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It’s Ning’s fault that her mother is gone. She was the one who unknowingly brewed the prisoned tea that killed her. Now, the poison threatens to take her sister, Shu.
When Ning hears of the competition being held to find the kingdom’s greatest shennong-shi — masters of the ancient and magic art of tea making — she travels to the imperial city to compete. The winner will receive a favor from the princess, and that favor may be Ning’s only chance to save her sister’s life.
But for a lowly country shennong-shi who apprenticed under her mother, Ning is unprepared for the backstabbing competitors, the bloody court politics, and the sudden attention of a mysterious boy. The further she progresses in the competition, the deeper she becomes entrenched in danger. Soon, Ning must decide how far she is willing to go and how much she is willing to lose in her quest to save her sister.
A Magic Steeped in Poison takes Chinese medicine and the ancient Chinese art of tea brewing to a whole new level by introducing readers to tea magic in this young adult fantasy book. For a tea lover like myself, it’s that unique element that really sold the story. Everything about the plot — from the competition to the magical bonds to the poisonings — does revolve around tea.
Perhaps the only thing holding me back from truly loving it is the insta-love. It’s not a trope I personally enjoy, and I would have much rather seen genuine friendship appear first, allowing readers to truly feel for the characters without being told to care.
Overall, though, despite its spurts of violence, A Magic Steeped in Poison is a surprisingly clean young adult book, and it’s easy for readers to get swept away in the beautiful world the author created.
Rated: Mild. There is no profanity. Violence includes the story of how a man’s dog was beaten to death when he couldn’t make a payment. Characters suffer and sometimes die from poisoned tea. A man is beaten to death and one character suffers a bloody life-threatening injury. Brief mention is made of a character being born out of wedlock. Characters kiss.
