A Pirate's Life for Tea is the 2nd book in the Cozy Fantasy/Romantasy series Tomes and Tea. Reyna and Kianthe are searching for stolen Dragon's Eggs and get caught up in search for a River Pirate, Serina. Diarn Arlon, the Lord of the Nacean River is not happy with the pirate that is stealing food, specifically wheat and tea which she gives to others, and hires Bobbie, one of the Queen's Guard to capture her. Bobbie, was in love with Serina at one time, and still has feeling for her. While they are on the ship, they are attacked by several other guards, and are lucky to escape with their lives. It becomes obvious to Reyna and Kianthe that Bobbie and Serina need help to fix their relationship and they are just the ones to do it. When Serina and Reyna get kidnapped by the dreaded Pirate Driggs, but they end up working together at one point. Do they find the dragon eggs? You'll have to read it to find out.

I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as the first. This was more of a romance than an adventure story, which was what I was expecting. Pirates, stolen dragon eggs, evil and powerful Lords, doesn't that sound like a lot of action to you? The characters are once again, well developed, and this is more of a character driven story. There was some action, lots of banter, some humor and romance. The audiobook was narrated by Jessica Threet, the same person as the first book, so the voices were familiar. I enjoyed her narration in this book. There is a short story at the end of the book which is a bit spicy, which I only listened to part of. There is another one coming in this series and I will read it, because I want to find out what happens next.

Cozy fantasy with real stakes?? This was a great second novel from Rebecca Thorne in this series! It did drag a bit towards the end for me but it kept me intrigued the whole way.

Kianthe and Reyna are back. The engaged couple are looking for dragon eggs in order to save their hometown, and in order to do that, they must make a deal with the lord Nacean River. They’ve got to bring the pirate Serina to clear up supply chains. They team up with constable Bobbie but soon learn that Serina and Bobbie have a past that leads to a disastrous current situation. Reyna loves matchmaking, and these two need a LOT of help.

Just like the last book, you’ll find adventure, fun, romance, and of course, tea! I had a lot of fun with our old friends and the new ones, too. Sometimes, you just need a low stakes romance to enjoy, and though Serina and Bobbie have a complicated history, it’s adorable watching them deal with it (and Reyna’s matchmaking). Plus, Reyba and Kianthe are cute always.

This one’s out now, and there are two more on the way. I can’t wait!

This was such a fun & cozy listen! Like the first book in this series, this sapphic romance has its tenser points but readers & listeners are not left in suspense for too long.

Double the lesbians for your reading pleasure! We have Kianthe & Reyna together again (as they should be) off to solve the mystery of the missing dragon eggs. Along the way they get involved in some minor good hearted piracy and meet Serina (a pirate) and Bobbie (a constable).

You won’t regret this fun read! There is a spicy extra at the end that is unsuitable for younger listeners, so turn that off if spice is not on your menu!

Thanks to NetGalley for the audio ARC!

Rebecca Thorne is one of my favorite authors, and she does not miss!

While I enjoyed the first book in this series more than this one, I still had such a fun time. With the addition of two new characters that I really enjoyed, Rebecca can't write a bad book! I'm very excited for books 3 and 4, both of which come out in 2025.

I also really enjoyed this audiobook. I think the narrator did a fantastic job and it will be a difficult to decision for me to decide if I want to read books 3 & 4 with my ears or my eyes.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

I so badly wanted to love this one because I adore sapphic books but I just couldn't get into this series. I plan to come back to it at some point in the future but for now I'm just not invested enough to continue. I'm sure other fans of cozy fantasy will love this one.

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

I adored Kianthe and Reyna in the first book, and I adored them even more this time!! I enjoyed the pacing of this installment in the series more than the last, and I fell in love with each new character that was introduced.

It's just so cute, so cozy, so fantastical, and so amazing. The world, the characters... I can't get enough!! Also... as much as I enjoy the sweet nature of Reyna and Kianthe's relationship in the novel, that little spicy one shot at the end was quite fantastic ;)

I am also incredibly pleased that the same narrator from the first audiobook read this one! She is absolutely incredible and I adored the narration so much!!

Publication Date: 23 February 2024

"A Pirate's Life for Tea" by Rebecca Thorne is the much anticipated second book in her Tomes and Tea series. It is a sapphic romantasy with a lot of adventure and magic.

I really like the main characters in this series, Reyna, formerly of the Queen's guard, and her fiancée Kianthe, the Mage of the Age. Kianthe has a griffin named Visk, and they are raising one of his babies named Ponder.

In this one, they are conscripted to help Constable Bobbie catch the pirate, Serina, who is stealing from the local Diarn, Arlon. It turns out these two ladies, Bobbie and Serina, were childhood friends and then became enemies, but ultimately, there's more.

The story is decent, but way too long. I got bored with it and had to stop a lot. The audiobook ran 13 hours. The second half was the best. Jessica Threet was the narrator, and I found her voice to be rather harsh to listen to for long periods of time.

