Ning blames herself for her mothers death, for brewing the tea that poisoned her and is slowly killing her sister. So when a letter comes to the house offering the chance to become the Shenong-shi to the Empress, Ning knows this is her one chance to get healers from court to come and save her sister. But Ning has to lie to get into the competition, and between the backstabbing courtiers, court politics and her other, wealthier competitors, Ning feels her chance slowly slipping away. That is until something happens, something that puts Ning in danger, but also offers her a chance at saving her sister. With her heart and life on the line, Ning has to make a decision, a decision that could save or destroy her.

Holy cow is this book just as beautiful as the cover. I'd read a whole bunch of reviews that absolutely raved about this book, something that always makes me wary it wont live up to the hype, but it did and then some. A Magic Steeped in Poison follows Ning on her time in the trials to become a shennong-shi, something she has had to lie to enter, but knows it's the only chance she has to save her sister. Ning is headstrong and has an affinity with tea few others have, but what makes her special is her determinism, she knows that she is looked down on due to her background, that there are other, more trained shennong-shu who would thrive in the role, but they don't have a life relying on them winning the competition. So despite the backstabbing, people trying to remove her from the competition, her own life being in danger she has a will to survive, a will to win and it was truly special following this girl as she grew through the competition.

As well as Ning, Lin treats us to a wide cast of side characters, most of whom absolutely pulled at my heartstrings. From Lian, another shennong-shu who has entered the competition, but someone who quickly becomes Ning's friend, the one person she can rely on in the Palace. The Princess and her guard Ruyi who ask Ning to spy on someone they think is after the throne, to the serving staff in the Palace, who Ning quickly becomes friends with. And finally Bo, the mysterious boy that Ning meets on her first visit to the city, a boy that is keeping secrets, secrets that will have an effect on Ning she will never see coming. They all help further the plot, add to the drama and also give Ning more depth as a character, and I loved the scenes where we get to see her interact with them all.

Now for the magic, which was by far my favourite part of the book. Shennong-Shi are masters of magical tea making, able to brew teas that can heal, recover memories, discern truth from lies... basically anything you can imagine, and while this does sound rather simple, it was Lin's luscious writing style that brought it to life. Her descriptions of the magic had me glued to the pages, she talks about the intricacies of it, how each individual component of the tea has it's own importance, how brewing time can effect the potency. Brewing tea doesn't sound like it should be magical, but it absolutely is and some of my favourite scenes from the book are the ones where Ning, or others in the competition used their magic. If there's one other thing that Lin writes well it's food, I cannot tell you how hungry this book made me, the descriptions of all the different dishes, the aromas she described had my mouth watering and my stomach rumbling wanting to dive in the book and try them all.

Lin does a brilliant job of weaving in lots of different folktales from Chinese mythology, either using them as plot points for her book, or using her characters to introduce us to the stories and how they fit into her world. Thanks to reading a few Chinese mythology based books recently, I managed to notice a lot of the stories she used and loved seeing the little nods to Chinese culture she put in there. The one thing I wasn't the biggest fan of was the romance, it was a little too much like insta-love for me, but I do think it played a small part in the overall book, so never took away from my overall enjoyment.

That ending! It should be illegal to end a book like that. I read the last sentence and flicked through the last pages making sure I hadn't missed something and it's safe to say I need to get my hands on book two asap. Lin has created a world and magic that leap off the page, with characters you can't help but root for and a story filled with court politics, deception, romance and intrigue.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher to provide me with that copy.

What can I say? I Loved that book. From the first page till the end. Beautiful described characters, a magically great story and the reader has been left behind with a good feeling. Chinese folkore meets fantasy! I
It was easy to read and easy to follow. cant wait to read book 2.

I love the artwork and colour of that book cover. Its such a great idea and fits perfect to this story.

I can recommend it to everybody who likes chinese art, mythology, folklore and fantasy.

I can clearly give 5* for it!

What I was looking for: The colourful cover made me curious and the blurb sounded intriguing: tea (I am myself a passionate tea drinker) and magic and Chinese mythology.

