Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

A Magic Steeped in Poison by Judy I. Lin

127 reviews

solarel's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

I enjoyed the world, though the first half of it felt very similar to other books I’ve read. 

The ending was a cliffhanger but didn’t manage to give any sense of finishing to the story arc? That’s just my thoughts. 

Overall I think this was pretty middle of the road. It was a fun read, enjoyable and mysterious. But there were parts I found fell short of what they could have been. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Torture, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

fscherlie's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Physical abuse and Violence

alrightlauryn's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring medium-paced

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

4.5

A cosy book focused around the art of tea making - be warned this is not just focused on a tea competition but the political fares of the setting. 
An enjoyable read that ties imagery with real life matters, through the art of tea making. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Death of parent

livvya's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

Minor: Medical content, Grief, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

jes_reads00's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Vomit, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Blood

vixenreader's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense 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

3.75

Despite some plot thread being left unresolved, and some overstuffing, this debut is impressive in its concept, sensitive protagonist, and strong female relationships. The tea has been spilled. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Drug use, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Terminal illness, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Colonisation

Minor: Cursing, Excrement, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Alcohol

There is a heavy amount of poisoning and a conspiracy theory driving the plot.

mariavdl's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful relaxing sad

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Terminal illness and Death of parent

Minor: Misogyny, Torture, Vomit, Grief, and Alcohol

mariebrunelm's review against another edition

adventurous inspiring tense fast-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? Yes

4.75

Ning is apprentice to her father, a physician, while her sister Shu follows in their mother’s footsteps and prepares to become a shénnóng-tú, a student in the magic of tea. That is until a brick of tea, similar to the hundreds of bricks gifted by the emperor to his subjects, kills Ning and Shu’s mother and leaves the latter in a state close to it. Ning has practiced tea magic as well and developed promising abilities, but she can’t save her sister. Her only hope is winning the attention of the imperial palace and securing the help of a royal physician. To do that, Ning enrols in a competition to become the future empress’s shénnóng-shī, master of tea.
This high-stake, Chinese-inspired fantasy novel is easy to love. With a stubborn heroine devoted to saving her family, tea-magic and a magic tea competition, there’s no time to lose and the chapters fly by. I love that the author still took the time to introduce plenty of details describing the culture (the clothing, architecture, traditions) and the art of tea. It made for a very thoughtful narrative that was quite intense and fun. As usual, I didn’t care for the hint of romance, but by now I'm used to it and I don't hold it against the author.
Just so you know, this is the first volume in a duology and by the end you’re strongly encouraged to pick up the next one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism

Moderate: Sexism and Death of parent

biobeetle's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful inspiring fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness and Death of parent

Moderate: Violence

fin_pilot's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent