Part of This Poison Heart
First published 2021
Briseis can make plants bloom with her touch, but she cannot control this strange ability. When her aunt dies and leaves her a crumbling estate in rural New York, Bri and her parents abandon Brooklyn for the summer. The property holds dark surprises: detailed instructions from the previous owner, an ancient apothecary, and a walled garden containing the world's most lethal plants. Only those with Bri's bloodline can enter this garden. Visitors start appearing at their door, requesting healing tinctures and magical elixirs. Bri discovers she excels at crafting these remedies. She befriends Marie, a enigmatic young woman who harbors dangerous secrets about the estate's past. Bri realizes her inheritance carries hidden meaning, but her investigation draws the attention of a sinister group. They want a powerful immortality elixir and will kill to obtain it. Now Bri faces an ancient curse and the most poisonous plant on earth. She must master her gift to save her family and herself.
Genres: fantasy, horror, supernatural, young-adult, dark-fantasy, mystery-thriller
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, eerie, mysterious, suspenseful
Tropes: chosen-one, coming-of-age, found-family, hidden-inheritance
Setting: Brooklyn, Rural New York, Walled Garden
Period: Summer, Contemporary
372 pages · Paperback · Bloomsbury YA UK
Content warnings: death, violence