What I liked: There is so much I like about the book: the casual mentioning of same-sex couples (without any inclination, that this is somehow exceptional), the magic system, the mouthwatering food descriptions, the tea, the Chinese inspired mythology, and the courtly intrigues. But what I love most of all is that the motivation of our heroine is the love for her sister. The family holds together and the two sisters are so close.

Conclusion: What a great book! If you like a magic with a price, tea and (found) family, this might be the book for you. I cannot wait for the next one.

A Magic Steeped In Poison centering its gentle heroine wielding tea magic to save her poisoned sister even when empires topple in the background is a breath of fresh air in the congested YA scene.

You see, Lin is not doing anything that has never been done begore in YA, but she is changing who is doing them! And that, for me, is one of the biggest victories. Buckle up because I'm going to use this review as an excuse to write this.

<b>The Way Of The Passive Protagonist </b>

Traditionally, YA fantasy leans towards active protagonists, people who are in control of their narrative. The story is about them because they are the most important character on the board. They are pivotal to the toppling of empires, they are the reason. This is why we see alot of royals, rebels, and chosen ones as heroes, because frankly us plebs didn't do shit. Most storytelling advice also leans into this, asking writers to find the most pivoral character on the board and make them their protagonist.

But what about the rest of us? What about those who fight to just survive, those who are not in control of the things that shape them? What about our stories?

Well, the YA fantasy publishing said that they could go to hell. Well, not anymore because Judy I Lin is here with one of the most compulsive passive protagonists I've ever read.

Ning is a nobody. It was circumstances beyond her control that led her here. Her goal of saving her sister seems miniscule compared to all the courtly politics that go on, the concerns of nations, thrones and gods. Infact, the court subplot would be only minimally disrupted if we remove her from the equation. But who are we to decide which struggles are greater? Judy I Lin captured Ning's struggle to save ger sister and her grief at losing her mother so potently that I asked myself, what if empires fall? What if the princess loses it all? Would it hurt more than a girl watching her sister succumb to death, helpless and frantic?

Ning is shaped by her circumstances, she rarely can control what happens to her. Like a leaf fighting the wind, there's nothing she can do beyond surviving what life throws at her. But she doesn't break. She is not the spunky sword wielding heroine throwing quips around but her quiet fortitude shows that strength is not synonymous with violence or capacity for violence.

Lin could have easily gone with another protagonist but in choosing Ning, she shows that our struggles and stories matter too, even if we are leaves swept away by the current, even if we are not royals with empires to lose.

The magic system is so clever, with tea and medicines deciding the powers used. So closely entwined with the phenomenal world building, I really loved how there were almost no infodumps but I still know the lore by heart at the end of the novel.

Atmospheric and brilliant, the writing is softly laced with grief and an unnamable sadness. Ning grieves her mother throughout the novel and the author manages to show it even when she's at her happiest.

I wouldn't say Magic Steeped In Poison is flawless. It suffers from a lack of clarity in several action scenes, the romance happening almost instantly but with its strong focus on sisterhood, a transportive world and lore and a passive protagonist who has my whole heart, I cannot help but overlook any qualms.


Thank you to Titan Books for providing an e review copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review and looking forward to A Venom Dark and Sweet

A fantastic, enchanting tale that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

It’s been a while since I haven’t wanted to put down a book, but I really loved this story and cannot wait for the sequel.

A Magic Steeped In Poison is a beautifully written novel that immerses you in Chinese Mythology with a magical twist.
The plot is addictive and full of many clever twists and turns, paired with beautiful prose and writing it truly is the perfect combination for an amazing fantasy book.

Not ashamed to say I was drawn in by the cover. How can you not be? It’s absolutely stunning.
Then I read that it’s a magic system based around the brewing of tea!? I was sold.

