I really loved the premise of this book, the vampires, the SOC esque heist storyline and Hafsah Faizal just has a way with words that is incomparable. The plot was interesting with a couple of twists that I hadn't guessed and the world is well thought out.
Unfortunately for me it just fell flat, there was a lot of time where not much was going on and I also didn't really feel invested in the characters to the point where I just wasn't picking it up.

Thank you to the author and netgalley!

This is so far my best read of 2024 and has soared into my all time top ten.

Arthie is my hero and my first book crush, she's just perfect. Everything about this book is.

This is a weird one, because half of the hook (heist) didn't work for me, while the other half (vampires) kind of did? Maybe?

To me, the heist served more as a way to give us an elaborate introduction to the characters. We do get to see parts of the plotting, but not that much of it considering the supposed complexity of what they're trying to pull off. But because the book is multiple POV, we spend a lot of time with the heist crew. It's effective, but not very exciting, and I do kind of want that fun, "let's set everything up" part in a heist story.

The last 20% really ramps up, and it almost felt like I was reading a different book. I really enjoyed that part, and it got me hooked enough that I'll probably read the sequel, but it does have a few things that irked me or fall into my personal pet peeves.

The first one is the love V between Arthie, Matteo, and Laith. Yep, still hate the trope, and this version of it is no exception.

The second is the overuse of pet names. Matteo, Laith, and Jin all call Arthie and Flick by different pet names. I'm not sure there was a conversation between these characters (other than the ones between Arthie and Jin) that didn't include a variation of "dear", "darling", "sweet", "love", and, on Laith and Arthie's first meeting, "habibti". I did read an early review copy, so hopefully some of this will be edited out of the final version, because it was excessive enough that I started counting.

That said, I appreciated the world building, the nod at Excalibur, the commentary on colonialism, and the found family aspect.

Thank you to the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC, in exchange for an honest review. A Tempest of Tea is a stunning, original fantasy adventure. I loved the world of vampires, magic, this wonderful family of Arthie, Jin and Felicity. It’s action packed, realistic and left me hooked with the ending twist.

📚 BOOK REVIEW 📚

A TEMPEST OF TEA - HAFSAH FAISAL

Thank you @panmacmillan @bookbreakuk
@netgalley and #hafsahfaizal for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

UK publication date: 22/02/2024

I've not read anything by Faisal before but she had me at tea.
I loved this book; it's the perfect balance of tea, wit, tragedy, found family and vampire! Despite being of another world the book confronts the very real issues of colonism, immigration, people smuggling, slavery and racism with a sharp tongue that slices through the poop and lays out the real ugliness of it.
The characters are fab, there's a nice amount of sexual tension and the plot is paced well.
And that ending 😱
Can't wait for the second installment!

#atempestoftea #netgalley
#panmacmillan
#arc #erac #fantasybooks #femaleauthors

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow - it’s not very often that you start a book and get immediate 5-star feels, but that’s what happened here and I wasn’t wrong!

Described as ‘Peaky Blinders’ meets ‘Six of Crows’ but with vampires, I was unquestionably excited before I even set foot on the page. Set in a world that’s being colonised and taken control of by Ettenia and the East Jeevant Company (not difficult to make the connection to the real world there), there is growing unrest between humans and vampires amongst a slew vampire disappearances.

It’s told by 3 diverse POV’s, each with their own flaws and tragic backstories that were woven nicely into the story rather than stilting it with huge flashbacks. Arthie and Jin, 2 of our MC’s, own Spindrift – ran by a crew of orphans, a tearoom by day and a bloodroom catering to vampires by dark. When Spindrift becomes threatened, Arthie must assign a heist crew to take back what’s theirs.

This is expertly written and so much more than a heist story - with a rich history, swoonworthy romance, beautiful friendship and many profound political messages that gave me food for thought.

There was at no point reading this that I was bored, I was captivated by the characters and how everything was coming together, and there are SO many twists and turns. I predicted a twist early on, but there was so much more to it that I didn’t guess and I literally GASPED at the ending!

