Scan barcode
blewballoon's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
On paper, I feel like I should have really liked this? This historical fantasy type setting usually works for me, heist plots are interesting, and I am a sucker for found family. I do think this book spent more time on the (lackluster) romances than it should have, but I could see myself not minding as much if I was in a different mood.
I think my problem is that more than anything I'm a character driven reader and I need to like the characters. Apart from Jin, I didn't really care for anyone, and so it was hard to care what was going on with them. Jin deserved better friends, honestly. He spent a lot of time having information kept from him and having to work around Arthie's love interests.
I wanted to DNF a few times, and I knew I was going to come away from this book displeased when I remembered it was the first in a series and seemed like the kind of book that was going to end on a big cliffhanger. That assumption was correct.
I think that if you're the type of reader who connects with the type of character that Arthie is, and you don't feel like the romance elements get in the way of the rest of the story, you may enjoy this. The audiobook narrator was okay, but it seemed like she was kind of whispering the whole time.
I think my problem is that more than anything I'm a character driven reader and I need to like the characters. Apart from Jin, I didn't really care for anyone, and so it was hard to care what was going on with them. Jin deserved better friends, honestly. He spent a lot of time having information kept from him and having to work around Arthie's love interests.
I wanted to DNF a few times, and I knew I was going to come away from this book displeased when I remembered it was the first in a series and seemed like the kind of book that was going to end on a big cliffhanger. That assumption was correct.
I think that if you're the type of reader who connects with the type of character that Arthie is, and you don't feel like the romance elements get in the way of the rest of the story, you may enjoy this. The audiobook narrator was okay, but it seemed like she was kind of whispering the whole time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Blood
Moderate: Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Child death, Gun violence, and Death
Minor: Racism, Trafficking, and Stalking
riverlasol's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
4.5
found family heist but WITH VAMPIRES?? This was a dream come true.
It fully delivered on the premise and I can't wait for book two!
It fully delivered on the premise and I can't wait for book two!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Xenophobia, Colonisation, Violence, Racism, Gun violence, Stalking, Panic attacks/disorders, and Abandonment
tea_time's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Colonisation, and Death of parent
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Stalking and Racism
kathigh86's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
My first 5/5 of the year!
Hafsah Faizal is such an amazing author. Her writing is compelling and elegant. She is a master at trapping the reader in her worlds.
I absolutely adored the political commentary and how Faizal paralleled her world to the real world. I’m very excited to see how Ettenia evolves in the next book.
I loved the multi-POV in this book. We got a little bit of each character without giving away too much of their own secrets. I really enjoyed trying to guess everyone’s ulterior motives.
I have read the Sands of Arawiya duology. I felt like I was in on a little secret. It definitely added to my reading experience but not necessary to understand the general plot.
Overall this book was amazing. It was very slow in the beginning but once you hit part 2/the 60% mark everything is full steam ahead. I was not able to put this book down for the last 25%. So many things left unsaid too. I’ll be waiting on the edge of my seat for the next book!
Hafsah Faizal is such an amazing author. Her writing is compelling and elegant. She is a master at trapping the reader in her worlds.
I absolutely adored the political commentary and how Faizal paralleled her world to the real world. I’m very excited to see how Ettenia evolves in the next book.
I loved the multi-POV in this book. We got a little bit of each character without giving away too much of their own secrets. I really enjoyed trying to guess everyone’s ulterior motives.
I have read the Sands of Arawiya duology. I felt like I was in on a little secret. It definitely added to my reading experience but not necessary to understand the general plot.