We follow Ning who is trying to find a cure to save her sister who she unknowingly poisoned with some tea.
The book is fast paced and we’re soon following Ning into the capital to join a magical tournament, where she hopes winning will give her the cure she needs to save her sister.
This book is so engaging all the way through. Ning is trying to navigate through the political unrest, the mystery of the poison tea (who’s doing it etc) plus trying to win a competition which doesn’t favour her at all.
In between all that we do have a love interest - but its definitely a side plot so don’t expect this to be romance heavy.
Despite her family only getting a small mention in the beginning of the book, you never get the sense that they have been forgotten - regardless of the newfound friendships.
The actual brewing of tea is simply beautiful. Ning goes out to buy new ingredients to brew different teas, and it’s endlessly fascinating.
I’m really looking forward to the sequel & hoping the romance can be fleshed out a little bit more, but overall I absolutely loved this book.
Highly recommend as I can guarantee you’ve never read anything like it.
Thankyou to NetGalley for the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

ARC received from NetGalley. Thank you!

This was thoroughly enjoyable, with an interesting tea-based magic system and a likable heroine. The world was well developed and the writing beautiful.

Unfortunately, it fell a little too close to the younger end of the YA bracket for me. I think I'd have enjoyed it a lot more if I was younger. I think my main disappointment was that none of the other characters felt particularly well-developed, and I didn't really care about the romance. That could equally have been because it was m/f though. YMMV.

Would definitely recommend!

Such a unique book. I loved the aspect of the tea making contest. Can't wait for the next book in the series.

Fantastic. An enchanting tale with twists and turns on the way. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and can't wait for the next instalment

I’m sorry to say that I can’t say something better about this book than “it was ok, it’s a good book but it didn’t make me crazy”. Perhaps I was expecting something more exciting and it didn’t meet my expectations. For me, it lacked a little bit of spirit and I wasn’t very much engaged in the story. The heroine of this book believes to have caused her mother’s death and her sister’s illness-curse, so she runs to the capital of the kingdom with an objective, to get the help of the princess who happens to have a sort of magical stone that could cure the mysterious poisonings that are spreading in the lesser provinces. In order to get to the princess, she needs to win a competition of healers that runs every year in the imperial court. Luckily our heroine’s mother was a powerful healer and wise woman and was training her to be the next generation.

The premise sounds incredible. The settings and the environment are my thing. It has floklore, tales, myths… but the writing was a bit toneless in my opinion, it wasn’t boring but it wasn’t engaging either. It lacked that something extra that leaves a reader wanting to know more the sooner the better. There was a mystery storyline with a wealthy boy and a mysterious dark thief roaming in the shadows that sounds so promising and was so so good… but then the competition storyline was mild enough to kill the mood. It felt unbalanced and in my experience that storyline made it hard for me to keep reading. In conclusion, great plot and premise, too slow a pace.

3.75 Stars

Synopsis: Ning’s mother is dead, her sister is dying. To save her, she must become the top Shennong-Shi in the royal competition.

CW/TW: Poisoning/Animal Abuse/Violence/Death/Classism/others may be present.

Rep: Side sapphic relationship alluded too.

A Magic Steeped In Poison, by Judy I Lin is a beautiful read.

Prose. The prose is quite beautiful and very compelling, we get one POV (Ning’s) and it works well for this particular story. The book starts and ends strongly, immediately engaging you and leaving you wanting more. The descriptions of the Tea, the magic and more are all gorgeous – I adored this element of the book. I also quite liked Ning’s POV, it is limited and she is quite a strong voice so it works well with the plot.

Plot. I enjoyed the plot of the book, Ning’s desperation to save her sister, the guilt over her sickness and her mother’s death, and I liked the royal competition. However, the best part was, undoubtedly the magic. I loved the magic! It was so captivating to watch how the different teas, and different ways of brewing them, elicit different effects and uses – it was beautifully done and truly magical. I also quite liked the mysteries of where the poisoned tea comes from, the shadow, and more. However, the plot felt a tad flat to me, aside from the magic, the book was relatively predictable, while not a bad thing, necessarily, it just felt a little underwhelming.

