A Tempest of Tea was a beguiling, beautifully written, and brutal read. This was the oncoming storm and readers better brace themselves for what Hafsah Faizal has in store.
Just the concept alone of a tearoom converting into an illegal bloodhouse is fantastic—let alone before you add in a heist, incredible characters, twists aplenty, and an exploration of the deeply destructive power of colonisation and its repercussions.
The characterisation here is off the charts. Arthie Casimir is one of my favourite characters of all time – stealing my heart while she rules from her seat of power and plans an extraordinary heist. She is ruthless and cunning, which are qualities that Faizal celebrates but also makes clear that these are tools needed in her arsenal to survive in a world that has forced her to change in this way. Her narrative voice is stylish and often infused with a ting of dark humour, though you always get that sense of anger and resentment running just beneath the surface. Every character in this book is layered, complex and three-dimensional, Faizal dedicates time to allow each of them to develop and unveil some secrets they are holding close to their chest. In mere lines of text, you are completely rooting for them though.
The sheer quality of the writing in this book is extraordinary. Certain quotes keep ruminating in my brain and sizzle with their brilliance. All at once, Faizal’s writing is exquisite, immersive, subtle and stunning. You feel utterly caught up in this vividly described and emotionally rich world of corruption, colonial power and cutthroat heists. There is a predominant focus on the corrosive influence of colonial power and how it obliterates people, cultures and ways of living – wanting to subsume them into following the ideals of one nation by force. The devastation of this is keenly felt in a myriad of ways and I loved how Faizal explored the repercussions of colonisation. In particular, the resulting anger and generational trauma from living under this oppression is keenly apparent. It is everywhere and controls everything. Colonial power contains cataclysmic violence and feeds into every aspect of suffering in the narrative. I also enjoyed the way Faizal explored issues of the class system and how that influences everything. In short, I adored every second of reading this.
Faizal’s world-building is also excellent. It feels expansive and lived in, with a detailed tapestry of history and mythology behind it. The inclusion of vampires is superb and executed in such spectacular and surprising ways. There is so much here that blew me away completely. In addition to this, the city of White Roaring feels like its own character. The atmosphere is so thick—you can practically inhale the smoke. It is just intoxicating in every sense.
Also, I want to highlight the pacing, atmosphere and tension. Every page is filled to the brim with suspense, building and building this unrelenting time bomb that you are just waiting to go off. It is a fast paced and exhilarating read, but still allows pauses for those moments of character development without sacrificing the mounting tension you can feel vibrating throughout. Without giving too much away, Faizal has crafted an ending that is beyond explosive. It is jaw-dropping and makes you demand more immediately. You can look back through and see the breadcrumb trail that has lead to this.
A Tempest of Tea is a smoking gun of a book—powerful, incendiary and finishes with one hell of a bang.
A Tempest of Tea is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of February 20th 2024.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
From Hafsah Faizal, New York Times bestselling author of We Hunt the Flame, comes the first book in a hotly-anticipated new fantasy duology about an orphan girl and her crew who get tangled in a heist with vampires, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows.
On the streets of White Roaring, Arthie Casimir is a criminal mastermind and collector of secrets. Her prestigious tearoom transforms into an illegal bloodhouse by dark, catering to the vampires feared by society. But when her establishment is threatened, Arthie is forced to strike an unlikely deal with an alluring adversary to save it—and she can’t do the job alone.
Calling upon a band of misfits, Arthie formulates a plan to infiltrate the dark and glittering vampire society known as the Athereum. But not every member of her crew is on her side, and as the truth behind the heist unfolds, Arthie finds herself in the midst of a conspiracy that will threaten the world as she knows it. Dark, action-packed, and swoonworthy, this is Hafsah Faizal better than ever.
