Heist? Vampires? Tea? Peaky Blinders meets Six Of Crows? A dash of King Arthur? multiple POVs?

This book was so fun! The writing style was easy to follow, and the pacing was done well. I loved the relationships between the characters, and the fact that you don’t know who to trust. That ending made me spiral, therefore I cannot wait for the sequel to be out!

This book was great and a must-read for fans who love vampires, heists and found family (yes, you get to read about all three). I am giving it 4 stars instead of 5 since something felt off, but since I read it as an audiobook, I can't say if it was because of the narrator or the book itself.

I had a lot of fun reading this. I already have a soft spot for books that involve the found family trope, so this book was great. The world building was done really well and it didn't take me a lot of time to get into it. I really liked the way I was slowly introduced to the world, the characters and the story.

Now the characters. I LOVED THEM. The book is multiple pov, which was great, so I was able to read from different perspectives. I feel like I got to know every character better this way and get an insight into their thought progress. I especially liked Jin and Arthie (she's so smart, I love her) and their backstory. Also their interactions in general were really enjoyable.

ALSO THE ENDING!?! I need the next book asap, since I'm really curious about what the next book will bring us.

Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Big thank you to NetGalley and the MacMillan UK Audio for allowing me access to this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The narrator’s voice was clear and easy to listen to, however, I found it slightly on the slow side and not particularly engaging and thus found myself drifting away from the story frequently (which is very uncommon for me). Had there been some alteration in pacing during times in the book where stakes were high I would have found this audio much more engaging. There was some differentiation in accents and tones of voice for each character but this could have been developed further as well.

I had high hopes for A tempest of Tea as the initial premise sounded quite intriguing: Tea rooms and vampires, however, these quickly became irrelevant to the plot? The overall story failed to engage me and the characters felt flat, one-dimensional and unoriginal.

I would consider myself an experienced fantasy reader yet I felt out of the loop often. It felt like I was reading book 2 or 3 in a series and had missed the world building and character development.

The pacing remained slow throughout the book and I didn’t feel the plot was really building to anything. Overall, I struggled to follow what was driving the plot and quickly stopped caring whether the characters lived or died. Had I not agreed to review this audiobook I would not have continued with it till the end.

On a positive note, I will add that the prose was quite beautiful and there were moments I really did admire the authors descriptive writing.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book.

I was so excited to read this book because I only hear good things about it. It reminded people of six of crows so when I saw the audio ARC of this book I needed to request it!

The narrator of this audiobook was perfect! I couldn't stop listening. I needed to continue listening so I was a bit distracted when I was working. I loved the found family in this book. It was everything I was expecting and more! I loved the slow burn and the vampires. This book also had action! This made the book even more fun and entertaining to listen to.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an audio ARC of this book.

Unfortunately, it didn't quite live up to my expectations.
When I read the synopsis, I thought it had the potential to become my whole personality.
We have vampires, a heist, and a secret society. It all sounded so good and so exciting, and I had been so excited despite not being a fan of the author's first duology.

But much like We Hunt The Flame, I found the writing style a bit inaccessible and the pacing was off.
Despite the exciting premise of the book, it was quite slow and even though the whole concept is rather high-stakes, the book failed to get my heart racing, I just didn't really feel the risk and danger of this heist.
I also think that for a book with vampires, it could have had more vampires.

The characters were decent. I really like Althie and Mateo and the romance was good, but tbh the cat was my favorite character.

Overall, everything about this book was just "okay" for me, it wasn't bad but it also wasn't really good. Maybe my expectations were too high, but I truly expected to love this and I'm sad that I didn't.

I had an ARC of the audiobook and while the audiobook narrator did a decent job, I did feel like the narration was a little bit monotonous, which didn't help the fact that I was already on the verge of boredom for large parts of the book.

I think the author is just not for me, but I'm sure others will enjoy this book more than I did.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan UK Audio, for providing me with this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This audiobook is narrated by Maya Saroya. Her voice was very fitting for this story. I did have to get used to her slightly over pronunciating the S at first, but she did great!

Arthie is an immigrant, forced to flee her country because of violent colonization. All she wants and what drives her is revenge. She’s an incredibly tough character from the start.

