I was eagerly looking forward to this second installment of the Blood & Tea series. I absolutely loved A Tempest of Tea and couldn’t wait to return to the world of White Roaring. Sadly, I’m DNF’ing this book at the 25% mark—and I’m genuinely disappointed about it.

One of the things I appreciated most about the first book was how it incorporated vampires into the story without making vampirism the central focus. It was a world where vampires existed, but the plot didn't revolve entirely around them. I know some readers critiqued that choice, but I personally loved the heist-driven narrative and thought the writing was incredibly sharp.

Unfortunately, this sequel shifts the focus entirely. Vampires, who were once just one element of a rich world, now dominate the plot—and for me, that change didn’t work. Even more disappointing was how different the characters felt. Arthie, who I admired in the first book for her no-nonsense, unflinching demeanor, now seems overwhelmed by her emotions. Flick, once gentle and quiet, is suddenly holding her own in avoiding the Ram’s goons for days? It just didn’t feel consistent with the characters I connected with so deeply in book one.

I wish I had enjoyed this more, but it just didn’t feel like the same story or characters I had fallen in love with. Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

Love this series! I'm the vibe is perfect for this time of year as well. The atmosphere balances out the darker themes with bright colors and whimsy. I'll be thinking about these characters for quite some time.

The Ram has been unmasked, Spindrift was burnt to the ground, and the White Roaring is in shambles. Arthie is no longer a half-vampire (turned into a vampire while healthy), she is now a full vampire (turned while dying). Oh, and so is Jin. Both have to come to terms with their new circumstances while also figuring out how to bring down the monarch. Along with Flick, Matteo, Opal the kitten, and the crew split up to decode the ledger, save the stolen vampires, and find Jin’s parents.
A Steeping of Blood has a similar layout to the first book, the group plans a heist or two and tries to bring down the Ram. That isn’t to say that the story is stale or I got bored, I still greatly enjoyed it. There was also a small amount of romance and longing which thankfully felt organic even though Arthie has a different love interest than the first book. Unfortunately, there were times that I didn’t feel invested and it took me a while to get through the story.

After reading the first book in this duology, I was excited to get this ARC of the second. So thank you NetGalley, Hafsah Faizal and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for a copy of this ARC for my honest review.

This story took off right where A Tempest of Tea left you. This book had action adventures and found family, I just couldn't stop reading it. I can't wait to read more from this author.

Giving this 4 stars, which is higher than I was expecting.

I've now read both of the big duologies by this author, and up to this point they've been pretty middle-of-the-road to me. They're well-written, with decent characters and worldbuilding, but they haven't been - pardon the pun - my cup of tea. (Probably because they're very heterosexual, and I've struggled to care about the MMCs.)

At first, I was pretty sure this book was headed toward another 3 stars. The plot was slow to get going, and I didn't feel much of a connection to any of the main characters (though admittedly that was partly because I barely remember book 1). But there were a few things that happened that piqued my interest, and ultmately pulled this up to a 4 star.

First was Flick's character arc. She spends most of the book on her own - or trying to escape from the bad guys. Flick was fine in book 1, but the way she grows in book 2 makes her easily my favorite character. Her POV chapters were some of the best in the book, in my opinion.

The last 25% or so of the book was also a highlight. There were a few twists and turns that had me genuinely surprised. It was fast-paced and interesting enough that I may actually remember this one.

Overall, while this isn't something I'm likely to read again, I do think it's worth giving a try. If you liked the first book at all, you'll enjoy this one too. And if you haven't read either, but you like heists, found family, and/or vampires (and you don't mind straight romance), I'd recommend checking them out.

4.5!! This sequel really took me through it, from the emotional highs with Arthie and her crew to the moments that had me straight up not okay. The found family dynamic is still perfection, the banter and tension kept me hooked, and the mix of danger, heists, and vampires made it such a wild ride. Some parts dragged a little but overall it was such an epic conclusion, full of twists I never saw coming and an ending that absolutely wrecked me in the best way.

I first would like to thank NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t think I can totally put into words how much I actually enjoyed reading this book. I seriously couldn’t put it down and from the halfway point to the end I just wanted to read it all day even when I was at work. I already knew that I liked a lot of these characters from the first time I read it but I liked them even more than I thought I would during this second book. Some of the characters that I didn’t like in the first book I learned to like in this one.

