Beast consuming books and medicinal liquid (6)
I believe the answer is:
lotion
'medicinal liquid' is the definition.
(liquid used for medical purposes)
'beast consuming books' is the wordplay.
'beast' becomes 'lion' (type of animal).
'consuming' is an insertion indicator.
'books' becomes 'OT' (abbreviation for Old Testament).
'lion' enclosing 'ot' is 'LOTION'.
'and' is the link.
(Other definitions for lotion that I've seen before include "Preparation that's applied to the skin" , "Medicinal or cosmetic liquid preparation" , "Liquid preparation applied to the skin" , "Salve" , "Thick liquid for skin" .)