The cover of this book maintains eye contact is such a strong way, and the story inside keeps it up. Def for a little older of readers cause of some of the content, but a great story!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy of this title.

I really loved this story.

A retelling of the Perseus and Medusa myth set in India in which a naga comes into her power after being assaulted, while the love of her life is being forced to hunt her down? Is it any wonder that this description made us seek out our very first Advanced Reader Copy to review for this podcast?

So... why do we have such complicated feelings about this book? Join us as we discuss how what was once considered a monster has been reclaimed as a symbol of strength for those who have been harmed, how difficult it can be to write a believable romance, and how even the most incredible and important story ideas can still fall victim to pacing.

What a powerful powerful story.

How powerful it is to read a story in which the heroine does not ever shy away from her power. In which we see her laugh in the face of those that paint her as a monster, knowing that it was them who caused her pain. In which we see her find everything she needs within herself, and still find joy and hope in connection. In which we see her survive in spite of it all.

Manisha’s journey is so very impactful. The author does not shy away from the mature subject matter in this Medusa retelling, and though there were moments that left me sick to my stomach, I felt they were critical to the story (please read the trigger warnings before!). The care with which Patel portrayed and handled Manisha’s trauma is very moving.

A striking, unapologetic, and epic tale that forces you to question “what it truly means to be a monster”.

Fantastic retelling of Medusa ripe with Indian Folklore. I agree with all the others that the violence is pretty graphic — definitely don't recommend this to tweens and young teens — but Patel handled it with care and I felt like it was critical to the story. I felt like the pacing was a bit uneven, and the dialogue a bit stilted, but overall an important read I'm buying for my library. Will be putting this into the hands of my juniors and seniors who like heavier reads but aren't ready for adult fiction yet.

Wow. Deep breath.
Reading A DROP OF VENOM brought up a LOT of feelings. On the one hand, it's a super compelling, action-packed story, alternating between two strong, likeable characters, so of course I didn't want to put it down. It was such a cool reimagining of the Medusa story, set in a fictional Indian-influenced jungle, sky city, and various zombie-infested plains. On the other hand, at it's core it's about how we deal with the violence done to us - especially sexual violence. What makes a monster? Or a hero? How do we heal from trauma without changing our core values? These are big questions that are really, really tough to read about in the details.

I'm torn about including this book in my class library (shelved with mature books). It's incredibly violent and there are multiple scenes with graphic sexual violence specifically, although Patel always always always writes these scenes with care. Statistically, I recognise that there are kids who will feel seen in its stories. Since literature can be a safe place for young teens to explore situations, I think VENOM could even be life-saving in some cases, since it has such strong messages of the power of justice, love, and healing. Not just for those who identify with characters who've been abused or witnessed violence, but I could see this book being a vaccine for young men (or others) who don't yet understand the problematic pervasiveness of rape culture. Given that I have students who openly idolise Andrew Tate, I'd guess that we need this book more than we realise right now.

Thank you to Disney Publishing Worldwide and #NetGalley for allowing me to read a digital ARC of A Drop of Venom by Sajni Patel. This mythology inspired young adult fantasy novel will be released on January 16, 2024. All opinions are my own.

I really wanted to like this book, but if I'm being honest I struggled through it. There was something with the narrative voice and structure that didn't click with me until the last 20% of the book. The chapters seemed choppy and the plot wasn't super engaging. I liked the idea of the Medusa myth getting an Indian mythology spin, but I really struggled with the development of the story. I also struggled with the sexual assault scenes. I knew that Manisha was a survivor of sexual assault as it’s mentioned in the summary and Riordan’s introduction. I just didn’t anticipate the amount or how on-page it would be. This book deals with heavy and important topics, but some of the most beautiful, poignant, and significant lines come at the end which I almost didn’t make it to. This is most definitely a YA and up read and I think it could lead to some great discussions, but I also feel like it will take a committed reader to make it through to the end. Overall, I ended up giving the book three stars because it’s not bad, but I struggled with it and won’t revisit it.

