First, I adored the concept of this - magic tea ceremonies and lots of information about different Chinese teas, cakes of pu’er and boxes of dried flowers. I loved that this really captures how tea can be holistically healing and rejuvenating. And I liked how it was very aesthetic and descriptive. But while this book was very beautiful, I just didn’t feel connected to it. The characters fell flat for me and the story didn’t draw me in. There’s this whole plot happening, some family drama, political intrigue, etc. But sometimes it felt like you could see the hand of the author, guiding the story along as planned, rather than the characters taking on a life of their own. I really did enjoy it - and three stars for me is good - and I’ll eventually read the sequel, but I just didn’t fall in love with it, didn’t feel compelled by the story or the people.