Characters - 5/5
Writing - 3/5
Plot - 4/5
Pacing - 3/5
Unputdownability - 1/5
Enjoyment - 3/5
Narration - 2/5
Cover - 3/5
Overall - 24/8 = 3 stars

After the book ends, the epilogue has an intro to the next book. Following that is a short and spicy story starring the main characters, and you won't want to miss this unless you dislike that sort of thing.

Thank you to Netgalley, MacMillan Audio, and Rebecca Thorne for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I have been all about cozy fantasy’s lately and this one was exactly what I needed.

I read the first Tomes and Teas book and absolutely loved it. I was a little cautious going into the second book, because I have found they don’t always live up to the original. I loved this one so much though! This book has everything you could want (assuming you want loveable queer characters, pirates, and puns).

I loved this book so much that after listening to the audiobook I bought both the North American and UK special editions. Both are beautiful and I am more than happy to support this amazing book.

Continues to be a favorite read. I love the balance of cozy moments paired with activity. It keeps the characters moving forward, while their quirks make them endearing!

I went into A Pirate’s Life for Tea not expecting a cozy fantasy, but that’s exactly what it ended up being. With pirates, Sapphic lovers, a quest for stolen dragon eggs, and a Robin-Hood-esque pirate, it had all the ingredients for an exciting read. I was definitely invested at first. But as the story went on, my interest started to wane. I found myself pushing to finish it more for my Sapphic September picks than out of enjoyment.

In the end, it just didn’t fully click for me.

I enjoyed this audiobook, especially since I was able to tandem read it with the eARC on my e-reader (which is my preferred way to read audiobooks I’ve not read in another format before.
The story was engaging and I can’t wait for book three!

I loved this book. I don’t often find the sequel to books too be as good as the first one, but this one definitely was!

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

The definition of a cozy fantasy. Full of adventure and my favorite kind of romance, the kind that’s already tested all those trials and just wants to settle down in a bookshop. I think the semi-reluctant nature of Reyna and Kianthe’s adventuring is so enjoyable to read and the relationship building they do, even when they’re engaged is such a great part of romance that often gets left behind in all the meet-cutes, the enemies-to-lovers, etc. that are at the center of the genre.

Jessica Threet does a wonderful job again bringing all the characters to life and her emotional deliveries are right up there with her goofy ones.

As the second book in the Tomes and Tea series I highly recommend both existing parts and I hope you fall for these characters as much as I did.

Cute and adventurous. Always appreciate a good cozy fantasy as a palettes cleanser read. Especially Sapphic, cozy fantasy!

Im not going to lie, I was about to DNF it. Why? Well because I was lost through out 30% of the story. This is a multiple POVs which was one of the reasons I was lost, there was characters that it seemed I was supposed to know them but I had no clue who they were. Which made me question if this was a continuation of a series and not a standalone. And yes, it is the 2nd book and I blame myself for not doing my own investigation before diving into this book. The second reason I continue to get lost was because of the narration. Although Jessica Threet did a fantastic job. There was times that her voice was the same, although she changed characters and that confused me a lot to whom I was listening to. It was a lot of characters with back and forth so I can’t image how challenging that might have been for the narrator. I just wish it would have been two narrators instead of just one but overall it was an amazing story. The moment I got the hang of what was going on and the world building, I started to enjoy it. I definitely recommend this story as long as you read book one first.

A Sapphic cozy fantasy, this confection includes puns, pirates, and a world where the most powerful mage and her fiancee run a tea/bookshop. A sequel to <I>Can't Spell Treason Without Tea</I> finds the couple venturing out to recover a clutch of missing dragon's eggs. They discover a dastardly plot, encourage a romance, and meet with a pirate hero.

The narrator, Jessica Threet, does a serviceable narration on this longish audiobook (13+ hours), though the occasional mis-emphasis can be jarring.

The adventure is mild-mannered, with a writing style that's easy to follow and while there are are few surprises, this sequel will appeal solidly to fans of the genre. It's Lesbian-positive, cheerful, and full of small joys.


Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ARC in exchange for my unfettered opinion.

Thank you author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC of this book!!

There’s something about Reyna and Kianthe meddling in other people’s relationships that’s just hits so hard. Also all of them fangirling over dreggs is just super funny.

This book has a lot of things happening but it still feels low stakes and I love that.

I didn't read the first book, but was hoping I could just jump into the series. I think the book does a good job of laying out the magic system and back story without having the knowledge of Book one. This is a romantasy set in what feels like a medieval world with magical creatures, mages and alchemy, and lots of puns. If you're looking for a cozy sapphic romance, this should do it for me.

Unfortunately, it wasn't my cup of tea. While I loved seeing the LGBTQIA+ rep, and the action scenes were entertaining enough, personally, I found it a bit jarring to have what felt like modern idioms sprinkled throughout the historical setting. The cutesy, quirkiness of some of the characters was a grating to me and I just found myself signing and rolling my eyes throughout. There was very little spice to make up for it, but the short story at the end of the audiobook was fun.

***Thank you to Macmillan audio for providing me with the Audiobook for free via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.