Before Viv opened a coffee shop, she was muscle for hire, part of a small mercenary group. When she gets injured they leave her behind to convalesce in a small town. And against her nature, her frustration at staying still begins to wane as she gets to know the townsfolk and become a part of their life. But when danger threatens the town, she picks up the mantle once again, with a new appreciation for a life that isn't for her yet.

This lives up to the cozy fantasy description and it's really great to see a part of Viv's origin story. While I loved all the characters, I will say that this did feel a bit long and dragged some in the middle. Regardless, very cute and cozy and would definitely recommend.

Thank you to so much to Netgalley, Macmillan Audio, and the author for an advanced copy of the audiobook. It's always fun when the author narrates their own work.

Cozy Adventure
Friendship
Baked Goods

If you enjoyed Legends & Lattes, there is a good chance you will enjoy this prequel which follows Viv, our Orc barbarian protagonist, early in her mercenary career. After getting injured during the hunt for a nearby necromancer, Viv is sidelined and forced to stay behind in the sleepy seaside town of Murk while she recovers from her injuries. While initially she becomes a bit stir crazy resting, recovering and attempting to keep up with her physical training; she ends up exploring the town including a rundown bookstore, a local bakery, and a cross section of local residents.

In this way, Baldree once again treats us to a largely cozy character study that includes many of the elements that endeared Legends & Lattes fans to the story while introducing us to new characters and a bit of adventuring. Bookshops & Bonedust manages to share glimpses at Viv’s early story arc, while telling a new story and avoiding the temptation to explain all of her backstory or tie everything to the earlier story. Baldree also adeptly returns as narrator for the audio edition and has joined a short list of outstanding author narrators that expertly perform their work. Overall, Bookshops & Bonedust will appeal to fans of Legends & Lattes and anyone looking for a cozy fantasy with great character development and a bit of adventure.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing an audio review copy of Bookshops & Bonedust. Full review and discussion upcoming on episode #227 of Narrated podcast: https://narratedpodcast.com/227

I absolutely devoured Legends and Lattes in January while on my first clinical rotation. I have a very clear memory of sitting in my car in the parking lot of the clinic listening to the last chapter even though it made me late. Now, on my ninth clinical I read Bookshops and Bonedust it feels almost completely full circle that I'm about to be done with this year.

Both books are wholesome and cozy and exactly what i've needed this year.

The vibes are like sitting in a cozy library by a crackling fire with a nice hot beverage while it rains outside. It's a charming prequel and I loved the foreshadowing and how it made me understand Viv's character in Legends and Lattes even better.

Like with Legends and Lattes, the side characters and the relationships are what make this book. I loved Fern, Potroast, Maylee, and Gallina. I'd absolutely love to see more of them in future books.

There was a little more action in this book than Legends and Lattes but it still kept all the charm.

Overall, highly recommend if you like wholesome cozy fantasy and want the perfect book to read on a cozy late fall night.

Bookshops and Bonedust is a prequel to the cult favorite Legends and Lattes. If you liked it, you'll like this too. It's so similar, that it almost feels like the character development that happened in L&L was unnecessary, but also makes it work as a stand alone novel. Viv has been injured and forced to take a break, and meets interesting characters along the way. I don't want to give anything away, but if you liked L&L, you will love this too.

I wasn’t surprised that Baldree would write another book after the successful reception of Legends & Lattes. The World wanted more Viv, and a prequel was the perfect way to do that. This has more action than Legends, but still just as cozy with its cast of amiable characters. Although I liked the first book more, this was still a fun read and works as a stand-alone story if you come across B&B first. I highly recommend both!!!

3.5 stars

Cozy, entreating and fun. Not my normal kind of fantasy but I did enjoy it. Fun that the author is the narrator as well!