I originally had no idea this was a Medusa myth retelling! It was excellent! A mix of the Medusa myth with Indian folklore, it’s a harrowing story of revenge, survival and love. Sexual violence and gender roles play a huge role in this story, so do read with caution, but the story is deeply powerful. Manisha and Pratyush are excellent main characters, the storytelling is so well done, this is a fantastic and important read. And also a heck of a great fantasy!

As the author says in her acknowledgements, there’s nothing like a just reckoning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Rick Riordan Presents/Disney Hyperion for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was fascinated to delve into a mythology that was all new to me. The descriptions are lush and in the case of monsters, terrifying. The main character is complicated, tough, and easy to root for. The layering of the monstrous behavior of the men over the idea of the monsters the slayer is sent to destroy is well done. Obviously the violence is difficult to read, but I felt it was handled well. As a novice in this mythology I could have used more explanation for the way the magic functions. A few of the character introductions and meetings seemed a bit abrupt, going from just meeting to friends or enemies in seconds. However, there is more to come in this story, so maybe all this will be developed later on.

A Drop of Venom is a must-read, an emotional and thrilling adaptation of the Medusa story that doesn't shy away from the more mature subject matter. Manisha's journey in this story is so powerful and the way the story deals with her trauma is wonderful. There's so much more I want to say but I won't spoil it!! This book needs to be read by as many people as possible.

I had a hard time with this one. I absolutely adore the premise, and the book deals with extremely real and difficult problems throughout. Personally, I enjoyed this book. However, I would question categorizing it as a teen book rather than adult - I don't have all the answers here, but this felt really graphic for a teen book in some places. However, I did enjoy this reimagining of Medusa's tale. Thanks for the opportunity to read it!

I enjoyed this one but I didn't love it. As a YA book, I feel like the topics touched upon, along with graphic violence were too much. It was very dark for the target audience, and even as an adult, I found some scenes rather tough to get through.

I love the meaning that Medusa has taken in more recent years (strength and survivor of SA assault), and how that is incorporated into the story and the main character Manisha. I also enjoyed getting to read about Indian mythology, and Noni was my favorite (I love snakes in general).

Overall I think it is a good book, and the author has a lot of potential for amazing future works, I just don't think it really belongs in the YA category.

Thank you to NetGalley and Rick Riordan Presents for allowing me to read an eARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.

This is a very powerful book that I will definitely be recommending to everyone.

I think Mr. Riordan described it best in his letter to readers at the beginning of this book:
<blockquote>"In blending the Medusa myth with Indian folklore to build a new, vibrant fantasy world, Sajni Patel offers us the story behind the myth - a tale of abuse and healing, of survival and rebirth, of a woman claiming power in a world dominated by men, in which heroes and villains are not so easy to distinguish."</blockquote>

Content Warnings: sexual assault, rape culture, misogyny, violence, gore.
Because of the content, this one is for older teens. The rape is described, but not in details that would keep this book off Texas library shelves.

This tied as my top read for 2023. Just wow. So moving, emotional and yet empowering. My heart dropped out of my chest a few times. I definitely appreciated the letters in the beginning and think it is important to have the trigger warnings ahead of reading. I was a teenager when I married an abusive man so stories like this help women feel not alone and the fantasy world building element can make such hard material more easy to digest. I will definitely be recommending this book.

A Drop of Venom is a very dark and heavy story for older teens. It does not shy away from very difficult topics like rape and violence so I don't think this book will be for everyone but I do think it is a really powerful and interesting story still for those that are able to deal with difficult topics. The main character, Manisha, goes through so many hardships in this book and ends up following a path of vengeance against a world that constantly abuses and harms women. I found her dynamics with different people she meets throughout her journey. She also has some early interactions with the male main character, Pratyush, who is forced to work for the King as the last of a magical group with the strength to slay monsters. The romance felt very rushed to me and wasn't my personal favorite part but I do think the two of them can be good together, I just wish they could take more time getting to a place of romance because it seemed way too fast to me. The timeline was also a little confusing to follow since the book begins with a lot of things like, 5 months before and 37 seven days earlier, etc. Still overall, very interesting though and a powerful start to a new series.

The moment I heard the premise of this story, I immediately wanted to read it. Medusa is one of my favorite "monsters" and I love seeing voices from cultures that aren't often heard giving their takes on classic stories. Add in a forbidden love story between "monster" and slayer to this tale of a woman becoming monstrous against the monsters she faces? What could go wrong?

