Synopsis
When an injury throws a young, battle-hungry orc off her chosen path, she may find that what we need isn’t always what we seek.
In Bookshops & Bonedust, a prequel to Legends & Lattes, New York Times bestselling author Travis Baldree takes us on a journey of high fantasy, first loves, and second-hand books.
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—so far from the action that she worries she’ll never be able to return to it.
What’s a thwarted soldier of fortune to do?
Spending her hours at a beleaguered bookshop in the company of its foul-mouthed proprietor is the last thing Viv would have predicted, but it may be both 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.
Review
Thank-you to the publisher & NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader’s copy, in exchange for an honest review.
Bookshops & Bonedust won’t be published until November 2023, and typically I try to hold reviews until it’s closer to the publish date, however as soon as I saw the approval email come in, I had to drop everything and read it. I will absolutely be reposting this review and continuing to hype up the book as its release looms.
Bookshops & Bonedust (B&B) is a prequel to Legends & Lattes (L&L), which saw phenomenal success in the self-publishing world as well as with its jump to traditional publishing with TOR US/UK. Travis really elevated the sub-genre of cozy fantasy in my opinion. It wasn’t a sub-genre that I saw mentioned a lot until the success of L&L. But moving on from L&L, Bookshops & Bonedust is a prequel, therefore it absolutely does not matter if you’ve read L&L prior to jumping into B&B or not.
“The more I think about it… it seems like it ought to be obvious, but people in books are wrong all the time.”
This is the story of a female orc mercenary temporarily left behind in the seaside village of Murk to recuperate after an injury. Her name is Viv, for people who have already read L&L there is so much more depth to discover and dig into with Viv. B&B also has an incredible cast of secondary characters in Fern, Maylee and Iridina. Fern is a ratkin and she owns and operates Thistleburr bookshop. Maylee is an adorable baker, because you always need snacks to accompany any endeavor. Iridina is a city watch leader and she and Viv develop a bit of hostility towards one another but end up needing to lean on one another to protect Murk. I loved how Viv’s relationship with each of the secondary characters was so different and well developed.
“[..] but if you could read past the end? The words that didn’t get written? Maybe it ends up being something else altogether?”
Travis really excels at creating the atmosphere of the overall story, he pays close attention to details describing smells and sounds, as well as sight. Everything from the scent of ocean spray in the air, to the fresh baking that Maylee brings over is described so vividly. I felt as if I was living in Murk and walking beside Viv the entire time I was reading these pages. It felt as though I was sitting in a corner of Thistleburr cozied up as the rain fell outside, digging into a book that Fern had recommended. Travis is able to provide a cozy atmosphere without sacrificing character development or plot, which is what makes reading these books such a delight.
“See you in the story past the story”
Overall, I highly recommend picking up Bookshops & Bonedust when it releases on November 7th, 2023. The epilogue scene does have some allusions to where Viv’s story could continue from here, and I’m excited to continue to follow it.
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