3.5 stars.

Bookshops & Bonedust is the kind of follow-up, kind of prequel to Legends & Lattes which was a surprise for me when I read it last year. That was because I really enjoyed it—it's not really my usual sort of thing, but it was just a nice comfortable read. This one was in many ways the same, but it was also very different at the same time.

I don't think it was as good a book as Legends & Lattes. Part of that might have been because the novelty, for me, wore off—I knew more what I was expecting going into it—but also, as it was a very different book, you've got a different theme to it, and I did feel at some times that it was almost like it was trying too hard to recapture the magic of that first (in publication order) book.

It just didn't quite reach those same heights for me because it almost seemed forced at times, a bit like the author was taking his experiences as a published author and writing about those. This is good because you've got that kind of “write what you know” mentality, but for me it just didn't quite work. It did give a bit of an element of the known for me because it's in my kind of circle, although not my specific area of expertise, but it just wasn't something that really worked for me in this particular book form.

The main character, Viv, spends a lot of time in a bookshop, and as she's reading books, we do get snippets of those, whether it was just summarizing what had happened or actual pages that were being read. I did think that bit of it was quite interesting, and some of those stories actually sounded like they could be really interesting books in their own right, so there's an opportunity there, I guess.

But that aside, I did feel this one was a bit strange because of its overall cozy label. It was a bit different because there were also some battles, so at the start of the book it’s very similar to the way that Legends & Lattes starts out with a little bit about a job that Viv is going on. She’s injured and has to take some time away to recuperate and that's where the bookshop comes in. There’s then an element later on that changes the scope of the book and that's where the ‘bonedust’ comes in, and it does have a couple of battles which just seemed a little bit too out of place when put alongside the rest of the book.

There were a number of characters who I liked—the key characters are all very likable on the whole, and that's one of the one of the elements of charm that the book has, but overall, it just wasn't quite as good as the first book for me. I just felt that it was missing a little bit too much and it just felt ever so slightly disjointed with having to marry up the nice cozy part of it against the really not cozy side of it that comes in as you get through the book.

I definitely recommend picking it up though if you did enjoy that first book or if you're just looking to find out a little bit more about it. I would say you don't have to read Legends & Lattes first—obviously this one does take place chronologically earlier on—but this one does come full circle and the epilogue of the book is the one bit that would be spoilerish for Legends & Lattes, so just bear that in mind if you are considering reading them in chronological rather than publication order.

Another tasty mix of cozy fantasy with a sprinkling of adventure from Travis Baldree. In this delightfully relaxing prequel. Viv is forced to take some time off due to injury and finds herself surrounded by lovable characters, more delicious baking, and tonnes of books. While I preferred the set up for Legends & Lattes I have to say the addition of book old made it even more cozy. I hope we get a sequel combining the two!

I was expecting this to be another delightful story following Viv and her exploits, but I didn't anticipate just how much I would love every minute of it! The found family aspect that I enjoyed so much in Legends and Lattes was here once again and the friendship between Viv, Fern and Maylee was beautiful. I loved the expansion of the world we saw here and although the main thrust of the story is the found family, there is more plot involved in this prequel, which I really appreciated. The bookshop was adorable and Potroast was a delight, as was Satchel. Overall, this was one of those books that just wraps you up in a big warm hug and I cannot recommend it highly enough.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The second cosy instalment by Travis Baldree! I was SO EXCITED when I was approved to read this as an ARC on my kindle. I thoroughly enjoyed Legends & Lattes, and I knew instantly that I would love this story. I enjoyed every second of reading this ARC, it was spectacular!

A fun easy read with what feels like 0 angst compared to my norm.
Well written and a fun time - it’s been said already I’m sure but a great cosy fantasy with some lovely characters.

I haven’t actually read legends and lattes yet and thought I’d pick this up first as it’s a prequel. I don’t feel like I needed to have read L&L first either, the world building is easy to understand and this reads as a standalone IMO

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for my eARC, and to Black Crow PR and the publisher for my physical ARC.

Travis Baldree is an author I only discovered this year and since Legends and Lattes, I have been obsessed with his cosy world building, relatable characters, fun and exciting plot lines and overall wonderful writing. Bookshops and Bonedust did not disappoint, with another fantastic cast of lovable (and some hateable) characters, Baldree once again draws you right in to the wonderful world in which Viv lives. An absolutely brilliant read that i can't recommend enough!

