A Steeping of Blood

Blood and Tea #2

by Hafsah Faizal

The epic conclusion to the #1 bestselling A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal; the gritty fantasy duology about an orphan girl and her crew who get tangled in a heist with vampires, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows .

She's had her tea, now she's out for blood.

White Roaring is sharpening its fangs after the deadly night that left the city in shambles. The press are dead, the public calls for justice, vampires are in danger, and amid the turmoil, the Ram announces a celebration.

Still reeling from the bloodshed, Arthie Casimir has no time to mourn the death of anyone, let alone her own. She has no time for love, either, but it had saved her life. As Arthie navigates new emotions and new allies, she must reassemble her scrambled crew and scrape what little they have left to fight one last time – and she will need to face the ghosts of her past to do it.

In Ceylan.

After the jaw-dropping ending of #1 bestselling A Tempest of Tea, Arthie and her crew still have plenty of hearts to break and crimson-red secrets to uncover. Hafsah Faizal crafts a deliciously twisty and seductive sequel that will leave listeners breathless until the end.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Vampires, Romance, Audiobook, Paranormal, Historical Fiction

Audible Audio

First published September 23, 2025

About the author

Hafsah Faizal is the New York Times bestselling, award-winning author of WE HUNT THE FLAME, WE FREE THE STARS and A TEMPEST OF TEA, and the founder of IceyDesigns, where she creates websites for authors and beauteous goodies for everyone else. A Forbes 30 under 30 honoree, when she’s not writing, she can be found designing, playing Assassin’s Creed, or traversing the world. Born in Florida and raised in California, she now resides in Texas with a library of books waiting to be devoured.

Reviews

[ellie]

MatteoArthie endgame when ?????

[hater ★ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i was gonna say the first half was 2 stars, the second half 4 stars and i’d give it 3 stars, but some REALLY unnecessary things happened at the end and i’m frustrated.

[suvi]

On my hands and knees begging for this book to magically appear in my hands asap or I might cry

[Selina · Rating 5 out of 5]

a tempest of coffee?

[jo ୨୧ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I'm here, Arthie," he replied. Eternally."

⋆☕︎ ˖

happy belated release day to this gem of a sequel

I actually am not okay after this book. I don't know if I'll ever be okay. You can take with that what you will just be ready when you pick up this book that youmight not be okay.

This book follows the aftermath of A Tempest of Tea and all the same characters that you originally know. With the addition of a few new ones. We've got our hottie Jin, bestie flick, girlboss supreme Arthie, dreamboat matteo, and he-who-shall-be-named laith. Oh wait, just named him. Oops!

The entirety of this book I was on the edge of my seat. I did not know what was going to happen, nor did I expect what actually did happen. And what did happen was not really okay! But that's okay! (It's not.)

Some of it was a little slow (yes I did just say I was on the edge of my seat, I'm indesicive *flips hair*) but all in all, it kept me going. Mainly because Matteo was there, who am I kidding...

I'm just a girl 🤭

The found family in this book (and in A Tempest of Tea) is top tier, top notch, 10/10, and it was still strong in this novel. Truly a plus side on the duology.

Managing without spoilers here. Yay, wow, surprised I kept my mouth shut there. The plot of those book flowed albeit a bit choppy at times, espcially with our villain. I truly just wanted the villain dead. Murder, I dunno, like stab through the heart or something? Just ✨death✨. And it took the entire book--but Jo, isn't that how it works? Yes, leave me alone--for it to happen.

Ignoring how a special type of vampires are called "Super Vampires" 💀

All in all, an epic conclusion to the stunning novel that A Tempest of Tea was. Highly reccomend you pick this book up if you liked AToT.


quotes for those who scrolled

⋆˚࿔ ☕︎"𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭-𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘥𝘪𝘱 𝘣𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘢 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘣𝘶𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘣𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴." ⋆˚࿔

⋆˚࿔ ☕︎ "𝘈𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘦, 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨?" ⋆˚࿔

⋆˚࿔ ☕︎ "𝘋𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘭𝘺," 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘥. ⋆˚࿔

⋆˚࿔ ☕︎ 𝘏𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵. "𝘐 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘢." ⋆˚࿔


🩸huge thanks to the publisher/netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review

🍵 post read: so where do I send my therapy bill?

🫖 pre- review:
I GOT THE ARC
I FREAKING GOT THE ARC AHHHHHHHHHHH

[niyya نية · Rating 5 out of 5]

"We had a good love story, right?"

no I'm not crying u are. what the hell. hafsah why would u do that. matteo the man that u are.

and LAITH GOT HIS REDEMPTION ARC THANK YOU

that being said though, I ended up loving matteo much more than I love laith so

I loved this book

[Krysta ꕤ]

dnf @ 16% .. I realized that I don’t remember anything from the first book and I just don’t care to continue with this one. the writing is really bland and the characters besides Jin are all one dimensional. I wanted to give this a chance but the series is just not for me.

—— thanks to NetGalley, the author and Macmillan Audio for the arc, all opinions are my own.

[ellie (semi ia) · Rating 3 out of 5]

➳ 3.75 ☆! ☕ spoiler free + mini review
⤷ dont get me wrong, i still LOVED this

⋆˚࿔ 22nd review of the year

"i suppose we can save the world and have tea.”

