I would definitely read more books set in this world! An international spy agency that includes magic users and beings from both the East and the West? Gimme!

Bitter Medicine is an intriguing blend of xianxia (Chinese immortals) fantasy adventure, Western spy thriller, and contemporary romance. Elle is a powerful semi-immortal descendent of the Chinese god of medicine, hiding as a mediocre magical calligrapher to protect her brother(s) lives. Luc is a lonely, tormented, half-elven French fixer who is compelled by Oberon, the head of the agency, to perform against his own conscience. Their paths cross in Elle's glyph shop, where client and artist each see that there's more to the other than meets the eye. When their lives start to tangle outside the workshop, things heat up. And we're not just talking about Elle's pyrokinetics or the masterfully steamy shower scene — we're talking past traumas and family and career priorities coming to an explosive head.

Although a bit of a slow starter, once it gets going the story moves along at a brisk pace with more than competent, sometimes truly elegant, writing. Where the writing doesn't quite translate for me is the dialogue between our main characters. The banter is there but the humor is a little less sharp than I'm use to. In some cases it's so subtle I had to read it again to understand the implications; in others, it's stated so simply and obviously that I had to read it again to see if I was missing something. I'm fully prepared to chalk this up to a cultural unfamiliarity on my end, though. Just like the bits of French, Chinese, and Latin that I couldn't understand without the help of Google translate, there are family dynamics and other characterizations and plot points that I stumbled on a bit. It was still thoroughly enjoyable and the characters still shine through, making it a compelling (I read it in one day!) and satisfying (YES HEA!) read on many levels.

Genre: contemporary fantasy, speculative fiction, romance
North Carolina, France, present-ish day

Elle Mei is hiding any number of secrets: her age (well over one hundred, but looks *much* younger), her identity (she descended from a Chinese god of medicine), the fact that she saved her brother’s life even though everyone else thinks he’s dead, the full potential of her magical powers… Working a fairly low-risk, high-boredom magical calligraphy job to fly under the radar, Elle meets Luc. Luc who is also more than he lets on: a half-elf who works for the Bureau as a top agent, and is bound to his boss. He’s willing to let his guard down for her, if only she’ll accept him, even if he’s someone else outside of her company.

I really enjoyed this contemporary fantasy, inspired by xianxia storytelling, stories about the immortal heroes. It’s Tsai’s debut novel, and is adventurous, clever, emotional, and dramatic. It has a nice balance to it - with what starts as a classic good vs evil, but becomes more of a set of unexpectedly blurred lines.

Luc is a classic romance/contemporary fantasy hero. He’s handsome, brave, strong, and has an absolute soft spot for Elle, even if he has no idea how to express it. A shade down from “stiff with honor,” he’s determined to do the right thing, but finds time to let Elle make him smile. Elle is fiery, protective, incredibly strong, and too stubborn for her own good. She’s also woefully out of touch, having spent the last twenty-eight years in hiding. Her out-of-date slang and inability to use a phone or email added to her charm. She has immense magical healing talents, guided by her ancestor god, but only sheer willpower to rescue her older brother Tony from their younger brother.

I appreciated that the romance arc was lower on the angst scale, since the fantasy arc was more intense. That said, Mia Tsai did not forget to bring the heat! It was a pleasant surprise to discover this was an open door romance!

I received an advance copy via NetGalley.

<i>Bitter Medicine</i> is, at heart, a contemporary fantasy romance with incredibly compelling, complicated leads, fantastic chemistry, and great action throughout. At first I thought it was going to be like an urban fantasy, but no--this is something different. It's not about saving the world or beating some bad guy. It's about two people--a descendant of a Chinese god of Medicine and a French fairy--doing their utmost to save each other through their profound love (with some hot sex along the way). There's magic, yes, and various fun fairy creatures and mythological references, but this defies a lot of standard western tropes of storytelling. I loved the book for its uniqueness and the realism of the central relationship.

Guys guys guys guys guys! You don’t understand this is amazing! It is totally art as magic and really well done. I love stories that incorporate craft and art and skill into power but man it’s really cool how this story incorporates art as a form of meditation and as magic. It’s so cool.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. I have decided to stop reading at the 39% mark (through Chapter 9) because I'm just not getting into the book or the characters. I also feel like this is a sequel and I've missed the first book even though that isn't the case. (It seems like we should already know the characters and their situations.)