All I can say about the ending without really spoiling anything is that it literally made me cry and I was a little upset at first but after reading the final chapter and the epilogue I can see how that really was the only way to complete the story in a way that worked for everyone but I’M STILL SAD ABOUT IT! HOW DARE YOU DO THIS TO ME!? The spicy rating was a level 1.

Overall, I would rate this book a 5 out of 5 star rating. I would give it 6 stars if I could. I’m crying.

Thank you Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Hafsah Faizal and NetGalley for the ARC.

What a great ending to this duology! The book starts immediately after the confrontation with the Ram as the team pick up the pieces in the aftermath. They vow to continue to avenge Spindrift and White Roaring by taking down the Ram. This book was full of adventure and learning more about each character from their POV. I loved each character and would recommend this duology to friends!

A Steeping of Blood by Hafsah Faizal follows the familiar group of misfits set on undermining the tyrannical rule of the Ram of White Roaring. Arthie, Jin, Flick, and Matteo are set on avenging Spindrift and exposing the Ram in order to save both the vampires and humans recently going missing. AS they discover more of the Ram's sinister plots, the group must get more creative in order to pull off their plans and bring justice to White Roaring.
I was so excited to receive this arc, especially after the cliffhanger ending of A Tempest of Tea that left me wanting so much more out of the world created. I loved all of the heist plots of A Tempest of Tea as well as the found family dynamic made within the crew. It surely did not disappoint!
Faizal has created a wonderfully immersive world, full of Gothic undertones and secrets that pull readers in from the beginning. Alongside her heist plotlines and messages about colonialism, Faizal has infused her story with rich romantic dialogue and tender interactions between her characters. I loved the dynamics between Jin and Flick, as well as Matteo and Arthie. It was beautiful to see Arthie begin to let her guard down for Matteo and Matteo start to find his artistic muse again and understand what it's like to live as he yearns for Arthie.
Reading this book I experienced grief, anger, and at times couldn't put the story down. This duology had a fantastic conclusion and brought to life a new side to the already familiar lore of vampires, while capturing the tenderness of found family.

A Steeping of Blood is the thrilling sequel to A Tempest of Tea. The story picks up right where we left off, after the events of the deadly night. From the very first page, Hafsah Faizal plunges us back into her dark, immersive world, a city steeped in shadows, secrets, and simmering revolution.

This sequel has it all: found family, daring heists, bloodthirsty vampires, and political intrigue. The stakes are higher, the action more intense, and the emotional weight hits even harder as the crew grapples with betrayal, identity, loss, and what it truly means to fight for justice.

What I love most about this duology is how character-driven it remains even amid all of the chaos. Faizal gives us time to sit with each character’s emotions, choices, and growth without slowing down the pace. The bonds between the crew deepen, and their personal struggles add real depth to the adrenaline-fueled plot. This was a gripping, heart-pounding conclusion to such an intriguing story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan for the ARC!

A Steeping of Blood was a harder read than its predecessor A Tempest of Tea, which intricately married criticisms of colonialisms with Arthurian legend, not to mention vampiric secret societies and found family.

I very much enjoyed the continued development of this found family—Jin referring to Arthie as his “sister,” even to his rediscovered blood relatives melted my heart. Flick’s maturity and independence was the star of this installment, however, though her relationship with her mother felt a bit cartoonish. Her mother, despite occupying two wildly disparate roles in society, seemed rather one-dimensional, perhaps because her love for Flick was no longer paramount to her violent inclinations.

The writing style, though clever and punchy, still came off a bit shallow in how it addressed such grim subjects. I think the banter between the main ragtag group was just too cheesy, which overshadowed the severity of their undertaking. Unlike Six of Crows, to which this duology is compared, their heist’s logistics are underbaked. This time around, it felt more like a series of conveniences rather than meticulous schemes.

Hafsah is one of my favorite authors ever and I was happy to fall into one of her rich fantasy stories again. A Steeping of Blood follows the treacherous events after A Tempest of Tea where Arthie and her gang of outcasts attempt to take down the monarch of Ettenia hellbent on colonizing every inch of the world she can grab. The second book was fast-paced and kept me on the edge of my seat page after page. There were some twists I (happily) expected and some that I couldn’t see from a mile away. Hafsah brewed a delicious sequel to her heist duology.

