**Thank you to NetGalley and OniPress for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy**
I enjoyed this book. It was just as cute and whimsical as the first. It's a very cozy, heartwarming read. The dragons are just a cute.
Its a prequel to the Tea Dragon Society, and follows Rin who accidentally wakes up a real dragon. With the help of her uncle and his partner, they try to find what lead the dragon to sleeping for 80 years. The art is just as beautiful and the story just as cute. The tea dragon blurb at the end was probably my favourite part. It's an easy book to read in an hour. I liked how it had ASL rep in it, and the diversity was just as prominent in this book.
3.5/5

This graphic novel is wholesome, magical, inclusive and such a feel-good read. I loved everything about this story. The art style is stunning. Now I just want to read all of Katie O'Neill's works.

Thank you to Oni Press and NetGalley for sending me an advanced digital copy.

This is a graphic novel full of warm feelings, and sweet moments with the cute tea dragons and diverse characters. The art style is awesome and I also liked the story themes involving the search for a person's true vocation and making a place your home through memories and relationships.

The Tea Dragon Festival was delightful and enchanting. O'Neill has a gift for creating a beautiful, immersive world. This is one of those stories that truly transports you someplace else while reading it.

Words honestly can't do this justice. It left me feeling warm and with a sense of wonder - two things there's been a clear shortage of lately.

This book, much like her first one, is absolutely delightful!

First, the artwork, my goodness the artwork! The crisp colors, the wonderful illustrations, the Tea Dragons! They are so cute! It's easy to fall into this book. The sign language is wonderfully incorporated too, while it is expressed what they're saying, O'Neill's drawings also express what needs to be said. I would like one of each, and I would like a ton of framed pictures for my walls please. I also like how there is so much portrayed in the photos, that O'Neill doesn't feel the need to have dialogue on every page.

Second, the story. Erik and Hesekiel from book one are on a mini vacation back to Erik's home village to celebrate the Tea Dragon Festival. Erik's niece, Rinn, enjoys cooking and thinks that she should work to becoming a chef's apprentice. While out gathering mushrooms one day, Rinn sees an abandoned house and discovers an actual dragon. Poor Aedhan has been asleep for 80 years due to a mischievous spirit in the woods. Rinn invites him to come back to the village and works hard to make him feel like he belongs. There is so much diversity and inclusivity in this book it's amazing. Aedhan talks about how dragons came switch between human figure and dragon figure, how they can be male or female, and it is all accepted as just a part of being who they are. I also love how because Lesa is deaf the whole community learned sign language because they all wanted to be able to speak with her. Sure some people struggle with it, but it becomes second nature to them all and they make sure their whole community feels welcomed to everything.

This is just a book full of positivity and I am so glad that this story is continuing.

Katie O’Neill has done it again! Not only are her books beautiful art wise, but they have beautiful messages and representation within them. And The Tea Dragon Festival was no exception! I loved that we got a prequel story of sorts about characters previously met in one of Katie’s previous graphic novels, The Tea Dragon Society. I also loved learning more about the full-size dragons of this world. All around, this was an incredible time (No surprise there!), and I will read everything Katie O’Neill writes in the future!

An adorable prequel to The Tea Dragon society set in a mountain village full of tea dragons. When Rinn discovers an actual full-sized dragon sleeping in a ruined old house, the village gains a powerful protector and Rinn gains a new friend along the way. I loved the use of sign language, the soft illustrations, and the sweet story--something that I've come to expect from O'Neill.

Also the floofy Mountain Chamomile tea dragon is my new favorite, and I want one-- so cute and grumpy!

The Tea Dragon Festival is the companion novel I wouldn't have even dared dream of. It is in all aspects just as wonderful as The Tea Dragon Society.

Rinn is an aspiring cook who has an affinity for harvesting forest herbs and vegetables. They often make mistakes while cooking with their Gramman, but love making food for little Aya and the tea dragons. One day they, while trying out a new path in the forest, accidentally stumble upon a little house with an actual dragon sleeping in it. After waking him without meaning to, they learn that the dragon is named Aedhan. He is a young dragon from the Shining Wing clan who fell asleep for... eighty years. He was sent to the village to protect it and feels very guilty for falling asleep.

This takes place before the events of the Tea Dragon Society, we know this because Erik, Rinn's uncle, and his partner Hesekiel also appear here! They are younger here and haven't settled down yet. It was nice to see these characters reappear, they tied the stories together. They are still bounty hunting and visit the village hoping to find a mysterious spirit.