🎧 -whos afraid of lil old me
ᯓᡣ𐭩 so whos afraid of me?
you caged me, and then you called me crazy

₊‧꒰my thoughts꒱ ‧‧ 🔪
⤷ ok.. so for the first 60% it was going SO WELL i was giggling, happy w the plot, n everything. i think after some incidents it started not going how i thought it would and felt underwhelming 😔like i totally feel like the story could've ended differently, PLUS this series had sm potential overall

⤷ it's still a series i will recommend tho because i adore the characters!! i just wished better for them + the epilogue was NOT enough + i lowk feel like a 3rd book is needed 😭😭 overall it was a very solid read and a high 3 star rating!! i will miss these characters very much. i cannot wait to see what hafsah writes next!! #i need more ya vampire fantasy books 💌💌

“I suppose I want peace. I want to live again.”

also lowk.. what happened with laith LOL i feel like he could've played a bigger part in the plot

----------------

‧꒰preview ᝰ.ᐟ꒱ ‧₊ ☕

₊‧꒰2.20.26꒱ ‧₊
⤷ OHH I AM NOT PLAYING ABT THIS BOOK, IM SO EXCITEDD !! im alr 50% thru oop 🫢 but its going great so far! after the ending of book 1 this was a NEED, i lowk wished i reread that one but its okay. dedicating this to my girl ava who gave this a 5 stars very recently!! ilysm angel and cant wait to talk about this book when im done 🫂💌

[✨⚡ Kelcey (felinebooktrovert) ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

This is the type of sequel I've been craving.

I have been so disappointed with sequels lately, especially of the fantasy variety. Sequels should be nonstop forward momentum and that's exactly what this was. It was so hard to put down and I enjoyed every minute of it.

And the best part was Jin and Flick. Those two are so great together and did not get near enough page time here but everywhere they were was just the best parts to read.

So now the one thing that I didn't like: Arthie and Matteo. I will say that I love Matteo's character (I loved ALL the characters), but their relationship just didn't make sense to me. He saved her life and it seemed that was what pushed them together. I was firmly a fan of Laith and so the ending of the first book suuuucked, but I had a feeling he would be back.

And I just wish that he would have stayed the main man for her. I mean come on, how awesome would it have been to go from shooting each other and almost killing them to coming back together and working together and ending up together?? That would have been AMAZING enemies to lovers. But instead I feel like we got force fed Matteo because Laith doesn't show up until later and it honestly seems like they're going to end up together anyway, so Matteo just ended up being filler for her and that was just a waste of his character.

But even with those thoughts, this book was still so good and I can't wait for Hafsah's next story ❤️‍🔥

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

[B 🩶 · Rating 5 out of 5]

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edit: FYM SEPTEMBER 2025 ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?1?1?1??1?1?1?1

edit 2: WE HAVE A COVER I REPEAT WE HAVE A COVER (Also Faizal posted on her instagram an opening snippet and what can I say MATTEOARTHIE NATION WE'RE WINNING)

[Lauren · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Macmillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. First of all, Hafsah— I’m sorry. I truly am… But it is very obvious that A Steeping of Blood was difficult to write. A Tempest of Tea was one of my favorite books of the year last year. I literally have THREE copies of it. Between the characters, the twists, and the over-arching theme, I was really looking forward to seeing what would come next with a second book.

The writing style, while beautiful and witty, was almost childish in comparison to the subject matter. I mean, we’re talking about colonialism, racism, death, etc… I get this is technically YA, but this book could benefit from the author using a more sensitive tone. A personal issue I had was the dialogue between characters. The one-liners and pet names were unbearably cheesy.

Overall, this book was dull but somehow incredibly heavy-handed. The unnecessary descriptions and random side thoughts during the multiple POVs will probably have most people skimming the pages. I’m sorry, but it’s the truth.

A Tempest of Tea was slower on the pace side, and while this one is much faster paced, it feels like we spend chapter upon chapter reading about a single scene that could’ve been easily put into half a page and still packed the same punch.

I love how we saw more of Flick and Jin but at the cost of the other characters… Which was fine, but the ending of the first book left us with SO many questions that didn’t really get answered.

My main issue was the end… I’m not the type of person that always has to have a HEA, but the twist at the end felt inorganic and added purely for shock value and nothing else. Maybe to create buzz online when people talk about their experience reading it? I don’t know, but wow… I felt very thrown off by everything that happens in the last 100 pages. It truly felt like the author’s heart wasn’t in it completely.

I gain no pleasure from making such a review. I’ve been a fan of this story and these characters since I got the ARC of A Tempest of Tea in late 2023.

[Virginia Ronan ♥ Herondale ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m on BookTube now! =)

”They’d failed jobs before. It was the nature of a con. Sometimes one was conned right back. But this - this had failed on every level, and Arthie could only blame herself."

Trigger warnings: blood, gore, violence, torture, racism, grief, colonialism, slavery & human trafficking, drugging, abusive parent, PTSD, trauma

I think for the first time in a long time I might actually agree with the majority of reviewers who were frustrated after the ending of “A Steeping of Blood”! Because hot damn, that ending threw me for a loop and I can’t believe Hafsah Faizal just decided to do … that?! It felt like she created this book solely to throw us to the wolves and to break every single plot rule there ever was. The storyline was definitely very different than I expected it to be and I’m not going to lie, I was actually happy about most of those choices because they were unexpected and something new! Still, for the ending I really would have appreciated a little bit more of my good old friend named “predictability”, because after closing this book I’m not okay. >_<

I feel like a hound who was thrown off the scent of the authors true intentions and yes, I admit it, I feel sort of betrayed, too! And this even though the book clearly went in a completely different direction right from the start! No matter if it was Arthie’s story, Matteo’s, Jin’s or Flick’s, all of those characters took routes I didn’t expect them to take and some of them were heartbreaking and cruel. Also, even after reading the entire book I don’t get Matteo’s fascination with Arthie. Where did it come from? What are his reasons to act the way he did? I honestly would have loved to get a better look into his brain and I say that even though I actually got his POV at parts. Like how is this still a mystery to me even though I was in his head?! Ugh!

