Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Briseis has one chance to save her mother, but she'll need to do the impossible: find the last fragment of the deadly Absyrtus Heart. If she is to locate the missing piece, she must turn to the blood relatives she's never known, learn about their secret powers, and take her place in their ancient lineage. Briseis is not the only one who wants the Heart, and her enemies will stop at nothing to fulfill their own ruthless plans. The fates tell of a truly dangerous journey, one that could end in more heartache, more death. Bolstered by the sisterhood of ancient magic, can Briseis harness her power to save the people she loves most?

Briseis has definitely changed in this book. She has gone through something traumatic and that shadows how she thinks, feels and reacts to things. But I absolutely adore Bri. She is funny and witty, and so incredibly caring. I loved seeing the dynamic with Marie change slightly but what I really, REALLY loved is that she was so willing and open to getting to know members of her birth family. Seeing those relationships be established and then blossom - no pun intended! - was so nice to see over the course of the book. Getting to know them really added to Briseis’ character in such a special way that made me want to read more and see how she was going to handle the impending doom of the events taking place.

I must say, I think I enjoyed this book more than the first and I am so happy it picked up immediately from the ending of the first. This Poison Heart is more about getting to know Bri and her story, but this book branches out further and includes so many other characters. I loved the connections to different mythologies and legends and how they were incorporated into the story - it kept me on my toes, wondering how more could be introduced and become entwined in the story. The romance element was not a focus but definitely pops up here and there. It felt a little off to me at times which is shame because there was so much delicious chemistry in the first book. However it just felt a little sudden for me - especially with everything going on. This did ruin that relationship just a smidge for me which a shame because those two characters are so cute together! In my opinion, the ending did also feel just a tiny bit rushed. We had such a big build up and then it all suddenly came to a head and I felt a bit overwhelmed by it. But I really did love how Bri’s story ended.

Overall, This Wicked Fate is a fantastic sequel that keeps you gripped throughout.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you again to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an advanced copy of this book. Review will be live on my blog on 20th June

So, the ending of the first book made me knock a star off my rating, it threw all this Greek mythology and family legend stuff in a big mess at the end. I still enjoyed the rest of that book, especially Briesis’ botanical powers and the mysterious Gothic house, enough that I wanted to know what happened next. Did she manage to pull it all together?

I struggled to get through This Wicked Fate. It takes so long for anything to happen. They spend a lot of time talking, infodumping Greek mythology into their dialogue. People keep turning out to be from myth, and not in a way that you suspected that they were all along. There’s a mix of characters with names from mythology who are not those characters and actual people from myth. Was all a bit confusing.

Finally they go on their mission to save Briseis’ mother, that urgent thing that needed doing at the end of book one. This was kinda fun, they meet Hermes and go to Circe’s island (the myth one, not the aunt one, did I mention this was confusing?).

But Marie was just like a petulant child, she’s meant to be centuries old? And she’s just there giving everyone attitude and I never really caught the chemistry between her and Briseis. Mo is kinda there just to stand around being confused about all this new stuff being thrown her way. I can relate. But I loved the dynamic between her adoptive mothers in the first book so this was a bit of a let down.

So overall I didn’t enjoy this. If you thought the ending of This Poison Heart was great, you might very well like this more than me. From early reviews, it seems I am very much in the minority here.

This Wicked Fate picks up where This Poison Heart left off…. Briseis’s mom has been killed and is being held by the goddess Hecate in the underworld. The only thing that is keeping Briseis going is that she has a chance to save her mom if she can bring all the pieces of the Absyrtus Heart together. With the help of her family and Marie is it possible for her to get her mom back?

The story is amazing and gets you right back into the lives of Briseis and her family. The story is very understanding of grief and is written beautifully with the lighter moments coming from Marie. The romance between the two is very sweet. The story has action, adventure and plants!

I’d recommend This Wicked Fate to young adults who like action, adventure, Greek mythology and plants!

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This Wicked Fate is the sequel to This Poison Heart and follows Briseis as she tries to find all the pieces of the Absyrtus heart. But she is not the only one looking for them and she’ll need the help of her blood relatives and her power to save those she loves the most.