All of the villagers learnt ASL after one of them was born deaf. In the beginning, it is quickly explained how to identify when someone is signing and I need to say I loved it. This is a representation that felt really natural and thoughtful. Lesa, the head cook of the village who also happens to be deaf, is treated just the same and is strong and independent. This is in general pretty diverse, with a non-binary character and many characters of colour.

The drawing style leaves me absolutely stunned. It is warm, cute, magical and just makes me fall even deeper in love with this novel and its story. Just seeing the drawings brings a smile to my face. Every little detail was so soft and adorable.

In conclusion, this is an enchanting read that focuses on the magic of everyday life, the beauty of family and nature, and will warm the hearts of readers of all ages.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book to review. All opinions are my own and have not been influenced by this opportunity.

I received the first instalment of this graphic novel in an Owlcrate box and I loved it so much. The style is very kawaii and the story is delish as well. I like this sequel even more than the first one. highly recommend it!!

*ARC received from NetGalley in return for an honest review*

These books are just so adorable and the art so gorgeous that I love every single one of them. The world is still so fun to explore and I loved seeing how different terrain impacted how certain tea dragons looked and acted. The storyline kept me reading when otherwise I would have just gotten distracted by the art which says a lot since I love the artwork so much. Katie O'Neill has once again created a hit that I can't wait to get into the hands of kids at my library.

This book is adorable!!! Safe for all ages (no adult language, sexual content, or extreme violence), it is the story of a girl named Rinn who discovers a dragon who's been sleeping for 80 years. Her uncle and his... well, I don't want to say lover because to me, that implies a purely sexual relationship and they are more than that. Hese wears a gold bangle looking piece of jewelry on its left ankle, so maybe they are spouses? Not entirely sure, but they are much more than friends. Rinn seems be engaged in a budding romance with the dragon while he's in human form as well, but since the story is child friendly, romantic relationships aren't emphasized. I would like to think that they are falling in love, but that is left entirely up to the reader's interpretation.

The tea dragons themselves are adorable, and their presence permeates nearly every panel in the story without over populating them. The idea that Rinn lives in a village of vegetarians who make tea from leaves that grow on dragons the size of lapdogs, some how makes the story more homey. It's like the author doesn't just spend time connecting you to the characters, (who are easy to fall in love with), but also builds a world in which you visit while reading. The illustrations are so vibrant and alive, it feels like this is an actual folklore for a village that really exists in Africa.

The story was fun, the characters fleshed out, and the ending delightfully happy. Despite it being a short read, it was a wonderful trip, and I can't wait to walk around with Tea Dragons again. You'll enjoy this story too if you're fond of the world of Avatar, The Last Airbender.

I got an ARC of this from Oni Press via NetGallery and it comes out September 17th!

Such a lovely, heartwarming, and whimsical story The Tea Dragon Festival is!

All the illustrations are colorful and enchanting!

Also this story has a very important message- If you do something passionately, you'll excel at it!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Oni Press for providing me with arc, this book was even more adorable than the last one! Katie O'Neill always creates such beautiful, inclusive, whimsical stories and I especially love this one because of its Deaf representation / incorporation of ASL. I'll never get tired of reading these!

One of the things that I loved in book one, that remains true in book two, is the dedication to inclusivity (but it doesn't feel intentional or added in just for 'diversity points').

There are non-binary characters, same-sex couples, people of color, and non-traditional families just like in the first book. There are also a lot of characters who can't (or shouldn't) be identified as a particular race or ethnicity because they're anthropomorphic animals (or dragons, which I suppose count as animals?)

The second book, however, adds a deaf character. In the back of the book, there is even a list of resources for additional information on learning ASL.

There are so many reasons to love this book, but honestly, the best part is that the art style is so sweet and adorable!

The artist truly has a love for color which can't be matched. I've never felt hugged by a color palate before, but reading this book made me feel warm and snuggly inside.

The Tea Dragons returned, of course, and they're just as adorable as before. There is less of a focus on the tea dragons (dracona minor) in this book, however, since the focus is instead on dragons (dracona major) that are shapeshifting, human-dragon hybrids. There's even an about section in the back of the book that explains the differences (that's where the scientific-sounding names come from!)

Overall

The Tea Dragon festival is just as magical and wonderful as the first book and I'm so glad I was able to read it early. I highly recommend it to everyone, but especially if you enjoyed the first book.

With every book of Katie O'Neill's that I read, I love her work more and more. Could there actually be a cuter book in the world? This is absolutely EVERYTHING I hope for in a book and goes way beyond my most outrageous expectations.