Well...

I'll admit, this was difficult to get through, and not even because of the subject matter. I feel bad that I didn't like this more, so I'm going to do my best to break this review up into compliment sandwiches.

The author clearly has amazing ideas but the execution left me often struggling to keep reading. Obviously as an ARC the prose isn't in its final form, but as it is it's very uneven, being lush and poetic in one scene and stilted and heavy handed in the next. There are also moments when Patel tries to sprinkle in snarky quips in the middle of something poetic and the tonal whiplash takes me right out of it, especially since as far as "well THAT happened" humor goes, it's pretty weak for the most part. When Patel's prose is good, it's so emotionally impactful and beautiful, and it's part of why the moments when it's not stick out and make the book drag for me. I KNOW she's capable of making this one of those books that rips your still beating heart from your chest and never lets go. Hopefully the final edit shows that.

Additionally, the love story is really poorly developed. It started promisingly, but then Manisha's constant protests against Pratyush's flirting left me cold. The whole point of this story is a hate letter to men who violate women, and while Pratyush is held up as the prime example of "Not All Men", he too could learn a thing or two about taking no for an answer. I really hope this was just a matter of this still being a draft, but this was truly the beginning of my problems with the narrative. It's a shame too, because there are so many moments that would've had me touching my heart if it had been attached to characters I believed belonged together, particularly Pratyush dreaming of their future together, or their post final battle reunion.

This is a book chockful of interesting concepts. Noni the Snake is wonderful, I'm always a sucker for animal friends in my fantasy. I liked the IDEAS of the various societies portrayed in this book (and I must commend Patel for not letting women off the hook for the ways they can perpetuate misogyny), and there were some pretty cool and gruesome fight scenes. Unfortunately, I felt about half of these concepts weren't developed or interesting enough to justify the way the various sidequests ground the pacing of this book to a halt. I also don't think the constant time and POV jumps were the right call for this story, since a lot of this felt like both of our protagonists' stories were spinning their wheels until it was finally time for them to meet again.

I really, really wanted to love this book. As it is, I love the bones of this story, and see a lot of potential for the series Patel is clearly laying the groundwork for, and I hope at least some of these issues are fixed by the time the book comes out on the 16th!

i love rick riordan presents this was such a wonderful book! I loved the details of indian mythology and the entire storyline was encapsulating

This is a young adult novel being published through Rick Riordan presents and it’s a Medua retelling but set in a indian mythology inspired world. We have our young main character who has been hidden in this floating temple by her family to be kept safe but after some dark and violent events she is thrown off the island and is bitten by snakes which begins are serpent transformation and thus begins her journey to find her family and to try and stay alive from the monster slayer hunting her whom she may or may not love it sounds like. Obviously if you love the story behind Medusa, this is the book for you. I think the story was creative and unique. And you just can’t choose wrong with a cover like that.

Rick Riordan's imprint really pulled no punches with their first YA entry. Patel has expertly crafted a Medusa retelling that looks at the effects and trauma related to sexual assault in a manner that also seamlessly weaves in Hindu mythology. While the book did feel slow at times, due in large part to what seems to be a set-up for more books, the overall plot is important and engaging. It was nice to see the two povs intersect as well as the different perspectives and understandings of how violence effects oneself and others.

Thanks to NetGalley & Disney Publishing Worldwide for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. Sadly, I DNF'ed at 30% of the way through.

I honestly could barely keep up with the writing in this book. It was fast-paced and kept time hopping back and forth and that's one of my pet peeves. I feel like these flashbacks/forwards could've just been put in the story where it belongs on a normal timeline and it would have been fine.

Pratyush aka "The Slayer" was badgering the main character by showing up all the time and then asked to marry her despite barely having any conversations with her. Not very romantic and more annoying than anything.

The excessive and gratuitous violence was also unpleasant enough for me to stop reading. It's not like it doesn't happen in real life but I think it was just overused and wouldn't really be all that appealing to a teen reading this. According to other reviewers, the violence doesn't let up so I'm not interested in continuing.