I can easily imagine a military coup followed by an unrelenting Code of Behaviour. However, it is as much a fantasy as the magic that later appears in the book. On its surface, Ixian society is interesting. This really sucks for Yelena, who killed someone in self-defence, since the punishment for murder of any kind is execution. Everyone works, everyone wears uniforms, and every punishment for every infraction is predictable. Ixia is really serious about the rule of law, and there are no exceptions to the Code. Together with his generals, who each administer a district, the Commander (as he is called) crafted the military-like Code of Behaviour. Now divided into eight military districts, creatively designated MD-1 through MD-8, Ixia is ruled by Commander Ambrose. I'm sure there's both truth and fiction in such propaganda, but not having seen the kingdom of Ixia, I can only judge its successor state. Throughout the book we hear horror stories of monarchy and how life under military discipline is better. Ixia is a former kingdom that suffered a coup d'etat just before Yelena was born. The only thing keeping the fiction from tumbling down is that thin fourth wall. Like a stage play, Poison Study is a diorama with two-dimensional scenery and live actors. Snyder's writing or worldbuilding at fault regardless, the outcome is the same: we are never fully-immersed in this story. Reading this book was like reading someone's plot summary of this book.
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