Moreover, the main romance is central to the plot, and I didn’t like it. It was insta-love, which I personally do not like, but in this particular book the romance just fell flat overall to me. I just wasn’t rooting for it, I didn’t feel much chemistry between the two and so any risks/consequences etc… didn’t hold much weight.

However, despite feeling a bit underwhelming and not liking the main romance, I did enjoy the book as a whole and enjoyed the storyline of the competition, poisoned tea, and competition – I just felt the romance was an unnecessary element.

Characters. I liked the characters, particularly Ning and Lian. They both felt like the strongest characters in the book in terms of characterisation (even if I though Ning’s decision weren’t great, her character was still compelling). Bo’s character was a little lacking, but perhaps this was due to Ning’s perspective. I did like the Princess and Ruyi though and looked forward to their interactions with Ning.

Overall, this was a beautiful book with some promising plot elements that I would like to see fleshed out in book 2 and the magic is uniquely phenomenal and engaging.

*I received an eARC via Netgalley from Titan Books in exchange for an honest review – thank you!*

Oh, that was so good!! I love the idea of tea competition. The world building is amazing as well as the writing style. The MC is a bit flat at the beginning but she grows towards the end of the book. I didn’t love the instalove between her and Kang, thought it was too rushed. Speaking of rushed, the lá t few pages the book flew. I barely could keep up with everything it was happening. Plus, it finishes on a massive cliffhanger!! That being said I need the second book. I believe our MC has a promising future on the sequel.

4.5 ✨

We follow Ning, a girl from a small village who dreams of the wider world. Navigating the grief of her mother’s death and trying to find a cure for her dying sister Ning finds herself on her way to a competition in the imperial city. This competition to find the kingdom's greatest shennong-shi—masters of the ancient and magical art of tea-making - may be just what can help her find out who is poisoning the tea and how to save her sister.

Guys I ADORED this book. I was immediately swept away the world building, mythology and magic system. Based on the Chinese tea culture this book was filled to the brim with magical teas, incredible food and smells and imagery that had my mouth watering. So many different flavours and cultures and mythology - my dream fantasy. I felt like I was there in their world, drinking their teas and tasting the food itself. The imagery ensnares you and I wasn’t able to put this book down!

One of my favourite parts was watching how Ning navigated the challenges of being in the imperial city and the competition. Fantasy competitions are some of my favourite books and this has definitely joined my favourites! It was so unique and immersive. Watching how Ning finds her self and watched her magic grow was so satisfying to read. This new world is filled with danger, deception and magic and Ning faces danger at each turn. But she’s protective, tenacious and curious and won’t stop until she finds answers.

I would have loved more romance but loved the angst and can’t wait to see what happens in book two!

There’s a rich cast of side characters, dangers and magic that brews like the perfect tea right from the start. With the dark court politics and internal back stabbing, a deadly competition and angst of new relationships, you won’t be disappointed!

Highly recommend ✨

Ning is a grieving daughter, burdened by her belief of being guilty of her mother’s death. At any rate, she was the one to prepare the tea, which turned out to be poisonous. As the same illness threatens her sister's life, Ning is determined to find the antidote. When the competition to find the greatest shennong-shi (master of tea-making) is announced, Ning takes her sister’s place as their mother’s apprentice and travels to the imperial city. There, she faces not only the challenging competition tasks but also unfair rivalry, court intrigues and the charm of first love...⁠
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In this novel, Judy I. Ling created a wonderful new world for her readers to explore. Based on Chinese tradition, it explores folklore and adds a specific charming touch- magical teas! The whole book revolves around tea! In A Magic Steeped in Poison, the ancient art of tea-brewing is raised to a mythical level. Shennong-shi uses tea leaves, prepared in a specific way and infused with various ingredients to charm, fortify, separate truth from lies or poison and kill. Different plants and herbs have unique properties, and all the participants of the shennong-shi competition have their own way of using them to their advantage. Tea-making is, in this book, a way of life, an art with traditions and ceremonies that are described in detail. I found it fascinating.⁠
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I would recommend this unique and beautifully written novel to the fans of stories based on mythology, especially Chinese. If you liked Daughter of the Moon Goddess or Six Crimson Cranes, you would love this book.