On the surface, Elle is a low ranking agent who runs a mid level calligraphy shop. But really, she’s an incredibly skilled artist who can create powerful magic and was destined to be a doctor as she is the direct descendant of Shennong, the god of Medicine. She’s forced into hiding to protect her brother from her other brother. One of the few joys left in her life is Luc. Agent Luc Villois is a high ranking agent that Elle knows almost nothing about but he’s her favorite customer. But when she’s cornered into taking a commission order from him, her secrets come dangerously close to being exposed.

Plot: 4/5
The story is unique and covers what happens after the hero loses her powers and the difficult emotional recovery that comes with it. The plot is really compelling and once you’re reading, it’s easy to keep binging. There were a few points with backstory or conflict created by Oberon that were felt really unclear but it didn’t make a big difference.
I just have to say that Tsai had the opportunity for a miscommunication trope, because of a geas, and she did NOT take it. I love her for this.

Characters: 5/5
Elle walks the line between grumpy old grandma and 20 year old which I find deeply relatable. I love her personality and her overwhelming need to protect her brother Tony. Her fear of new technology is hilarious. She has so much character growth and learns it’s okay to be selfish sometimes.

Luc is a broody bi boy icon. He’s an absolute simp, which I love in a fictional man, and he would kill for Elle without hesitation. He’s backstory is filled with abuse and trauma, I wanted so badly for him to be able to find some happiness with Elle, I spent the whole book begging Tsai to make things work out decent.

There is, in a sense, an age gap aspect but she’s 125 and he’s a little over 200 so I think it’s fine if they’re both well into their immortal lives.

Writing: 3.5/5
Tsai’s writing is so enjoyable and easy to read. I found some of the dialog to be a little choppy at times which caused me to have to reread a bit to try and understand what was being said but it didn’t deter from my enjoyment of the banter.

She pulls mythology and lore from a lot of different cultures so the world building is a little vague. It took me a while to understand the actual role of everyone in the temp agency.

Overall: 4/5
This modern fantasy has something everyone will enjoy. A little spice, a little action, and a lot of incredible character dynamics.

I loved the concept of this book. I hope this is what the future of American Fantasy looks like. A melting pot of the mixed American cultures.

I tore through this book and absolutely loved it. I loved the fantastical elements, the cultural blend, the writing style, and the character development. While Elle did, at times, feel a bit juvenile, it didn't detract from her character. Overall, the plot, pace, and characters were excellent, and I look forward to reading more by Mia Tsai.

Thank you to Tachyon Publications and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Billed as a “xianxia-inspired contemporary fantasy, Mia Tsai brings her vivid world to life as Elle and Luc work together to thwart Elle’s younger brother’s attempts to find her and her older brother. Throughout the narrative, Elle and Luc fall in love despite their respective motivations to find Elle’s brother but have their loyalties and ideals challenged before they can admit their feelings. Tsai crafts an intriguing narrative and immerses readers in a world where the characters and dialogue drive the story instead of extensive world-building.

I’m not sure where to start. Bitter Medicine is already a top book of 2023 for me, it is really that good. Somehow Mia Tsai looked inside my mind, looked at the tropes and character archetypes I’d love, and made me a damn near perfect book.

First, the worldbuilding. Somehow the author perfectly merged a modern world with multicultural magic systems - we’re talking Xianxia-style Chinese magic systems and combat alongside European-style fae lore, and smidges of other mythologies. It was like the urban fantasy of my dreams, down to the pertinent social commentary about San Francisco cost of living.

And then there are the characters: protagonist Elle is an absolute delight throughout her arc, a perky, high-level magic worker from Hubei province whose main medium is calligraphy, wherein different qualities of ink give her more power, and it was so cool. Taking brush to paper is both magic craft and love language for Elle. The opening passage of her lovingly crafting a glyph, which I think is equivalent to a talisman, was incredibly vivid in my mind’s eye. She's very fun and relatable, too - there is a very entertaining scene involving her and a morphine drip. Half-elf Luc is The Whole Package, tall, angsty and stoic, with a killer accent and even better combat moves. He is very damaged after years of traumatic work with the elite forces of the supernatural agency that runs the magic half of their world, and being abused by the man who was supposed to be guardian and mentor. This brings in how great the side characters are; Oberon’s bigotry and sheer awfulness drives home what a cinnamon roll Luc is. Tony, Elle’s brother, was one of the most enjoyable characters I’ve read in a while, a queer icon with snark and wit to spare.

