Poisonous Plants and Fatal Fungi: The Lore and Lure of Deadly Plants

Explore humanity's fascination with death through sixty poisonous plants and how they have affected history, magic, warfare, art, and more.

Dispatching people with poisonous plants isn't just an Agatha Christie plot—it began thousands of years ago and continues to this day. Deadly Fascination presents sixty profiles divided into five themes, from classic killers to frightful fungi. Each profile includes the plant's history, folklore, and medicinal uses, as well as how it may or may not be used today.

Though we fear death, we are also drawn to its mysteries. Sandra Kynes feeds our curiosity and dispels common myths, investigating witches and indigenous healers, poisons in popular media, the murky roots of toxicology, and much more. From aconite to poppy to death cap, poisonous plants can attract you like a moth to a flame . . . but don't get too close.