Aug 3

Aug 3 Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes, #1)

Author: Travis Baldree
Publisher: Tor Books
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

Click above to buy this book from my Bookshop.org shop, which supports independent bookstores (not Amazon). You can also find it via your favorite indie bookstore here.

Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

A novel of high fantasy and low stakes

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success—not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

TL;DR Review

Legends & Lattes is a warm and fuzzy book about the healing power of friendship and found family that pulls on the heart strings and offers a respite from the real world. I loved it.

For you if: You liked A Psalm for the Wild-Built but this time with a little less meaning-of-life-ness.

Full Review

So many people have loved this cozy little book that it was already on my TBR. So I was especially pumped when it was nominated for the Hugo Award because it gave me a good reason to bump it to the top! I listened to this one on audiobook as I painted my bathroom and honestly, 10/10 experience, highly recommend.

Billed as “a novel of high fantasy and low stakes,” this book is about Val, a butch orc who quits her mercenary job to open a coffee shop. The only problem is, nobody in this land has heard of coffee, and everyone’s afraid of her. Well, except the friendly hob carpenter she meets who helps her build the shop. And then the sharp-witted succubus assistant who joins her payroll. And the lovable rattkin who just wants to bake pastries all day every day. (Can you even??) But soon old and new rivals threaten what she’s built.

This book is literally coffee and cinnamon rolls in book form. It’s warm and fuzzy, all about the healing power of friendship and found family and burgeoning sapphic romance. It pulls on the heart strings and offers a respite from the dumpster fire that is the real world. It’s perfect for folks who loved A Psalm for the Wild-Built, but this time with a little less meaning-of-life-ness and a little more baking.

Can’t wait to read the prequel this fall.