A Magic Steeped In Poison (The book of tea, 1)

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Starting with the characters- I really liked them! ✨ Our mc, Ning, was super easy to connect to and I really admired her willingness to do anything for her sister. Her development throughout the story was really well-done and I was rooting for her throughout the competition 💗💗 I also really liked our mmc, Kang- he was such an interesting character and finding out more about him throughout the story was so interesting. He's honestly so sweet, i love him! 🥰🥰 It takes a lifetime of training to learn how to read tea like a master, and I had already resigned myself to becoming a physician’s apprentice. A year ago, it was decided. For my sister could not stomach the sight of blood, and my father required another pair of steady hands. The magic is not in the ceremony of pouring the tea or the sharing of the cup. It is in the connection, the brief joining of souls. The tea leaves are the channel, the ingredients the signposts.” Another POV was introduced out of the blue, which also confused me. The narrative is told from Ning's and Kang's perspectives, and aside from Kang's perspective being told in the third person, both perspectives sounded the same. Actually, almost all of the characters shared a similar sound. It was challenging to get engaged in the story because the entire thing was told in a detached, mass manner. This story felt drawn out and repetitive because Ning's thoughts and emotions were constantly described rather than actually demonstrated, a flaw I was willing to ignore in the first book.

As well, the author's writing style is very gorgeous and has a ton of potential to create a very expansive and wonderful story, but like I said before I just felt that it didn't blend as well with this book. There was an attempt at more expansive world-building in this book, but in my opinion, it felt very confusing. I didn't really seem to be able to grasp what the author was trying to do, and it really didn't seem to expand on the world that much. I know it was supposed to be important what did happen, but I think there was some tension missing. This was EVERYTHING I wanted in a fantasy book!! 😍😍 Such a cool magic system, stunning writing and a really entertaining plot. I thoroughly enjoyed my time reading this! ☕💖 The competition is brutal, though, populated by underhanded tactics and ruthless contenders. And with a number of power plays and political maneuvers being enacted behind the scenes, Ning will have to be careful not to step into the line of fire. So it's pretty exiting, in that everyone is basically afraid for their lives and trying to both survive, but make sure that their respective sides end up on the throne. Here's the thing: While I absolutely appreciated this, I didn't feel a sense of actual danger? Like sure, I knew that cognitively the characters were technically in danger, running for their lives and from their foes, but... I just didn't actually feel it?

Success!

Ning comes across as such a vibrant, strong, yet relatable character. How did she come to life and why was she the perfect lead for this story? Soon there will no longer be an empire to rule, and we'll all reside in the serpent's realm of nightmares. My father has used every drop of knowledge he possesses, even swallowed his pride to send a letter to the college for aid. All possible antidotes within his reach, he’s tried. But I know the dark truth we circle around. A Magic Steeped in Poison contains all the ingredients for a wonderful story. And, as I've mentioned, the writing had so much potential. But I won't lie and say I wasn't disappointed. As it stands, I'm not sure if I will be continuing on with this series.

Blends traditional tea-making with familiar tropes about magic and medicine to create something that feels wonderfully new." — Paste Magazine First of all, this cover is devastatingly stunning, just as much if not more than the first book. That's probably my favorite thing about this series, which might seem trivial, but I truly enjoy how gorgeous these books look together. I remember giving the last book five stars, but not remembering everything that happened in it. Unfortunately, this book didn't completely live up to the high expectations I had for it, but I think it was still a nice story. Nuestra protagonista debe luchar por su sueño, que no solo es convertirse en maestra de té, sino salvar a su hermana de la enfermedad causada por el té envenenado que ha sumido al imperio en un miedo constante.Romance is not the central focus of the story, although there is a romantic element. Ultimately it is the female characters in this book who held my attention. This book should definitely not be categorized as a YA Romance. This is a fantasy tale about women trying to survive in a world that men control, while they work to undo the damage that has been done to their people. There is a lesbian romance alluded to between two important side characters. It was brought up without fanfare or controversy and just existed as a natural aspect of the story as a whole. Doubt crawls across my skin as my fingers return to clutch the scroll once more. An invitation meant for someone else—my mother’s true apprentice.