Second book in a duology so no spoilers in the review for this book, but will be some for the first as it follows directly on

We meet back up with Ning who after the events of the last book is in hiding with the Princess and her loyal guard, and also her sister!

The 4 will make a perilous journey in an attempt to find allies and get the Princess back on her rightful throne.

Kang is also dealing with his own issues but still has a connection with Ning, that we see through the books dual POV

This book definitely takes a new direction with a high stakes good and evil battle, rather than the lower stakes tea competition with Palace politics, but I really enjoyed the conclusion of the series and how everything played out

I didn’t enjoy this very much and it took me ages to finish. Give has this in hold for a few months. My review of the first book was that it’s not for me and I should have stuck to my guns but I was curious to see how it plays out. I’ve just finished reading this and I don’t think I can tell you what happened in the first half of the book. If you liked book 1 you will like this and if you didn’t - I wouldn’t bother as this is much of the same.

To be frank, it was a real struggle trying to finish this one. I did it, because that's the only fair thing to do, and although it's not BAD, it's just not the kind of story/characters/setting I will remember a month from now.

I definitely enjoyed this more than the first! The escalating stakes and twists had me gripped and it was nice to see Kang and Ning get some semblance of normality at the end. The serpent was a worthy foe!

A delightful finish to the Books of Tea duology, A Venom Dark and Sweet follows on immediately from A Magic Steeped in Poison, as Ning and her companions have left her hometown, and are seeking allies loyal to the true princess. The narrative alternated between Kang and Ning's perspectives as they are on opposite sides of the occupation, battling with opposing loyalties and betrayal. We see Ning finally accept herself and those around her, opening herself to trust and support, a vital part of their journey.

Overall a very quick read, and though this could have easily been one longer novel, it barely felt like any time at all had passed since reading the first book! An excellent sequel, with a somewhat bittersweet ending.

Thank you NetGalley for an e-arc of this book. I have requested this because of A Magic Steep in Poison (vol 1). Even though vol 1 was not my favourite I really like the world and magic from this duology. I find the magic in these books and I love reading about it. The plot was enjoyable enough and I really like how the story ended. Even though the characters were not my favourite in vol 1, I feel that in this book I was loving them a bit more.

All in all, it is a wonderful duology that I highly recommend. And I have to mention that the art on the cover for both books fits the vibe and atmosphere of the duology perfectly.

A beautifully written book, that concludes the series very well. However, I just didn't find it as magical as the first. I felt as if the dual POVS have led to the ending feeling very rushed, and I just wasn't a fan.

A Venom Dark and Sweet was a fitting end to this really enjoyable duology. I didn't like it as much as the first book, but it was still really fun. The characters are really enjoyable and I liked how the whole lovers to enemies trope played out in this, you never felt weird about them still caring for each other. I could have done with a little more of the tea magic but otherwise it was fun. 3.5/5

Nothing else to say other than this was a very satisfactory end to the duology. Judy's writing is incredibly easy to read and I was gripped throughout the book. The magic system and characters were still as enthralling as the first novel and I devoured the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

A Venom Dark and Sweet follows directly on from the end of A Magic Steeped in Poison with Ning, Princess Zhen and Ruyi on the run after escaping the Imperial city. They narrowly escaped after the Princess was betrayed, a betrayal that saw The Banished Prince returning to Dáxi and seizing power. While Ning gained the secret to saving her sister’s life it came at a steeper price than she was willing to pay; the lives of her friends. Her time during the competition was nothing like she expected, with Ning making unexpected friends, allies and enemies. She’s caught the attention of an ancient evil, and it’s not done with her or Dáxi yet.

In the second book of The Book of Tea duology Lin ramps up the suspense and action. Ning’s sister Shu makes a fantastic addition to the cast of characters, bouncing off her sister and bringing out a side of her we haven’t seen before. If you thought the stakes were high in the first book, you’ve seen nothing yet. I was on the edge of my seat for every moment of A Venom Dark and Sweet. I enjoyed putting the pieces together and the Chinese mythology woven into the story.

This was a fantastic sequel that hit all the right notes for me, and I highly recommend picking up this duology if you like fantastic world-building, interesting magic systems and strong interesting characters.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this.

Keywords: magic, epic fantasy, slight romance, adventure, quest.

Paw marks by Perry the reading pug 🐾 3

In short: A good soild adventure full of magic and suspense. A fitting and definitely complete ending to the magical duology.

Full review:
A venom dark and sweet is the second book in The tea series and I was very excited and thankful that netgallery gave me the chance to read this book as I absolutely adored book one, magic seeped in poison.

We start straight into the adventure at neck braking speed, we follow Ning as she processes the beytral that has broken her heart and the fear as the evil starts to take over her world as she knew it.
We are thrown arpubd by a roller coaster of emotions meeting new foes and friends and learning more about how these gods and thier magical world works.

Although this epic fantasy is just as strong as a poison seeped in tea, I felt that for some reason I was slighly more disconnect to the characters, especially Ning. I just felt they lost a bit of lifelikeness that made the whole world a bit harder to get lost in and believe in.
Despite taking longer to get into the story I still loved this world and it's villains and how Judy chose the twists she did to keep us on our toes. This is a fitting and a nice ending to a exciting adventure with characters I'd love to see again.

