Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
pages: 258
released: February 2022
publisher: Cryptid
cover love: ♥♥♥♥♥

Worn out after decades of packing steel and raising hell, Viv the orc barbarian cashes out of the warrior’s life with one final score. A forgotten legend, a fabled artifact, and an unreasonable amount of hope lead her to the streets of Thune, where she plans to open the first coffee shop the city has ever seen. However, her dreams of a fresh start pulling shots instead of swinging swords are hardly a sure bet. Old frenemies and Thune’s shady underbelly may just upset her plans. To finally build something that will last, Viv will need some new partners and a different kind of resolve. A hot cup of fantasy slice-of-life with a dollop of romantic froth. (from Goodreads)

Review:

Travis Baldree promised High Fantasy with low stakes in his debut novel…and he delivered! Reading Legends & Lattes was in fact like having a nice cup of coffee…warm, cozy and delectable! I can’t think of one thing I didn’t enjoy about this tale of delicious coffee and tasty pastries!

In this book, we meet Viv, an Orc Barbarian who has procured herself a Scavert’s Stone from the Scalvert Queen. It’s legend that the stone is fortuitous and will lead you toward your heart’s desire. She has part of the song written down and carries it with her, memorizing its words:

well-nigh to thaumic line,
the scalvert’s stone, a-fire
draws the ring of fortune,
aspect of heart’s desire

And Viv wants nothing more than to hang up her sword named Blackblood and trade battles for brewing cups of coffee. She travels to the city of Thune and purchases a rundown old livery and begins the process of converting it into a coffee shop. Though her start wasn’t as promising as she’d hoped, her new co-worker, Tandri, helps her get the word out that there’s a new business in town. After awhile, with advertising and adding a baker to the shop, things are going quite well. Maybe too well in fact. Viv believes it’s the stone’s doing. But when someone from the past comes looking to take her lucky talisman, she fears losing all she’s worked towards. But in the wake of disaster, Viv realizes the stone’s power may have led her not to prosperity but to love and friendship.

So, I did not breeze through reading Legends & Lattes. Instead I savored every word, every line, every page. You don’t rush through a book like this. You sit with it for awhile and relish it. This is a rather well-written book. I enjoyed Baldree’s storytelling abilities. He’s really quite excellent. The word choice, exposition and descriptions of the drinks and treats definitely brought the cozy vibes. I felt like all I was missing was a well-worn sweater and creaky rocking chair.

I enjoyed reading about Viv crafting her dream, step-by-step and making a set of loyal friends along the way. I loved that all the characters are not overdone; Baldree gives you just enough about each to have its own characteristics and personality, even the ones that play small parts. I thought it was going to be just about coffee but surprisingly some yummy delicacies are introduced…even iced coffee, lol.

There’s a bit of magic here and there but not a lot, nothing overly complicated. There are high-fantasy characters such as elves, gnomes, succubi, etc. Tandri had to be my favorite character, a pink succubus with horns and a cute, swift tail. Runner up was Amity, the dire-cat (aka a humongous cat with earth rumbling purrs).

There is a wee-bit of romance (just a smidge) but it was enough for me.

Legends & Lattes is a real treat and I really enjoyed reading it from start to finish. I’m definitely going to come back for a re-read!

4.5