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TEA DRAGON TAPESTRY // book review

 


* I was provided a proof copy by the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review* 

Synopsis:

Join Greta and Minette once more for the heartwarming conclusion of the award-winning Tea Dragon series!

Over a year since being entrusted with Ginseng's care, Greta still can't chase away the cloud of mourning that hangs over the timid Tea Dragon. As she struggles to create something spectacular enough to impress a master blacksmith in search of an apprentice, she questions the true meaning of crafting, and the true meaning of caring for someone in grief. Meanwhile, Minette receives a surprise package from the monastery where she was once training to be a prophetess. Thrown into confusion about her path in life, the shy and reserved Minette finds that the more she opens her heart to others, the more clearly she can see what was always inside.

Told with the same care and charm as the previous installments of the Tea Dragon series, The Tea Dragon Tapestry welcomes old friends and new into a heartfelt story of purpose, love, and growth.


Review:

This was a bittersweet reading experience overall, yet in the best kind of way. While the book itself was all sugar and spice and everything nice, I've grown so fond of this world and there characters that having to say goodbye to them in this gorgeous conclusion to the series was meant to leave a bitter taste no matter how incredible the novel itself might be.

Much like the previous two installments in the series, The Tea Dragon Tapestry is very much the literary equivalent of a comforting cup of tea, the kind that's full of flavour and warms you on a chilly day. Ever since the first installment, the world of the tea dragons and those who look after them has felt like a sanctuary away from the real world. Gorgeous illustrations, an endearing cast of characters to follow and a world that makes it impossible not to want to dive right into it and not emerge out of it for a long time - this series truly has it all. 

If you ever doubted Katie O'Neill's ability to make not one, but three of these graphic novels flawlessly (how dare you doubt her!?), rest assured for she has done it. It is truly incredible to see the way the protagonists have developed and the places they've reached emotionally since the first volume. These emotional journeys are so tenderly, yet marvelously tackled and you get to see their individual character arcs come full circle from where we first met them. The growth and development is so organic and skillfully realised that it makes you want to tear up seeing where these darling characters have ended up. 

Thankfully for the tender hearted fools like myself with a penchant for melodrama and melancholy, the story never feels final in spite of being the conclusion. Instead of feeling as though the characters' stories are complete and the door has been forever closed once you've put the book down, this feels more like a goodbye for now rather than forever. It's the kind of conclusion that will leave the possibility for you to wonder after a long time what these characters have been up to since you've seen them last. I think the best kind of conclusions are those where it feels as though the story may yet continue even after you've finished reading it. 

I cannot recommend this graphic novel to those who've already enjoyed the previous installments in the series and I cannot encourage everyone else highly enough to pick up all three volumes if they haven't already! 




The book will be out on October 27th and you can pre-order it here: 

Oni Press ⁕ Blackwell's ⁕ hive ⁕ Waterstones ⁕ BookDepository ⁕ Amazon 

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