Venus Stoneheart is a witcher who brews love potions, in a world that mistrusts witches & their potions and that’s all you’re getting as no spoilers here!

This story is fun, well paced, steeped in magic and intrigue. It’s a strong debut novel and I hope to see more from Bethany Baptise

The Poisons We Drink is a YA urban fantasy that has an interesting premise and real, messy characters.

It centres around Venus - a young woman who brews love potions - in a world where Witchers first became public knowledge at the turn of the millennium and have faced prejudice and discrimination ever since.

I loved Venus as a character. She wasn't always a likeable character, but she was always an understandable one - even at her angriest and messiest, when she was making mistakes, I still understood why she felt that way and did what she did. This is not always an easy thing to pull off but Baptise manages it and leaves me rooting for Venus throughout.

I also found this magic system and world to be really interesting, in particular what Baptise did with the concept of love potions. Yes, they can make someone fall in love with you as expected, but they can also be used for all the many different types of love, such as familial love or to make someone fall in love with an idea. Baptise also leans hard into the 'magic always has a price' concept with her potions (the recoil of which can kill a brewer) and this really added to the stakes of Venus' decisions.

I've seen that this book was originally intended as a duology but had to be edited into a standalone and though Baptise has done a good job cutting it down (which must have been a difficult task) and it does works as a standalone, I can't help but think it may have suffered slightly because of this. There are times when it feels like it was jumping around between scenes at an odd pace or racing through things, and I would have liked to have spent more time letting the characters breathe, seeing more of their relationships and their world. There's also a lot of backstory and a large cast of characters that can be a little hard to keep straight and I feel this could have been improved by being able to spend more time on them.

Overall though, this was still a great story that had me hooked throughout and made me love the characters, even at their worst.

"Has history taught us nothing? Old worlds must be burnt for new worlds to rise. You cannot want a revolution and fear its fire. Everything must burn."

A wonderful debut with complex diverse characters, great world building rooted in reality and a fresh magic system makes this a contemporary fantasy to lose yourself in.

One of the best things about this book is the vivid voice of the author which resonates throughout, the use of their emotions, their own experiences makes the read even more realistic. The real life connections about racism, bigotry, political power, classism and the fight for rights is handled with nuance and depth.

The characters are equally as dynamic, Venus is a great, well crafted main character who is struggling to navigate a society rife with discrimination, prejudice and political turmoil. She's is strong, loyal and battling her inner demons. Her inner struggle against her dark sentient magic and the weight of familial responsibilities adds another layer of realism to the narrative and enriches the story.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC

An interesting urban fantasy book, with strong African American lead characters.

This was a good read, albeit a bit long-winded and slow in some places. The characters were quite complex, and sometimes, due to age and immaturity, seemed to make rash decisions.

The concept was good of being a brewer of magical potions and there being a negative effect. However, there didn't seem to be too much of an effect on other types of magic, which seems a bit harsh on the poor brewers.

I really liked the familiars, but they did seem very underutilised as a resource in a lot of ways by the main character, in particular. I feel like many answers could have been had if Venus had asked her familiar to show her more things like Clarissa did.

Definitely recommend.

Set in a world not too dissimilar to our own Venus Stoneheart is a witcher who brews love potions, in a world that mistrusts witches & their potions.

This is a stunning YA debut, this novel is fun, authentic & well paced, steeped in magic & political intrigue. If you like fantasy, well developed & diverse characters, unique magic systems or just a damn good read, this is definitely worth your time. I’ll be looking for more from Bethany Baptiste in the future.

What a brilliant debut novel! The Poisons We Drink is definitely a page-turner, filled with plot twists and intriguing characters.

The Poisons We Drink follows potion-brewer Venus and her loved ones, while they face tragic events, difficult assignments and complicated relationships. The story is set in America in 2023 and that decision makes it feel all the more actual. It has so many parallels to today's world, while still being set in a beautifully-built new reality.

I particularly loved discovering more and more details about the magic system and the Witchers society, with unexpected developments and novel takes on potion-brewing. The details of the effects of magic on each character, the way each witcher chooses specialties, the use of magical bonding in a variety of ways, the way familiars are waved into the story... I was so intrigued to find out more page after page.