Still, despite all the confusion and unexpected ways this story took, I found myself enjoying the found family trope and all the developing relationships and ships. They were very wholesome and I wish we could have gotten more of them. For the sake of the plot the author chose to keep the romance down, though, and that’s okay, because there was a lot of ground to cover. From the happenings in White Roaring to an adventure that took part of our crew to Ceylan – the colony where it all started – this story was full of action and adventure and there was never a dull moment. I probably will never get over THAT ending, though. Anyway! Enough of my general thoughts, let’s get to the tough parts and my spoiler section because this time around I have too many thoughts. I need to get them off my chest!

The characters:

Welcome to Ceylan! Where truths are revealed, hearts are broken and mended and spoilers attack you in the hot, humid night air! Are you ready for those spoilers? Because if not, now would be the perfect time to skip this part of my review and to continue with the “Conclusion”! ;-P

Arthie Casimir:

”What was wrong with her? She was usually quick with her responses, rarely letting anyone sway her. She prided herself in being resilient, unwavering. She was made out of stone, but wasn’t he the one who had fashioned it around her? Who was she without the one she’d built herself up with?”

I knew that the happenings at the ending of book one would have a deep impact on Arthie but I honestly didn’t expect her to waver and question every choice she ever made. This was an unexpected side of Arthie I never thought I’d see, yet it felt very realistic and true. After almost dying and losing everything she built Arthie was forced to reinvent herself and to find out who she truly was and wanted to be. There were still some character traits of the old ruthless Arthie in her, but she wasn’t as confident and sure-footed as in the first book and the fact her relationships with the others changed as well certainly didn’t make it easy for her to figure things out. Add to that a good portion of action that kept her from facing her feelings and you got a very confused and struggling Arthie. If you’re responsible for many people and everyone is always looking to you for guidance it’s hard to face your own insecurities. I don’t think Arthie had it all figured out by the ending of the book but she was on a good way and you could see that she was trying to go with the changes. She was trying to live her life as good as possible and you can’t ask for more than that.

”Spindrift after-hours,” she corrected.
“You served blood after-hours, but you served that” – Matteo stopped and gestured to her – “at all hours. Those emotions, that contentment. Tea, blood, human, vampire, regardless of whether one walked in the shadows or the light, you gave them the sustenance they craved.” His eyes were bright with intent because he understood her hesitance. “Is that not a fundamental part of being human?”

”When it burns, we’ll be setting them back years, from reserves to fuel, and in the meantime, my people will rebuild. If Ettenia finds itself starved of Ceylani resources, they can forge agreements, establish contracts, and act civil as civilized people are wont to do.”

Jin Casimir:

”He could understand Arthie and her reluctance to tell him the truth just then. Because he was a criminal, a vampire, nowhere near the high society boy his parents had raised, and he didn’t know if they would want him anymore.”

Oh Jin. He really didn’t have it easy in here. First the Ram took Spindrift and then his entire life was turned upside down. Arthie made him a vampire and after so many years this was how her secret was revealed. It’s no surprise Jin was angry at her for not trusting him enough to tell him the truth. He was her brother for so many years but she never told him she was a vampire. That betrayal stung and it took him a while to recover and to come to terms with the fact that he was a vampire now. Still, once things finally started to look up his parents were killed by the Ram and this was NOT on my bingo card! I honestly didn’t expect them to come all the way from Ceylan just to end up dead, yet here we are! What a plot twist. Despite all that Jin found his footing in the end and stood up for himself and his beliefs which makes him such a strong character in my eyes! I loved him so much and I honestly hope him and Flick will have a quiet and amazing life together. <3

”That decade he’d lived without his parents had been one of worry, always concerned someone would take away what was his yet again. And they had, in the end: The Ram had burned Spindrift to ashes, but it was his own fault he hadn’t lived those ten years enjoying every second of it.
He was undead now, but he had every intention of living.”

”He couldn’t say goodbye.
He didn’t get to tell them that he loved them.
He could have sworn there were claws in his chest, tearing his heart to shreds, so great was the pain.”

Felicity “Flick” Linden:

”Days ago, against her better judgement, she had followed a carriage that was dropping off a neat and glamorous card at each house on Admiral Grove, nearly running straight into a throng of Horned Guard gathered at the end of the street. And criminal that she now was, she stole one.”

Flick turned out to be quite the wildcard in this second instalment! I never expected her to be so brave and fierce but she surprised me in the best way possible. Flick was cunning, resourceful and stronger than I would have anticipated her to be after reading the first book. She was resilient and even though it was painful to follow her journey, it was still amazing to see how she came out of it even stronger than before. I couldn’t help but hurt for her, though. To be tortured by your own mother like that… Lady Linden really had to go for the most painful thing she could have done to her own child. I despise this woman with all my heart. Ugh. I just hope there was no permanent damage to her hands and she managed to recover from her ordeal. >_< Poor Flick! This was heartbreaking on so many levels.

”I don’t believe you understand the gravity of your situation,” the Ram said. “You’re alone. They don’t know where you are. They can’t swoop in to save you.”
Flick furrowed her brow and looked into the Ram’s eyes. “I wasn’t hoping to be saved. I didn’t realize I needed to be afraid for my life. You” – she added a stutter for good measure – “you’re my mother.”

