Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln's Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities – Hardcover by Amy Stewart (Illustrations by Briony Morrow-Cribbs & Jonathon Rosen)
Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln's Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities – Hardcover by Amy Stewart (Illustrations by Briony Morrow-Cribbs & Jonathon Rosen)
Product Title (Shopify):
Wicked Plants: The Weed That Killed Lincoln's Mother & Other Botanical Atrocities – Hardcover by Amy Stewart (Illustrations by Briony Morrow-Cribbs & Jonathon Rosen)
Product Description (Rich Text Body):
"Plants may look serene, rooted, and innocent, but make no mistake: the botanical world is armed, dangerous, and brilliantly lethal."
Why We Shelved It:
A delightfully dark, fascinatingly sinister dive into the malevolent side of the green world. Amy Stewart uncovers the poisons, predators, and historical atrocities hidden inside familiar garden flora. Shelved right at the crossroads of Fiction & Dark Lore and Lifestyle & Botanical Wellness—alongside our custom apothecary blends and foundational nature texts like The Secret Life of Plants—this beautifully illustrated hardcover is a must-have for herbalists, historians, gardeners, and lovers of botanical curiosities with a wicked streak.
The Work:
We tend to view plants as gentle sources of healing, beauty, and sustenance. But throughout history, botanical species have choked economies, toppled empires, and dispatched unsuspecting victims with ruthless efficiency.
In Wicked Plants, Amy Stewart teams up with illustrators Briony Morrow-Cribbs and Jonathon Rosen to present an alphabetical Rogues' Gallery of the earth’s most nefarious flora. Inside this gothic, vintage-styled hardcover, readers will explore:
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Botanical Killers & Assassins: True accounts of toxic plants—from deadly nightshade and hemlock to castor beans and stinging trees—that changed the course of human history.
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Historical Atrocities & Scandals: Dark tales of murder, accidental poisonings, and wild livestock massacres linked to common backyard weeds.
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Intoxicants & Pariahs: Plants that enslaved nations, wrecked minds, or earned outlaw status across global legal systems.
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Exquisite Vintage Artwork: Haunting, gorgeous pen-and-ink illustrations and woodcut-style plates that evoke a nineteenth-century apothecary of poisons.
Equal parts educational history and Victorian cabinet of curiosities, Wicked Plants reveals the thrilling, dangerous edge of Mother Nature.