I was provided an audio ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved Legends & Lattes, and I thing fans will love this prequel. You don't have to have read Legends to read this. This is more of an origin story for our favorite orc Viv when she was still in her prime as a warrior. Due to an injury she is stuck in a small town we get to know her in another cozy fantasy with low stakes story with another lovely found family. This time the storyline is set in a bookstore, which readers should appreciate and Viv helps the shop owner renovate the shop while she is recovering and waiting for her group of mercenaries to return and collect her. You can tell that Baldree leaned on his own bookstore experiences as he wrote about author signing events and various other things that you expect to see in an independent bookstore to make it successful. I really loved that there was an element of reality in this fantasy story.

There is a light romance, wonderful friendships, and an amazing cast of characters. I loved all of the characters, but Satchel is awesome and was so creative. If you loved Legends & Lattes, you are going to love this prequel. I hope we get more books in this universe or more cozy fantasy in general. I love the low stakes and heartwarming element while still getting a bit of adventure. The characters are wonderful and I just want to stay with them forever.

Baldree narrates the audiobook and he is a wonderful narrator. He gives voice to each of the characters in such a unique and wonderful way. You always know which character is speaking and when he is just narrating.

This was another cozy read, just like "Legends and Lattes". I appreciated getting a back story to Viv's life, and how the epilogue tied both books together. I got an advanced reader's copy of the Audubon,and highly recommend reading the book in this way. Travis Baldree is the narrator and he brings life to the characters that he has created in his books. You can really feel the emotion of the characters and how they are feeling.

A cozy fantasy read set in a very intriguing bookshop - what more could you ask for in a book? 'Bookshop and Bonedust' introduces us to a younger Viv, long before she became the beloved character of 'Legends and Lattes.' This delightful mystery is infused with a spirited charm and a heartwarming summer romance that will captivate you throughout the story. I'm eagerly anticipating the next installment that Travis Baldree will write. The narration was excellent and added to the overall enjoyment of this book. Thank NetGalley for this ARC

Delightful prequel to Legends & Lattes. This book has the same wonderful vibes with new characters to love and a great look into Vivs life starting as a mercenary (I think?) long before she decided to retire and open her coffee shop.

The audiobook has a male narrator with a very soothing voice, I would not recommend lying down well listening as he might lull you to sleep (in a his voice is nice not that the book is boring kinda way). Despite narrating a female character it works really well? Enjoyed listening to this book a lot!

Trigger Warnings: violence, cursing, blood, medical content, pain, stalking, hurt animal, animal death, captivity, anxiety, death, murder, slavery, past abandonment

Representation: Queer

Bookshops & Bonedust is a prequel to Legends & Lattes, which takes readers 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.

Didn’t finish it, not for me

Thank you to the Publisher for this ALC.

4 stars

This book is set before Legends and Lattes. I enjoyed seeing Viv before Legends and Lattes but I think I overall would have enjoyed it more had I read this book first. This book was still a cozy fantasy that I enjoyed but I definitely enjoyed Legends and Lattes more overall.

If you liked the first book, you’ll love this one too. It has the same level of cozy vibes and low stakes fun. This book had a difficult task of coming behind one that readers absolutely loved. Part of what they loved were the characters. So it is a bit of a letdown to not get to see more of those characters even though these were good too.

For the newness and lovable characters, I think L&L will always hold a special place in my heart and it is hard not to direct care. But I’m glad I read this and will definitely read anything else in the series. I’m sure most people who liked the first will feel similarly.

4.25 stars. This prequel to LEGENDS & LATTES introduces us to a very different Viv, younger and less rooted, settled in place against her will and just beginning to think about what might lie beyond the wanderlust and battle glory of being a mercenary. Searching for something to keep her occupied when an injury sidelines her, she finds unexpected purpose and new friends, and the adventure she misses so sorely finds her.

Starting out, I had some reservations because i appreciate the older and wiser Viv so much. By the end, I had an entirely different set of reservations--mixed feelings because I know how her story turns out and it wasn't where my post-BOOKSHOPS self wanted it to go. I enjoyed the slice-of-life scenes the most and the more taciturn characters, namely Pitts, who had far too small a role but captured my heart with his deep nature. Listening to Travis Baldree narrating his own story makes for a magical experience, because he puts everything he has into making even characters on "screen" for only a few seconds come to life.

