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Everything Is Poison

Joy McCullough author

Format:Hardback

Publisher:Dutton Books for Young Readers

Publishing:14th Jan '25

£18.99

This title is due to be published on 14th January, and will be despatched as soon as possible.

Everything Is Poison cover

Early Seventeenth-Century Rome For as long as she can remember, Carmela Tofana has desperately wanted one thing: to be a part of La Tofana’s, her mother’s apothecary in Campo Marzio, Rome. When she finally turns sixteen, she’s allowed into the inner sanctum: the workroom where her mother and two assistants craft renowned remedies for their customers. But for every sweet-smelling flower extract in the workroom, there’s another potion requiring darker ingredients. And then there’s Aqua Tofana, the apothecary’s remedy of last resort. In all Carmela’s years of wishing to follow in her mother’s footsteps, she never realised one tiny vial could be the death of them all. Everything Is Poison is a story of a deadly secret hiding in plain sight and of the women who risk everything to provide care for those with nowhere else to turn.

★ “Bracing…. Enrapturing…. This eloquent, rapid-fire novel is rich in cadence and history.”Publishers Weekly, starred review

★ "Acclaimed author and playwright McCullough exquisitely reimagines her play La Tofana’s Poison Emporium into a historical teen novel that smoothly mixes in Italian history. Fans of McCullough’s Blood Water Paint (2018) will be enthralled to delve into another story that includes interspersed verse on the subject of 'giving women a choice over what happens to their bodies.' A must-read for those who embrace the #MeToo movement."—Booklist, starred review

"Everything Is Poison’s
mixture of tenderness, brutality, loneliness, resignation, and joy makes for an intimate reading experience. Free-verse poems between prose chapters elevate the story and highlight the universal elements. An emotionally stirring celebration of women finding community."—Kirkus Reviews

ISBN: 9780593855874

Dimensions: 216mm x 146mm x 25mm

Weight: 374g

304 pages