No matter the time of year, I’m always up for a good spooky read. Luckily, my Amazon First Reads pick for the month, Tea & Alchemy, was able to scratch my itch. Although historical fantasy and Dracula retellings aren’t usually something I tend to pick up, I wanted to give this short and sweet read a go.
Will branching out of my comfort zone pay off? Read on to find out!
Please note: I received this book for free as part of the Amazon First Reads program. All reviews and opinions are my own.
Plot Summary
Set in 1850’s Cornwall, England, Mina Penrose is a young woman living with her alcoholic brother and working at a Tea shop in her village. Mina was born with the ability to read tea leaves, which she promptly uses to her advantage at work so she can stick her nose in everyone’s business.
After reading a supposed death omen for a patron, Mina eventually stumbles upon the body, which sends the entire village in a hysterical uproar. Mina later meets Harker, a reclusive alchemist who is for some reason alarmingly pale and able to smell her blood. Since the murder was on Harker’s estate and he’s a weirdo, the whole village assumes that he’s the killer and immediately become suspicious. After a chance encounter with Harker that culminates into an investigation of their own, Mina realizes that she may have fallen in love – and in danger – with a monster.
Quality of Writing
Rating: 5/5
On brand for Sharon Lynn Fisher, Tea & Alchemy was beautifully written and had no flaws. Sharon always does an amazing job of nailing speech during the eras her books take place, and Tea & Alchemy was no exception.
Plot Development
Rating: 2/5
Although I have high praise for the writing quality, the plot fell completely flat for me. Throughout the entirety of Tea & Alchemy, the plot development is painfully slow and filled with lots of internal fluff dialogue and prose. Once we get to the end, everything happens so quickly, it gave me reading whiplash.
I did really enjoy the idea of tea reading magic, but I do wish that this was explored further in the story, as it felt topical and underdeveloped as a “magic system” plot device.
Characters
Rating: 2/5
Unfortunately, I didn’t find a single one of the characters in Tea & Alchemy particularly compelling. Mina was constantly portrayed as simple and dimwitted, Harker was an over-the-top and corny feminist ally, and Mina’s brother was a heinous a**hole the majority of the book. The only character I found truly likeable was old Mrs. Moyle, the tea shop owner, whose sweet disposition felt refreshing compared to all the negativity and pandering.
Ease of Reading
Rating: 3/5
While Tea & Alchemy is very easy to follow and theoretically a quick read, I found the book quite dry at times. This in turn tended to bore me, and I found myself needing to take more frequent breaks with this book. As someone who reads every day, taking a break is not a good indicator of my likeability for a book.
Ending
Rating: 2/5
As much as I had hoped for the ending of Tea & Alchemy to pull me back in, it only served to push me further away. Since most of the book was so slow, the culmination of events at the end felt lackluster to me. I was also very disappointed in the “redemption arc” for the brother, as I don’t feel that he deserved it given how awful and misogynistic he was to Mina with no remorse prior.
Additionally, while this only features glimpses/kisses and no spice, the literal last page turns into a “fade to black” moment which felt completely out of place and bizarre. Truly, this was a “WTF did I just read” moment for me, something I rarely experience when reading.
Would I Recommend This Book
Sadly, I think you should give Tea & Alchemy a pass. If you want to read a dry and slow period vampire story, then you might as well skip this retelling and go straight to Dracula.
Overall Rating
Book Rating: 2/5 (TW: Blood, Mild Gore)
Spice Rating: 1/5
Although the writing is beautiful and the plot itself has potential, Tea & Alchemy did not pull me in and keep me rooted in place yearning for more. Between a painfully slow plot and highly disappointing ending, this book simply did not click for me in the way that I had hoped.
Curious about how I rate my reads? Check out my Rating System Blog Post for more!
Let’s Talk
Tea & Alchemy features – well – Tea as its magic system. What other magic systems have you read in the past that were particularly interesting?
Reading Stack
Previous Book: A Dawn of Onyx
Current Book: Cloak of The Vampire
Future Book: A Promise of Peridot
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