Unfortunately, this is a book I will be tapping out on at DNF 57%.
Generational harm and trauma set the stage for this story, but the reveals as to what happened in the past to explain why characters are making the choices they do come so slowly that major plot points are hard to follow and various character decisions inexplicable. The magic system is interesting but either Venus’s family doesn’t know the rules potion brewers are bound to or don’t care about the consequences to her if she breaks them. Or the rules aren’t as strict or dire as communicated to the reader? Otherwise her sister and cousin (but mostly her sister), characters we are supposed to like, are unconscionably terrible. I’m a forgiving reader who tries to find or create a reasonable in-universe justification for any and every confusing character decision, but even I have my limits.
I think this book has an audience, unfortunately that audience is not me.

‘I was very excited to read this book for a long time. I am always happy to see Black girls on beautiful book covers. I love seeing more Black queer representaion in YA overall and specifically in fantasy.

Venus Stoneheart brews illegal love potions to make money for her family. After her mother is killed, Venus is charged with making potions to control power politicians.
I really enjoyed the author’s writing style, especially how emotions are described. I think the worldbuilding specifically around the magic system was very intriguing and explained very well. The characters were very vivid and complex. I could imagine each of the characters in my mind.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for giving me an arc.

Michael Machira Mwangi sold me on this book with a gorgeous cover.

The Poisons We Drink is a long one. I’m not sure if it could have been edited for a faster pace. It did drag at times, but every detail ends up being important in the end. Bethany Baptiste gives us action, mystery, drama, and betrayal. Plus they include a hefty dose of family loyalty and a touch of romance.

The story is filled with diverse characters which I love. Baptiste celebrates their diversity by giving them starring moments.

I got sucked into the drama and the mystery. This is exactly what you want from a book and Baptiste gives it to the reader. I love the battles, the magic, and at the core Venus’ love for her family. The Poisons We Drink is magic itself.

I didn't know what to expect from The Poisons We Drink, but it wasn't this stunning work in which magic practitioners pay for their work with pain, and prejudice against those with power has spread through all levels of society and politics, mirroring today's biases and the complex society we've created.
Venus comes from a family of magic practitioners, but she only wants to live in peace. Unfortunately the magic to which she's pledged, creating love potions - love for others, love for ideas, love for anything - is in high demand, and she's the primary breadwinner for her household since her mother broke a cardinal rule and sacrificed her own powers. Venus's younger sister Janus is keen to be in the middle of the social and political movement battling against anti-magic legislation. The sisters, their friends and families, and the larger magical community intersect and separate as we do in our own world.
The world building here is spectacular, and the created one balances the similarities with our own existence with enough difference to make it completely understandable and still something new and engaging. Magic is presented very differently from the typical vision, causing readers to consider the negative, personal impacts that have special abilities can create. While the complexity of the story leads to occasional hiccups in pacing, they don't detract enough from the story to truly interrupt it.
Character development, plot lines, political intrigue, social upheaval, and dynamic relationships all add to this engaging story.

The Poisons We Drink is a respectable debut with no shortage of interesting ideas and relevant commentary, but I found it difficult to really invest in the story. The pace and plot is a little meandering, and I sometimes found myself not understanding the characters' actions or aspects of the magic system. I think another round or two of polishing could have really made this book shine.

Venus is the Love Witcher: brewer of potions that make people fall in love--with other people, with ideas, with themselves... It's not a job she wants, but it's a job she has to do. And it's a job that comes with danger, and loss. In a version of America where witchers and humans live alongside each other (though not always peacefully), being any kind of witcher is dangerous--especially in DC, where politics run society and anti-witcher humans are emboldened. Venus's only goal is to protect her family, but that's easier said than done. And when the unthinkable happens, she finds herself turning to more dangerous options out of desperation.

The Poisons We Drink has magic as an allegory for race, while also having a Black MC in a story set in an alternate version of our real world, and it does these things incredibly well (this is why we need stories from Black authors, y'all). It's painful and emotional and beautiful, and I was sucked in by the characters and the magic.

TW for hate crimes and harassment that mirror real-world ones, and for police brutality at protests. These things are handled well, and with care.

This book was good. The magic system was interesting, though I had to keep notes to keep all the rules straight in my head. And I’m still not sure if it was killing someone that gave Venus and Presley their deviant or what. If so, you would think a lot more people would have the dark aura given the vibe of the city and how tense it is between Witchers and humans.

For this being a YA novel about social justice and civil rights, I really liked the overall story. Corrupt politicians were to be practically expected. But what I really loved was how nobody was really portrayed as a saint. Fighting for what they believed in didn’t make the Witchers blameless in all aspects of life. Though I was glad none of them were responsible for Venus’s mom’s life.

As for characterizations, I think I enjoyed the side characters the most. The girls’ uncle. Presley. Tyler. There was a lot of emotion to go around. But when it came to Venus herself… I think a lot of authors try for tough, steady FMCs, but in the process, something ends up missing. Or lacking? It’s difficult to describe. I just felt like I was reading about her rather than being captured and placing myself in her story.

I also need to comment on the errors (in this review copy). Words would be missing or phrased weird. And not in the dialect of their dialogue. It took me out of the story a bit.

Overall, enjoyable. But I wanted a bit more.

Firstly, thank you NetGalley & Sourcebooks for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I rated this a 3.5 ✨

Genuinely, I thought this was going to be a duology or a series and I was wrong. This is a standalone novel which has a lot jam packed into it that made it seem as though it should have been a much shorter and delved into first book of a duology or trilogy.

With that being said, there was a lot that I loved and that I related to. The aspect of grief and trauma and wanting to deal with things on your own was relevant on every single page of the book and I loved that Bethany Baptiste took it there. I liked the writing, I liked her characterizations (more on that below) and I liked the political intrigue.

