This book is utterly enchanting from the first line to the last. It begins as a cup of tea that's been slowly steeped, allowing us to intimately know Ning and the world she lives in. An unknown poison has wrecked her family and threatened to take everything else from her. Yet Ning is willing to do anything to save her sister. I was enthralled with the gorgeous world that Lin built in these pages, from the magical properties of the tea to the lush foliage that made me want to step right into this world and experience the beauty for itself.
As the book moves on, however, it becomes a race against time, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to figure out what would happen next. A friend becomes a lover becomes a betrayer. Ning (and me as a reader) doesn't know who to trust. And everything that Ning holds dear starts to collapse around her with no possible solution in sight. Lin was an absolute master in creating a story that was as beautiful as it was enthralling, and I cannot wait for book two!
As the book moves on, however, it becomes a race against time, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to figure out what would happen next. A friend becomes a lover becomes a betrayer. Ning (and me as a reader) doesn't know who to trust. And everything that Ning holds dear starts to collapse around her with no possible solution in sight. Lin was an absolute master in creating a story that was as beautiful as it was enthralling, and I cannot wait for book two!