Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Mar 2023
272 pages
Genre: Romance
Paperback Original.
Publication Information
In this inspired contemporary fantasy, a Chinese immortal and a French elf try to balance new romance, familial loyalty, and workplace demands. In her debut novel, Taiwanese American author Mia Tsai has created an unforgettable paranormal adventure that is full of humor, passion, and depth.
As a descendant of the Chinese god of medicine, ignored middle child Elle was destined to be a doctor. Instead, she is underemployed as a mediocre magical calligrapher at the fairy temp agency. Nevertheless, she challenges herself by covertly outfitting Luc, her client and crush, with high-powered glyphs.
Half-elf Luc, the agency's top security expert, has his own secret: he's responsible for a curse laid from an old assignment. To heal them, he'll need to perform his job duties with unrelenting excellence and earn time off from his tyrannical boss.
When Elle saves Luc's life, they begin a dangerous collaboration, but their chemistry blooms. Happiness, for once, is an option for them both. But Elle is loyal to her family, and Luc is bound by his true name. To win freedom from duty, they must make unexpected sacrifices.
"With brilliantly developed, multifaceted characters; a clever magic system; and witty prose, the pages of this fantasy fly. This marks Tsai as a writer to watch." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Urban fantasy readers will appreciate the well-crafted hidden world, and lovers of bad boy or Mafia romances will see Luc as their darkly delicious type, all while Elle's long sacrifice will break readers' hearts. Fans of Sarah J. Maas's epic paranormal fantasies will also find much to savor in Tsai's debut." - Library Journal
"Tsai is incredibly skilled at ratcheting up the heat between her two main characters through charming banter, informed consent, and honest discussions about wants and needs. The end result is a refreshing and cleverly written novel that is finely attuned to both fantasy and romance and highlights the best of each genre." - Booklist
"Overflowing with effervescent charm and sly humor, Bitter Medicine intoxicates with its steamy romance, globe-trotting adventure, family drama mystery, and a fabulously inventive world of magic inspired by cross-cultural lore. The delights are plenty―especially potent are gorgeous descriptions of magic inspired by Chinese calligraphy and brushwork along with a tender, sweeping love story crafted so thoughtfully from the characters' individual journeys of self-knowledge and redemption." - Angela Mi Young Hur, author of Folklorn
"I could not put this book down. Bitter Medicine is a slow-burn romance wrapped in an international spy thriller wrapped in supernatural politics, and it's tasty as hell. The deeper I got into Tsai's deeply-imagined world, the more I wanted more of her funny, sexy characters with so many feelings―and such intriguing powers. Bitter Medicine will sweep you off your feet and leave you deeply satisfied." - Annalee Newitz, author of The Terraformers and Autonomous
"A romp of a supernatural action-romance, Bitter Medicine is a sparkling mix of angsty yearning, cool magic, family drama, and intriguing side characters, with a garnish of wonderful use of language!" - Malka Older, author of Infomocracy
This information about Bitter Medicine was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Mia Tsai is a Taiwanese American author of speculative fiction. She lives in Atlanta with her family and, when not writing, is a hype woman for her orchids and a devoted cat gopher. Her favorite things include music of all kinds (really, truly) and taking long trips with nothing but the open road and a saucy rhythm section. She has been quoted in Glamour once. In her other lives, she is a professional editor, photographer, and musician.
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