The last 200 pages are especially full of surprises and I could barely put the book down! The ending was satisfyingly unexpected, which added to what was already a very enjoyable read.

I definitely recommend The Poisons We Drink to anyone who loves novel magic systems, plot twists, layered family dynamics and dark urban fantasy stories. Can't wait for this novel to be released to get a physical copy for my bookshelf!

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks UK for giving me the chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am a sucker for a story about witches, and this one was a really good one!

Venus Stoneheart is a witch, living in a version of the US where witches and humans are divided by hatred and prejudice. She is also a brewer of love potions, a trade which just so happens to be illegal.

The potions Venus brews are ethically iffy, to say the least, but I liked that the story was very upfront about the fact that sometimes people are forced to make less than desirable choices in order to survive, but that it doesn’t necessarily make them bad people.

I thought the little excerpts from Witcherpedia and other places at the beginning of the chapters were a fantastic way to world build. Very early on I felt like I had a clear picture of what this world was like and how it operated.

There is some spicy stuff in this book but, given the story feels very much aimed at the older end of YA, I personally felt like this was handled in an age-appropriate way.

Venus is a very damaged and angry young woman but she is also compassionate and loyal and she loves those around her deeply. She made stupid, and sometimes terrible, decisions and still remained incredibly likeable.

Definitely recommend you to read this book, the magic system is so unique that I struggle to draw comparisons to anything else I’ve read recently.

The story is heavily steeped in deep lore, originality and magical elements, which truly show the author’s creativity and charm. I wish we could have seen more of these aspects, like make-dos, magical artefacts and other character’s gifts, earlier on as they were really captivating. Chapters began with excerpts of articles, books, letters etc, which reminded me of Fourth Wing and really helped to flesh out your understanding as a reader.

The world Bethany Baptiste weaves is rich in black culture, history and sociological commentary, the parallels between the plight of witchers in her society and POC in our own is enlightening and thought provoking. Especially so with the rights movement and the ample blood spilled and lives lost on the road to freedom. The representation for realistic and true to life ethnicities, cultures, genders and sexualities was refreshing, particularly within a fantasy book.

It did take a while for me to get immersed into the book, I would say around at 50% things took a turn and I finished the rest in one sitting.

Thank you Sourcebooks for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

In a world which is characterized by an uneasy coexistence of sorts between humans and those with magical powers, known as witchers, Venus Stoneheart belongs in the latter category. But more concerned with ensuring the survival of her family than with the wider power plays underway, Venus brews and trades in love potions, despite the considerable challenges and personal costs of doing so.

Until a bullet takes her mother's life and everything changes for Venus. She must decide whether looking after her volatile younger sister Janus is enough for to her to contend with, or whether she will take up the offer (with strings, of course) made by the head of her coven, which will give her the opportunity to see revenge on her mother's killer.

The only problem is, in order to do so, Venus must trade in the already dangerous occupation of making the forbidden love potions for the even more dangerous task of brewing toxic libations that will enslave those who imbibe them - in this case, the target group consisting of politicians in DC...

This is an imaginative story featuring unusually nuanced world building. The drama and danger involved in Venus's forbidden activities, and the ratcheting up that results from her desire for revenge, keep the story moving forward, and hold the reader's interest in the process.

The magical system can feel a little unnecessarily complex at times, with its detailed and rigid rules. There are also some graphic descriptions in the story. But the family dynamics are very well conveyed, and the characters are interesting. Recommended for fantasy book lovers. It gets 3.5 stars.

A vivid and unsettling story of love, hate and prejudice set against one the coolest magical systems I've heard of – what's not to love? The book's complex and twisty, and I especially LOVED the dynamics between Venus and members of her family. Perfect for readers who like gritty, rich fantasy.

I really enjoyed this story. The characters of Venus, Janus, Presley and Tyrell felt fleshed out yet complex as characters. Their relationships with their families even more so.
While I enjoyed the different spin on a magic system e.g. brewing potions causes physical harm to the brewer the rest of the magical world did rather feel convulted at points and tricky to follow. This meant that I sometimes had to reread the same passage a few times to make sure I had wrapped my head around it fully.