It did begin to get choppy and muddled and repetitive towards the middle/end of the novel. I was a little confused on the characters and some of the plot elements as I was listening to the audiobooks so some reveals went over my head because I didn't know if their importance.

But a lot of the novel I did love. I loved the comedic relief that offset a lot of the heavy topics, I loved Venus's strong will and loved the magic system and the world. It was a VERY interesting world to dive into.

{3.5 stars}

Thanks to Sourcebooks Fire for gifted access via Netgalley.

In a world where witches are recently outed and feared, Venus and her family are embroiled in a fight for survival. She is a Love Witch brewing potions that literally sap the life out of her. Her parents have both died for the cause and both her sister and her love’s lives are at risk. Venus must outwit the political factions on either side as well as manage the demon inside herself to stop the vote to out all witches.

This is one of those fantasies where the premise is perfect, but the execution didn’t always work for me. I liked the political aspects of the plot but how it resolved just added more unethical behavior. I liked that the characters were diverse and queer, and yet I feel like none of them really had much of a soul. I totally get that you fight oppression with any means necessary, but I had kind of hoped for a glimmer of ethical substance there in the end. The magical system with potions and familiars was really cool though. There were a couple of nice reveals throughout, but overall I think this one was about 100 pages too long for me.

So this is a hard review to write - I was really excited about this one but I had trouble getting into the story. I love the idea of the witches and magic. It was interesting but it felt hard to stay on track because the world building and the characters felt really intense. The plot was very complicated and I found myself having to go back and re-read to make sure that I was understanding of what was going on.

I'm going to also think that it's a me thing - I'm hitting a struggle bus with focusing on reading and I definitely think that I want to try again in the future. Maybe a re-read would be a good way to feel like I am fully taking in the story?

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This story was a wild emotional ride. I loved the use of magic and that in this world it had legitimate consequences. The amount of twists and reveals had me unable to put this book down. Venus is one tough soldier for all the things she endured. Her fight within herself was a journey in self love and maximizing one’s potential. There were so many different dynamics and bonds that blended so well together . I would love to see a spin off following her sister Janus or cousin Ty on and adventure.

The discrimination, the fight of magic against non-magic, and a hard nock protagonist who's fighting for the people she loves. This book has an excellent premise. But the characters and plot get a bit lost in the slow pacing, the clunky sentences, and over writing. The story is good but it drags on too long at the beginning before picking up and the whole thing would benefit with a little smoothing out.

Wow. This was a super unique story, I am having a hard time thinking of another book I've read to compare it to and coming up blank.
A Contemporary fantasy that deals with segregation, oppression, corrupt politicians, and people willing to fight for whats right. A very powerful read that should make you at least a little uncomfortable in the best way.
The representation in this of a non-binary character is done so well in how matter of factly its handled I love to see it.

The Poisons We Drink


This book was quite the ride. Twists and turns all throughout, and I never knew what was coming next. This story is a great mix of fantasy and political intrigue.

The main protagonist, Venus Stoneheart, is a potion maker; she makes her living mainly selling illegal love potions. In her world, witches and humans are divided and constantly at odds. When tragedy strikes her family, Venus is thrown into a political struggle for which she wasn’t unprepared.

The world-building is rich and incredible. The little blurbs at the beginning of each chapter help you to put the pieces of the world together. The characters’ harsh reality reflects many struggles in our current society. Venus is a unique protagonist; she is definitely not perfect and tries her best to protect and provide for the people around her. She is a young woman with the weight of the world on her shoulders, and I enjoyed following her story and seeing how she dealt with everything thrown at her. Overall, this was an intriguing read, with beautiful characters and a fascinating world.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

The premise for The Poisons We Drink was interesting. I had been excited about this title for a while, even though it was ok, there was something off with the family relationship and I don't even want to get started on the mom. I felt myself wondering off and putting off reading, which is not something I typically do.

Don't let my review deter you from reading this book, I believe it was simply not for me.

Wow. Whew. This book was INCREDIBLE. I have chills and tears upon finishing. The underlying messages… I bow to the author. This book made me feel so many things. I am honored to have gotten to read it.

What a fun read! Bethany Baptiste creates a world of Witchers that parallels our own. Only a small part of the Witcher population, though, is skilled and dedicated enough to be brewer. While Venus originally brews to provide for her family, it soon takes on a life of its own as she decides if she will use it to ensure the safety of all Witchers.

The Poisons We Drink is a YA must-read. This urban fantasy hooked me from the moment I saw the cover's stunning art. It boasts a unique magic system, refreshing present-day setting, and fantastic LGBTQ+ representation.

But wait, there's more! The world-building is incredible. Bethany Baptiste crafts a detailed and immersive world that kept me enthralled throughout the entire story. Buckle up for an action-packed adventure – you won't be disappointed!

An entertaining YA urban fantasy about Venus, a Black "witcher," and her family in a war against humans and other witchers. I received a Netgalley eARC from the publisher but ended up listening to it on audiobook through my library's Libby. The audiobook narration was very well done and kept me on my toes throughout the novel. It was quite long and at times I was slightly confused and had to go back to re-listen, but it was very entertaining. I definitely didn't see some of the twists in the story. I struggle sometimes with understanding a fantasy world's rules but this one was written in a very understandable way. I thought the main character and side characters were very well written and generally complex, aside from the obvious villains. The complicated family relationships was very realistic and well done. Excited to read anything else Bethany Baptiste comes out with!

I really enjoyed this book! The Poisons We Drink is a Young Adult Urban Fantasy and I was immediately intrigued by the cover! This book has such a unique magic system, queer rep and it's set in present times which was really nice! Don't even get me started on the world building. I was enthralled the entire time and loved how in detail everything was. If you are looking for an action packed fantasy adventure then this is for you!