Y’all know by now, if it’s a cozy fantasy that involves beverages I will read it! Tea, coffee, wine, beer, milkshakes, cider, etc. I AM IN.

In Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea Reyna and Kianthe decide to quit their day jobs and run away together to a remote location to open up a bookshop that serves tea. Cozy chairs, floor to ceiling shelves, my kind of paradise.

The only problem is Reyna’s day job is being the Royal body guard to the Queen, and you don’t just get to quit under this Queen without problems.

There is a lot to enjoy here certainly. The relationship between the two women is sweet and caring, though there is an adjustment period as with all couples as they start to live together and work together. It’s satisfying wish fulfillment to think about running off and building a cozy space together with books and tea. I’m all about a cozy stress free life.

Even so, I found my expectations were a little too high for what this one delivered. I did listen to the audiobook, and while well produced, it was harder to follow along while doing chores or driving than usual for me, and at night the narrator’s voice put me right to sleep a few times. This may have been a better experience for me with the book in front of me to keep my attention, which I didn’t have this time.

I can’t quite put my finger on why I felt so distanced from the characters though. It’s the perfect recipe for me. But if I had to point to one thing, it might be that the plotting felt more episodic than moving towards a climax. We know there will have to be a confrontation with the queen towards the end, but instead of building towards those stakes there are just these neat things that happen.

Maybe it was just too cozy for me??

All that being said I know many of my friends here have loved this book and I did enjoy it, so definitely check it out if it sounds fun.

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea is a low-stakes, cozy, sapphic fantasy. While I didn't love it, this has more to do with the genre itself and less so the book. This is one of my first low-stakes fantasy books, and I don't think the genre is for me. However, these characters are really likeable, I love the found family aspect of the book, and the world building is quite well crafted. So while I don't expect to continue this series, I do urge readers who like this genre to pick up this book.
Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was fun and cute but not quite as “cozy” as I expected it would be. Still, not too dramatic or super high stakes so just a nice read and the narration was enjoyable. I’ll definitely pick up the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this audiobook for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I ADORED this cute little sapphic love story. Kianthe and Reyna had such a healthy relationship and I adored how they communicated so well. I loved the pacing of the story and the coziness of the vibes combined with stakes that kept the story moving. I also liked the setup for a sequel and am excited to read the next book. SPOILER: My only criticism is that the way Reyna's issue with the queen was resolved did not feel like a real resolution. Even though she says she's free to do as she wishes, I feel like she's low-key still working for the queen, which is not how I would define freedom. But perhaps she'll come up again in the next book and things will be more resolved END SPOILER.

The audiobook narration was INCREDIBLE. Probably my favorite audiobook I've ever listened to narration-wise. Also, the little one shot at the end of the audiobook.

"You like tea. I like books. Let's open up a shop somewhere and forget the world exists."

If you've played D&D and thought, "enough of this heavy action business. I want my character to settle down in one of the resupply towns to open up a book an tea shop" you will love this! There are a lot of sweet elements to the story. Reyna and Kianthe's relationship being already established and never questioned is lovely. There's a war horse named Lilac and multiple griffins!

Maybe I need more stakes in story, but this never fully drew me in. In fact, the audiobook bonus story of when Reyna and Kianthe met was maybe the most compelling thing here for me. I think ultimately it's because it can't quite figure out if it's cozy fantasy or regular fantasy, despite the "Tomes & Tea Cozy Fantasies" title of the series. While Reyna and Kianthe go off to start their shop, they don't have much plot happening in the town where they've settled - it all hinges on conflict from their former life - so I couldn't settle into the cozy town vibes fully. However, given that it's a series I'm hopeful that future installments will revolve around their new town more and acknowledge that cozy fantasy as a genre is still being defined.

As for the audiobook, the narration was lovely, clear, and crisp. The characters all have distinct voices. Jessica Threet does a lovely job!

Thanks to NetGalley & MacMillan Audio for the audio review copy.

Thanks to MacMillan Audio and Netgalley for the ALC.

Once I saw where Can't Spell Treason Without Tea was being traditionally published with gorgeous sprayed edges, I was immediately influenced and requested the audio ARC. I have also been deeply in my fantasy era now that I am done with this semester's classes, so this was the perfect read for me.

It is a cozy fantasy, very similar to Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree. Similar plot except this one features significantly more action. I think that was my favorite part. I loved the court deception and the class distinctions that were at play. It made it so intriguing.

At the end of the day though, I ended up not *loving* it, but I was still entertained. It is a solid addition to the cozy fantasy genre, but I wasn't wowed.

Sweet & Cozy Fun

Thoughts💡
Sweet and fun with a hint of action and a giant slice of life. I really enjoyed the slow and cozy pace this book set. It had high fantasy elements and romance, but the focus was more about the two MCs building their life, integrating with their community, and creating an adorable little found family.
Now don’t get me wrong, there was a dramatic queen throwing an epic tantrum, dragons, magical creatures, and a dose of action. It just didn’t overwhelm the story and was more of a subplot. Yet, for all of its originality the thing that stuck out the most was how the author turned a phrase and delivered a poignant statement. I can’t wait to read more from her.
As for the audio, it was on point. Macmillan is quickly becoming one of my favorite audiobook producers. They find wonderful and unique narrators to deliver compelling storytelling that’s so talented that I swear I would listen to them read anything.

✨Note✨Previously indie published.

⚠️Content Warning⚠️
Mild Fantasy Violence

Stats📊
Characters 💙💙💙💙💙
Audio & Narrator 🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧
Fantasy: Sapphic Romance, Swords & Sorcery, Mage Magic, Hurt/Comfort, Slice of Life, Found Family, Cozy Mysteries, Magical Quest
Third Person, Past Tense, Dual POV

Thank you to Macmillain Audio and NetGalley for a free advanced listener’s copy. I received this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Sometimes it’s just nice to have the romance not be the conflict in the story. Having the story start with an established relationship really explored parts of romance writing that I personally crave more of! I love reading about couples communicating through tension and disagreements and coming back together the way real people do. Seeing a couple that knows each other so intrinsically just feels so cozy!

