sorry it took so long to journal. Thanks for sending it!