And the [chef’s kiss] ROMANCE. I loved that the main pairing was introduced as an already-established will they or won’t they friendship, and that both characters had not-quite immortality, but supernaturally-lengthened lifespans and were both over a century old. There was no “mortal high school girl meets ancient being” vibes and the power dynamics in their relationship were fantastic. Elle gets Luc to open up, Luc gets Elle to acknowledge she is not only her powers and what she can do for others. Their steamy love scenes - oh my gosh, you guys. Incredibly sensual and emotional passages, and in one a very sexy use of meridian energy channel reading as foreplay. Another thing - I found the dramatic misunderstandings that other books or shows apply liberally were neatly avoided by these characters talking it out in this story. Cannot stress how much I appreciate the realism of characters that care enough to hear each other out and not believe the worst immediately.

I found the trifecta in this story: lovable characters, a really cool world, and great writing, from dialogue choices to outfit descriptions. And there was a fourth secret ingredient - language. Tsai has a lengthy afterword describing why she chose to leave dialogue lines in authentic Chinese characters, phrases in French, and more. As a linguistics nerd, I loved this so much.

Yes, there are a couple weaknesses; the main conflict is not really at all what is described in the summary, and some characters are kind of just…Tidied away? For plot wrap-up convenience. The book has a not-quite finished feeling, and while I can see why it wouldn’t be a series, the end didn’t feel like an end.

That said, I binged this like fanfic, ravenously, thanks to brisk pacing, oodles of romantic lines and yearning, and characters who were all seeking atonement of different kinds. This gets five exuberant stars from me and I will be immediately snapping up a physical copy when it comes out in March 2023.

Set in our would where there is magic and magical beings but hidden from humans. Elle is hiding her talents for magic and art by working creating glyphs for employees of the magical company she works for. A regular customer that she has a connection with asks her to do something that is more in her power range and even as she protests she can’t she does agree to do it because she has a crush on this half elf in hiding. Everyone things Luc is a full elf, but Elle knows the difference by using her family magic of medicine to tune the glyphs to him. Elle is an immortal descendant of a Chinese god of medicine and is hiding to protect her older brother who had his magic stripped from him during a fight with their younger brother. Luc is a highly ranked agent at the agency that does missions for the head of company no matter how much he may not like the mission. His boss has magical control over him and had had him do things he loathes. Luc figures out that Elle is hiding something more than just her power level and even as they slowly become closer things secrets are going to come out on both sides and Elle will have to face what happened in her past with her family.
I really liked this book, the setting felt fresh and didn’t bog itself down with tons of worldbuilding. Just enough to get the story told and leave lots of room for more tales in this setting with either these characters or new people.

I was so set to love this book so much, but it ended up being such a disappointment. The concept and world are so interesting and it’s been compared to The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy, which was one of my favorite reads of 2022. This book falls terribly flat in comparison and is probably done a disservice by that ad tagline. I’m not a stickler for pacing usually, but the structure and plotting of this book is so wonky. It makes it feel about a hundred pages longer than it actually is. It’s such a plodding and often confusing story. There seemed to be references to events that either weren’t memorable enough or got cut from the final edit. I’m still not totally clear on how the contradictory world-building mechanics allow for the resolution to the centra conflict of the book, but the author doesn’t seem particularly concerned about fleshing out the world-building much anyway so perhaps that’s an unfair expectation. Ultimately, the greatest flaw of the book was the lackluster romance and dull characterization of all the characters. There were so many unsatisfying loose ends at the end of a book that was already mostly unsatisfying to read. It’s really such a shame - the concept just seemed so cool!!!

Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

Truly one of the best books I've read this year. A story not only about the magic of the world, but also about the magic of moving on. The complexities of atonement, and really, what does atonement mean anyway? This book took me a while to read (I began in early November and just finished on the 29th December), but I savoured every word. No matter whether they were friends, dates, lovers or something more than this, every interaction between Luc and Elle was heartfelt and true and I commend the author for writing such a loving relationship with so much yearning I had to stop myself from kicking my feet up and giggling at several points.

I appreciated the author's note on language and translation. I must admit that I was, at first, thrown off by the Chinese characters that appeared in the book, but came to expect them, and just hope that I wasn't missing anything in context. As a black woman who can speak several languages, I appreciate that this was just another form of communication, and I liked how they were included, not to shut out the reader, but to highlight intricacies that I didn't get. I think, as books become more diverse (thankfully, might I add), readers need to broaden their perspectives to read things they don't understand and still accept them. To me, this is a great example of that.

I'd love to see what Mia Tsai does next.

