I was really intrigued by the premise of this book - a witchy Medusa re-telling. However, I wasn't blown away. I finished the book, but I think people who aren't familiar with the mythology will be a little confused and lost. Medusa gets a really bad rap in history and I was hoping that this book would put her in more of the space she needs to be, but it really doesn't. I feel like the magic system needed to be more developed and thought out. At times it just felt like an afterthought. Like, okay, boom! Here's some spells, but that's all. Although I really enjoyed the possibility of Medusa cursing herself, she still wasn't as sympathetic of a character as I felt she should be.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

So, I thought I was going to love this when I read the description, but there was just something about greek mythology in a western style setting that didn't vibe with me.
I think it was still well-written, but it was just not for me after all, sorry :(

This book was okay thanks however for the copy I don't think it was really for me however saying this has nothing to do with the author just wasn't for me

I liked this book so much more than I expected it to be. The storytelling was beautiful and I absolutely loved the characters! Knocking down a star because the pacing was a bit off. I struggled to get through I at points.

I expected this book to be something totally different. While I think the story definitely is worth telling, I had a hard time keeping up with what was going on. I think the genre-mashup was confusing at times. After getting used to the writing style though, this turned out to be quite a unique story.

This cover is gorgeous!! But unfortunately this book had some issues with pacing and was a weird mash up of fantasy with the Wild West and it just didn't work out all that well for me. I think for this one it's a take it or leave it. I have to say that this cover just doesn't tell you what this book is about at all.

ah, i'm not going to lie, i was expecting to enjoy this one a lot more than i ended up doing, but it's not that i disliked it completely either. maybe i just went into this with way too high expectations.

the idea of where this new interpretation was set was interesting, and i personally really liked the twist on perseus' character - how he was introduced and his development. i personally really liked it. the relationship between him and meredith (medusa) was a bit less believable, but overall i thought it was fine.

i think my only real issues with this one was that at one point every character was unlikeable to me which was... eh, i didn't enjoy it. including meredith who was the one person i thought was impossible for me to dislike, so, yeah. that and the ending was kind of open, which is just not my personal preference (we know how it's gonna end, but there's so much that doesn't get solved which you can argue is accurate to the myth but... i don't know, something about the ending felt too abrupt for my taste. might simply be a preference thing)

regardless, this might be a me issue simply because i didn't have any other major problems. the relationship between the sisters was good, and i enjoyed seeing their development (for the most part. i had some issues with one of them towards the end and how it was handled which also influenced my rating, but that's spoilers), so overall while i didn't like it, i didn't hate this book either, it just was a small sum of things not working for me personally.

I thought this was quite lacklustre for what I expected - some characters I could not get into, some of the writing I felt was missing something. It definitely could've used more action in the plot, and I love the sisterhood Meredith had with her sisters, but it wasn't for me, i think.

Wow! What an absolutely marvelous witchy retelling of Medusa!

Brinker has created a rich and intriguing historical fantasy retelling Greek mythology, centering on Meredith Gorgon aka Medusa as the main lead. A feminist and distinctive flair!

The author really touched on sibling relationships and reading how Meredith and her sisters flourished was really uplifting. Meredith is such a powerful MC lead and her story is retold to give her a new perspective and voice. There are so many elements incorporated to bring such a refreshing new take on the Medusa story as well as other known Greek mythological stories, giving them a whole different and captivating take.

I think with some more polishing, the author really has potential with this story to progress and reach a wider audience.

This is an indie book and I am utterly hooked with it! I cannot wait to continue with the series! Trigger warnings are included at the start of this novel for readers advise. Think mature Percy Jackson, historical fiction, and Wild West vibes together.

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

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In 1860s Athena's Plateau, the human representative of Poseidon is the mayor and the human representative of Athena is the sheriff. Both are used to getting their own way and look down on humans and witches alike. When eighteen-year-old Meredith Gorgon refuses to let Poseidon attack her without a fight, she marks herself as a target. Escaping the town and a hanging, Meredith soon discovers that her magic backfired so that she turns people to stone once she makes eye contact. Caring for her rattlesnakes won't help her now.

The book has trigger warnings for the hanging and assault in the beginning, and there are robberies at gunpoint as well. It's a wild west story with magic, following the myth where Medusa was the mortal follower of Athena that was punished for having the audacity of being attacked within her temple. Athena is hardly a goddess willing to look out for truth, and essentially conspires with her fellow god to give him what he wants whenever he wants. The people are left suffering at their whims, which they don't care about at all.

As much as Meredith is haunted by the attack, she knows full well that the punishment for defying a god in any way is death. She escapes the town with her sisters, who are disabled. Her ability to manipulate rattlesnakes comes in handy at times, even though it terrifies one sister and annoys the other. She also winds up working with the bounty hunter Percy to make money, keeping an eye out to see if she was followed to the neighboring town. Meredith doesn't do that great a job at hiding herself, leading to an inevitable showdown.

