*I was given a copy of A Tempest of Tea in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Macmillan and Hafsah Faizal for my copy of the book.*
Synopsis:
On the streets of White Roaring, Arthie Casimir is a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets. Her prestigious tearoom transforms into an illegal bloodhouse by dark, catering to the vampires feared by society. But when her establishment is threatened, Arthie is forced to strike an unlikely deal with an alluring adversary to save it—and she can’t do the job alone.
Calling on some of the city’s most skilled outcasts, Arthie hatches a plan to infiltrate the dark and glittering vampire society known as the Athereum. But not everyone in her ragtag crew is on her side, and as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy that will threaten the world as she knows it.
Review:
I wish I had chosen this as my first ARC of the year because wow I was blown away. A Tempest of Tea was completely intoxicating and I didn’t want to put it down. I read over 40% of the book in my first sitting, which is very impressive considering how long it has been taking me to get through books lately.
I wouldn’t call myself a huge fan of vampire books, but this one is very good. The vampires are fairly classy and there’s no cringe involved. I love that there are different types of vampires and it feels like their lore and this entire world is so rich.
I’m a little bit in love with this cast of characters. They all have such distinct personalities and really bring something to the story. My absolute favourite was Jin, he was not only the engineering brain behind Spindrift, which was super cool, but he also had an interesting past and what looks to be an interesting future. I love how he was super cool and suave around every woman but Flick, he was a bit of a bumbling idiot with her at times – so cute!
Arthie was of course a really cool character too. I love her character design and if there’s one word to describe her it would have to be badass. Especially when she’s wielding Calibore (no spoilers on that though, but trust me it’s sooo cool!).
I absolutely love a heist book and this one does have Six of Crows vibes. I wouldn’t say it was as intricate, but it did have its blood pumping moments. I enjoyed the planning and build up to the heist more than the actual event itself, but still, very fun.
The reasons why A Tempest of Tea is a five star read are not ones I can talk about without spoiling huge plot points – hence why this review is pretty short. Right until the end, this book was sitting at maybe a 4 or 4.5 stars, but the revelations in the final few chapters pushed it all the way to a five. Honestly, it’s incredible, I can’t recommend it enough.
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