Review: Venom

Author:Fiona Paul( who is the most awesome person ever :D)
Page number:432
Publisher:Philomel
Source:Won

Description:
Cassandra Caravello is one of Renaissance Venice’s lucky elite: with elegant gowns, sparkling jewels, her own lady’s maid, and a wealthy fiancé, she has everything a girl could desire. Yet ever since her parents’ death, Cassandra has felt trapped, alone in a city of water, where the dark and labyrinthine canals whisper of escape.

When Cass stumbles upon a murdered woman—practically in her own backyard—she’s drawn into a dangerous world of courtesans, killers, and secret societies. Soon, she finds herself falling for Falco, a mysterious artist with a mischievous grin... and a spectacular skill for trouble. Can Cassandra find the murderer, before he finds her? And will she stay true to her fiancé, or succumb to her uncontrollable feelings for Falco?

Beauty, love, romance, and mystery weave together in a stunning novel that’s as seductive and surprising as the city of Venice itself.

Review:
I really don't know where to start off at, so I will first talk about the setting.
OMG!...I know I say this word alot, but really the setting was so well descripted and I just loved the time and place of this book. I love getting transported back in time and imagining what it was like for Cassandra. I love how they dressed in gowns and piled on jewelry and everything was just so...fancy compared to nowadays. And I deeply, deeply appreciate Fiona for writing such a descripted book!
The characters in this book were also awesome! I must say I loved Falco the most because he was just so entertaining to read about. He was artistic, funny, and sweet. He was also quite a hottie..."waves hand in front of face"...
Cassandra was very...annoying at first. I know what you are thinking! What was ever wrong with Cass? Well, I will explain. When I first met her, she seemed to always be complaining about what she DIDN"T have, not ever being thankful for what she DID have. I know that is just a little detail in the plot of the story, but it ticked me off at first. But then, I started getting why Cass was sometimes like that and I...started liking her. I found out that she lost her parents and all she had left was her grumpy aunt( and I even found a place in my heart for her) and I started seeing her life in her persepctive. After that I didn't judge her harshly!
The plot of the story was probably my second( or third! It's hard to choose!) favorite part of the story. It was well paced and I continuingly had to read the book to find out what happens next. The mystery and the romance wove together to create a definite masterpiece!
Lastly, the romance. Oh, the romance. It was so sweet and a bit...unrealistic, but aren't they always? I was actually surprised to find out that it had a LOT more romance than I expected. And NO that isn't a bad thing! I also was surprised to find out that there was sort of a love triangle thing going on towards the end, but trust me!....it was all the more entertaining with it.
Overall, the book was great and I would highly recommend reading it! I was stuck between giving it a four or a five star, so I just decided to give it a SOLID four star!

4/5