Overall this book was amazing. It was very slow in the beginning but once you hit part 2/the 60% mark everything is full steam ahead. I was not able to put this book down for the last 25%. So many things left unsaid too. I’ll be waiting on the edge of my seat for the next book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Blood, Classism, Grief, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death of parent, Gore, and Trafficking
Minor: Alcohol, Genocide, Stalking, Colonisation, and Confinement
soniajoy98's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, Classism, Racism, Grief, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Child death, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Torture, Cursing, Genocide, and Sexual content
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, War, Slavery, Stalking, and Hate crime
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
This is a young adult fantasy heist novel set in 1920s Victorian London with SO MUCH GOING ON! There are vampires, arthurian legends (I am a sucker for these so ….. you got me there!), *obviously* some tragic backstory, chosen family, and a cliffhanger ending to keep you excited for the next book!
This is a young adult fantasy heist novel set in 1920s Victorian London with SO MUCH GOING ON! There are vampires, arthurian legends (I am a sucker for these so ….. you got me there!), *obviously* some tragic backstory, chosen family, and a cliffhanger ending to keep you excited for the next book!
This is set in the same world as We Hunt the Flame, which is so fun! Arthie gathers a crew for a heist to protect her tearoom Spindrift, which serves vampires at night with blood. Her adoptive brother Jin develops a closer connection to Flick, who has grown up a bit more privileged than Jin & Arthie had. Meanwhile, Arthie navigates flirtations from Laith & Matteo!
Generally, I appreciated the commentary on the experiences of being a person of color in England (they call it Ettenia in the book though). Though sometimes the pacing was a bit slow for a “heist” novel (for me), I am excited to see where this series goes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, and Blood
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Stalking, and Racism
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book starts out pretty slow, introducing us to our main cast of characters and following the characters as they plan their heist. There is quite a bit of planning in the first half that I think partly functions as world-building, but it does make the plot drag a bit. But once they get into the heist, things just snowball from there.
In general, this did remind me a lot of Six of Crows, though it doesn't quite have the pacing that Six of Crows has. Pretty similar vibes, though, with vampires instead of magic users essentially. There are some good twists towards the end that will definitely keep you reading, as I couldn't put the book down for the last third. And of course, there's a hook at the end for the next book, which I will absolutely be reading.
Faizal does have some great lines in this book (none of which I wrote down, so I can't include them here). This was overall a wild ride, and I'd definitely recommend it if you like fantasy heist novels!
In general, this did remind me a lot of Six of Crows, though it doesn't quite have the pacing that Six of Crows has. Pretty similar vibes, though, with vampires instead of magic users essentially. There are some good twists towards the end that will definitely keep you reading, as I couldn't put the book down for the last third. And of course, there's a hook at the end for the next book, which I will absolutely be reading.
Faizal does have some great lines in this book (none of which I wrote down, so I can't include them here). This was overall a wild ride, and I'd definitely recommend it if you like fantasy heist novels!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, and Colonisation
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Racism, and Gun violence
Minor: Stalking
vj_thompson's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I saw a review that described the pacing of this book as slow in the beginning, medium pace in the middle, and fast fast in the end. I think the reason the beginning felt so slow is because of the character building and slowly revealing who they are. The writing is BEAUTIFUL in this story. A lot of the words still dwell in my mind. Faizal describes a small moment with so much story and beauty.
Arthie is an awesome character. She is strong and a perfect leader. She is like an onion meaning throughout the book we get a little more of her background/story until the very end where we finally know what she has been hiding. The little love triangle was a nice side plot, which I really liked in this story.
Jin has my whole heart. He had everything until it was taken away from him, which is when he found Arthie 💕 The tea shop they created sounds so wonderful and magical. I liked that his perspective was included.
Overall, I’m dying to read the next and see what happens. The way the book ended leaves the reader with a lot of questions. I hope to see more perspectives in the next book. I was dying to read from Mateo’s POV because who wouldn’t want to hear the thoughts of a lonely vampire?!? Such a beautiful debut.
Arthie is an awesome character. She is strong and a perfect leader. She is like an onion meaning throughout the book we get a little more of her background/story until the very end where we finally know what she has been hiding. The little love triangle was a nice side plot, which I really liked in this story.
Jin has my whole heart. He had everything until it was taken away from him, which is when he found Arthie 💕 The tea shop they created sounds so wonderful and magical. I liked that his perspective was included.