The second POV is her very close friend Jin. He’s a smooth talker and together they run an establishment that’s a tea house by day and a blood house by night. Because of that Arthie’s pockets are full of coin, secrets and people. They live in a city of humans and vampires.

Arthie might get her revenge and save their tea/blood house by stealing an incriminating ledger. For this heist they put together a crew of them, an aristocratic forger called Flick (POV 3), an artistic vampire called Matteo and an unexpected high captain of the horned guard called Laith (serving the monarchy Arthie wants to take down).

The ledger is in the vampire high society so not easily obtained.

There’s also this other worldly pistol Arthie pulled from plaster, fixed in place to exploit the hopeful and attract a money spending crowd. That gun is really cool and can do/change into many unexpected things.

And last but not least, there’s this mysterious vanishing of vampires happening..

This had some great parts and some amazing developments at the end but it was mostly mediocre because we don’t get to know most characters at all. So how could I really care about what happened? So you could say I enjoyed it but I wasn’t very invested. The heist itself took a looong time to actually happen and I just imagined it being much more impressive and detailed. I feel like this could have been an amazing book. I do not like it when characters feel like empty shells. We did learn a lot about Arthie tho but her tough attitude and big words and gestures from start to finish made me feel like I never really got to know her.

I also would have liked any exploration of the tea/blood house :( and more vampires please!

First of all thank you for allowing me to have the arc.
I thought I was going to absolutely love this book but unfortunately with it being third pov I couldn’t connect with the characters that well and most of the time I didn’t know what was going on. I listened on audio and that may have contributed to this as well. At some point I will buy the book as I think I could possibly get into this book and thoroughly enjoy it with reading it in my own way.

I picked this book up on a whim and I'm *so* glad I did. This is an interesting mix of vampires, Arthurian legend, colonialism, found family, romance, and tea. What more could a woman want? Coconut water apparently!

The audiobook was done delightfully, one I listened too whilst at work, and I didn't want to finish at work because that would mean turning the audiobook off! I've learnt, after reading this, that this book is set in the same universe as Faizal's other series We Hunt the Flame. I've not (yet) read that series, but this book stands amazingly on its own with fleshed out world building and lore that has me so invested to learn more, but also satiated with what I've been given.

The vampires don't stray too far from the accepted lore, which allows Faizal to rely on your prior knowledge and flesh out the parts specific to her universe. And mixing in Arthurian legend with POC characters fighting colonisation and racism and you've got yourself your motivations and expectations all set up.

The found family in this book is so cute. There are some romances between characters, and this is the first time since Six of Crows that I've actually rooted for a romance! They are too damn cute. And the love V is one I didn't hate as well. What is happening to me?! I loved seeing this band of misfits come together in a way none of them could have anticipated and I'm so excited to see how their relationships develop as the series continues.

There were plot TWISTS at the end of this bad boy and wow were they good. I had inklings, I had speculations, but I didn't know any of them for sure (and one completely blindsided me - I just sat there with my mouth wide open!) The set up for these twists is done perfectly and masterfully and I am *so* excited to read more from Faizal in the future.

I'm even more excited now to read We Hunt the Flame, it's been sat on my tbr for too many years! I am also incredibly excited to read all future books in this series. There is so much potential and I could just live inside this world!

When the livelihood of an expert secret keeper and criminal mind is threatened, one has to take the precautionary steps. In this case, Arthie is partnering up with the weirdest combination group to plan a heist. But breaking into the Athereum(the vampire society) is tricky and may require some inside help. While they are all here for different reasons, a sense of camaraderie floats among them. What secrets does the dark and glittering world of vampires hold? Only time will tell.

I enjoyed reading the slow-burn relationship-building among the characters and the depths of vampire society. The suspense and anticipation aspects were done so well, it reminded me of Six of Crows duology. The book does give you a hangover, so beware of the fangs charming you. Writing-wise it was good, though I have read better. I had a few brow-raising moments but, since everything else amalgamated well, I had fun.

Thank you @netgalley @macmillan.audio and @hafsahfaiza for the digital ARC.
Genre: #fantasy #ya #vampire #romance
Rating: 4/5 ⭐️

#ATempestofTea #NetGalley

I have to start this book by saying thank you so much to Netgalley and to A Tempest of Tea team who allowed me to listen to this audiobook before release.

