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A Botanist's Guide to Parties and Poisons

by Kate Khavari

Botany, ambition, and a poisoning in 1923 London

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AlbakiReads Editorial

Botany, ambition, and a poisoning in 1923 London

In 1923 London, research assistant Saffron Everleigh is working to establish herself in University College London’s botany department while facing colleagues’ doubts about women’s academic abilities. A university dinner party turns into a murder investigation when a professor’s wife is poisoned and Saffron’s mentor becomes the chief suspect. With fellow researcher Alexander Ashton, Saffron draws on her botanical knowledge to investigate the toxin and pursue evidence that could clear him. The mystery brings together the period’s academic barriers for women and the practical use of botanical expertise in an inquiry involving gardens, greenhouses, and poisons.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Readers interested in historical mysteries set in academic environments.
  • Readers who enjoy mysteries centered on botany, poisons, and investigation.
  • Readers interested in fiction about women navigating male-dominated professions.

Themes

Women in academiaBotany and scientific researchPoisoning and investigationSocial expectations in 1920s London

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

The Lost Apothecary meets Dead Dead Girls in this fast-paced, STEMinist adventure.

Debut author Kate Khavari deftly entwines a pulse-pounding mystery with the struggles of a woman in a male-dominated field in 1923 London.

Newly minted research assistant Saffron Everleigh is determined to blaze a new trail at the University College London, but with her colleagues' beliefs about women's academic inabilities and not so subtle hints that her deceased father's reputation paved her way into the botany department, she feels stymied at every turn.

When she attends a dinner party for the school, she expects to engage in conversations about the university's large expedition to the Amazon. What she doesn't expect is for Mrs. Henry, one of the professors' wives, to drop to the floor, poisoned by an unknown toxin.

Dr. Maxwell, Saffron's mentor, is the main suspect and evidence quickly mounts. Joined by fellow researcher--and potential romantic interest--Alexander Ashton, Saffron uses her knowledge of botany as she explores steamy greenhouses, dark gardens, and deadly poisons to clear Maxwell's name.

Will she be able to uncover the truth or will her investigation land her on the murderer's list, in this entertaining examination of society's expectations.
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