Matteo Andoni:

”Matteo lived on the edge of ferocity. He might happily wield his brush and partake in the humdrum of high society, but a single event such as tonight’s could send him off, swiftly unlocking the cage where the vampire in him was waiting with bated breath.
And the vampire in him was most ardently pleased this night.”

Matteo was such a fascinating character but it still feels like I never knew him at all. It’s interesting how the author managed to write a character like him that left me guessing about his emotions until the very end. I mean the reader was even allowed to spend a little bit of time in his head, yet he remains a mystery to me. There were so many layers and I get a feeling I didn’t even see half of them. What is for sure is that he was a tortured soul and would have deserved better than he got in the end! I might not know his motivations to help Arthie or why he was so besotted with her, but I know that he was hurting more than he let on. I wish we would have gotten more time with this mystery of a man, but he had to do the noble thing and I’m still not over that ending!!! ARGH! T_T

”I’m here, Arthie,” he replied. Eternally.
He meant that, even if he’d never say it aloud. He would goad her and tease her. He would stomach ashy tea for her and kill a thousand men for her, despite his loathing of violence. He could only hope his actions were telling enough.
“You came for me,” she said softly.

”Matteo was breathing hard. Arthie studied him, the fear written on his face, the pain that he seemed to have little control over. He’d spent the past twenty years in a cage of his own making, painting his emotions for the masses and speaking none of it, holding his truth behind debonair smiles and easy words.”

Laith:

”She felt sorry for him, though she couldn’t summon remorse. He had stared into her eyes, spoken of love, and pulled the trigger on her gun. And yet, she could not hate him either. He had been on the path that he was because of his sister. Arthie would have done the same for Jin ten times over.”

I honestly didn’t expect to see Laith ever again, but the author obviously had other plans and I think I feel at least as conflicted about him as Arthie does. I can understand his motivations but his betrayal stung so much and I honestly don’t know if I would be able to forgive him for what he did. The way things ended in the book for him felt realistic and I think he needs time to heal before he can try to redeem himself. Uff. I rarely felt so conflicted about a character. Laith why did you have to be like that? *sighs*

The relationships & ships:

Arthie & Matteo:

Matteo thought on it for a moment. “I suppose I want peace. I want to live again.” He lowered his voice, directing his next words at her alone in a tone that was pensive, imploring. “With you. For you. And if retaliation is what you want, then I want it too.”

I loved their chemistry in this book! But I still don’t get Matteo’s motivations! Was he always intrigued by Arthie and did he start to love her long before she even got to know him?! I have so many questions about his feelings and where they came from all of a sudden! In the first book he was teasing her but he kept his distance and gave Laith a chance to get closer to Arthie and in this book he was pursuing her from the moment it began. I don’t get it! Despite all that I was totally on board of this ship, though! Arthie might have been confused by his sudden interest in her as well, but that certainly didn’t stop her from getting closer to him. *lol* Then again, he was well versed in the art of seducing and the way he managed to draw reactions from her was a skill in its own right. I think the WHY he wanted to be with Arthie so badly will haunt me forever because of course the author had to do us shippers dirty in the end! Ugh! When I read that scene, I was like: No, no, no, you can’t do that, no!!! WHY??! And to give us Laith back instead!? ARGH! I’m not okay. I can understand it from an author’s perspective because this was one hell of a twist, I gotta give her that, but I really would have preferred for Matteo to live. T_T I’m so on the fence about this. I’ll send my therapy bill to you Hafsah Faizal! XD

”He pulled away, pressing a thumb into her chin, and when he met her eyes, it scared her. I would do anything for you, those eyes said. He already had. He had killed for her; he had infiltrated the Athereum for her. He had sailed across the seas for her. What more would he do?”

”I’ve never – I’ve never done this before,” she whispered.
Matteo tilted his head, noticing her change. “Done what?”
“Opened up my heart to anyone.”
His lips quirked with a small smile. “Darling, I’ve held your heart in my hands and begged it to beat for me again; what more do I need?”

Flick & Jin:

”Jin was on the pier, his brow pressed to Flick's as the sea tumbled beyond them, the wind whipping their clothes. His eyes were closed, pain crowding the plains of his face.
He pulled away while she watched, and Flick took a tiny step back, as if it physically hurt to do so."

Those two came such a long way and I really loved that Flick gave Jin as good as she got! *lol* In the first book she was so shy and awkward, but in this one she met him where he stood and due to that their chemistry was great. (Alone how Jin has no control over his body whenever she’s near!) I wish we would have gotten more scenes with both of them but the circumstances of the story didn’t allow them to have more page time which was quite a bummer. To be honest I would have loved for them to have more scenes together. It would have fleshed out their relationship even more but I get why the author couldn’t do that. It hurts Flick never got to know Jin’s parents, though. All those years and the long way from Ceylan but they didn’t even get a small moment together. T_T It makes their loss even harder to digest and more profound. I hope Jin and Flick can heal from their ordeal together. They are good for each other and after what the author did to my Matteo/Arthie ship I feel like I need to be grateful those two at least got a happy ending.

”I like you too, Felicity. I cannot imagine an existence without you, much less an eternity,” he said, entwining his fingers with hers.