Like with the first book I loved the magic and mythology weaved into the story! If you liked hearing about Medea’s story you’ll love the depth added to it in this one. Not only did we learn more about her but other famous figures made an appearance, all crucial to the story and revealing more about Bri’s lineage. All of the characters got some great development throughout this one but I especially loved Bri and Marie. They make for such a cute couple!

The writing was great and once I got into the book I flew through it! There were plenty of twists to keep me invested and the ending was perfection. I’d love to see more books set in this world!

I loved the first book in the series, so I have been anticipating the sequel ever since I finished the first one, shortly after it was released. I really loved how the characters and the plot developed from the first book, and I really loved the direction they went in, and how they decided to end it. I was so excited for this, and as I have learned with this and her other books, Kalynn Bayron never fails to disappoint; I can't wait for the next project she releases. I gave this 5/5 stars because I thoroughly enjoyed it and cannot think of anything I would change about it.

This Wicked Fate picks straight up where This Poison Heart left off. We follow Briseis on a quest to find the final piece of the Absyrtus Heart. However, her enemies have other plans and she must call upon her ancient magical powers alongside her new found family to bring her mother back from the dead.

This story has everything I love, and I just adore how the plant magic and Greek myths are woven together.

This Poison Heart was one of my favourite reads of last year and I was so happy to have the chance to read the sequel. Thank you to Bloomsbury and Netgalley for the opportunity to read This Wicked Fate.

4.5/5 stars.

This Wicked Fate is a fast paced and interesting sequel to This Poison Heart. Picking up where its predecessor left off, This Wicked Fate spins a tale of myth, gods and botany, which is engaging from the very first chapter. I've been looking forward to reading it since I finished This Poison Heart last year, and needless to say it did not disappoint.

I loved the characters, and was rooting for Briseis throughout. What really shone for me throughout the book, however, was not only the characters but their dynamics and the families, found or otherwise, that I got to know and love as a reader. I also loved Briseis' and Marie's relationship, and I really loved all the casual sapphic rep we see throughout the book! The dialogue between characters (especially Circe and Marie) was also really entertaining, and there was such warmth to so many of the interactions between the main characters. The plot was also really fast-paced, engaging and easy to read, with a clever incorporation of magic and mythology, building perfectly on what was established in This Poison Heart.

Overall, this was a great sequel to an extraordinary book, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I absolutely recommend it if you enjoyed This Poison Heart, and if you haven't read This Poison Heart yet, you should check it out!

*I was given an eARC of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Content warnings: death of a parent, death, mild violence.

I so wanted to rate this higher but just couldn't sadly. Something was just missing for me in this sequel. I enjoyed This Poison Heart, so went into the TWF excited, but it fell a little flat. I'm a very picky and demanding reader so that is probably why! I still loved the Greek mythology links and there were some more twists unravelled in book two that I thoroughly enjoyed

🌿 BOOK REVIEW 🌿

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Hello, lovelies! This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022 and I’ve even preordered the paperback. When I was accepted for early access on @netgalley, I can’t tell you how excited and grateful I felt!!! I really tried to savour this one but bloody hell, I got to 40% in and couldn’t stop myself from binging the rest… 🫣

After ADORING This Poison Heart, I was wary of whether This Wicked Fate would be just as good. In my personal opinion, I thought this one was even better than the first!! Seeing the characters we fell in love with grow in this book was exceptional, the mythology and fantasy elements were STUNNING and the plot unravelled at a fab pace with plenty of layers to uncover. I can’t explain how much I was rooting for Bri and her family (found, adoptive, chosen and birth combined) to succeed. What I wasn’t expecting was the amount of sass, humour and emotional woven through this book. It definitely added depth to the story!! 👩‍🍳 😘 👌

I feel like this duology is a love child of Percy Jackson and The Secret Garden with TONNES of black girl magic, queer rep and humour thrown into the mix. It’s perfectly balanced and I am completely obsessed. The relationships, the blend of fantasy and mythology, the layers of plot lines from past and current events, the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ rep AND adoption rep are unlike anything I’ve read before. This is a YA series with everything going for it and I cannot tell you enough, how much I want you to all read this!!! 🫶

I cannot WAIT for my paperback copy so I can reread this physically! @kalynnbayron you have captured my heart with your writing and I will be recommending this duology to anybody who will listen. 🌿

Let me know if you’ll be picking up this read, or if you need to read the first one, still! Lots of love, Bec xx

⚠️ please research TWs before diving in.

