Belladonna: A Novel of Revenge 
Belladonna watch you die
Dark, enticing, and as deliciously decadent as Europe's fading upper classes shortly before and after World War II, Belladonna is an intoxicating tale of betrayal and revenge...
Midwesterner Isabella Ariel Nickerson is just eighteen, visiting London with her cousin June, when she is invited to what she thinks will be the most fabulous costume party. The year is 1935, and Isabella, innocent, spirited, and trusting, is about to be taken from the world she knows and subjected to the whims of a cabal of wealthy aristocrats who answer to no laws but their own. But, looking forward to her party and utterly inexperienced in life, Isabella does not know how far men will go to satisfy desire. Or how far a woman must go to redeem her soul...
Instead of dancing at a masked ball, Isabella will become the sacrificial lamb in a ritual of domination and submission known only to the noblemen who call themselves the members of the Club. Robbed of her freedom, identity, and dignity, the girl known as Isabella slowly disappears. In her place, a new woman is born. She calls herself Belladonna, and she lives for one purpose--revenge.
Now, after an odyssey of escape, flight, and transformation, the bejeweled and utterly mysterious Belladonna will appear in swank 1950's Manhattan to create a spectacular nightclub. Always masked, as those who tormented her were, Belladonna will captivate both imaginations and hearts. No one outside her circle of loyal retainers guesses her true aim for becoming the toast of high society: She is waiting like a deadly spider for a member of the Club to walk into her web. And when he does, her exquisite plan for vengeance can finally begin...
Reviews
All of the characters in Belladonna are absolutely unique and positively fascinating. The story itself keeps me reading it time and time again, but my absolute favorite parts are the ones that take place in Belladonna's club.
It is truly a good read. I highly recommend it.
The story is narrated by a man named Tomasino, one of the few men that Belladonna truly trusts (along with his twin Matteo). They were castrated in the war, and therefore, Belladonna doesn't see them as a threat. Belladonna finds herself the heir of a large fortune, and she dedicates her money and time to Club Belladonna, a popular club, where she hopes to lure one of the members into her club. One member is all it will take to find the rest.
I went into this expecting that I wouldn't like it, and honestly, the very beginning, the chapter before the actual story of Belladonna begins, was quite dull. It had that same rambling, verbose, tedious style as Middlesex did in the beginning, which sort of throws me off for a second because I like to get immediately sucked into a book. After that first chapter though, I was thorougly engrossed with Belladonna's story.
Tomasino is a witty narrator. He loves to talk. He loves to gloat. He loves to be right. Honestly, I'm glad he was the one telling the story. It gives it a flair that I think would be missing if Belladonna, or even his brother Matteo, told the story. Belladonna's diary is also scattered throughout the book; the diary she kept while she was imprisoned. The diary format was an interesting one as well, as it was written in third person rather than first.
I think the concept of revenge appealed to me, as it would many people. How many people get the chance to get their revenge against someone who wrongs them? Many of us have wanted to, but we've never had the satisfaction of doing so. Sure, Belladonna's methods seem a little out there, but wouldn't we all go to great lengths, if we could, to get payback? You can't help but root for Belladonna.
So, while this book seems a little extreme, it is a good novel. I wasn't too satisfied with the ending. It seemed a little rushed, a real let down to the climatic events that were taking place before it. Still well worth the read.