Loved this book! This duology was SO good, one I will recommend always. I loved how each character had to overcome so much within themselves as well as their world, and those around them. It was done really well.

This was an action packed and fun ending to this duology. There was a lot packed into these two books, but this second one definitely felt like it moved faster and had more romance than A Tempest of Tea.
We are still following our FMC Arthie and her crew as they attempt to rebel against the wrongdoings of the leaders of their world. So much more about the story line comes out in this book, and there is a lot of ties to the first book that are well planned out and included into this story. The vampire aspects of the story are definitely stronger in this sequel as well, so it was a great read to begin the autumnal season.
The lower rating was because I honestly was a little angry at how the author decided to end the book. There were a few very frustrating decisions made, but I understand why she took the story where she did, and I respect that. It will be interesting to see if there are any changes made to the final story once it is officially published.

Would recommend to readers that like a unique fast paced YA fantasy story.

This book follows the Tempest of Tea and picks up right where it ends. It has the same characters that you got to know and does add some more. This book had so much adventure and action in it. I did find some parts kind of slow and I lost interest a little. This book seemed to deal with some heavy topics and it just didn't feel like it fit well in a YA book.

3.5⭐️

I maybe would've liked this better if I had remembered more of the first book. Unfortunately I was floundering a bit just due to my own lack of memory of the characters and setting. The conflict and tone was tense throughout (the tone feels a little different than the first), sucks for me because I didn't remember who the Ram was and her relevancy, the romance sometimes felt a little forced but definitely was fulfilled (I love some of the relationships that developed and I also love how some of the relationships fell apart). Some of the pacing was quicker than I would've liked and I feel like some of the POV shifts were lacking. Faizal does deliver on the descriptions, dialogue, and action sequences.

3.75🌟

I quite enjoyed the A Tempest of Tea and was so looking forward to #2! A Steeping of Blood started out strong but unfortunately fell flat. The last few chapters and ending were especially disappointing. I still love these characters, the world, and message regarding colonization-but wish the story was delivered as strongly as the first book.

Thank you to Net Galley for the ARC which I received in exchange for my honest review.

DNF at 33%. It’s been a while since I’ve read book one, although I did enjoy it. However, that surely didn’t help. But even so, this was rather bland and boring, and very slow paced and directionless.

I really enjoyed A Tempest of Tea, so I was excited to be approved for an ARC of A Steeping of Blood. I’m sorry to say, the sequel didn’t match the first. SPOILERS ahead, beware!

One of my main issues was continuity; to me, one of the most interesting things about the first book was Laith’s character. The end had me so excited to see where his story went. I kept waiting for him to pop up in this, but he was largely absent from book two until the very end, and then didn’t have much of a role at all. So the storyline I wanted most, I didn’t get.

The second issue I had was the pacing; this felt very slow and at times repetitive. Even though we were dealing with serious topics, at times it felt just silly. I also found there to be a lot of unnecessary reiteration or explanation in the prose, which made it drag.

And finally, the ending. In the absence of Laith, Matteo and Arthie’s budding relationship was one of the only things that kept me reading. I don’t always have to have a HEA, but his ending was incredibly disappointing. It made it all feel kind of pointless.

Overall, it’s not a bad book, I just didn’t like some of the story choices and didn’t connect with it like I did the first. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I really loved A Tempest of Tea and was so excited to read A Steeping of Blood. I really enjoy how Hafsah Faizal weaves a story together. I also enjoy a multiple POV story like this duology. A Steeping of Blood picks up after the tragic ending of A Tempest of Tea and gets right down to figuring out what the characters need to do next. This book was just as action packed as the first and also gives us more insight into each of the characters, their backgrounds, and their evolving relationships with each other. Flick, especially, comes into her own more in this book.
I didn't like this one as much as the first one but I still really liked it a lot. Seeing Arthie grow to put trust in other people was really nice. The ending made me sad. I felt like there wasn't quite enough justice overall but at the same time, the outcome was probably more realistic that way.