This Poison Heart was one of my favourite reads of last year, and I was over the moon when I received an arc of the sequel. Reading the opening words of This Wicked Fate, was like a deep breath of fresh air. There is something so whimsical about the way Bayron writes. The descriptions of the flowers blooming and flowing as Bri commands, the intoxicating poisons, the rich greenery and the overgrown gardens. Every image was like a little painting in my mind.

One of the reasons I rated This Poison Heart so highly was because of the incredible ending. Every chapter of This Wicked Fate topped the final moments of the previous book. Bri’s journey was a thrill from start to finish, and there is just far too much to unpack in one review. As I stepped back into her world, the tone was potent, and I felt the weight of grief suffocating the protagonist. I really struggle to read books about bereavement, but Bayron writes about grief in such a compelling way. This book pulls at your heart strings. Bri’s emotions are so palpable, they lift effortlessly off the page. Bri is such a beautiful soul. Bayron has crafted a character that the reader can truly care about. Bri is captivating and real, which is why the stakes were so high. I loved how grief was described in waves, returning when least expected, creeping up at the worst possible moments.

What I really appreciated was that Bri did not need to be strong. The people around Bri were so supportive, and I loved the soft tones of sisterhood. Mo is one of my favourite characters and I could just feel how much she loved her daughter. The idea that love can stretch beyond lifetimes was so charming, and I felt that message through Circe. The most interesting and mysterious character, Circe had such a profound depth. That woman has been through the ringer. Despite everything, the way she wrapped her warmth around Bri and embraced her niece was so poignant. Their little group were so wonderful, and I loved reading every single interaction.

This Poison heart introduced mythology, but This Wicked Fate knocked it out the park. I had so many questions after the first book ended, and the sequel answered them in ways I couldn’t have guessed. The introduction of mythical creatures, including one of my absolute favourites, was so thrilling. The first book felt like a mystery set in an abandoned mansion, while this sequel felt like the sapphic Percy Jackson adventure of my dreams! Every single reveal blew my mind. Whenever I wanted something to happen, Bayron would give me every single drop and so much more. The strength of the writing and world-building is hard to ignore.

The true, beautiful highlight of this phenomenal book were Marie and Bri. Their relationship was somehow both tender and thrilling. Marie was the soul of this book. I loved finding out all the intricacies of Marie and learning what drove her actions. Their romance was written so well, and I got a little sunshine and grump energy from them at times, which I absolutely adored. I loved how Marie protected Bri, while the protagonist helped the former open up to those around her.

The representation in this book is beyond superb. There are so many beautiful, sapphic relationships, and guess what? It made perfect sense. It worked. Why would I want to read books that lack the representation when there are books like This Wicked Fate? Bayron is genuinely one of the best YA writers out there right now, and I cannot recommend her work enough.

Thank you so much to Bloomsbury and the author for sending me a digital ARC of This Wicked Fate, in exchange for an honest review!

After the ending of This Poison Heart, I was desperate to find out what happened next. This sequel was everything I could have asked for, and it’s definitely one of my favourite reads so far this year!

First of all, I loved how much Greek mythology was incorporated into this book. In the first book we saw a few references to mythological figures, but the sequel was heavily based on mythology. I loved the twist on the Medea myth and I found the parts with Hecate, Medea and Absyrtus very interesting to read! I also really like the whole ‘quest’ aspect of the book. It was giving me Percy Jackson vibes which I absolutely loved!

