“It was a weapon… Now, it’s a relic. A decoration. Something from before.”
Y’all. Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes (Tor 2022) is so freaking adorable I can hardly stand it. Like most cozies, it’s an extremely quick read. Unlike most cozies, it’s high fantasy.
The novel opens with Viv, an orc, in her last battle. She kills the scalvert, takes the scalvert stone from the monster’s head, and leaves without much fanfare. She feels a bit bad about how she leaves her crew, but goodbyes aren’t her strong suit, and she wouldn’t be able to explain; the stone is rumored to draw good fortune near, and Viv intends to use it in ways they couldn’t understand.
Viv tasted coffee, a gnome creation, on one of her travels. She decides to open a coffee shop in Thune, a place that has never heard of the hot beverage. She buys an old livery, finds a hob named Cal that she enlists as her contractor to build the shop she’s envisioned. She hires Tandri, a succubus, to help run the café. As her business grows and she learns more about the preferences of her customers, she hires Thimble, a ratkin, as the baker. A direcat takes up residence, intimating as necessary but mostly purring and sipping cream; she even ignores the ratkin. As the business continues to flourish, the threat of the Madrigal looms. Viv is expected to pay a percentage of her profits to the local kingpin, but Viv isn’t exactly keen on the idea.
Viv’s shop continues to thrive, the good fortune attributed to the stone she’s hidden in the floor of the livery. She adds a lute player to provide music, and the menu grows to include cold beverages as well as several of Thimble’s delicious pastries. With the Madigral threat becoming something she can no longer ignore, she calls on her old crew. They readily come to her aid, supporting her endeavors and new way of life in unexpected ways.
This found family novel is well-written, witty, and an immensely delicious candy read. It sounds like a purr. It smells like cinnamon and coffee. It feels like a hug.
Read this book.
A Girl Named Tommi 