A Magic Steeped in Poison (The Book of Tea, 1)

 

Publication date: March 29, 2022

My Thoughts:

This debut Asian fantasy book by Judy I. Lin just adds magic and world building to the other Asian fantasy books making a mark on the YA scene. In this year of the water tiger, arts will be strong, and I find that Magic can hold up along with other strong YA Asian fantasy books that are also getting lots of love. 

Ning, the main character, may not be ready to take her mother's place in the shennong-shi competition, and her sister Shu is supposed to be her mother's apprentice, but when her mother and sister fall victim to poisoned tea, like Maia from Spin the Dawn, Ning must win a competition to save her family.  Shennong-shi are magic tea makers, but each person has magic in different areas. Some are healers, like Ning and her mother. Some wield magic in tea that can give strength to the drinker. Although Ning has not officially trained with her mother, she must rely on her gift for plants, her ability to speak to flowers and her training with her father, a physician. 

Like Mina, The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh, Nng is headstrong and brash. She often acts first without thinking through consequences which makes this first of two books twisty and exacerbating, packed with action, high court intrigue, revolution and espionage. 

This book is going to be another hit. I am just loving these beautiful covers and the devour worthy AAPI fantasy books coming out. This one is good for YA and middle grades if readers are ok with the violence and death.

From the Publisher:

I used to look at my hands with pride. Now all I can think is, "These are the hands that buried my mother."

For Ning, the only thing worse than losing her mother is knowing that it's her own fault. She was the one who unknowingly brewed the poison tea that killed her―the poison tea that now threatens to also take her sister, Shu.

When Ning hears of a competition to find the kingdom's greatest shennong-shi―masters of the ancient and magical art of tea-making―she travels to the imperial city to compete. The winner will receive a favor from the princess, which may be Ning's only chance to save her sister's life.

But between the backstabbing competitors, bloody court politics, and a mysterious (and handsome) boy with a shocking secret, Ning might actually be the one in more danger.

Spin the Dawn (The Blood of Stars, Book 1)

 

My Thoughts:

Elizabeth Lim is the author of Six Crimson Cranes that I loved and devoured earlier this year. This one is actually her first original novel. She had an earlier "twisted tale" of Mulan that answers the question of what might happen if Mulan had to journey to the Underworld in Reflection. This however, though Mulan-esque, has the appeal of a Project Runway type of competition and a life and death quest with the hunky sorcerer/love interest. Oh, and in addition, like Mulan, the main character, Maia, must disguise herself as her brother Keton in order to even enter this competiton to be the Royal Tailor and save her family.

Like Cranes, this has girl power magic, romance, demons, and brothers who love her. Now that I know that Lim did this book first, I think the strength of her later books is that she further ties her books to cultural tales and mythology. I am not saying that this is not strong. I just am saying that as a storyteller, Lim is getting better and better. 

If I was not on the waitlist at my local library for this past year, I probably would recommend giving readers of fantasy/girl magic/romance this book first because the second book is already out. I think having the next book out is how young readers will want to read Six Crimson Cranes too, so steer them to this first. I, unfortunately, am still on the library waitlist for Unravel the Dusk (Blood of Stars, Book 2), but as of this morning, I am #9 on the queue.

From the Publisher:

Project Runway meets Mulan in this sweeping fantasy about a teenage girl who poses as a boy to compete for the role of imperial tailor and embarks on an impossible journey to sew three magic dresses, from the sun, the moon, and the stars. And don’t miss Elizabeth Lim’s new novel, the instant New York Times bestseller, Six Crimson Cranes!

“All the cutthroat competition of a runway fashion reality show and the thrilling exploits of an epic quest." —The Washington Post

Maia Tamarin dreams of becoming the greatest tailor in the land, but as a girl, the best she can hope for is to marry well. When a royal messenger summons her ailing father, once a tailor of renown, to court, Maia makes the ultimate sacrifice and poses as a boy to take his place. She knows her life is forfeit if her secret is discovered, but she'll take that risk to achieve her dream and save her family from ruin. There's just one catch: Maia is one of twelve tailors in a cutthroat competition for the job.
 
Backstabbing and lies run rampant as the tailors compete in challenges to prove their artistry and skill. Maia's task is further complicated when she draws the attention of the court magician, Edan, whose piercing eyes seem to see straight through her disguise.

And nothing could have prepared her for the unthinkable final challenge: to sew three magic gowns for the emperor's reluctant bride-to-be, from the sun, the moon, and the stars. With this impossible task before her, she embarks on a journey to the far reaches of the kingdom, seeking the sun, the moon, and the stars, and finding more than she ever could have imagined.
 
Steeped in Chinese culture, sizzling with forbidden romance, and shimmering with magic, this fantasy novel is not to be missed.

"This is a white-knuckle read." —Tamora Pierce, #1 New York Times Bestselling author of Tempests and Slaughter