Reviews with content warning for Cursing - Can't Spell Treason Without Tea

Reviews tagging 'Cursing'

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

20 reviews

thisbookisbananas's review against another edition

slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I’m at a crossroads with this one. Not quite cozy enough and not quite exciting of a plot line to make me want to continue. I think for me it was the writing style that didn’t work? Maybe? After DNF-ing this in July, I’m glad I at least gave it a second try.

Content Warnings

blewballoon's review against another edition

Go to review page

lighthearted slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

If you liked Legends & Lattes, you will probably like this. The story is basically the same, but with a few tweaks. There are two main characters who are already a couple at the start of the book. There are books and tea instead of coffee. There aren't as many magical races of people; it doesn't feel tied to the D&D universe and feels more like a generic fantasy. I loved Legends & Lattes and I'm happy to have more of a good thing, but I did feel like this wasn't quite the same level of quality. I found the prose to be awkward in parts, especially the dialogue, and even the audiobook narrator seemed to struggle with the phrasing despite trying her best. I also got a bit frustrated with how much the narrative had to repeat and over-emphasize things without trusting the reader to interpret for themselves; a case of telling vs showing. In theory this book is full of stuff I really like, I adore cozy settings and good people, and yet I was cynically annoyed sometimes with the book's tone and wasn't properly suspending my disbelief. Maybe I was just cranky?

Content Warnings

cmlalonde's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Content Warnings

emilywemily6's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I find that I am really enjoying cozy fantasy! I feel like this book was a strange blend however of cozy/slice of life living as extremely high stakes with perilous scenarios. The author straddles the line of cozy and high fantasy and I kind of wish she had picked one or the other. I generally enjoyed the characters, the setting, and the magic system. I do feel like a bulk of the relationship was the two main characters having a similar disagreement over and over again and their resolutions got tiring to read. I am intrigued and excited to read more about this story and hope for more character growth and lore of this world.

Content Warnings

abby_can_read's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

📖
This was a cute read and I thought the book was good. This was the low stakes cozy fantasy I was looking for. The magic system is interesting with the stones and the ley lines and other things. I thought the pacing was off, some parts were fast and others were slow and the ending was fine, but it just kinda ended.

Content Warnings

twistykris's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A cute, cozy, slice-of-life story about two women who give up their roles to open up a bookstore/ teashop/ bakery. I enjoyed the witty banter between Reyna and Kianthe, and I really liked many of the other characters.

However, I found myself sort of dragging through it. At first I thought I was just in a reading slump, but part of the way through, I realized it was because I was looking for a little more excitement. The stakes didn't quite feel high enough for me. This is VERY slice-of-life and the main conflicts aren't truly much more than 15% of the plot. Some may find this to be a similar read to Legends & Lattes, but L&L just had *more* to it. L&L was cozy but it also had some darker, climactic moments.

The entire coffee shop in L&L gets burned to the ground by someone and part of the resolution is the group coming back together to build it from scratch. There was a true sense of comradery, friendship, and community in that sense.

The "climax" of this book didn't truly happen until the last 10% and while it wasn't "resolved" it felt kind of pushed under the rug until a later time.

I also struggled with understanding the characters at times; Kianthe is described as being shy and reserved, but comes across as hotheaded, bold, and bubbly multiple times. And Reyna is described as being charming and extroverted but seems to be more quiet and stiff in multiple instances. And while the romance was sweet (and I appreciated reading about a WLW romance), sometimes it felt shallow. I would have loved more backstory, more relationship- and world-building.

Content Warnings

grets_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

feliscatusnum_1's review against another edition

Go to review page

lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

Content Warnings

kickitupanotch7's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

Content Warnings

bubblybelle's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

a nice little cozy fantasy read. i would have liked a bit more character development and found the magic system a bit confusing and uninspired at some points, but overall i thoroughly enjoyed this low stakes read.

Content Warnings

More...