Hey all, Sam here.
It is Saturday, and sadly that means my mom will be heading home in the morning…but we’re going to have one last evening of fun, and I’m looking forward to it. Actually, I’m hoping that I’ve managed to find some time to do some reading while she’s been here. As I am actually typing this up before she even gets here for the weekend, I can’t say for sure, although I do know I’ll be talking all about it when the next WIP Wednesday comes around.
Today’s review is another one from when I did my long weekend reading challenge last week. It was a very effective way for me to get through some reads, so I’m trying to figure out what is going to work better for me when it comes to reading in the future: make sure I read for a little bit each day, or set aside one day a week to read, or something else entirely. I have a lot of books I still need to read and review, not to mention all the books to be released (and even to be written).
So let’s jump into today’s review.
The enthralling conclusion to Judy I. Lin’s Book of Tea duology—A Magic Steeped in Poison and A Venom Dark and Sweet—is sure to enchant fans of Adrienne Young and Leigh Bardugo.
A great evil has come to the kingdom of Dàxi. The Banished Prince has returned to seize power, his rise to the dragon throne aided by the mass poisonings that have kept the people bound in fear and distrust.
Ning, a young but powerful shénnóng-shi—a wielder of magic using the ancient and delicate art of tea-making—has escorted Princess Zhen into exile. Joining them is the princess’ loyal bodyguard, Ruyi, and Ning’s newly healed sister, Shu. Together the four young women travel throughout the kingdom in search of allies to help oust the invaders and take back Zhen’s rightful throne.
But the golden serpent still haunts Ning’s nightmares with visions of war and bloodshed. An evil far more ancient than the petty conflicts of men has awoken, and all the magic in the land may not be enough to stop it from consuming the world…
My Thoughts
Rating: 4 stars
This is the second/final book of The Book of Tea duology, and you can find my review of A Magic Steeped in Poison here. I read the first book almost exactly a year ago, and I gave it 4.5 stars, so I know I really enjoyed it. But I also know that 2022 was a pretty crazy year and there was so much going on that my memory gets pretty hazy of some of it.
So I probably could have used a little refresher before jumping into this one. Because it doesn’t ease you into things or spend time reacquainting you with the characters and the world and what happened in the previous book. You just jump straight into the action so to speak.
We bounce back and forth between Ning’s and Kang’s chapters, following both of their journeys after the events of the first book.
There was not nearly as much tea magic this time around, and that was pretty disappointing for me. The tea brewing magic was such a cool element of the first book, and I was so hoping to see even more of it.
And with this book, I feel like the actual adventure/quest aspect didn’t start until more than halfway through the book. So it felt like even though we start off with Ning and the others in her group traveling and trying to keep themselves safe, overall the story felt like it was a meandering journey to get to where the story has a focus and a direction that leads to the conclusion.
That final drive with an adventure to complete in order to achieve their goals and save themselves and their people, was an entertaining one, and I think I would have liked more with that, instead of rushing to fit it into the latter portion of the book.
Overall, though, I enjoyed this duology, and I’m glad I read it. The magic system was something unique and interesting. I will definitely keep on the lookout for future books by Judy I. Lin.
Well, that is all from me for today. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.
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