Belladonna (2022) is a novel by Adalyn Grace. Part Gothic novel, part romance, and part murder mystery, Belladonna is the first book in a series centered on Signa Farrow, an orphaned Victorian girl with mysterious powers. Signa can see spirits and the embodiment of Death, and she must use Death’s help to discover who is poisoning her family while she battles with her romantic desires for him. Exploring themes of grief, etiquette, and choice, Grace examines the complexities of life and death in the face of social expectations.

This study guide uses the Little, Brown and Company eBook edition of the text.

Content Warning: The source text features discussions of death by suicide, self-harm, and animal cruelty.

Plot Summary

Since her parents’ death during her infancy, 19-year-old Signa Farrow has been passed between selfish and greedy guardians who want part of the great inheritance she will get when she turns 20. Signa feels she is followed by Death, whom she can see when he frequently comes to take the lives of her guardians. Though able to see Death and other spirits, Signa realizes at an early age that she seems unable to die, and is angry with Death for taking her relatives and preventing her from having the life expected of a normal young woman.

Signa learns she is able to summon Death by nearly dying herself, and does so by eating berries from the lethal belladonna flower. When she summons Death, she asks him why he has ruined her life, but he promises her that he is not her enemy, telling Signa of the complex balance between life and death. Signa learns about this balance firsthand when she realizes she has similar powers to Death, and accidentally kills her cruel aunt when she touches her.

After her aunt’s death, Signa goes to live with a wealthy and mysterious distant cousin named Elijah Hawthorne and his family at Thorn Grove. A stable boy named Sylas Thorly comes to escort Signa to the manor and tells her that Elijah’s wife, Lillian, has just died and his daughter Blythe is sick. Though Signa finds Sylas annoying, she is also attracted to him, going against the rules of etiquette for a proper Victorian lady.

Signa finds Thorn Grove in an odd disarray after Lillian’s death. Elijah throws parties to distract himself and lets his business go to ruin while his son Percy tries and fails to help him. Elijah’s brother, Byron, and the governess, Marjorie, also act suspiciously, and the servants spread rumors about ghosts haunting the manor.

Signa is accosted by one of these spirits: The ghost of Lillian, who tells her that she was poisoned and that someone is trying to murder Blythe. Signa knows she must discover the murderer to save Blythe and enlists Sylas’s help. She also begins communing with Death more frequently, building upon their shared powers and falling for him simultaneously.

Though Signa finds an antidote for Blythe’s poisoning, mysterious occurrences continue at Thorn Grove. Percy is poisoned by belladonna, leading Signa to give him the last dose of the antidote. Blythe becomes ill again and Signa suspects Marjorie of the poisonings when she learns the governess has feelings for Elijah. However, Elijah confesses to her that Percy is his and Marjorie’s son, leading Signa to question Marjorie’s guilt.

Meanwhile, Signa continues to learn about Death’s world and the complexities of his job and choices, something she must learn to navigate as Death believes she is to become a reaper like him when she dies. Signa realizes that she does not want the proper life she is supposed to want, but instead gives in to her powers and begins a relationship with Death.

Percy begins to see Lillian’s ghost. One night, Signa and Sylas follow him to the garden where Lillian is buried. Percy has set fire to the garden and Signa realizes that he is the one responsible for the poisonings, including his own. While he meant to poison Marjorie to keep the secret of his birth hidden, Lillian accidentally drank the tea he poisoned with belladonna and was killed. Percy had poisoned himself and the others to get his father’s attention and ensure that the family legacy remained intact.

Percy tries to stab Signa after he confesses, but Sylas pushes her out of the way and is not affected when Percy stabs him. Signa is surprised to see Sylas take the form of Death, who tells her she must make a choice about Percy’s life. Signa decides to give the remaining years of Percy’s life to Blythe, and when she tries to feel guilty about her choice she cannot.

Signa hides the truth of Percy’s death from the Hawthornes and Marjorie. Though she is mad at Death for his deceit, she ultimately forgives him as he was only trying to protect her. However, Death tells Signa that he cannot be around her as often in the future, and wants her to live her life how she wants to. Signa still communicates with Death but wants to see him more often. She gets her wish as the novel ends on a cliffhanger when a duke is poisoned, establishing the plot for the next novel in the series.