Meredith's characterization fluctuated throughout the novel. She's proud but unwilling to practice or flaunt her magic, as much as she does try to use it. When she discovers the curse of turning others to stone, she's horrified by the accidental killing. Then out of nowhere, she decides this makes her powerful, and that she can be like a god herself. While trauma can make people have flashbacks or vacillate wildly, this felt like too much of a change. Her sisters are dependent on her but also older, so they wind up depending on her as much as they're annoyed by her changes; while they try to act as the voice of reason and provide some foreshadowing, it doesn't quite reach Meredith. The tragedy that unfolds at the end of the story feels a bit rushed, and the gods are caricature villains with no depth or reason for acting in the way they do other than they can. They come across as toddlers with powers, so I wondered why the Gorgon sisters would even stay in town at all if it felt so oppressive and unsafe.

Having a witchy Medusa story is definitely a new take on the mythology, and this is the beginning of a new series. It's targeted at older teens and up that can handle sensitive topics.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. A beautifully told tale full of intrigue and mystery the author paints a story that will have you hooked from beginning to end. I can't wait to see what will follow, if we will return to this beautiful world or where we go from here....

Would 100% recommend

I loved this take on Medusa! It was refreshing and easy to read. I felt that the flow of the story was super constant and that mer was a loveable main character! I also was really fond of the fact that the author gave her diamondback rattlesnakes for hair, adding to mers power. However, I wish that we had seen more of Mer honing her power and using it as a weapon/protection rather than it having been painted in a slightly negative light. However, I'm almost confident a second book will be coming out and we'll get to see far more character development for her and her scaly friends!

DNF
It sounded so good. A witchy Medusa retelling. And then it started so badly.
The story was all over the place. Half the time I couldn't tell what was actually happening because descriptions jumped from this to that to this.
And the western topic is reall not my thing. Athena being called Attie kind of did me in and I could not get back up to continue reading.
Might become better later on, but I couldn't bring myself to continue to find out.

Thank you net galley for providing me with a free copy of Cruel Venom Wine in exchange for a honest review.

Although the premise as well as the idea of the book were extremely intriguing the execution felt completely flat. I have a lot of issues with the writing as well as the extremely fast pace of the book that leaves absolutely no room for the reader to get to know the character's enough to care about them, along with the complete lack of world building which is confusing. The relationships as well as the character development also felt extremely unstable. Overall not a book Id recommend, and I've decided not to continue the series.

I really liked this retelling! I´ve read many before that didn´t do the characters justice but this one wasn´t that at all. I was entertained while reading it and I throughly enjoyed seeing the Gorgon sisters´ relatioship development until the very end. I was not expecting that last twist but it made total sense in order to get that ending. I can´t wait for the follow up! My thanks to the publisher, the author and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

This. Was. Incredible.

A retelling of Medusa, taking place in an Old West/Desert setting? Freaking loved it. I loved the magic system and all of the characters, I loved the genuine care all three sisters had for each other and I adored how the author brought in so many various elements from all of the different versions of the Medusa myth.

I love any mythological retelling and was very intrigued by this one, and the inclusion of my favourite mythological figure. I really loved how the author crafted something entirely new with well-known characters and their story. I also highly appreciated the inclusion of the horrors inflicted upon the female body and the resulting trauma from this. All was handled with sensitivity and raw emotion. However, I wished the writing style was a little more lyrical, to suit the atmosphere of the story, and the narrative a little more fleshed out.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

I normally really enjoy mythological retellings but this one just wasn't hitting it for me. I felt like I was missing something while I was reading it. It had some interesting parts and some decent characters, just not what I was wanting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Publishers for the ARC of #CruelVenomWine

I missed a lot of the themes from the description and was distracted by the Medusa retelling aspect because the rest of it was a shock. I don't usually like westerns and unfortunately, this ended up being true for this as well. Add in that the book just felt slow, there wasn't a whole lot of excitement for me, it was just not my cup of tea. I would recommend it to those who like historical/western/myth/retelling and don't mind the slower side of things.

4.5 stars
Cruel Venom Wine is a tragic, yet beautiful story from one of my favourite sub-genres, feminist Greek mythology retellings. While I didn't always love this author's tone and writing style, I absolutely adored this story's themes and overall thesis. I don't know if I will pick up more of this author's works, but I'm incredibly glad I came across this one. I highly recommend this book to any fantasy, feminist lit, or Greek mythology lovers, just be mindful to look at the trigger warnings beforehand, as this book does deal with the topic of sexual assault.