And of course there were so many amazing strong female characters like always in Kalynn Bayron’s books! Overall I think that Briseis is one of the best leading female characters I’ve ever read about. She is a genuinely nice person;she will do anything to protect her friends and family even if she’s not known them for very long; she is strong and independent and she has cool powers. What more could you want 🤷‍♀️

Finally, I loved the development of Briseis’ and Marie’s relationship during the sequel. They’re so cute together and I’m glad that it all went well in the end!

Overall I 100% recommend this book. It was an amazing conclusion to this duology and I can’t wait for any future books Kalynn Bayron writes!

My rating:
5/5 ⭐️s

I wish I could give this book more than 5 stars. Perhaps 5 stars and a kidney.
I absolutely adored this book. This Poison Heart was one of my favourite books of 2021 so my expectations of this book were high and they were exceeded!
This book gave me many strong female characters, gorgeous family and found family moments, and a pretty epic quest. Tied throughout the book were pieces of Greek mythology which I’m very into. This book was utterly magical and heartwarming and just glorious
I feel like I may have found my favourite book of 2022
I also sobbed so much during the last 20% of the book that I soaked my cardigan because I wasn’t prepared to stop reading to go and get tissues.
This book was perfection and Kalynn Bayron is now one of my autobuy authors as this is the third book that I’ve read by this author and the third 5 star read. I loved this so much

I feel horrible leaving this review, but This Wicked Fate just wasn't for me. I ended up DNFing it.

I enjoyed This Poison Heart very much, but TWF felt like a different book tonally - and almost like a different genre. It felt goofier really, kind of silly. If it had been aged down just a little bit it would have felt perfect for an MG book, whereas TPH was firmly in the YA fantasy genre.

I had a hard time with the first few chapters. The book picks up right where TPH left off, and it took me a while to remember all the characters, their motivations, and how they connected with each other. By Chapter 4 I was *still* trying to remember who one character was and had done in the previous book!

Additionally, the opening felt like it was packing in too much info all at once and I started skimming, hoping the story would start and the characters would do something more than give backstory. And then the story started and unfortunately all the gods and goddesses adventuring was done in such a way that - though I usually love mythology - felt goofy.

I'm disappointed the sequel for a book I enjoyed so much didn't work out for me, but at least lots of other people seem to be enjoying it.

This book picks up immediately from the end of This Poison Heart- not that surprising as book one ended with a deadline creeping up on our characters. Usually, I have to reread a book before I read the sequel because of my bad memory, but the beginning of This Wicked Fate very elegantly recapped the first book without it feeling like it stood out from the story too much. I do feel like the early chapters were a little bit info-dumpy but that definitely wasn’t because of the recap. It wasn’t bad, as such, but there was a lot of information there. Ultimately, I kind of felt like I was reading part 2 of a chonky book instead of a whole second book in its own right – I think this could have worked better as one whole piece than as a duology, and that might have resolved the issues I had with the book’s pacing, which just felt a little inconsistent to me.

The highlight in this book for me, much like in the first book, was the characters. Briseis is strong, but she’s all heart too, and I loved seeing her develop and grow into her powers more and more throughout this book. I wasn’t a huge fan of her relationship with Marie, but I didn’t hate it either and I liked the way that they relied on each other in this book. Their relationship was very sweet and loyal in that way. Circe and Persephone were an absolute revelation to me and I loved them. I don’t know why but I was expecting Circe to be a colder and more distant aunt. Instead, we got a caring and concerned auntie and got to enjoy Briseis and Circe puzzling out their relationship after never knowing each other. There was a huge focus in this book on generational trauma and how hard it can be to set that down and I was emotional reading about Circe and Briseis’ arc. I also loved that we still got to see the support from book 1 as Bri’s mom welcomed her birth family with open arms.

Tonally, This Wicked Fate is very different from book one. To me, at least, This Poison Heart felt like urban fantasy with faint Greek elements, and book two felt like a more mature Percy Jackson story with actual gods and a globetrotting quest. That being said, I had a lot of fun once I’d adjusted my expectations and the ending was solid, tying up the loose ends in a satisfying and emotional way.