We follow Ning on her quest to win the favour of the Princess, become the courts Shénnóng-shí and ultimately save her sister from the poison that engulfs her body. Ning faces many tasks of endurance, encounters deception and corruption at every turn. How will Ning decipher who is friend and who is foe? After her mothers death Ning is determined to do what is right for her family and takes an invite to an elite competition of the Shénnóng-shí to win at any cost.

It was definitely the cover that attracted me to this book, its wispy colours and elegant drawings really gave it that magical feel. With this being my first fiction set in China, with links to Chinese mythology and folklore, I went in with an open mind and was pleasantly rewarded. The idea that magic can be summoned with the ancient art of tea brewing was such an intriguing concept. I learned a lot about this, its role in ancient Chinese customs and how traditional Chinese medicine is a large part of the culture.

For Ning it is all about family and I loved how strong and determined her character was. She never seemed to waiver from the task of obtaining the antidote, even when the odds were stacked against her.

I found the story a bit linear initially, it was difficult to get on board and sympathise with the Ning. Though once the deceit element started to creep in and the pace of the story increased I suddenly became enthralled and couldn’t put it down, needing to know what would happen to Ning. For a debut novel this would be a good addition to any YA fantasy reader.

It was clear from me starting this read that this would be part of a series (the next I believe is called A Venom Dark and Sweet). The author ended this book on the right note answering enough what ifs, but keeping you wanting more.

I chose A Magic Steeped In Poison at random from my approved titles on NetGalley. I really enjoyed it. There’s going to be at least one follow-up, so I look forward to reading it. I really enjoyed the world-building and the way Ning’s culture, and society is brought to vivid, memorable life. I especially enjoyed the detail added about the history of tea-making. This fascinated me. This is well-written and engaging with great characters. I liked it a lot.

There is a poison being spread throughout the land. Ning has already lost her mother and now her sister is severely ill too. So when Ning hears of a competition for shennong-shi (masters of the magical art of tea making) in the capital, she knows she has to attend to try and find a cure for her sister. The competition however will never run smoothly, with backstabbing competitors, and arguing politician, and a good-looking mysterious boy thrown in, Ning may be in danger.

I really enjoyed this magical read. The magic system itself of making tea was so so clever. Different teas can do different things to a person depending on how they are brewed and their ingredients.

The book itself read more as a YA book, which is great. Easy to read and follow, lots of action and twists and turns along the way.

Ning was a lovely character, strives for the good of the people, and wasnt afraid to stand up to the politicians who were out of touch with the feelings of the general population.

A beautiful story, and I cannot wait to read the sequel.

A Magic Steeped in Poison releases in the UK today (6th September) and I do really recommend grabbing a copy if you like beautiful magic systems, with a solid plot and some romance splashed in! Thank you to Titan for this copy of the book!

A Magic Steeped in Poison is the debut novel of author Judy I. Lin, who has crafted a truly breathtaking world based upon Chinese culture and mythology, delivering a unique and wonderful magic system that not only makes this book stand out, but will also have you craving a good cup of tea.

The novel begins when Ning packs her bags to leave her family home. Having grown up in a small village with her mother, father, and her sister, Shu, her life has been forever changed now that her mother has died after drinking poisoned tea. Even worse than that, the same poison is currently killing her younger sister. Despite the best efforts of her father, the village doctor, there seems to be nothing that can be done to cure the poison that looks set to claim another life from their family.

Ning, however, has come up with a plan to try and save Shu. The capital is currently holding a competition to crown a new shennong-shi, a magic user that is able to brew different teas to craft spells, combat poisons, and perform amazing feats. The winner of the competition will be given a place of honour among society as the shennong-shi for the royal family, but will also be granted access to cures and resources that Ning believes would allow her to save her sister. Stealing off into the night, Ning makes her way to the capital where she's able to use the invitation sent to her mother - who was a shennong-shi and taught Ning - to enter the competition.