Overall, I’m dying to read the next and see what happens. The way the book ended leaves the reader with a lot of questions. I hope to see more perspectives in the next book. I was dying to read from Mateo’s POV because who wouldn’t want to hear the thoughts of a lonely vampire?!? Such a beautiful debut.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Colonisation, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: War, Racism, Classism, and Grief
Minor: Kidnapping, Stalking, Trafficking, and Panic attacks/disorders
natashaleighton_'s review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
From the bestselling author of We Hunt The Flame, comes a new and intoxicatingly addictive YA Fantasy that completely stole my heart.
Masterfully blending the criminal swagger of Peaky Blinders and whirlwind action of Six of Crows, A Tempest of Tea is an insatiably lush and emotionally depth-filled tale of vampires, found family and vengeance —that heist obsessed fantasy lovers really don’t want miss!
Set in the same world as We Hunt The Flame (in the city of White Roaring) we follow criminal mastermind Arthie Casimir, proprietor of a popular Tea House which,by night transforms into an illegal speakeasy catering to the city’s vampires.
But when her beloved business is threatened, Arthie has no choice but to strike a deal with an enemy —by putting together a misfit group of criminals to infiltrate the vampire elites’ most secure organisation and steal a book. But not everyone in her crew is on her side, and there are many who would kill for the knowledge contained within the book’s pages.
I loved every second of this heady and atmospherically compelling tale, the prose was breathtakingly beautiful and the dialogue both witty and thoroughly entertaining. Hafsah Faisal masterfully explores themes of power, corruption, colonialism, class and family with such thought provoking vividness that I did find myself tearing up more than once whilst reading—especially during Jin and Arthie’s backstory reveals.
The complexity and depth of our POV characters (Arthie,Jin & Flick) was phenomenally well done too and the emotional growth we see from all of them was incredible.
Arthie, our mauve-haired Queen of chaos (and keeper of secrets) was definitely my favourite. Her ability to keep her cool, even in the most dire of situations was impressive. But it’s her decade long commitment to avenging her family and homeland (by cleverly sowing chaos in the colonising Ettenia’s upper eschelons—like a gun-toting Robin Hood) that made me love her the most. Her enterprising schemes and skill at extracting secrets (as well as keeping tons of her own) had me on the edge of my seat, eager to see what she’d do next. Though, I do admit Arthie’s charismatic second, Jin (and Laithe’s unnamed feline companion) were also firm faves.
There is some romance, which I found swoon-worthy in its slow burn intensity (which includes a bit of a love triangle) and the jaw-droppingly suspenseful twists leading up to THAT ending already has me excited to see how things develop in the sequel—which I’m desperate to get my hands on.
As high octane and pacy as this was, you’ll definitely want to savour every moment, as little there’s quite a few hints/clues that you may miss if you’re not paying close enough attention.
If you love heists, drama filled historical fantasy or vampires, then you simply must add this to your TBRs—it’s fabulous! Just be sure to check TWs beforehand
Also, a huge thank you to BookBreak and PanMacmillan for the proof.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Colonisation, and Death of parent
Moderate: Racism, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Stalking
skylarkblue1's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Representations: https://trello.com/c/nsqzygec/93-blood-and-tea-1-a-tempest-of-tea-by-hafsah-faizal
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
I'm conflicted on if I should recommend this or not, but overall I think I had a good enough time with it that I would. The only issue I really had with this book is how it handled romance - especially with a bit at the end.
The way I'd describe this book is vampires and tea meets assassins creed and heists. I know the order of assassins was a thing but the way it's portrayed in this book I'd really say is more from the IP assassins creed specifically - there's a ton of similarities and tbh I found that quite fun as someone who loves AC a ton. This whole book revolves around this one major heist, around 60% setting up and 40% heist and the aftermath.