He inched forward. “Oh? And what is it that Felicity Linden wants?”
He was not expecting her to mimic him. To close the distance between them. He instinctively took a step back, his head thudding into the worn wooden door.
“She wants to be called Flick,” she said, a dark undercurrent to her tone. There was a spark in her eyes he’d never seen before. Dangerous, thrilling.

Arthie & Jin:

”I almost died that night because of this shield,” she said, and then her voice dropped. “You didn’t even come to see if I’d lived.”
A line feathered along his jaw at that. “As if you did much more than turn me and flee. You might as well have left me for dead.”

Those two siblings had it rough and I’m glad they talked things out. After their close relationship in the first book it was hard to read about them being so at odds. It was understandable that there would be a conflict, though. I mean Arthie kept her existence as a vampire from Jin ever since he knew her. Of course she had her reasons to do so, but he was her brother and he should have known. To turn him into a vampire in order to save his life wasn’t the best way to reveal that secret, but it wasn’t like she had a choice. Thankfully their journey to Ceylan reminded them of their strong bond and why they chose to be each other’s found family in the first place. I loved their sibling relationship so much. <3 We need more of those in books!

”She’d lied to him, time and time again – or omitted the truth, or whatever excuse she would use. It didn’t matter what she had to say because, in the end, the fact remained: She hadn’t trusted him.”

Flick and Lady Linden:

”First you misplace your ledger, then you misplace your foes. What’s next? Your mask?” Flick said, barely holding back a smirk. This time, she let the words bubble out of her. “You’ve become awfully irresponsible lately, Mother.”

I still can’t believe Flick’s mother imprisoned her, killed the two guards who heard about her true identity and shackled her own daughter to the ceiling in order to hurt her arms irreparably. To do that to your own child is horrible – for lack of a better word - to do it knowing she might never be able to use her talent as a forger was atrocious, sickening and inhumane. Lady Linden deserved everything that came her way! Flick was extremely brave to stand up for herself in those circumstances and I’ll always be proud of her and how far she came! She’s amazing! Still, it must have hurt to have a mother like that and I hope Jin heals her aching heart.

The Ram scoffed. “And to think, I gave you everything.”
“Everything to you was still nothing to me,” Flick said. “I wanted a mother.”
“And I wanted a daughter.” At some point, yes. Flick believed her mother did. That desire faded with her humanity. That desire was long gone now, gobbled by her greed and hatred.

Conclusion:

“A Steeping of Blood” was NOT what I expected! When I read this book, I never knew what would happen next and so many of the characters choices and all the plot twists that came along with them had me at the edge of my seat. Hafsah Faizal certainly managed to keep this story interesting and suspenseful. To be in the dark about what was going to come next was refreshing and I really enjoyed every second of the book even though it also tackled hard topics like torture, trauma and colonialism. I still can’t believe this is how it ended, though! What an ending. I’ll never get over that. 4 stars and the knowledge I’ll think about this for years to come. T_T

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[vyn targaryen ‎♡‧₊˚ · Rating 2 out of 5]

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "Stop" Someone shouted from the fort gates. Bloodworth. He was aiming a gun at her. "I will kill you."
"Then bury me shallow, for I will return."

A Steeping of Blood was very difficult to rate. On the one hand, I deeply enjoyed many of the plot twists and all of the character's relationships, and on the other hand, some of the writing was poor and the middle of the book suffered from a lack of stakes and real emotion.

I was extremely excited when I received the ARC- thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for granting me one. This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 (among Sunrise on the Reaping, Watch Me, and Every Spiral of Fate), however, when I neared the halfway mark, it began to disappoint me deeply.

Before I delve into that, however, I would like to point out the things I enjoyed.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "I supposed I want peace. I want to live again." He lowered his voice. "With you. For you."

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ He breathed a laugh, brushing away the hair that clung to her damp skin. "My praecantrix."

1- Arthie and Mattheo were truly very sweet and enjoyable to root for. I'm also very proud of Hafsah for making a difficult decision and killing him off in the end. I loved him, but it felt correct.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ What a delight it was, to be seen.

2- Flick! Her character is truly very relatable to me, with her distractability and loyalty (and attraction to Jin). She never felt flat, even when the other characters did, and her development was lovely.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "I thought you were a man of many talents," Arthie said.
Mattheo's jaw dropped open. "Are you flirting with me, darling?"
Jin flicked a brow. "Don't get your hopes up."
"Oh, they're up, all right."
"That better not mean what I think it means."
Mattheo gave him a wink.
"I don't know what that means," Flick said.

3- The found family. Even when I grew disappointed, their banter cheered me up. Their connections felt genuine throughout the entire book, and Arthie and Jin are truly special to me.

Now, to what disappointed me:

The writing grew bland- and almost cringeworthy, as much as it pains me to admit. The pacing of the sentences was often off, containing the same punctuational structures 4 times in a row. The diction of the characters varied from formal to casual at random, from phrases such as "does it not" "are we not" to words like "stinky" and exclamations like "by golly". Other examples of poor dialogue are these:

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "You have my fangs," one said.
"And my claws," said another.

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "...a specialized breed of super vampires."

Yes, you read that correctly, 'super vampires'. I also grew tired of how many times Mattheo said "darling", and how many times the Ram "hmm"ed.

The stakes fell flat, rendering my interest to a low I would never have expected from a book by Hafsah Faizal. I could not bring myself to care when the Siwangs died, because, unfortunately, they had never felt permanent, and their disappearance didn't create a lasting impact.

The characters somehow grew into caricatures by the 50% mark, which frustrated me deeply, because one of the main reasons I enjoyed A Tempest of Tea so deeply was because of the found family.

