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A review by dragoninwinterfell
The Poisons We Drink by Bethany Baptiste
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Poisons We Drink by Bethany Baptiste is an urban fantasy centered on politics, civil rights, and complicated family dynamics.
Venus - a brewer of love potions with a malevolent magical entity restrained inside of her - leads this story with wit, ruthlessness, vulnerability, and strength. As far as protagonists go, she was very compelling and enjoyable to follow. The supporting characters were also rich and well-fleshed out with interesting motivations of their own.
The strength of this novel is the world building. The magic system is intricate creating not just moments of wonder but dark moments of heavy consequences. I loved that each chapter began with an epigraph "quoted" from an in-universe book, speech, police report, etc. that helped to not only tell the story, but broadened the world around the characters.
It did take me a couple attempts to fully get into the book, but once I did, I loved the ride.
Thank you Netgalley for providing an advanced audio copy in exchange for honest review.
Venus - a brewer of love potions with a malevolent magical entity restrained inside of her - leads this story with wit, ruthlessness, vulnerability, and strength. As far as protagonists go, she was very compelling and enjoyable to follow. The supporting characters were also rich and well-fleshed out with interesting motivations of their own.
The strength of this novel is the world building. The magic system is intricate creating not just moments of wonder but dark moments of heavy consequences. I loved that each chapter began with an epigraph "quoted" from an in-universe book, speech, police report, etc. that helped to not only tell the story, but broadened the world around the characters.
It did take me a couple attempts to fully get into the book, but once I did, I loved the ride.
Thank you Netgalley for providing an advanced audio copy in exchange for honest review.