BWS Book Review: Legends & Lattes
- Bookworm
- Jun 24
- 4 min read
Updated: Jul 3
Quick Overview
Title: Legends & Lattes
Author and Publisher: Travis Baldree / A Tom Doherty Associates Book
Story: Viv, an orc, leaves behind her old life as a barbarian to open the first coffee shop in Thune. She will need the help of her new friends to keep her shop open and her treasure away from danger.
Publish Date: November 2022
Genre: High Fantasy, Low Stakes, Romance, Slice of Life
Where to read it: Curled up under a blanket with a delicious latte and cinnamon roll
Pages: 254 pages
Warning: This cozy book will make you crave a delicious latte and cinnamon roll! Legends & Lattes is a “High Fantasy and Low Stakes” novel about Viv, an ex-barbarian orc who dreams of running a coffee shop. Legends & Lattes, written by Travis Baldree and published by A Tom Doherty Associates Book (TOR), is a New York Times Bestseller
A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2022. It is a first in three part series. This book is perfect for curling up under a blanket on a peaceful afternoon.
The Summary
After decades of hunting monsters and questing, the orc barbarian, Viv, leaves behind her old life to start a new adventure: opening the first and only coffee shop in Thune. Unfortunately, her dream life isn’t completely safe as old frenemies visit, Thune’s shady underbelly starts to threaten, and all her hopes and dreams may rely on her keeping a forgotten legend and fabled artifact secured against prying hands. To finally build a permanent home and secure her dream, Viv will need some new partners to help.
Warning! Slight Spoilers Below
The Evaluation
This high fantasy book will transport you into a world of legends and myths, and serenade you with a comfort story. As I read this book, I got major Dungeons and Dragons vibes from the descriptions and world buildings. While I am used to books having high stakes, I enjoyed the soft stakes of Viv building her coffee shop and reinventing herself in the new community of Thune. The main theme is reinventing oneself as Viv transitions from an ex-barbarian and inexperienced shop owner to someone who feels that they belongs in Thune. Baldree also incorporates found family with Viv and her friends. The story is a wholesome fantasy.
Strengths
Baldree’s description of the world is vivid and stunning.
Baldree successfully builds a fantasy setting where different species live together with vivid descriptions of buildings, culture, and lore. More than once, I grew hungry from how the food is described.
“Carefully unfolding the cloth, Viv revealed a roll as big as her fist, almost too large to imagine eating. Soft bread wound in a spiral, with dark sugar and cinnamon nestled between the rings, and a thick, creamy gaze frosted the top and dripped down the sides. Tandri was right. The scent was unbelievably amazing (pg 102-103).”
Want to eat a cinnamon roll? Because I do!
There is a coffee shop romance vibes.
One of the B plots is a slow-burn sapphic romance in a queernorm society. Legend and Lattes is a coffee shop au between an orc and a succubus! I only feel partially bad for spoiling that because the book’s cover art is of the couple.
The action scenes were written well and gory.
While being low stakes, there are a few action scenes. Like the delicious food, the action scenes are described wonderfully! “Viv buried her greatsword in the scalvert’s skull with a meaty crunch. Blackblood thrummed in her hands, and her muscular arms strained as she tore it back and out in a spray of gore (pg 1).” Viv’s struggle with making a new life for herself without fighting is more believable with the violence described in the world.
Weakness
No book is totally perfect. Here is point from the book that didn’t work for me.
Coffee isn’t the main draw of the coffee shop.
When Viv gets customers, it isn’t mainly for the coffees and lattes. “With Thimble already elbow-deep in his baking before dawn--and with Tandri strategically cracking the door ahead of time to let the smell creep into the street--the opening crowd was easily triple the prior day’s” (pg 113). The customers are attracted to the baked goods. It would have been more satisfying if Viv worked on the coffee and lattes till they were the main draw of the coffee shop. She could have even invented new flavors and different drinks.
Rating
The Bookworm's Snack rates Legends & Lattes a five out of five.
This book is what it says it is, a high fantasy and low stakes novel about an orc opening a coffee shop, but it offers so much more. Baldree uses vivid descriptions to paint a picture of different mythical creatures becoming a family, following their dreams, and falling in love. I think the book would have benefited from making coffee more appealing than the baked goods in the shop. The Bookworm’s Snack rates Legends & Lattes five out of five stars. It has a little something for everyone: high fantasy for D&D lovers, a sapphic story in a coffee shop for romance lovers, and a cozy vibe for low stakes lovers.
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