A review by betweentheshelves
A Drop of Venom by Sajni Patel

dark emotional tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Be warned if you pick this one up: it gets pretty dark! There's a lot of discussion of sexual violence/rape, and women trying to take back their power. If you're familiar with the Medusa myth, those themes likely won't surprise you, but this does come from the Rick Riordan imprint which is usually aimed at a younger audience. I kinda like that he's branching out, though!

My favorite aspect of this was definitely the blending of the mythologies. This is a retelling of Medusa, but it's also steeped in Indian mythology. Those aspects of the story worked really well, and are honestly what kept me reading.

However, the plot did feel uneven to me, and at times, the timeline was difficult to follow (possibly because I was listening to the audiobook). Ends on a cliffhanger for the next book for sure, though!

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