-Her artwork is GORGEOUS. Like, absolutely stunning. It's dreamlike and whimsical and I just want to live there.
-There's a slew of diverse characters, but it isn't made out to be a Big Deal, it's just how things work. Rinn, the main character, doesn't have a particular gender and the blurb refers to them with they/them pronouns. They're a really cute character.
-The dragon has an absolutely adorable character design, and I ship him with Rinn, they're way too cute together. (I need a new adjective. How about RIDICULOUSLY ADORABLE???) Rinn's uncle is definitely together with Hesekial, who is a dragon-like creature, so there's a gay couple right there...and kinda inter-species? Which is a little odd, but I guess in a fantasy world it works. ;) And there's lots of sign language in this book! Which is amazing to see in graphic novel format!
-The tea dragons are literally the best thing to ever exist, ever, in any book under the sun.
-The plot is sweet and stress-free and just generally heartwarming.
-I loved Tea Dragon Society SO MUCH and I am SO HAPPY to get a sequel.

This is going down as one of my favorite reads of 2019. I honestly cannot recommend this series/duology enough. It really is something extraordinary.
NetGalley provided me with an advance copy of this book, which I am beyond delighted and grateful for.

You may remember my gushing from the original The Tea Dragon Society and if not please go check it out!  I fell in love with the art style and concept immediately, was overjoyed when a card game was released, and hollered when I found out that there are 2 sets of enamel pins of these adorable critters (on Oni Press' website)!  *Here's hoping I get some for Christmas!*

Well, imagine how excited I was to learn that the author, Katie O'Neill was making a sequel companion!  Wait, a companion?  LOL, don't care as long as there are adorable tea dragons!  And a regular dragon?  Yep, I'm here for him as well!  This books had all the lovably soft art and diverse characters as the first book as well as exploring a bit more of the world that these amazing animals exist in.

This is more of a prequel/companion.  I was hoping for a sequel to see what our two main characters were getting up to, but I liked seeing a bit into the past of the grown-up characters, Erik and Hesekiel.  The wilder tea dragons were also a treat!  Think fluffy sheep chamomile :)  All in all, I came away from this one with all the warm fuzzies I felt from the first.  I can only hope there will be more books set in this world!

Thanks to Oni Press for allowing me to read this early through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Seriously this was the cutest story and graphic novel I've read this year! O'Neill is an amazing artist and storyteller. I absolutely loved the art that went into this story. I loved seeing the world she created and the characters that I fell in love with almost immediately. I also appreciated that she included sign language in her novel, and explained the different text bubbles to distinguish it.

Another thing that I noticed was that the main character Rinn went by pronouns they/them, and everyone was respectful of it and didn't make a big deal about it! I remember a part in it where Rinn asked their new friend about if dragons usually switch forms between male and female, and knowing that they were okay enough with who they are to ask that question, and that their friend was able to understand and answer that yes, dragons do often switch, was just so great to the story. Little moments like that are what I feel is important when showing diversity in the world.

I also loved the personalities of the little tea dragons. Definitely different from our main dragon friend that Rinn meets in the novel. There's this one tea dragon that always has a scowl on its face, and it's the cutest face ever. The villagers have learned how to live peacefully with these dragons (even though they are "pests" sometimes!) and this world was just so magical and wonderful that I would love to visit it again.

I still need to finish the first one (I'll have to find it somewhere in the meantime), and when this one comes out, I want a physical copy for my house. I think everyone should read this. It was such a nice and light story that will make anyone's day.

This was such a lovely and perfect little story. I absolutely adore everything about this story, the art style, the plot, and the characters.

The representation in this book was so freaking wonderful! Wonderfully done!

I loved learning more and more about the world of dragons and tea dragons. I'm so in love with this world.

I hardcore recommend this book to anyone who loves whimsical, lovely, soft stories. Everything by Katie O'Neill is perfect so far.

I received this as an ARC to read for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Oni Press for giving me access.

Katie O’Neill has done it again! Such wonderful illustrations accompanied by an adorable story. I’m so happy to be diving back into the world of Tea Dragons! I must say, the Marshmallow Tea Dragon is my spirit animal!

This graphic novel made my heart so happy from the very first page, there might have been tears of happiness. The Tea Dragon Festival includes American Sign Language. That’s right, ASL. I love how O’Neill included ASL into the village and it’s something that the whole village knows, even if it is just for one person. She also includes resources for sign language at the end.

Thank you, Katie, for including ASL and bringing awareness to the hearing impaired community.

It was absolutely amazing to see so much diversity wrapped up in such a cute little package. It was well worth the read and I've fallen in love with the Tea Dragons.