This sounds absolutely like the perfect book for me-The Great Gatsby, believe it or not, has long been one of my favorite books, and I was particularly intrigued by the promises of a gothic atmosphere intertwined with a sapphic romance and charming young boys broken by his father’s whims. She navigates a world of parties and gems and drugs and soon enough finds herself caught in the pull of it, thrashing in the tides, desperate to get herself out even as each part of her is called to Jonathon’s quiet joys and, in particular, Audrey’s charm and resilience. Tripping Arcadia follows med school dropout and poison nerd Helena as she’s hired to work for a rich family as the caretaker of their chronically ill son, a boy rumored to be addicted to alcohol and cruel as a viper. And, of course, I loved our relationship: our main character Lena’s with rich siblings Audrey and Jonathon in particular. Kit Mayquist’s writing is absolutely, entirely gorgeous, descriptive and vivid and dark, with each word carrying a certain weight. Sapphic characters and twisted, broken boys speckle this book like stars in the night sky-or, aptly, like the poisons dotting the pages of this book-and bring to life a world which I enjoyed and despised in equal measure. What can I say about it? An atmospheric debut, reminiscent of THE GREAT GATSBY, with raging parties and drugs and alcohol galore. But the closer she gets to the family, the more she comes to understand that the mysterious illness plaguing Jonathan may not even be an illness at all, and that he has been wronged by his father just as much as she has, and, even worse, that it may be too late to help.TRIPPING ARCADIA. Tempted by money as much as a dose of power she’s never had before, and with a blossoming flirtation between herself and Audrey, the Verdeau’s eldest daughter, Lena must decide how far she’s willing to go, and who she’s willing to put at risk to get the revenge she craves.

But when things do not go as planned and her toxic brew gets mistaken by her boss for a hot new drug, Lena quickly finds herself welcomed deeper into the Verdeau’s world despite her intentions, and significantly richer in the process. Using her background in medieval poisons, Lena cautiously devises her own botanical revenge.

Tasked to assist the Verdeau family doctor and their ill but poetic adult heir, Jonathan, Lena chronicles her nights spent working overtime to hide the Verdeaus’ self-destructive tendencies both at home in Boston, and at their Gilded Age mansion, Arrow’s Edge-That is until she discovers the Verdeau are the one’s responsible for her family’s financial struggles, and the firing of her father six months prior.

The sounds which Lena Gereghty cannot ignore, even now, years after the events of that New Year’s Eve at Arrow’s Edge.

Tripping arcadia kit mayquist