I’m very keen to read more from Hafsah Faizal after this and predict big things for this duology.

Note: Review will be posted on Instagram (link below) on 30th January 2024

I have been so looking forward to this book since Hafsah announced it whenever it was years back. There's always a worry that a book won't be worth the wait but this one absolutely was!

Vampires, outcasts, found families, mysteries, F colonialism attitude, a kitten! A Tempest of Tea isn't missing anything. Hafsah has shown off again how well she writes complicated and compelling characters, and how she layers hint after hint to pull off an eye raising reveal when the time is right.

I loved Arthie and Jin. They are just a perfect brother-sister duo and complimented each other brilliantly. I thought I'd get annoyed with Flick but she was actually quite a fun and complimentary character. I really am excited to see where her development goes, especially after everything that happened towards the end. I think Matteo was my biggest surprise. I fully expected him to be underhanded, backstabbing and spent almost every scene with him waiting for the double-cross to happen. He's another I'm really keen to see what he does next.

I have to say as well, I loved the little nod to We Hunt the Flame/We Free the Stars when talking about the magic of Arawiyan. I'd love to see book after book in this same world sharing the magic and societies of all the places they mention. I have no doubt it'd be a wild and wholly captivating journey to take.

The shining moment here was the ending. Hafsah absolutely knows how to leave us with a 'Wait, what?! That's it??' and if you're anything like me, you're crying for the next book because how can you leave us like that?! I just can't wait to see what happens next and pick up whatever Hafsah writes going forward.

There has been a lot of hype for this book and i couldn’t wait to get stuck in to see what it was all about. Vampire and peaky blinders, sign me up.

I think this book could have been so much more. The pacing for the first half of the book felt so slow and I was waiting for something to finally happen. But the final half was EVERYTHING! I loved the way the heist played out and the twists that were revealed. I literally could not have guessed some of them and that made me so happy.

I loved the found family aspect of the book. Arthie and Jin were such great characters and their bond was obviously so special. I just wish we got to see a bit more them together outside of a serious situation.

The one thing I could have done without was the love triangle. It wasn’t needed at all and added nothing to the story.

Either way, I will most definitely be reading the sequel to this one.

Thank you so much, NetGalley & and PanMacmillan, for approving for the ARC of this book and OMG, I loved this so much.

This book isn't like any YA fantasy ice read before. We have a tea room, vampires, a heist, and the last 40% has enough twists and turns to make your head spin.

We have a band of found family who, in order to save their home (tearoom) they need this ledger, which highlights the people who control the 'law' are essentially corrupted.

It's multiple POV, which I really like and you genuinely like every character, they are so well written and the plot is fantastic, there isn't any complex world building and the pace of the book is really good.

Hidden in plain sight, Arthie Casimir’s business caters to two clashing types of clientele. Built on the border of the fashionable part of town and the criminal White Roaring, it is a prestigious tearoom by day and a bloodhouse by dark, where the city’s vampires can meet with blood merchants. When the establishment is threatened, Arthie must make an unusual deal and assemble an unlikely team to infiltrate the prestigious and deadly vampire society called Athereum...

This was my first book by Hafsah Faizal, and I will definitely read her other novels soon. A Tempest of Tea is a well-written heist narrative with a band of outcasts and vampires. Plot twists, secrets, intrigues, humour, and banter are intertwined with the more reflective scenes or retrospections. The main cast of characters is described in detail, as we gradually learn not only how they look or behave but where they came from. This made me very attached to them and piqued my interest in their story. It is also another novel that touches on the topic of anti-colonialism.

Most of all, A Tempest of Tea was just fun to read. The pacing was perfect, the storyline thrilling, and the characters vivid. There is also an exciting romance and found family theme. I absolutely loved this book.

A Tempest of Tea was my most anticipated release of the year and, wow, it did NOT disappoint!

