A review by libraryofthecrypt
A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal

• Loveable characters? No

1.0

If I wasn’t trying to fill an r/fantasy square last minute I would have dnf’ed this. The premise was interesting to me but I just couldn’t care about anything that was happening. I wasn’t even halfway through when I started to think that this book would put me into a slump. I kept zoning out and questioning if I wanted to suffer through the rest of the book or take my chances and try and finish a different book in time.

The tea house is basically nonexistent after the first few chapters. Peaky Blinders comparison where? I don’t see it at all other than the setting and somewhat period. The plot I honestly couldn’t tell you what it ended up being. I love planning but even I was annoyed with how long it took for the heist to happen. The vampires were such minor characters that what even was the point of it being a selling point? Worldbuilding can save a book for me even if I don’t care for the characters but this one failed on both fronts. The characters were so bland, the chemistry between the characters nonexistent, and I needed more than sprinkles of world-building.

If the pacing and world-building were better I might have enjoyed this. But, I’m honestly questioning if I should even try We Hunt the Flame now. I decided I wouldn’t this turned me off the author's other books. This is my worst book of the year so far.

P.S. The audiobook wasn’t it either. No emotion, monotone just reading the words and collecting the paycheck.

Slightly spoiler comment:

coconut water? Really.