My last complaint is, unfortunately, how Arthie- and Jin- dealt with those who had wronged her. Only Mattheo seemed to have no qualms about dealing out consequences to people who had done truly horrible things. For example-

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ "I know they're colonizers, but you can't mean to kill them," Jin said, brow furrowed.

It's possible that I may be too harsh when discussing this, but it reminds me of the trope- which Arthie fell into, to my utter dismay- where the hero refuses to kill the villain because it will make them just as bad as their enemy. I could write an essay on all the reasons I dislike that trope.

Overall, I'm truly disappointed. I fervently wanted to like this book- love it, in fact- but it fell flat.

[Yusra يسریٰ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buddyread with The Laith Haters: Evie, Yusra, and Aaiza

[riddle · Rating 5 out of 5]

the chokehold this woman's books have on me is insane

[⋆｡°·☁︎ sydney ⋆｡°·☁︎ · Rating 1 out of 5]

this was just a bad life choice in general
i knew going into it that i aggressively don't like this writing style
it makes me feel like a four year old who needs everything spelled out for them
like i literally didn't have the chance to guess or use my brain at all reading this book
which felt like a missed opportunity?
idk, im not the brightest by any means, but i do feel dumber after reading this?
im sure somebody out there loves this book, but its not my cup of tea.

[☕️Meg (slow responding, moving houses) · Rating 4 out of 5]

⥼~-✰-~⥽ ☽ ˚•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙˚＊☾ ⥼~-✰-~⥽
.𖥔 ݁ ˖༘⋆𐦍⊹₊.𖥔.“𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚗 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚎 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝙸 𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚐𝚘𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚙𝚞𝚛𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚎.”𖥔 ݁. ˖༘⋆𐦍⊹₊.𖥔 ݁

 ┊✦ Okay this. Book was far better than tempest of tea like the prologue is what got me the most this one just seemed way more interesting with the world building like I legit could not put this one down there just seem to be more going on now thee characters got more ruthless than they once were before. The story just got so much more interesting in this where it left off on the first book where it needed to be and to make more sense too.


┊✦ the worldbuilding was less complicated in this one to follow it was so much faster paced in this one it was almost hard to put down there was no little slow burns in between.
I adored all the characters in here including Arthie and Jin there characters also shined in this but Arthie was more badass in this one completely she was grown more!


˚┊✦ Romance - Epilogue

I loved the romance in here so much like it was much more on the slow burn side ngl but you can literally sense all the sexual tension chemistry between all of them that gives you the edge of your seat that will they finally kiss? Even in the battles scenes was so hot together !

I loved how the story was so complex about vampires it wasn’t too much of the vampire world either. It was so unique how it was written too!

the ending !!!??? Please tell me that did not happen 😭😭 the way I’m now getting emotionally attached to books I never used to cry in books but now my whole attitude has changed that it’s okay to let your emotions out like bruh WHY DID THAT HAPPEN 😭😭😭😭😭 I’m not okay! I really need the other book because holy fuck 😭😭😭😭

It’s not one of my biggest reviews but without revealing any spoilers in this book 😭by far my favourite vampire book yet! I cannot wait for more of this to come out!

𓏲ּ𝄢⋆˙⟡⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆Side characters⋆꙳•̩̩͙❅*̩̩͙‧͙ ‧͙*̩̩͙❆ ͙͛ ˚₊⋆𓏲ּ𝄢⋆˙

 ˚┊✦ Matteo -
Matteo was the fucking king of sidelines characters his character literally did it for me in this one like holy shit he did come out of his shell at lot from the first book!

╭ ✦ • ⥼~-✰-~⥽ ☽ ˚𝚂𝚝𝚊𝚛 𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 & 𝚂𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚎 𝚁𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐✩•̩̩͙˚＊☾ ⥼~-✰-~⥽
│ ⊹ ⭐️4.3

│ ⊹ 🌶 2
╰ ✦ •⥼~-✰-~⥽ ☽ ˚•̩̩͙✩•̩̩͙˚＊☾ ⥼~-✰-~⥽
❄️⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆⋆⭒˚.⋆ ⋆⭒˚.⋆⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒˚.⋆ ❄️ ⋆⭒

﹏﹒✦﹒✶﹏﹒✦﹒﹏✦﹒

Pre read:🥵💋🍷🧡🫖

Let’s continue this worldbuilding complications 🤣😳cannot wait though see how it all folds out I’m frankly scared about this ending in this book more I’m so connected with some characters here 🤣😭🧡I’m excited !!! 😜

[Yusra ☾ · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I suppose we can save the world and have tea.”

For starters, the best part of this book was having an amazing buddy reading group, Yusra, Evie, and Aaiza. THE LAITH HATERSSSS. I had such a fun time reading with you guysssss 🥹

I’ve been waiting for this book to come out since Yusra and I first read it back last year, ESPECIALLY the cliffhanger Hafsah left us on. And I’m going to be so honest, this book DELIVERED. I enjoyed every second of it (well….most seconds).

Okay spoilers from here out (but they’ll be marked probably)

WHY THE ACTUAL HELL DID MATTEO DIE. HE WAS THE LOML AND THE BEST CHARACTER IN THIS ENTIRE BOOK AND HIS DEATH WAS SO UNNESSISARY AND THE FACT THAT LAITH IS LIVING HIS LIFE JUST HEHEHEAHAHAHAHAH HAVING FUN ABOVE THE GROUND IS INFURIATINGGGGGG. I’M GONNA KILL HAFSAH GUYS

Some extra things to note: I liked Flick a lot in this book! (Aaiza and Evie won I GUESS) She wasn’t babyish and actually knew what she was doing this time around and she was lowk a badass.