I quite enjoyed the characters mostly, they all had their own goals and motivations which clashed quite nicely throughout the story. The only negative about that is not everyone was clear on that specifically with side characters. This is one thing the book did throughout the whole thing but was more clear in terms of character motivations, but important information was just drip-fed to you. So important info that's critical to the overall story, that's just not told to you until it's needed. Does help with making it a bit less predictable, but the twists then feel a bit undermined as it's not really a twist then it's just "you had no idea about this and this is what it is!".
The romance was quite a weird one in this. The less romance in fantasy, the more I enjoy it. I thought at first this was going to be pretty light on that and it both was and wasn't. Thoughout the middle section of the book it's just constant "oh these feelings are weird but I'm going to ignore them" and that's *constant* in the middle section and often feels really forced in. Like every couple pages kinda thing for all the POVs. The ending quickly changes it up though for a more intimate scene (though there's a shorter scene in the middle that's also more intimate, and that bit feels even more out of place. But gotta get in that description of water running down a bare mans chest....) just because it can kinda. It sorta has a reason in-universe, but the way it's written is just 100% for the romance only. There's many different ways the motivation could have been done other than suddenly ramping up the romance which hadn't really been near that point.
It's in that weird limbo between if you want to read it for romance you might be disappointed and if you want to read it for the low-romance you'll be disappointed in the ending a fair bit.
Also Jin, you gotta stop wanting to sniff women's hair. Please. It's kinda creepy how often it's mentioned.
I did love the heisting, I loved certain parts of the ending (the action parts) and I absolutely loved the kitten. The kitten really made the book for me they were super adorable, really well described, and I absolutely loved how they were used throughout the whole book. Honestly recommend reading for the kitten alone hehe.
Thank you Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
I'm conflicted on if I should recommend this or not, but overall I think I had a good enough time with it that I would. The only issue I really had with this book is how it handled romance - especially with a bit at the end.
The way I'd describe this book is vampires and tea meets assassins creed and heists. I know the order of assassins was a thing but the way it's portrayed in this book I'd really say is more from the IP assassins creed specifically - there's a ton of similarities and tbh I found that quite fun as someone who loves AC a ton. This whole book revolves around this one major heist, around 60% setting up and 40% heist and the aftermath.
I quite enjoyed the characters mostly, they all had their own goals and motivations which clashed quite nicely throughout the story. The only negative about that is not everyone was clear on that specifically with side characters. This is one thing the book did throughout the whole thing but was more clear in terms of character motivations, but important information was just drip-fed to you. So important info that's critical to the overall story, that's just not told to you until it's needed. Does help with making it a bit less predictable, but the twists then feel a bit undermined as it's not really a twist then it's just "you had no idea about this and this is what it is!".
The romance was quite a weird one in this. The less romance in fantasy, the more I enjoy it. I thought at first this was going to be pretty light on that and it both was and wasn't. Thoughout the middle section of the book it's just constant "oh these feelings are weird but I'm going to ignore them" and that's *constant* in the middle section and often feels really forced in. Like every couple pages kinda thing for all the POVs. The ending quickly changes it up though for a more intimate scene (though there's a shorter scene in the middle that's also more intimate, and that bit feels even more out of place. But gotta get in that description of water running down a bare mans chest....) just because it can kinda. It sorta has a reason in-universe, but the way it's written is just 100% for the romance only. There's many different ways the motivation could have been done other than suddenly ramping up the romance which hadn't really been near that point.
It's in that weird limbo between if you want to read it for romance you might be disappointed and if you want to read it for the low-romance you'll be disappointed in the ending a fair bit.
Also Jin, you gotta stop wanting to sniff women's hair. Please. It's kinda creepy how often it's mentioned.
I did love the heisting, I loved certain parts of the ending (the action parts) and I absolutely loved the kitten. The kitten really made the book for me they were super adorable, really well described, and I absolutely loved how they were used throughout the whole book. Honestly recommend reading for the kitten alone hehe.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Violence, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Blood
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, and Racism
Minor: Stalking
More...