This Poison Heart: From the Author of the Tiktok Sensation Cinderella Is Dead

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Being wound up all the time, constantly watching my every move, and being careful not to provoke a response from a red oak or potted fern was exhausting. Ignoring them was the only thing that worked—and sometimes, that didn’t even help as much I wanted it to. The worst part was that it felt wrong to ignore them, like I was denying something that was as much a part of me as anything else. But in the confines of my cramped bedroom, I could let go, and the relief that came with that was something I looked forward to more than anything else. We can do it by Friday.” Mo clapped her hands together and turned to me. “You workin’ today, love?” Briseis has a gift: she can grow plants from tiny seeds to rich blooms with a single touch. When Briseis’s aunt dies and wills her a dilapidated estate in rural New York, Briseis and her parents decide to leave Brooklyn behind, seeking a quieter existence. But their new home is more sinister than they could have imagined—it comes with a walled garden filled with the deadliest botanicals in the world, one that can only be safely entered by those who share their bloodline. I nodded. She had always been fascinated with what I could do, but her curiosity was tempered with concern. Icouldn’t blame her. N othing-special. This story had a lot of potential if I'm being honest. maybe a quarter through the book, I was really in deep. IT was getting interesting. Bayron had a chance to make something fresh and new. But it was a typical YA kind of book. I'm not saying I wasn't expecting it to not be YA, but do we really have to toss a beautiful plot in the trash for cute giggly w/w moments and angst. There could have been something. The story, the history, it was all amazing. But Baryon dimmed it down a bit. Okay,s eh dimmed it down ALOT. Lights out for sparkly potential, candles lit for cheesy romance.

The author bases this story on a Greek myth. Was that effective? Do you have a favorite myth tradition? I think Bayron was masterful in writing quirky, fleshed out, lovable characters in this book. Seriously, I loved every single character! The plot development, character set-up, and writing was definitely a step up from Bayron's debut novel, Cinderella is Dead, although I was also a huge fan of that book. When Briseis's aunt dies and wills her a dilapidated estate in rural New York, Bri and her parents decide to leave Brooklyn behind for the summer. Hopefully there, surrounded by plants and flowers, Bri will finally learn to control her gift. But their new home is sinister in ways they could never have imagined--it comes with a specific set of instructions, an old-school apothecary, and a walled garden filled with the deadliest botanicals in the world that can only be entered by those who share Bri's unique family lineage.

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The modern references of Get Out to Tiktok brought this book sharply into the urban fantasy genre. Something that I always love in fantasy books. Nope,” Mo said. She took my hand and pulled me out from behind the counter, scooting me toward the door. She untied my apron and took it off, tossing it to Mom. “I love you, but you need to get out of here and go do some teenager stuff.” Oh, they also like to make dance videos on TikTok,” said Mo. “What’s that one called? The Renegade?” She did some weird move with her arm, then grabbed her shoulder, wincing in pain. “I can do it, but the way my ligaments are set up—” You fixin’ somethin’ for somebody you love, for healin’. Gotta do it with your bare hands and your whole heart. Understand?” This Poison Heart is contemporary YA fantasy at its finest and confirms Kalynn Bayron’s talent for coming up with killer concepts and spinning new gold from timeless old tales (I also adored Cinderella is Dead). What’s more, the epic ending leaves scope for a sequel - I truly hope that’s the case.

I praise the LBGTQ rep, except in one aspect: Marlon, Bri's nonbinary childhood friend, doesn't factor into the story in the slightest. They're in the past, in NY, to be forgotten about.)

About Kalynn Bayron

I plopped down on my bed. The ivy I’d grown by the window snaked toward me, slithering across the floor and up the bedpost, sprouting new leaves and curled tendrils as it reached for me. Ivy wasn’t a quiet plant. It was reactive and loud. The only place I could keep it was in my room, where no one would see it but me and my parents. Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide. Get started Close No, but there’s something you can do after you finish this arrangement.” She rested her hand on my cheek. “Try relaxing a little. School’s out for the summer, baby. Iknow this year was tough.” First you tell me you don’t have any, then Briseis goes and finds the best-looking flowers I’ve ever seen,” he said happily. First of all, I love the representation of sapphic elders in this book. It's so rare that I see an LGBTQ couple in the spotlight over the age of... say 35? Reading the beautifully casual representation of that couple was so healing for me, as I have no queer "elder" role models, and it's sometimes so hard to imagine myself in a queer, lifelong relationship.