I’ve seen a lot of reviews saying that this is for fans of Legends & Lattes and I couldn’t agree more. I’d probably argue that this gave me more in terms of cozy romance. While there certainly felt like there was more narrative tension when the plot reminded you they were running away from an evil queen, it never felt disjointed from the less heavy parts of the narrative and watching the couple of Rayna and Kianthe navigate obstacles big and small fed my soul.

I must also say Jessica Threet absolutely devoured this book, she portrayed emotion so tenderly and passionately! I definitely have a new narrator crush.

I could not recommend this book more for a quick and fun romantic adventure in a familiar fantasy setting.

I am giving this book 4 stars, because I was intiruged that it took place around the time of dragons. The rest of the story not so much. It sounded like a bunch of high school students, dealing with high school drama. I am not into fantasy books, or romance maybe that with why I feel the way I do about this.

My rating is 4 stars

Okay so this book was absolutely adorable. I really loved listening to it in audiobook format, I think this was the perfect way to get into this book. I had a lot of fun listening and overall it had me in the cozy feels the entire time! The characters were all so much fun and had their own quirks and complexities that I really enjoyed listening to!

Definitely a book I would go back to for a quick, fun, and overall cozy listen. Thank you NetGalely for an eARC!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this Audio ARC Copy!

As far as Cozy fantasy books go this is one of my favorite that I have read so far. Cozy Fantasy is not necessarily for me so, so my rating is not as high as I would have liked, but that is really just a me problem and not a book problem at all.

The dynamic between our FMCs was sweet and enjoyable, I loved the book shop, and all the tea. There were also enough stakes to keep me going, and of course dragons.

If you enjoy Cozy Fantasy and books like Legends and Lattes then you will absolutely love this book.

I really wanted to love this book. I love a cozy fantasy, but this one did not hit the mark for me. The story was a bit slow and there was a lot less focus on the cozy bookshop/tea store than I anticipated. I never really felt much connection to any of the characters either. There was a lot of telling of the story instead of building the world so I could see it for myself.

The narrator did a great job and was enjoyable to listen to.

3.25/5 stars

A higher stakes cozy fantasy focusing heavily on romance and some fun adventuring!

I went into this book with the mindset that it was going to be a low stakes fantasy read that had a primary focus around building a bookshop that sells tea - but that was not quite the case. It ended up being a book that featured cozy elements (books, fireplaces, tea, plants, family and friends) BUT was mainly a romance with a higher fantasy plot line. (think adventures, battles, politics)

What I really enjoyed about this book:
- The author wrote an engaging world and I really enjoyed the colder climate that allowed the cozier elements of the story to really stand out.
- I thought the world building was done well as I found myself clearly able to imagine the world around me.

Things that did not quite work for me:
- Throughout the book we go between moments of cute, cozy fantasy to then quickly changing gears into more high fantasy stakes and it took me out of the story at times.
- The characters felt a bit too dramatic. I often found that their heightened emotions did not make sense for what they were experiencing.
- I found myself getting the two main characters mixed up as they had very similar qualities and traits which made it hard to feel connected to the characters and their love.

Overall "You can't spell Treason without Tea" was an enjoyable, easy read that I could see being loved by readers who want to slowly make the transition from higher stakes fantasy to cozy fantasy.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan audio for the audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

- shared on my goodreads and also on my instagram stories (can be found in my "books" highlights)

I did not enjoy this book. I wanted to but I did not. I found the leads to be unlikable. I thought the premise had a lot of promise but I did not enjoy the tensions - it felt too contrived

Wow. What a boring book. I know it said cozy fantasy, but it might have been too cozy. Any conflict really only happened 80% of the way through and then it was just taken care off too neatly -- like the author just shrugged her shoulders and said "oh, okay."

I received an ARC copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The worldbuilding in this book was interesting and so were the characters. The story started very slow and the constant use of "my girlfriend" a bit overkill. However, the story did pick up closer to the end and the teaser for the next installment did create an interest to read book two. I listened to the audiobook because that was convenient but if purchased for my library it would be the physical book.

Absolutely loved the book! It’s a cozy sapphic romance that will leave you wanting a freshly brewed cup of tea! As much as I loved it, I would put it at a 4.5/5 stars just because it felt a slightly rushed at the end but overall was a really great read! Also the narrator did an excellent job! :)

This should have been exactly my type of book! Dragons! Bookstores! Tea shops! Queer cozy fantasy! Sadly, though, the writer suffered from a big case of "tell, don't show" with the storytelling.

First, this isn't quite the "cozy fantasy" it's been billed as - it's more just straight up "fantasy." There are way too many high stakes conflicts and events to content with for this to be considered "cozy." The other problem is that the high stakes are... not quite that high. Everything is wrapped up so easily and quickly that nothing ever seems to be a real threat. Problem with the rights for the building? Dealt with easily within a chapter or two. Illness? Another chapter or two. The Queen hunting Reyna down after she runs away? No problem.

And the big overarching problem of the dragons attacking the town? The mystery of why is revealed early on and then just... not dealt with by the end of the book.

The plot was promising, and the magic system was fun, but overall, this was a letdown.

super cozy read! a good book to pick up when all tucked up in bed wrapped in a warm, fuzzy blanket

thank you netgalley for the arc!

Loved it ! It’s was cozy and yet full of action!
This fantasy will have you feeling so many things. Reminded me a lot of Legends and Lattes.