This was a great duology, love the mix of Ancient Greek mythology with a contemporary adventure. Loved all the meetings with Greek Gods along the journey. I’m a sucker for anything Ancient Greece related.

The plot was really satisfying and a good end to the tale. Fabulous and complex main characters, love when writers create characters that are not simply good or evil but have elements of both.

I can’t say I felt overly invested in the romance; I think it could maybe have been built up a bit more but amazing to see Sapphic romance in fantasy. Just wanted more of it!

Interesting read and great to see so much representation of queer black characters. Let’s hope there’ll be lots more like this to come.

The first book wasn’t a favourite of mine but I did enjoy it and that transferred over to this book too! It was a nice easy read and I am thankful to netgally and the publisher for allowing me access to this book early.

Ahhhhhh! I can’t accurately describe how exciting it was to be able to read an advanced copy of this. This Poison Heart was one of my top 10 books last year and I was so thrilled to be back with Briseis and the gang.
The writing is just so gripping, that despite the fact I was a bit hazy on the ending of the previous novel I flew through it. I did feel like there wasn’t as much drama as in the first book, but I was kept guessing throughout anyway which made for some excitement! I especially loved the bits with Dr Kent & Mr Herman and Mo remains my fave badass :)
It did wrap up very neatly at the end, which some people like but I maybe could have done with a little more of a mess, a few tears….

Thank you so much to the team at Bloomsbury as well as netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to read this e-ARC, you made my week :)

I will review this on my bookstagram page @rosies.book.shelf closer to release day x

An epic conclusion to such a wholesome, yet thrilling lgbt+ fantasy duology. The greek mythology elements were so much more in this book and it was WILD. Cannot wait to see what Bayron does next!

I really enjoyed This Poison Heart, so going into this I was nervous - what if the sequel wasn't as good? As with most sequels, my review will focus on the duology as whole as well as the book itself.

This Wicked Fate picks up where the last book left off (sorry for the lack of summary, I don't want to give any spoilers). IT IS SUCH A GOOD SEQUAL!!

I actually enjoyed this more than the first book. The pacing was perfect, the characters felt like real (if a bit magical) people, and the world building was rich with detail. Bayron stepped away from the secret garden elements, and the duology became a Greek myth retelling of Medea's tale. This was done in such an interesting way and I don't think I've read anything like it before. The magic system is still one of my favourites I have ever read, and as someone with an interest in botany I was fascinated by Briseis's powers.

I think one of the real strengths of this book is the relationships between the characters, and how each of them are impacted by this generational trauma. The characters are all interconnected by trauma, and they are all working hard to take care of each other in a world where they are constantly threatened. It leads to really interesting character dynamics (I especially love Briseis's relationship with her mums and aunt).

However, my only criticism of this book is also related to relationships. Marie and Briseis's romance felt forced, and didn't really add much to the plot. The time frame of this duology is short (only a couple of months), so that relationship didn't feel very meaningful or help character development. It felt like an after thought - they read as friends who would kiss sometimes. I don't think it took away from my enjoyment of the story, but it did feel rushed.


Overall, I would HIGHLY recommend you pick up this duology. 4.5, rounded up! Book 2 is published on June 21st.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury YA for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book start right the second where we left "this poison heart". And my mind just jumped into the story straight away as if I was living it myself. The transition is smooth and with a great flow.
As in the previous book I had to read with my phone near by to be able to look for the plants mentioned in the book, adding few of them to the list of plants I want in my garden. This is one of my favourite parts of the book it gives you a great opportunity to learn botanical facts. because the best books are where, in addition to an amazing story and characters, you get to learn something different as well.
In this book Briseis embarks in an adventure to bring together all the parts of the Absyrtus heart and bring back her mom from the underworld.
The mythology gets heavy here with the appearance of some more gods apart from Hecate, that we met in the previous book. Plus more mystical creatures and magic show up. There is a lot more magic in general, I'll say with a bitter sweet HEA this book was the perfect ending to Briseis story. Is beautiful and does not disappoint