📖 ℝ𝔼𝕍𝕀𝔼𝕎 📖 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Title: Bookshops and Bonedust
Author: Travis Baldree
Genre: Whimsical Fantasy
ARC Release 7th November 2023

Perfect if you like:
🦴 Small town mystery
🦴 Community spirit and comfort vibes
🦴 Gentle saphic romance
🦴 First loves and friendships

𝘝𝘪𝘷'𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘙𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘢𝘮'𝘴 𝘙𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘴 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘥. 𝘞𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳, 𝘴𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘺 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘶𝘳𝘬

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰?

𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘢 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘨𝘶𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘱 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘯'𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦. 𝘚𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭, 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺. 𝘈 𝘴𝘶𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘺, 𝘢 𝘨𝘯𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳, 𝘢 𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘯𝘶𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘔𝘶𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘝𝘪𝘷 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥

Okay so I finished legend arms and lattes in one sitting. It is the cutest read and luckily NetGalley had approved me for this arc (yes it’s since been released 🙈) . Both books are beautiful reads with almost a Gilmore girls cosy vibes to it but with an original fantasy spin. There’s still action but it’s become one of my favourite new comfort reads!

🏷️
Thank you so much and @netgalley for this ARC.

I really enjoyed it, even more than the first, Legends & Lattes. I felt like there was much better insight into Viv and her motivations. There was a tangible plot that, although slow to progress, was kept burning successfully throughout. So it was the perfect blend of cosy fantasy for me.

The best part of this book is the characters. I loved them all. From the book loving, foul-mouthed Fern and her companion, Potroast, to mercenary turned baker, Maylee, and fiesty Gallina, all of them make up the heart of this story and help Viv discover the power of friendships and community. But Satchel stole the show for me. Even the villain was perfect Disney style, I enjoyed the dusting of magic and slow build of menace.

All in all, a great cosy read that made me smile.

My thanks to Pan Macmillan Tor for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Bookshops & Bonedust’ by Travis Baldree.

This is a prequel to Baldree’s cosy fantasy ‘Legends & Lattes’ and relates a tale of Viv, the orc barbarian, during her younger years when she was adventuring with renowned mercenary company Rackam’s Ravens.

When Viv is wounded during a hunt for a powerful
necromancer, she is forced to remain behind and recuperate in the sleepy beach town of Murk. She is bored and worried that she’ll never be able to return to her life.

She spends her time exercising her injured leg and building her strength. One day Viv wanders into Thistleburr Booksellers, a struggling secondhand bookshop. She discovers that she quite enjoys spending time in the company of Fern, its foul-mouthed proprietor. Yet it isn’t long until adventure shows up in the bookshop all on its own. No further details to avoid spoilers.

What a treat this was including its wonderful supporting cast such as Potroast, Fern’s gryphet, and Maylee, the dwarf who runs the Sea Song Bakery. It was also fun to see how Fern tempted reluctant reader, Viv, into embracing new reading material.

This was quite a slow burn though in due course there is plenty of action. It definitely held my attention and I ended up reading it in a single day.

Overall, I enjoyed ‘Bookshops & Bonedust’ very much and it certainly encourages me to look into Travis Baldree’s earlier writings as well as keep an eye out for future projects.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

I read Bookshops & Bonedust without realising it was part of a series but I don't feel like it had a negative impact on my experience of the book.

"Every breath sang clear and pure in her lungs, her muscles bunched and released in perfect rhythm, her blood roared in her veins. She was youth and strength and power, and she meant to push all through as far as they would go."

Viv is a young Orc who finds herself stranded in the desolate town of Murk after being to rash in battle and badly injuring her leg.

"Let me be the first to welcome you to Murk, jewel of the Western Coast! A very small part of the western coast."

Viv quickly finds herself bored within the confines of Murk and ends up becoming friends with the owner of a small bookshop a rattkin named Fern. Despite having no prior interest in reading she is need of a project and the bookshop becomes a relief from her intense boredom.

"Then a bookshop of some sort. Through a pair of narrow front windows, she spied chaotic piles of books, charts and miscellaneous junk. She could almost see the smell of mildew. The door had once been red but was now streaked with nothing but a memory of colour.

A little sign to the left read Thistleburr Booksellers."

Unfortunately for Murk, Viv unknowingly attracts trouble in the form of a mysterious stranger, and she finds herself having to protect the people of the town from a great danger.

I loved that Viv was a reluctant reader who transformed into a bookworm and hauled a few other reluctant readers along with her.

"It felt like giving in to even consider reading it. A tacit admission that she was now a different sort of person. Weak. Soft. Sleepy, someone who idled and studied, rather than fought and won."

This was a simple, slow-burn fantasy, but one that was worth reading.

This was great, such a fun, cosy adventurous read. Really enjoyed. The characters just burst off of the page.