This book is described as Peaky Blinders meets King Arthur but mix in some vampires (plus some of the vibes from Six of crows). It follows the main character, Arthie, who owns a tea shop that converts into a blood house for vampires at night... And, yes, it's as cool as it sounds.

Arthie goes on to recruit a few other characters to help her in a heist that will save her tea shop which means a band of misfits running round committing crimes together and it doesn't get much better than that if you ask me. On top of that, though, all of this takes place within a 1920s London setting... The vibes were PERFECT! I have not had so much fun with a book in a long time.

I read We Hunt the Flame by this author a few months ago and loved it so I already knew I would love the writing in this. Hafsah Faizal has such talent for writing complex relationships between characters that actually have depth, and that really came through in this.. especially with the sibling dynamic Arthie and Jin have. I loved that so much!

I do think it has it’s faults like any book but the intricate world building and fantastic writing made up for any I noticed. With the amount of fun I had, I couldn’t bring myself to rate it any less than 5 stars!

A Tempest of Tea deserves to be one of the biggest books of the year (if not the biggest).

3.5 stars
I really enjoyed it but sadly didn’t click with the characters :( I loved them but I just didn’t feel that ID DIE FOR THEM feeling. Also I think this just solidifies that I don’t care much for heist books which is not the books fault that’s just something I had to discover about myself. I did enjoy the writing and the plot was pretty fast paced and the VIBES were immaculate. A great new fantasy for SURE and I loved how it was more unique than others I’ve recently read

Peaky blinders meets 6 of crows meets true blood with a smattering of Arthurian legend.

Fans of:
Heists
Revenge
Vampires
Fantasy
Found family

The style of writing by Hafsah Faizal is so beautiful painting such a vidid picture of the world she has created.

I loved Artie and Jin and their found family status is brother and sister. Flick made me laugh and her interactions with Jin were great.

I could not put this book down I loved it from start to finish. The glimpses into the characters pasts that’s were sprinkled throughout bought them to life.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this. It’s been a while since I’ve read YA but this reminds me of the good ol’ days when I consumed YA fantasy. The writing alone was great, descriptive yet still grounded to keep you in the story.

I loved the main character, Arthie. She was ruthless but still very much a likeable character and the way she viewed the world was beautifully written. She also has a right hand man in Jin and their friendship was one of my favourite things to read.

I’ve seen the book touted as great for fans of Six of Crows. Now I’ve only seen a couple of episodes of the show but I have to admit, this felt like a similar world. Kind of Victorian-esque/Dickens-esque so if you’re a fan of that series, you’ll definitely like this.

My only really criticism is around the romance in the book. Now I have a very good understanding of the difference between YA romance and full blown romance and that’s not it. It’s the only thing that felt oddly introduced and kind of heavy-handed in how it attempts to be a slow burn of ‘I have to ignore these feelings’ and it ended up being a little bit of an annoying plot line.

4.75
Did you read The Six of Crows and wished the Crows were led by Inej?

Did you read the Lies of Locke Lamora and wished the Gentleman Bastards were led by Sabetha?

Well then it's tea time scoundrels! read A Tempest of Tea!

OMG , I need book two LIKE yesterday.

The twists really twisted and the betrayal was Bloody. Hafsah really said suprise suprise, SUPRISE SUPRISE!

This book single handedly saved me from a reading slump. The aromatic descriptions of teas flavour and brewing was so comforting and sensational.

Arthies was ruthless as hell and I loved it. Like she didn't care! Even if it's her first time meeting you and she might like you she would not hesisttebto shoot you or stab you in the back!

Her encounter with the main political power did feel a little rushed BUT I can't wait for their downfall! Because what they did !

Think Six Of Crows meets Vampires and a Victorian setting when going into this book, but be warned, it does end on a massive cliffhanger that had me questioning everything!