Even though we probably won't see Ning again due to how Judy ended this series, I will definitely pick up any other books she writes! Her magic is addictive.

The sequel to A Magic Steeped in Poison is A Venom Dark and Sweet, and I adored returning to this beautiful world! I liked how we watched Kang in the palace and Ning on her quest as they uncovered an evil plot. The stakes rose as the Gods grew more involved, and I was eager to see where the story headed.

It was very skilfully built up, and while I would have loved a little more, it was still a gratifying finale. Like in the first novel, the tea magic stole the show for me, and I appreciated how Chinese mythology was intertwined throughout. I wholeheartedly suggest this duology for an enthralling read!

With the incredible conclusion to the tournament in book one, the war for the empire begins in book two. Ning, Princess Zhen and Ruyi join Ning’s healed sister Shu in exile. After the Banished Prince seizes the throne, the four girls unite to resist the intruders and reclaim Zhen’s rightful place. Meanwhile, Kang navigates his new life in the palace and his mixed emotions. A more profound evil is gathering in the kingdom of Dàxi than mere civic strife, and the Gods have come to play. Can they stop this evil and restore Zhen to her proper place?

The duologies conclusion was reasonable but didn’t live up to its counterpart. While the magic in this realm was further explored, explained, and displayed, the book lost part of the charm in book one. Something so lovely, whimsical, and wonderful about the first novel was missing from this one. It’s difficult to explain, but the simplicity and distinctiveness of volume one were unequalled—the magic of tea making. In terms of narrative, Book Two takes it in a less innovative route. We also got two points of view, as opposed to the original, which served a function but made for a different experience.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first one but it was still enjoyable and made for a good read. It did take me a while to finish it as was reading it only on my commute and it didn't make me obsessed enough to continue reading on my app over lunch breaks at work like some others have.

A Venom Dark and Sweet is the sequel to A Magic Steeped in Poison and I loved being back in this magical world! I enjoyed the dual POV in this one, we see Kang in the palace and Ning on her journey as they both uncover an evil plot. The stakes were higher as the Gods became more involved and I was excited to see where the story went.

It did take a little bit to get into it and I also thought the ending was a bit rushed. It was built up really well and I would've just liked a bit more but overall it was still a satisfying ending. Like in the first book, the tea magic really stole the show for me and I loved how Chinese mythology was woven throughout. I would definitely recommend this duology for an enchanting read!

A Venom Dark and Sweet takes place immediately after the event of Book 1 and follows Ning and the exiled Princess Zhen as they travel through Dàxi in search for allies to defeat the Banished Prince, even as another unprecedented threat arises.

Unlike AMSIP, this book is dual POV, with the other POV being Kang. Whilst I enjoyed seeing Kang’s inner turmoil and learning more about his character, some might not like the inconsistency from book 1. AVDAS has much higher stakes than the first book, but the plot moves quite slowly, with most of the action happening towards the end. The tea magic is still present, but I found it less whimsical and fun than in book 1. I thought it was nice to explore more of the kingdom, but for me I much preferred the first book. I think this series would have been better if the books had been combined into a longer standalone. I thought it was quite similar to Daughter of the Moon Goddess in this regard.

This duology is still lovely and I really enjoyed reading it, but book 1 is definitely the stand out from the two.

This is the sequel to A Magic Steeped in Poison and the conclusion of the duology. This book continues on from where the last book finished. There is more travelling in this book as our main characters look to defeat the evil in their country. I continued to enjoy the magic system.

The end of the duology! This continues the story and creates a darker backstory and villain. The magic is still inventive and interesting, and even though our characters make some questionable choices, I very much enjoyed it. The ending and final confrontation was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be, but that was really my main gripe.

A lovely conclusion to this duology. Whilst I did enjoy this book, I did feel like it could have been one book instead of the two it seems to have been split into. The magic aspect which I loved so much in the first seemed to take a back seat to the rest of the story.It continues straight after the first book and follows both Ning’s and Khang’s POV. I do love a dual POV as I feel you can learn more about a character and what they are going through.
I did enjoy the world building and felt that the pace was a little slower to start before picking back up.
I’m writing this a couple of weeks after reading and unfortunately don’t feel that it was as good as the first book. I did enjoy that it wrapped things up nicely but I don’t feel like it was memorable read to me personally.

Thank you to the author, publish and Netgalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately I didn't like this book and dnf at 20%. It followed on from the previous book I did like but this one was all doom and gloom and wasn't very interesting either.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.
I was very excited for this sequel after enjoying the first and while it was still a good book, with a deep and interesting world, I felt the plot at times felt a little all over the place, and it felt particularly rushed towards the end.
Part of what made the first book so good was the magic system, however I felt that this was placed to the side in this, and was no longer the main focus, with instead the plot becoming chasing artefacts around the world, something which in my opinion is far too common in fantasy these days.
Overall it was a good read, but a slightly unsatisfying sequel, that was not as strong as the first book.