However, now that Ning is part of the competition she learns that she is not only having to compete against other, better trained and more well connected opponents, but that she has entered a world of court intrigue, double crosses, and plots. With assassins targeting the princess, the Emperor locked away inside his castle, and a poison plot claiming the lives of people across the kingdom, Ning realises that it may not be as easy to save her family as she first hoped.

A Magic Steeped in Poison feels like multiple stories all rolled into one. On one hand it has a central competition that feels like The Apprentice, with various competitors fighting to prove themselves and to win their prize. There's also the court intrigue and villainous plots from stories like A Song of Ice and Fire with various ministers and court officials all out to advance themselves. And there's some romance thrown in for good measure as Ning begins to fall for a dangerous, dashing young man with a dark secret. And on top of all of this, the book gives us one of the most interesting and engaging magic systems that I can remember coming across, one that feels wholly unique to this world.

The magic of the story is tightly connected to tea. The shennong-shi create their magic by carefully crafting the right teas, picking the ingredients for the different qualities that they bring to the table. They have to think about how these items interact with each other, taking care not to brew something where one ingredient drowns out another, ruining the intended outcome. They then ceremonially brew and pour the teas, and breathe magic into them using their inherent powers. It's a complex and subtle art, one that requires years of training and careful study, as well as some natural talent too. Ning is probably the least experienced person in the competition, yet has a natural flair for the process that allows her to not only compete with the others, but to stand above them at times too.

There are multiple instances throughout the book that we see hints of Ning's magic at work without the use of teas, such as her listening to the flow of the world around her, taking notice of nature and asking it for guidance to find certain objects. The book makes hints that whilst the teas are the most obvious and practised form of magic in this world they're not the only one, and that there is more beauty and horror hiding just out of sight. Because of this, it's one of the more subtly engrossing fantasy worlds I've read. It draws you in slowly, and will occasionally add more elements into the mix, though it never seems to want to overshadow the tea brewing itself. Much like the shennong-shi crafting their teas, it seems like Lin has carefully crafted and curated what we learn of this world to give us the best result.

Whilst the book takes some chances and does some unique things with some of the elements, others will be comfortingly familiar. The book follows structures that will be recognisable to those who've read a lot of Young Adult literature, with a few of the more popular tropes thrown in there too. It could be easy to dismiss a book that uses familair structures and tropes as not trying, or not being creative; but that's certainly not the case here. Lin does some things that may be expected with the formula, but it never feels derivative or hackneyed, and instead it puts enough freshness and new ideas into it that it instead feels reassuringly familiar.

The book is packed with interesting characters, and by the time it ends you'll probably have had your opinions on quite a few of them change more than once. Lin's cast of characters are always more complex than they first appear, and have ulterior motives, hide their true intentions, and often put on a front in the imperial court. The result is that you can never really feel too complacent, and that you end up having to take careful note of everything you read as you never know how the plot and characters are going to shift.

My only criticism of the book is that this is a first part, the beginning entry in The Book of Tea series. I enjoyed the book, and when it came to an end with the story unresolved, and me unable to jump straight into the next volume, I was a bit disappointed. But that's the sign that a book has done its job well, when it comes to an end and you're thirsty for more. The book ends with things to be continued, but it's still a wonderful, contained story that you can pick up and enjoy all on its own. Fingers crossed fans won't have to wait long for the next instalment though.

A Magic Steeped in Poison is a wonderful debut packed full of interesting and intriguing things for readers to get lost in. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, and is a wonderful work of art in itself. If you love fantasy stories but want to try something that feels fresh and original, this is the book for you.

What a book! I absolutely adored the magic system and the uniqueness of it all.

Vivid world building and absolutely fantastic characters. I loved the Chinese culture & folklore that it was built around.
It took a while for the story to unfold, but at a round 30% it picked up and I was completely absorbed.

Even though it was typically YA, it truly held it's own and I can't wait for the next one!