Elle Mei is a gifted immortal who comes from a family of sorcerers. Shénnóng, the Chinese god of medicine, was her ancestor. Due to her lineage, Elle has an exceptional talent for magical calligraphy - which could easily lead to a lucrative career. However, to protect her family, she leads a quiet life as an "ordinary" glyphmaker in Raleigh, North Carolina. By hiding her true identity and abilities, she's able to limit the damage that would occur if she used too much power. A dangerous love affair between a human and an elf begins when security expert Luc Villois hires Elle to create custom glyphs for an upcoming assignment. Despite their reservations about each other's identities, they become close friends.

Bitter Medicine has relatable characters, a good plot, and a nice flow. Recommended.

Bitter Medicine is fantasy romance with magic and mysticism, but set in the present day. Good 🔥. I believe this is based in Chinese mythology.
I would describe it as mythology x medical drama x mercenaries x love story.
My dream casting would be Bowen Yang as Tony, Gemma Chan as Elle and Henry Cavill as Luc

Mia Tsai's debut contemporary fantasy, Bitter Medicine, has it all: cinematic xianxia-inspired action scenes, thoroughly developed characters, romance and a diverse, fascinating magical world. When Chinese magical calligrapher Elle's younger brother attempted to murder his older siblings, Elle and her older brother faked their deaths and went into hiding. Twenty-six years later, she's selling simple glyphs for a fairy temp agency and never using the jade laes that connects her to her ancestors. French half-elf security agent Luc has been coming to Elle for years, both of them wishing for more than their brief exchanges but holding back because they don't want to endanger each other. Just as their personal relationship starts to deepen, Luc's latest assignment puts them both directly in the path of Elle's murderous brother.
Bitter Medicine is steeped in yearning. Luc has spent decades suppressing his personal feelings and desires, building a wall between himself and the world in order to tolerate the awful things he is magically compelled to do as his boss's Fixer. Elle has disconnected from her ancestors, including the Chinese god of medicine, in able to protect her brother and they've moved frequently so she has no social life.
Elle and Luc have both done things they believe unforgivable, but they're good people and easy to root for. In creating two mature, deeply empathetic characters, Tsai also avoids one of the most common plot devices: the big misunderstanding. It's a testament to Tsai's skill that even with characters who communicate with each other, she's able to keep the tension going until the very end.
Tsai sets the tone for Bitter Medicine by beginning in media res and building the setting and characters as she goes. The narrative is immersive and fast-paced, told in third person present and two points of view. Tsai takes a high-stakes adventure plot and layers it with humor, tension and the everyday moments that build the foundation of a compelling romantic relationship. Her well-developed network of coworkers and family members creates ample opportunity for sequels and readers will be clamoring for more of Mia Tsai's fresh, captivating voice.
Bitter Medicine is contemporary fantasy at its best: sharp, complex but contained and driven by two lovable characters working hard for their Happily Ever After.

Thank you to the both the author and publisher for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review, I am so grateful!

This is a modern fantasy world but I would say it sways more to speculative fiction/ a blend of historical fiction, fantasy, sci-fi and romance which I believe is what the author intended. It was written beautifully and felt seamless, the writing flowed well which made it easy to read.

Our MC, Elle, is very relatable and super likeable it’s very hard not to root for her. She is a queen of avoidance and I love that- but I also love that no one lets her slip by with that behaviour, she’s forced to face her demons head on time and time again. Lucien and Elle are the perfect remedy, I absolutely adore their relationship and the way they go back and forth, and the romance was written beautifully with a reverence that you rarely find in books.

I did find the third act to be slower and found my attention straining a little- I also would have loved it to delve into the details of magic and powers a little more, it seems it was all based in gods and ancestors and I wouldn’t be surprised if it is me having a limited understanding of that, rather than the book not explaining and I’m fully prepared to take responsibility for that.

Overall, I would definitely recommend- I think there’s a little something for everyone here, whether that’s a modern fantasy world, a romance, turbulent family connections or a strong female MC.

DNF
Written in Present Tense
Script > Story

This is an unfair review. I cannot make myself read third-person present-tense books. I know that is a very strange pet peeve to have but every book I read that does this end up sounding like a poorly written script. This is completely my own bias and has NOTHING to do with the story or the ability of the author to communicate and write effectively therefore I will not be posting this review on any other platform.

Omgggg why did it take me so long to start this book??? I read it in less than a day!! I couldn't put it down. Such a good book with twists that I honestly did not see coming. 10/10 would recommend!!

Elle was destined to be a doctor but finds herself underemployed as lowly magical calligrapher in a temp agency hiding and protecting her older brother from her younger brother. One of her clients is a French elf, who she is sweet on. Turns out he likes her too. They try to navigate a budding relationship under the restrictions of her job and fear of exposure and his job (if he told you he would have to kill you. This was a delightful read!