Legends and Lattes Book Review

 

From Goodreads: 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.

Okay, hi, hello! Now that the PhD is finally submitted we’re trying the book blogging again. I’ve recently been in the mood to read some kinda cosy and heartwarming things, and well, Legends and Lattes has been on my radar for a while. Back in January, I managed to find a half price copy in my local bookstore and picked it up. It was funny, because there were at least seven other people in the queue to buy the book as well, so that was cute!

I held off on buying it sooner because I wasn’t entirely sure it would be my cup of… coffee (the right word here is tea but I needed the pun so sorry!) Sure, the book is literally about coffee, but it was also giving me high fantasy vibes and was initially pitched to me by a friend as “Dungeons and Dragons” meets indie coffee shop. I’m sure for some people that mix would be really appealing, but I just wasn’t sure, especially as copies have been kinda hard to find until recently, at least if you wanted to get it in a local bookstore. I’ve also had to read D and D and Warhammer etc type fiction before, both published and unpublished and it was very much not my jam.

I really shouldn’t have worried though. From the first page, Legends and Lattes drew me in. It just felt so cosy and so wholesome. It’s a bit of an odd read, because while there’s a plot and some stakes and the usual ingredients you need to make a book work, it was a very low stakes event. So most of the novel is just about getting to know the characters, a bit of worldbuilding, and a lot of wonderful scenes in a coffee shop. I don’t know, something about people bonding over coffee and trying it when they know nothing about the drink made me all warm and fuzzy inside. It’s the perfect slice of life, cosy fantasy book if you’re looking for something that is just wholesome and makes you happy to read. I felt like I really didn’t have to rush through it, and I did end up reading it for a buddy read, but I enjoyed it so much that I found it hard to put down. It takes a lot of skill with writing to manage to make a story so readable, even when not that much is happening, and the main point of the book (Viv opening a coffee shop) is a fairly mundane event? But it was so compelling to read! I don’t really know how to compare it to anything else I’ve read, because a lot of fantasy I pick up tends to be high-stakes, and this was just the opposite. Picking it up in January, when I want to be swaddled in blankets and clutching a hot coffee, definitely helped to set the scene, but the descriptions of the coffee and the world were great, and made everything easy to visualise.

The characters helped a lot with this, too. There’s a sort of found-family feel to it, if I had to put a label on it. There’s also some cute LGBTQ+ fluffy romance too, which is always a bonus. My favourite character has to be Thimble. His food sounds delicious and delightful and he was just the epitome of a cinnamon roll character. My edition also came with a recipe from the story, which was a nice touch!

Overall, I’m giving Legends and Lattes:

 

 

 

 

 

I didn’t expect to fall in love with this book, but I did and it’s got to be one of my favourite reads of recent months, just because it was such a wholesome and cute read. Thoroughly recommend getting hold of a copy if you haven’t already!

Has anyone else read this book or plans to? What do you think about it? Let me know by joining in the discussion in the comments section down below! <3