I was given the opportunity to review an audiobook of BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST through NetGalley and Macmillan Audio.

I really like seeing the origin of the story in this book. The cozy fantasy vibes of Baldree's books make them an instant comfort read for me. Even though Viv goes through a lot, she still prevails in the end and makes friends along the way. Although this was not better for me than Legends and Lattes, it did give me a better appreciation for Viv and where she came from.

If you loved Legends and Lattes then you’ll definitely love this followup. Same cutesy writing and characters written with levity. The story builds as the relationships grow and as that’s happening a cheeky lil mystery is unfolding. Quick read that takes your mind off everyday stuff and lets you lean further into the city of Thune. Just an enjoyable story!

Cute! Cozy! Books about books are always good & this story did not disappoint. I highly recommend for a cozy fantasy vibe this fall! I received an ARC of the audiobook via NetGalley (thank you!!) & all thoughts are my own.

I liked the audio book as a whole, but it took a while for me to get into it. I would love to see a little bit more from the beginning in whatever way possible. I like how the story ended up, the cozy mystery aspect was much needed. One thing that is interesting to me is that it's not explained if Fern is an animal? It feels weird to get behind a romance of a human type character and an animal type character...

Bookshops & Bonedust: An Enchanting Tale of Fantasy and Transformation

In the prequel to Legends & Lattes, the talented author Travis Baldree invites us to embark on a journey filled with high fantasy, first loves, and the enchanting world of second-hand books. Viv, a determined young orc with aspirations of being a legendary mercenary, finds her life taking an unexpected turn after suffering a significant injury during a hunt for a powerful necromancer. Banished to the quiet coastal town of Murk against her will, far removed from the action she craves, Viv faces an uncertain future.

This charming narrative unfolds in a quaint and struggling bookshop, an unlikely place for a warrior like Viv to find solace. However, her unexpected companionship with the bookshop's candid owner becomes the catalyst for personal growth and unanticipated change. Adventure, it turns out, isn't as distant as Viv initially believed. A mysterious traveler in gray, a gnome with a fiery spirit, a fleeting summer romance, and a surprising abundance of skeletons all contribute to an unexpectedly eventful stay in Murk.

The heart of Bookshops & Bonedust lies in Viv's transformation, a journey that mirrors the bookshop's own resilience. As she navigates the challenges and wonders of Murk, Viv's story reminds us that sometimes what we need isn't necessarily what we're seeking. This tale beautifully portrays the enduring power of literature, the importance of forging unexpected connections, and the magic of discovering new horizons.

I had the privilege of experiencing this captivating story through an advanced audiobook obtained from NetGalley, which was narrated by the author himself, Travis Baldree. Baldree's narration is as phenomenal as his writing, creating a seamless and immersive storytelling experience. His passion for the tale shines through in his voice, making it clear that he possesses a talent not only for crafting a captivating story but also for bringing it to life with a compelling and engaging narration.

Bookshops & Bonedust is a heartwarming and transformative high fantasy story that will leave you with a sense of joy and inspiration. It's a tale that reminds us that even in the unlikeliest of places, we can find the seeds of change and personal growth. Travis Baldree has once again delivered a charming and enchanting narrative that will undoubtedly capture the hearts of readers and audiobook enthusiasts alike. If you're looking for a story that celebrates the magic of books, the warmth of newfound friendships, and the potential for transformation, this prequel is a delightful choice. It's a journey worth taking, and it will leave you eagerly anticipating more from this enchanting world.

This was my most anticipated read of the year. I had already pre-ordered several copies of the physical book, so I was beyond ecstatic when I was approved for the audiobook arc. Travis Baldree is such a talented individual and I absolutely love that they narrate their own books. It is so meticulously made. The characters and voices are thorough and fully formed (and so freaking loveable). I listened to the whole thing in 2 days on 2x speed because I just couldn't get enough and now I'm going to re-listen at normal speed to really appreciate the voice acting and quality of the writing. This book had me laughing out loud, panicking, sniffling, even gasping out loud. If you are a fan of TJ Klune's cozy fantasies or D&D, I am begging you to read this book.