Prompts Filled: (10) A book by a self-published author, (15) A book recommended by a librarian, (37) A book written during NaNoWriMo, (38) A cozy fantasy book, (45) An LGBTQ+ romance novel
Tags: Viv, Tandri, Calamity (a.k.a. Cal), Thimble, Fantasy, High Fantasy, Dungeons & Dragons, Romance, Queer, WLW, Sapphic, Sapphic Romance, F/F, Viv/Tandri, Coffee Shop, Coffee, Food, Pastries, Retirement, Comfort, Cozy, Magic, Found Family, Community Building, Happy Ending
Tired of adventuring, Viv, an orc, decides to take her life in a different direction. After one last quest, she leaves her adventuring party and travels alone to Thune, a cosmopolitan city, to open the city’s first coffee shop. No one there knows what coffee is, but Viv is determined to make her dream a reality. She buys a livery, takes the magical item she got from the last quest—a Scalvert’s Stone—and buries it beneath the floor stones in hopes it will bring her good luck.
And it does! It brings her: Cal, a hob carpenter who helps design and build the livery into a café; Tandri, a succubus who works the counter with Viv; Thimble, a rattkin and genius baker; Amity, a loyal stray dire-cat; and Pendry, an anxious bard who has a new type of music to share. The six of them create a cozy atmosphere in Viv’s coffee shop, drawing in regulars and new customers every day.
Viv’s success draws some hungry foes to the fore, eager to help themselves to her prosperity. With the help of some old friends, she negotiates a truce with one party, but a more dangerous foe arises in an old party member and threatens to destroy what she’s built.
All the while, Viv is blissfully unaware of the romance growing between her and Tandri, though Tandri is determined to get her to notice.
In the end, Viv will learn what makes a home and a family, and she won’t have to travel alone in this world anymore.
Sparked Joy: 5/5 This book lived up to its subtitle—”A Novel of High Fantasy and Low Stakes”—and to what most people describe it as: “a cozy D&D fantasy.” I play Dungeons & Dragons, and it was lovely to be immersed in a tale of post-adventuring retirement, something I always imagine my characters being able to do. And Viv is able to fully retire! Once she puts her sword Blackblood down, she never has to take it back up again. With the help of her friends, she is able to nonviolently negotiate with the local gangsters and even befriends them. She solves all of her problems with honest communication, and people are drawn to her because of it. I daresay the Scalvert’s Stone didn’t have anything to do with her success at all. Instead, her willingness to approach people for their skill set in their craft and to be non-judgemental toward people who are a little bit different creates a community around her that values her for her. This community aids her when she loses nearly everything. It’s beautiful.
Something I Learned: I learned what the word “redolent” means. It was the only word in the book I didn’t recognize.
Something I’m Inspired to Do: Damn, open a coffee shop, lol, and I don’t even drink coffee. For a little bit, I had an idea for a bookstore/café, and I found it in The Octopus Literary Salon in Oakland, CA, which unfortunately closed in 2019. Until it closed, Nanowrimo held events there. It was a great space, and I miss it a lot. I think I’ll reach out to the friend who used to run the Nanowrimo events.
Legends & Lattes was published in 2022. Here is Travis Baldree’s website. Support your local bookstore if you can, or visit your local library!
El's Reading Journal 