However, for a debut this is well written and a really developed story. The Witcher vs Human story worked really well as an allegory for racism and discrimination, with the interactions between the two groups feeling full of tension which sold the story even further.
The artistic renderings of the potions at the end with some recipes is a really lovely touch too and made it feel more realistic.

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this story

The Poisons We Drink is a dramatic story of love, hate, power and prejudice set in a fantasy world where magical witchers live uneasily alongside humans, many of whom distrust and shun them. This world has a complex but interesting magic system with many elements to it, but for those who pledge to brew potions, brewing comes at a high personal cost. Our protagonist Venus is one of the few willing to risk it all to brew and is in the black market business of love potions. Not just your typical romantic love, but familial love, self love, even love for an idea. Powerful, costly potions that can enslave and corrupt in the wrong hands.

I would personally classify this as New Adult. Whilst Venus is a young adult, it is quite graphic with descriptions of pain, injury, death and general violence. Venus and her loved ones are often fighting for their lives, facing hatred, harm and manipulation from many sides.

Recommended to fantasy fans looking for a dark, gritty read.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024…. Bethany has not disappointed one bit. I truly did love this book and cannot recommend it enough to anyone who even glances its way. Beautifully pink and amazingly written.

Great characters, interesting world building rooted in reality and great rep.
I enjoyed the characters and their interactions the most plus all the real life connections about racism, bigotry, political power etc. that got highlight in the book.
The story and the magic system lost me sometimes throughout the book but I still think this is an important story and a good starter fantasy for a younger YA crowd.

3.5 for me.
This started off really strong.
The first few chapters had me so intrigued and set up a really interesting world. A world like ours but with magic and persecuted witchers.

Whilst being fantasy, it was incredibly salient. The oppression and displacement of the Witchers was so reflective of real modern injustices. The anger and heartbreak of the author and their own experiences as a black woman really shone through. It highlighted how so much oppression comes from fear and ignorance.

Venus was a great main character, so strong and loyal to her family as well as fighting her inner demons.

Unfortunately, as the book continued, the writing style didn’t quite work for me. It was quite heavy on little details and a little simplistic. I almost felt like the magic systems and rules were over explained. It made it feel long and a little repetitive. A shame because I absolutely adored the concepts, the morally grey characters and the fighting against injustice. I just couldn’t fully loose myself in the writing.

I wanted to absolutely adore it because we neeeeed more magical queer fantasy by black authors.

I’m sure other people will love it and the writing will suit them better. It’s a debut and for me it showed. However, I will be very interested to see what the author comes up with in the future.


Thank you to Netgalley for providing an E-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I felt immediately drawn into the magical world of the story and I felt immersed in it too. The elements of darkness added to the excitement this book created for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"The Poisons We Drink" by Bethany Baptiste is a daring and vividly imagined YA urban fantasy that delves into the morally gray world of witchers and humans. The novel centers on Venus Stoneheart, a young witcher who uses her brewing talents to navigate a society rife with discrimination and political turmoil. Venus's character is beautifully crafted, embodying strength and vulnerability in equal measure, making her journey deeply resonant. Her struggle with the dark, sentient magic within her, and the weight of familial responsibilities, adds a compelling layer to the narrative. The book's exploration of themes such as racism, classism, and the fight for rights is handled with nuance and depth, resonating with the current socio-political climate. The inclusion of diverse characters, especially those from the LGBTQ+ community, enriches the story, giving it a contemporary edge.

Baptiste's world-building is intricate and well-conceived, creating a landscape where magic and reality collide in fascinating ways. The depiction of potion brewing, with its risks and rewards, is particularly engaging, adding a unique twist to the fantasy genre. While the story's pacing is somewhat uneven, with a slow start that gradually builds to a gripping climax, the richly layered plot and dynamic characters keep the reader invested. The book's ability to balance action with emotional depth is commendable, weaving a tale that is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining. Overall, "The Poisons We Drink" is a standout debut, offering a fresh and compelling take on urban fantasy. It's a promising start for Baptiste, showcasing her ability to create a spellbinding narrative that leaves readers eagerly anticipating her future works.

Super atmospheric and intriguing. I loved the Witcher world and the parallels with the real world, plus the mystery surrounding the story.