The pacing was a little slow to start off with because of all the world building and character introductions/development that needed to happen, but it sped up drastically after the first half of the book. While i say that i was gripped almost instantly when reading this book, and once the story started to move forward quicker i really struggled to put it down. The only thing i wish was slightly different was that there were more appearances from vampires, but that's just because of how much i like reading about vampires. Maybe in the second book i will get my wish!
The concept of this book was the main thing that drew me in and had me incredibly intrigued. The FMC runs a tea house by day but by night it turns into a blood house, with her and her associates having to plan a heist to help keep themselves afloat in a dangerous world.
Another aspect i loved were the multiple POVs! They always help to keep the story feeling active, and can really help me as the reader appreciate what the characters are all going through.

Overall really enjoyed reading this, there were just a couple things that stopped it from being a 5 star read personally, but i usually find that with series the first book is never as good as the second or third, so i have high hopes that the next ones will have higher stakes, more intrigue, and will make me fall in love/hate with characters!!

This was a solid three star read for me.

Firstly, I thought this was going to be a lot more about the tea shop from the marketing I've seen of the book and there wasn't that much of the tea shop in the story, it was more heavily focused on the heist.

I struggled with the world building, possibly because I haven't read Hafsah's other books. I also found the pacing a little off, sometimes it felt like not a lot happened for a long time and then a lot would happen at once. It's also very plot focused and I didn't see the characters develop as much as I would like. I liked the characters, I just didn't feel very invested in their story.

That said, it's a solid heist book and would be perfect for people who go into this book looking for a good heist story with vampires.

The first half of this felt incredibly slow and I struggled to truly get into the story. But from the second half, I was hooked. Those Twists! I now need the second one before the first is even published.

first of all, what a beautifully written novel. i ATE this book up and devoured every word!!

think six of crows, meets peaky blinders, and sprinkle in some vampires.

a tempest of tea drops you into the action straight away, we meet our FMC arthie who quite possibly is one of the most badass and delightfully unapologetic female characters i have ever had the pleasure of reading about. tea house owner by day and blood house runner by night, arthie is thrown into planning a heist to help keep her livelihood intact, and with the help of her cohorts jin and flick, she unwravels something far more sinister than she’d ever imagined. secrets, lies, conspiracies, you name it, this book had me guessing its twists and turns from the first page.

you get easily attached to the characters with their complex and heartbreaking backgrounds, immersing you in the storyline that has you questioning from page to page what’s going to happen next. ambitious, daring and exciting, faizal sucks you in to their world from the very first sentence.

my only slight gripe is that, although i am a huge lover of romance, in my opinion it’s unnecessary here. some of the romance felt a bit forced and took away from the platonic bond between arthie and jin which i loved. their found family-esque style friendship pulled at my heartstrings and i yearned for more.

and i wanted more vampires…hopefully we get this in book 2, especially with that cliffhanger!!

all in all a very solid first book to a series i’ll definitely be continuing!

*a huge thank you to netgalley and macmillan’s children’s books for the e-arc*

Thank you to Netgalley for the EARC in exchange for a honest review.

A Tempest of Tea is a book filled with all things I love; found family, a heist, Vampires, assassins, multiple POV's and a too top it all of some tea.
This book had so many loveable characters in it from out FMC Arthie all the way to Opal the kitten.
Arthie and Jin own a tea shop called the Spindrift; servicing tea during the day and a secret vampire hangout serving blood at night. With Spindrift on the edge of being shut down, Arthie and Jin must put together a crew of misfits to take part in a dangerous heist to break into the well known vampire auction and steal a ledger fill of incriminating activity about the Ram. They must work together to gain access to the well guarded auction and steal it from right under the vampires noses.
This b0ok had me on the edge of my chair while reading, when I thought I knew the outcome and what was going to happen next Hafsah Faizal had me question everyone motives and wondering how they were going to pull the heist off.
Even now nearly 24 hours after reading I am still questioning everything and counting the days until the next books is out.
I prewarn this book does have a massive cliffhanger and with no date on when the next book will be out. You can bet I will be preordering it as soon as we get a date.