As always in all my ARC reviews, my opinion is my own and I'm in no way influenced by the fact that I got an ARC to review.

Review:

The reason why I got so invested and chose to review this book was that the premise was super engaging. Peak Blinders meets king Arthur with vampires in the mix? I was like, Yeah sign me in!
And let me tell you it didn't disappoint.
Arthie is an amazing main character, she is badass and super assertive. The great thing about this book is the fact that it focuses a lot on the consequences and ramifications of colonialism and the way they are seen in society in the 1920's.
The idea of a tea house used as a bloodhouse at night is incredible in itself, but the real show stealer was the heist. It brought together the feeling of a newfound family that i truly love.
The POVs alternate between Arthie, Jin and Flick. I wouldn't say all of them kept me on the edge of my seat. But Arthie's really shone brighter than the other. Probably because she reminds me a lot of Kazz Brekker and I truly love these kinds of characters.

Now things I liked the least in this book.
The romance is very lacking. I'm not usually one to complain about the romance bits in books because it's usually what I'm not focused on when reading a book. However, this book relayed a lot about the romance, which made it feel like it was an important part of the book. The character in question is caught in a weird love triangle that doesn't fit her character type, making it look unrealistic and at times very juvenile.

Hafsah Faizal's writing is beautiful. Don't get me wrong, but sometimes the flowery way she tends to describe things would harm the pace more than it helped. And i found myself getting bored in parts, or confused and having to rewind to listen again.

The three POVs didn't work for me. I wish we could've focused more on Arthie and been given information through her POV. I found myself skimming other POVs more than often because one of the POVs didn't add much for me.

Because this is also an audiobook review, Maya Saroya was a wonderful narrator. The flow and the way she narrated the story made this audiobook completely worth it for me. In rating alone, I would give a 9 out of 10. It was well narrated.

First of all I really liked this book! It had adventure, vampires, action,…

It did give me a lot of SOC vibes and did dnf that one (oops) but i liked this one better.

I got the audio arc and I do have to say that i missed a lot of things because I do other things while listening to the audio. Usually I stick to contemporary romance when listening to audio so it’s less of an issue if you miss something small then. The narrator was nice to listen to though!

Be ready for found family, many twists and turns with a twist of romance...
The team Arthie and her brother gets together to pull the heist to save their tearoom and home is not starting out of friendship, but out of need. We get to see them work together and their relationships evolve for good or worth. AND there is a kitten!
I will definitely pick up the second book in this duology! I need answers!

*Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan UK Audio for access to the audiobook against an honest review.*

A Tempest of Tea follows Arthie Casimir, the owner of a very intriguing and prestigious tearoom that, once night falls, caters exclusively to vampires. In an unexpected turn of events, Arthie’s tearoom is threatened and she must gather a crew and plan a heist to ensure the safety of her establishment.

This book is full of vivid imagery that Faizal brings to life with her beautiful lyrical prose. She manages to weave world building and character development into every scene, without it being overwhelming for the reader. Furthermore, Faizal explores themes of colonisation and critiques white supremacy with the care and thoughtfulness deserved, enriching the reading experience and creating a robust world building.

The pacing slows down halfway through the story, just as the heist is in full motion and precisely when the pace should be fast and agile. However, the plot twists and resolution of the book makes up for it.

One of my favourite things about this book was THE ROMANTIC TENSION! Oh my goodness, Hafsah Faizal knows how to write delicious tension that had me giggling and blushing!

The audiobook narration is phenomenal. Maya Saroya is able to bring every character’s personality to life with expertise.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan UK Audio for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so deliciously enticing, I have had such a blast with this. The narration was superb, and the world and time the story took place in was so complimentary to each other and the story at large, I couldn't get enough.

“Every good love story starts with a bullet to the heart.”

Peaky Blinders meets Six of Crows in this vampire fantasy.
Tell me that premise doesn’t make you drool along that gorgeous cover 🧛‍♀️

Hafsah didn’t fail to deliver on the magical writing in the Flame duet, but she might have surpassed even herself with this book.
Arthie and Jin own Spindrift; a tea house that’s secretly serves blood for vampires after hours. Only there’s a lot of behind the scenes going on in Arthie’s life that might put her and everything she worked for in danger’s path where she, Jin, and 3 more will go on heist. Twists and turns that keep you at the edge of your seat until the very last page.

