Blood Stained Tea, by Amy Tasukada, is the first novel of a series called “The Yakuza Path”. As the name implies, the plot of Blood Stained Tea unfolds in modern-day Japan (Kyoto, to be precise). The local Yakuza syndicate, the traditional Japanese organized crime, struggles to maintain control of the city, as a competitor group of Koreans attempt a takeover. Nao, a young tea merchant and a former (sort of) member of the Yakuza, tries to balance between his family loyalty and his feelings for Saehyun, a prominent member of the competitor gang.
