The Potion Experiment is a middle-grade (ages 8–12) fantasy novel about friendship, self-discovery, and the surprising similarities between magic and science.
“I was not one to believe in make-believe. Not without evidence.”
When thirteen-year-old scientist Ange is whisked from her home to the middle of a forest, she thinks she’s cracked teleportation. Until she hears Eva’s voice in her head, talking about magic and spells and a potion-gone-wrong.
Turns out Ange is stuck in Eva’s body – in a world full of magic, where no one has heard of physics or chemical equations – while Eva is in Ange’s world and a little too keen to start casting spells for the fun of it.
Now Ange needs to figure out how to swap back before they’re found out. But if their constant bickering doesn’t get in the way, Eva’s habit of pranking and Ange’s inability to catch toads just might.
The Potion Experiment is a middle-grade (ages 8–12) fantasy novel about friendship, self-discovery, and the surprising similarities between magic and science.
“I was not one to believe in make-believe. Not without evidence.”
When thirteen-year-old scientist Ange is whisked from her home to the middle of a forest, she thinks she’s cracked teleportation. Until she hears Eva’s voice in her head, talking about magic and spells and a potion-gone-wrong.
Turns out Ange is stuck in Eva’s body – in a world full of magic, where no one has heard of physics or chemical equations – while Eva is in Ange’s world and a little too keen to start casting spells for the fun of it.
Now Ange needs to figure out how to swap back before they’re found out. But if their constant bickering doesn’t get in the way, Eva’s habit of pranking and Ange’s inability to catch toads just might.
The potion looked disgusting.
It was practically camo, with deep green and brown refusing to fully mix and become … browner, I supposed. The gritty sludge would have belonged in a swamp more than a potion. I hadn’t even tasted it yet and I knew it was gritty. I could see the grit. I thought I could even see a fully intact moth wing floating around in the thick liquid too.
And I had to drink that …
Well, I didn’t have to. But I’d spent the last month figuring out all the ingredients to brew it, and no one else was going to test it for me. I knew it would work. It might have been the first potion I’d invented, but the potions I brewed always worked.
I only had a short while before Theo caught up and started preaching to me about not drinking unregistered potions. I could hear his voice even now: ‘Eva, you know what’ll happen if school finds out. And what if you grow tentacles for arms or something?’ He meant well, but his ‘safety first’ obsession only hindered my inventiveness. Sure, I could have told a mage and had them supervise my brewing, but I didn’t need their help. Or even Theo’s. I could do this all on my own.
It was possible there could be side-effects, like a blue tongue or mage-pattern baldness, but nothing I wouldn’t be able to fix with another potion.
I let my shoulder-bag slide off my arm and onto the grass, then pulled the stopper from the vial. I wouldn’t try to travel far this first time – only to the forest on the far side of the clearing. It was somewhere I could see, which made it easier to visualise: eucalyptus trees, colourful wildflowers, long grass, sunshine.
A stick snapped and I dropped the stopper.
Was Theo that close? I couldn’t risk him interrupting me; I needed to focus, and I couldn’t handle another lecture right now.
I lifted the vial to my lips and scrunched my nose. Potions rarely tasted good, especially if they looked like this one did. No matter how much honey I’d added, it wasn’t going to be sweet.
I steeled myself, then tipped the vial upside down and took one giant, sickening gulp.
Thirteen-year-old Eva, a slightly mischievous, free-spirited mage-in-training did not set out to brew a potion that would make her mind trade places with an alternate version of herself in another dimension. But when that's exactly what happens, she faces not only a foreign world, different values, and the chaos of living in someone else's shoes. She's also faced with deeper considerations of what life could have been like had she treated certain people in her own life differently.
Ange is an aspiring scientist, and believes the point of science to be proving things impossible. Having her mind swapped--beyond her control--by a complete stranger from another world (and a world where magic is a very real, tangible thing!) is almost more than her logical mind can process. But time spent living this other version of her life opens the doors to teach her that sometimes impossible things aren't quite as they seem, and that friendship and love truly can overcome any manner of obstacle.
I had very mixed feelings going into this tale. Doppelgangers pretending to be someone else (especially magic VS non-magic people in a school setting) isn't a new or technically 'original' concept by any means. However, seeing that taken deeper by adding in Nature VS Nurture themes and the impact that openness about love, familial support, and societal/cultural norms brought so much depth to this story.
I really appreciated the fact that despite it being clear that 'Evangeline' (the combined 'Eva' and 'Ange') is the same person, technically, that the subtle distinctions on what behaviors were encouraged vs repressed, what achievements were recognized vs ignored, and how much affection/approval they were shown or denied, crafted them into these two vastly different versions of themselves.
Eva could almost be described as a 'bully' in many ways, and it was unique to see a story through a bully's eyes. She plays hurtful, long-lasting pranks before trading places with Ange and after (despite knowing she's in Ange's body). For all her intelligence, she seems to want to manipulate authority for approval/sympathy (like 'crying' to Ange's parents about an incident at school, when very little had anything to do with her and the character in the moment was genuinely unbothered), something I'd think of as a bully's behavior (beating up on others to begin drama, then try to capitalize on said drama for attention).
In Eva's body, we see the shock and horror Ange has of her counterpart's treatment of others, and the lack of communication between Eva and her parents, too.
In both cases, both as an observer in Eva's mind while her body's hijacked, and living in Eva's body simultaneously, Ange is a strong, self-assured main character. Her confidence and refusal to stand back silently instead of calling Eva out makes her a perfect mirror for Eva, and actively changes the way Eva sees the world on the page by the end.
I did find myself wishing there'd been just a bit more resolution for Eva's side before the switch. Primarily to see if she'd do things differently to redeem herself after the experience and make her life better in the future. This is the primary reason I'm giving the book a 4 instead of a solid 5.
The characters are just out of middle-grade themselves, so they're tackling more YA themes. Parents should use their own discretion when determining whether this is a good piece for their child. It is eye-opening and thought-provoking even as an adult.