Another thing: Jin and Arthie’s relationship was peak once again. JIN’S PARENTS DYING WAS EVIL ONCE AGAIN. WHAT IS WRONG WITH HAFSAH GUYS.

I loveddddd the colonialism and the heavier themes in this book, it was literally real life problems in a fantasy way. Colonialism got everyone in the East a certain way and it was definitely relatable, the idea of never feeling at home, not fitting in, all of it.

Random note, but the way Hafsah describes blood, I honestly think she might be part vampire herself. It was....VERY detailed.

Overall, (bc I’m too tired to actually structure this review 😭) I loved this book despite all the anger it has caused me. When Matteo died at the end, we all cried together on call since we read the last chapters out loud together. Great trauma bonding experience!

“I had forgotten what it was to live until you, I forgot what it was like to have purpose.”

[Eden · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted so badly for book 2 to not fall into the same pitfalls as book 1. I wanted so badly to love it. Then, I wanted so badly to appreciate it. Then, I wanted so badly to like it even a little bit, but I just didn't. The world and character relationships were super intriguing, but nothing had good follow through. The world needed to be explained more, but instead the author just kept adding more rules to it. Also, the plot lacked focus. There were 3 interesting plot ideas in here, but that did the story a disservice because too much was trying to be wrapped up.

There was simply too much telling and not enough showing. I kept being told "the Ram is so evil" "the Ram" this and "the Ram" that, but she felt so much like a caricature rather than a real villain. There was potential for great emotional moments both with the Ram and Jin's parents, but we don't get enough of those characters together for us to care about their dynamics when things go badly.

Nothing in this story was earned. The romances weren't earned, but were instead plopped in. I loved some of the lines for the romances in the first book, but most of the romantic lines in this one were cringey. The "twists" weren't earned either. I also reallyyyy disliked in the Author's Note how the author said "sequels are the bane of [an author's] existence" like, huh? This is a duology?? You hate writing all books after the first one? Write standalones then! The first one honestly could've been tighter and an amazing standalone! But also in the Author's Note she said one of the big twists was one of her editor's ideas and you can tellll because of the absolute LACK OF FOCUS OF THIS BOOK. It was traveling, hairbrained scheme that shouldn't work but does, traveling, weird ambush that wasn't explained well, planning, blah blah blah, and then two random, unearned twists. It was either 1) the editors didn't do enough bc this book lacked focus or 2) the editors did too much bc this book lacked focus.

I didn't start this review meaning to crap on anyone, but I am actually mad that this book had such an interesting world and such lovely characters but lacked focus in every aspect. The potential was great. The execution was terrible.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an early copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every book by Hafsah Faizal was 5 stars so this for sure will be as well
Laith and Arthie endgame is needed

[Azanta (azantareads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

wait lol i’m actually devastated this is over 😭😭😭 Arthie and the gang you will always live in my heart oh im gonna go cry myself to sleep

i can always trust Hafsah to break my heart and put it back together with her books. i loved Arthie’s story so much and im devastated it’s come to an end and i have to part ways with them. i loved getting to see these characters grow into a family and into their arcs through another exciting plot that was reminiscent of all of my favorite stories - SOC, King Arthur, with a big f you to colonization and the evil that runs the injustices of our world. the ending was truly heartbreaking and this might be the first time i actually wish a series was longer bc i really was not ready to part ways with them. ily Arthie will miss you!

[Sophie (lambsbooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Darling, I’ve held your heart in my hands and begged it to beat for me again; what more do I need?”

You'll find:
🩸Vampires
🩸Found Family
🩸Heartbreak
🩸HEARTBREAK but in capitals
🩸Down with the colonizers
🩸Fantasy with 1920s vibes
🩸Tea 🍵

Oh.

Oh noooo.

I... I don’t read books without HEAs, are you kidding me??

This book dragged so much, and every time Flick's POV happened I wanted to scream, but that ending?? Heeeelll no. Any good I thoughts I had were immediately ruined. Because while I was bored for a bunch of the book, it wasn’t bad or anything. But the end? Nope.

Saved his parents who had been captives for like 10 years. Oh, they’re IMMEDIATELY killed when they get back home. IMMEDIATELY. Matteo, second love interest and would have fit great for Arthie, and clearly loved her, KILLED. Nah. Jin and Flick, who I gave zero fucks about, normal ending, of all the people.

So, what a disappointment from book 1. Also, a disappointment because I was invested in the first few chapters, then it just wouldn’t end??

Thank you so much to Colored Pages Book Tours, Fierce Reads, and the author for this eARC and PR package

[Zana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't realize that I was one out of a small handful of people who actually liked the first novel. It was a fun read, good enough for a young YA intro to colonialism, and the characters were cool and lovable.

So, I'm not exactly sure what happened here because this read like a bunch of tropes thrown into a blender with dull blades.

I read this about a month ago and barely anything stuck out to me. Halfway through, it felt like I was watching a mid Marvel movie. While the action scenes were fun, I had to turn off my brain to actually enjoy what I was reading. There was this weird imbalance of deep scenes and comedic moments, so it was difficult to take anything or anyone seriously.

There was a new subplot a little more than halfway through and it reminded me so much of X-Men that it sent me so far out of Earth's orbit. What the hell was that plot line?