Magical and charming! I wasn't sure at the beginning but I'm glad that I persevered with this book past the initial pages - I'm not well versed on the cosy fantasy genre, but this book has everything one needs to enjoy a great story <3

A delightful cosy fantasy.

When Viv the orc sustains an injury in battle, she is required to settle down in a quiet seaside town. Despite spending most of her time in a bookshop, adventure is closer than Viv could ever have anticipated.

Bookshops and Bonedust is the perfect prequel for those who enjoyed Legends and Lattes.

Although the book can be a little slow at times, it remains the ultimate cosy fantasy. Perfect for reading when curled up on the sofa on a cold day.

I spent a lovely couple of days reading Bookshops & Bonedust - it combined a cosy bookish tale with fantasy elements and I really enjoyed it. A quick read that once I started I didn't want to stop reading 💚.

I loved the collection of characters in B&B - especially Fern and Potroast (who I would die for FYI - I want one) but Viv steals the show with her kind heart and endearing nature much like in L&L.

I'd definitely recommend reading B&B before L&L now that it's an option, but it's not going to hurt doing it either way round. This is 100% one for the nerds

I haven’t read Legends & Lattes yet, but I really enjoyed this cosy fantasy with magic creatures, some action and some romance, and lots and lots of books. I think the pace was a bit slow, but I loved the small town setting, the cast of unique and entertaining characters, and the mystery that made turn page after page. It’s witty and engaging and I look forward to reading Legends & Lattes soon.

Utterly magical! Following the sheer perfection of Legends and Lattes was always going to be a challenge, but one which Travis Baldree masterfully conquers with this prequel. Once again, we're drawn into a diverse world of exquisitely drawn characters, each with a personality and depth that just leaps off the page.

Although there is an inevitable villain to be overcome, really this is a story of self-discovery - not just for Viv but for the friends she makes in Murk. It's a story of finding your purpose, understanding what's important to you and having the self-awareness to know when to change your path and when to stick to it. I loved it and I'm so exited to see what path this brilliant author follows next.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of Bookshops and Bonedust to read and review.

I absolutely loved the coziness of Legends and Lattes when I read it and was thrilled to hear we were getting more of Viv's backstory.

In this book we see Viv during her merc days. She is recovering from injuries she received when a mission did not go quite as planned in the town of Murk when she meets Fern.

I felt this story took a little longer to get going than Legends and Lattes but it is still an extremely enjoyable read and I thoroughly enjoy Travis' writing.

Some books should just stay standalones.

I enjoyed Legends & Lattes for what it was when I read it last year. A lot of the charm, for me, was getting to join Viv in all the steps she takes to start her coffee shop. And I guess this book tries to bring back that magic, but it never quite manages it. The situation is different, the characters are different, and the page count is, too, and I really felt that. If this had been about the same length as Legends & Lattes, I might've got on with it better. Unfortunately, I was just bored through most of it.

The bittersweet ending does redeem it a bit, and it had a few relationship and character moments that I really loved, but all in all, unless you absolutely adored Legends & Lattes, I think you can easily skip this one.

Easiest 5 stars I've given to a book in a long time.
It gave me all the cosy feels and reading this while tucked under a blanket, hot drink in hand and a scented candle burning made it feel even cosier.
I hope more books are written in this little world because the characters are so easy to fall in love with, the settings are dreamy and you really get sucked in to the story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan MacMillan and Travis Baldree for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In Travis Baldree’s enchanting prequel, “Bookshops & Bonedust,” the world of Legends & Lattes comes alive with the young orc Viv at the center of a heartwarming tale. Recovering from a mission gone awry, Viv finds herself in the tranquil town of Murk, far from the battlefield she longs for. Unexpectedly, she befriends Fern, the owner of a struggling bookshop, and delves into a world of second-hand books and epic adventures. As the story unfolds, friendships deepen, romance blossoms, and the quaint town reveals a darker underbelly threatened by a necromancer. The narrative beautifully explores themes of first love, the power of good bookshops, and the unforeseen choices that shape our destinies.

Baldree masterfully weaves together a narrative that blends charm, humor, and fantasy elements, creating a cozy atmosphere reminiscent of Legends & Lattes. Viv’s journey from a restless warrior to someone who discovers the joy of reading and the significance of found family is heartening. The book’s stakes rise as dark forces loom over Murk, adding an exciting layer of mystery and action. “Bookshops & Bonedust” is a delightful read that not only expands the Legends & Lattes universe but also stands on its own as a testament to the magic found in books, friendship, and the unexpected twists of life.