Cliffhanger that’ll have you collecting your jaw off the floor. I cannot wait for more books in this world, in the meantime, going to reread WHTF!

I was lucky enough to get an early audio copy and DEVOURED it. The narrator did such a great job bringing this story to life!

A Tempest of Tea started and ended strongly, if not a little confusing, but the pacing was off in the middle. I nearly DNF'd halfway through, although I'm glad I carried on because it picked up around the 80% mark.

The prose and characters were written well but I think a first person POV narrative might have helped me relate to them and care a little more. There seemed to be a disconnect.

I'm not sure I'll carry on with the series. I wasn't really sold on the characters motivations in the final chapter so it's left me a little reluctant to push through the next book.

I was so excited to listen to this, because the premise promised a heist like "Six of Crows" with vampires. Maybe I had just to high expectations because of this, because ultimately for me the book was very boring with uninteresting characters. I liked the main character Arthie though, because she was very pragmatic and clever.
I would have liked to see more of the Spindrift, because very little was shown what the location was like and why it was so special. Yes it was told us in the beginning, but I would have liked to experience it myself, which I didn't really get.
I liked the narrators soothing voice and I think she was the perfect match for the very beautiful prose. Because although I didn't enjoy the book overall, I really liked the writing.
While listening to the book, I often found myself losing interest and I had to go back and repeat chapters, which felt very dragging and not very satisfying in the end.
Overall I think, maybe I would have liked this more if I hadn't have so high expectations in the first place.

Thank you to Netgalley for this early copy of the audiobook!

I requested an advanced digital copy of the audiobook of 'A Tempest of Tea' from NetGalley because of that splendid cover art, initially, and then because it's been a while since I read a spicy YA vampire Fantasy.

Given that reviewers are discussing the novel's resemblance to 'Six of Crows', it might be worth mentioning that I haven't read it, nor watched Peaky Blinders.

Without those points of comparison, I was enamoured of a bloodhouse tearoom setting - what a fantastically original backdrop! Unfortunately, although it is talked about A LOT, we get to spend next to no time exploring or indulging in it. In my view, the novel would be much improved with more of the tearoom/bloodhouse backstory, and lots more vampires, for starters.

Needless to say, I enjoyed a kitten playing a major role in a heist scene, but I found myself flailing when it came to most of the characters: perhaps it's the minimal distinction Maya Saroya voices between characters; perhaps it's the (frequently) cringeworthy dialogue.; but mostly, I'd say, the novel bombed with me where love interest and romantic tension are concerned. The lack of motivation for the pairings meant that I could not invest myself in them. Sexual tension ceases to be tension if it's unduly protracted in every other paragraph!

'A Tempest of Tea' certainly taps into a lot of popular elements that readers want to read, and the pre-publication hype on Goodreads is literally incredible, but does it deliver on the stuff that has booklovers salivating? I won't be reaching for the sequel.

I hope the author extends their critique of colonialism as a theme in the follow-up. It isn't examined in as much depth in 'A Tempest of Tea' as I would've liked. Ultimately, however, the principal disappointment for me is pacing; the novel is so slow and outstretched. Its relatively underdeveloped plot, narrated less than enthusiastically by Maya Saroya, is so long drawn-out that I lost my appetite for it quite early on, and it failed to quench my thirst.

Many thanks to Macmillan UK Audio for granting my request for a review copy.

A Tempest of Tea blew me away. This book has everything. A heist. Vampires. Unlikely allies. Betrayal. Found Family.
It was such an action-packed ride and I was not prepared for that ending! I am glad that this will be a duology.

This was a really enjoyable heist novel set in a world where vampires exist and are an accepted part of society. I loved the vibe of the Spindrift tea shop/blood house and the relationship between the Casimir siblings Jin and Arthie was wonderful. Arthie was a good protagonist and the plot was simple to follow without spoonfeeding the reader, which I appreciated. There were some good reveals and some great character moments and overall, I was very pleasantly surprised by this one and will definitely be picking up the sequel.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.