I honestly wish I would've just skipped this one and kept to the first book. I finished this, but at what cost?

Thank you to Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) and NetGalley for this arc.

[akacya ❦ · Rating 5 out of 5]

2025 reads: 258/300

i received a complimentary audio copy from the publisher as part of their influencer program. i am leaving this review voluntarily.

in this conclusion to the blood and tea duology, arthie doesn’t have the time to mourn people’s deaths, not even her own. she has no time for love, either, even though it’s saved her life. as she navigates new emotions and new allies, she must reassemble her crew to fight one last time.

i was a bit surprised that this sequel was slower-paced than book one, but looking back at the sands of arawiya duology, i think this is just hafsah’s style. that said, this book was amazing! i loved seeing the crew get back together. similarly to the first book, we get multiple POVs, while the focus is still clearly on arthie. there was just one narrator, maya saroya, but i never got confused as to which POV we were in. i loved getting to know everyone even better and seeing them grow in this book. the romances were particularly interesting to me! there was soooo much tension between arthie and matteo; i loved it. i’m still processing that ending, but i highly recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the first book!

[CarlysGrowingTBR · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.75

General Thoughts:
I have seen some mixed reviews for this book (and the duology as a whole) and I gotta say, I don't get it. This was a fantastic duology and follow up book. I'm not saying it was perfect because there was definitely some pacing issues for me within the first book, but honestly solid overall.

I really enjoyed the character development that happened with all of the characters in the second book. I felt like the character development was a little shallow in the first book and this took it to a whole new level. It was a fast paced story where there was always something exciting happening with at least one of the POV's. I really enjoyed the development of the relationships between the characters. I thought it was really fun and fresh. A lot of of the problems I felt with the first book. I definitely did not feel with the second book. The pacing was on point to the character development with stellar, and I felt really invested in the plot.

Loved it.

Book Stats:
📖: 448 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Format: eARC from publisher and NetGalley
Series: 2/2 Blood and Tea Duology

Audiobook Stats:
⏰: 14 hours 26 minutes
🎤: Maya Saroya
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Format: Multi POV/Single Timeline

Disclaimer: I read this book as a gifted physical ARC from the publisher and a gifted audiobook from the Hachette audiobook program. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.

[Sue Miz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book gave me all kinds of emotions
AND I MEAN ALL KINDS

it made me swoon
excited
livid
happy
angry
hot and bothered
hysterical
agitated
nervous
calm
sad
in love

It was perfect
so sooo sooooo much better than book 1 which I till believe that it should have been 2 books

If this story had been a trilogy, this book would have been the perfect ending

it is the perfect ending though I shouted at a certain part .....whyyyyyyyyyyyy
everything came together
it was well planned and executed to the T...no pun intended

and for a YA story, it was so hot



=======================================


Act 1 : from p 5 to 179 was amazing
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

let's hope it continues like that

but let's also take a moment to appreciate that awesome dedication 😁

Act 2: from p 183 to

263: ooooh, a little bit of horror! I like that 👌

Then bury me shallow, for I will return
I loooove this act

Vengeance had steeped in her blood long enough. It had changed, grown, morphed. It was retribution now.. ..pure Literature 😍😍😍

[Anisa Daniel-Oniko]

SO SO HYPED!!!

[Annalie (Taylor’s version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Macmillan publishing and hafsah Faisal for an arc in exchange for an honest review

⭐️4.5 I loved the first book in this duology so when I saw that I got accepted for the arc I was extatic. This book was all I needed it to be and more. A steeping of blood starts where a tempest of tea ends and has you wondering what will happen next at every page. I never wanted to put this book down with the plot twists at every chapter! This book is the perfect ending to the series. Just be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster.

[Ellie&#x1f409;✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you so much NetGalley and Macmillan for this eARC!
2.5⭐️ Wow this book was a whirlwind. I have some conflicting feelings on this second book considering I really enjoyed and flew through the first one !

I will say this second book almost feels like it was written by a completely different person. The pacing was the biggest issue I had with this book. Considering this book was over 400 pages, and I feel like there were so many words for absolutely nothing to happen for the first like 80% of the book. We blew through important character development, and then dragged through the most mundane things? I feel like there was so much detail that was attempted to be slotted in but it was done in the most bizarre way, and that it would have been more beneficial to just make this a trilogy and really flushed out some of the more overarching themes and relationship dynamics.
The pacing for characters was also weird. We had characters in love with people, all of a sudden hate them, and then be in love with someone else like all in the same chapter it felt. We had someone who was raised practically like a princess, and then all of a sudden she’s a badass and can withstand torture and practically self mutilation? Which is all fine and good for her but it was just such a flip of the switch transition.
A big thing I felt like that bothered me is that our “villain” seemed to have ZERO motive to be so horrible. Sure she was a vampire and she hates them all so much. But even so, she was unnecessarily violent, power hungry, and overall horrible. It just made no sense, there seemed to be no drive behind it besides just the fact she was a “villain”, a vampire, and powerful and wanted everyone to know that? I have no idea.
Overall I didn’t HATE this book, I just found it to be super disappointing after the high praise I had for book one. It just felt like we were trying to shove SO MUCH in the last 20% of the book, and Include as many buzzwords and tropes as physically possible to the point it was almost enough to take you out of the story. Also the end felt super unnecessary and like forced. She needed to kill someone off so basically just picked someone who she dangled as a HEA, then said SIKE. Idk , I hate to give a bad review but this was just not it for me.

[Ellen ✵ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Only here for Jin as a vampire