“The Baby Dragon Café” by Aamna Qureshi is a delightful, cozy fantasy that combines the charm of magical creatures with the warmth of community.

The story centers on Saphira, who opens a café catering to baby dragons and their human companions. Managing young dragons proves challenging, especially with the constant threat of fire damage.

Enter Aiden, a local gardener more attuned to plants than his mischievous baby dragon. He proposes a mutually beneficial arrangement: Saphira trains his dragon, and he provides financial support to keep her café running.

As they collaborate, sparks fly—not just from the dragons—and a sweet romance blossoms. If you’re a fan of heartwarming tales filled with magic, endearing characters, and a touch of romance, this book is sure to enchant you.

જ⁀➴ ★★★☆☆ (2.5 ⭐️)

‎‧₊˚✧[ 𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴𝘯'𝘵 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵, 𝘪𝘧 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘺, 𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘮𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘦 ]✧˚₊‧

𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐬 𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊
☕️✨ Slow Burn
🌻✨ Grumpy x Sunshine
🐉✨ Dragons
🍂✨ Small Town
☕️✨ Fast Paced
🌻✨ Fake Marriage
🐉✨ Clean, Non-Toxic, Green Flags
🍂✨ Low Spice, with a lot of tension

Thank you NetGalley, HarperCollins Publishers Australia and The Author for the arc. I had fun reading the book! I can’t wait for the authors next book! The Baby Dragon Bakery!! Theo and Lavinia’s story!!!

┏━━━•❃°•°❀°•°❃•━━━┓

In a town where only generations of elite families, known as Drakkon, owned dragons, Saphira, wanted nothing more than to have her own. But unfortunately, her bloodline did not include such a thing. So what does, Saphira, a happy-go-lucky person do? Why she followed her dream of running a cafe that welcomed dragon riders and their baby dragons! This way she was around dragons daily. The Baby Dragon Cafe, is open for business!

Aiden didn’t sign up for it. When his brother and best friend, Denny, died, all that was left to remember him by was a dragon egg. When his parents meddled and hatched the egg, he didn’t want anything to do with it, but at the same time Aiden didn’t want the baby dragon to be trained on being apart of the illegal dragon racing. So when a chance encounter made Aiden see how his dragon became somewhat a different character, he enlisted Saphira’s help to train his baby dragon!

┗━━━•❃°•°❀°•°❃•━━━┛

I found the book easy to read and enjoyable, however, there were a few things that just didn’t work for me, or at least when I thought it did, it didn’t. There was a lot of ups and downs, which is why I rate this novel 2.5/5 ⭐️

Few of the things that just had me cringing was the fact that it felt like there was no dragon, just a baby. It had felt like the author was describing the actions of a baby/toddler more so than that of a dragon’s, due to its attitude and personality that it came across like that. Though the author used human baby/toddlers as an example to compare the baby dragon to, it did not feel like it was a dragon. Sometimes it felt as if the dragon was a pup or an actual baby, cause they needed to get a vaccination for some reason (not explained), or the fact that the baby dragon was being treated and carried as if they were a baby (which eventually the dragon grew bigger but somehow she was still able to hold the dragon). But hey I guess it makes sense. My question though was: where did it end? It didn’t.

The FMC, Saphira, kept calling the baby dragon, which was NOT hers, her baby. Ugh. It’d make sense if her and the MMC were actually dating, but they weren’t or at least not until around chap 20 which then would make sense, but it didn’t. Then it started to get a touch weirder and the FMC and the MMC started being portrayed as if they were the parents of this dragon, but hello? Only the MMC was technically. I just got so confused and it felt like that shouldn’t have been there, because Saphira was just the trainer of the baby dragon, which at some point the lines blurred and she started calling the dragon her baby.

Another thing that just kept me from liking the novel more, was the way some chapters were worded that it started to become predictable… for example, on one page, the MMC, Aiden, reacted to something his sister said, and the Saphira was like “hmm I wonder what that was about” like author, please. You didn’t have to hang it right in our faces. Let the tension keep building (like it did) but make it less predictable.
Besides that, the fact that a fake marriage was thrown in this novel felt like there were too many tropes going on at once. I enjoyed it, don’t get me wrong, it just felt so random in the book because it was thrown in there around 70-ish% of the book. It felt forced in other words. But woahhh the tense, the mild spice, this slow burn… it was killing me for sureee!

₊˚⊹♡ || "𝙎𝙖𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙧𝙖," 𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙖𝙞𝙙, 𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙠. "𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙣𝙤 𝙙𝙤𝙪𝙗𝙩𝙨 𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧, 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙨𝙤 𝙣𝙤𝙬. 𝙄𝙩 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙪𝙥 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙪𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚; 𝙖𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙣. 𝙇𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙄 𝙢𝙚𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙒𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙮—𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝘿𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙡𝙮, 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙮, 𝙢𝙖𝙙𝙡𝙮, 𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪." || ⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

On the intimate side of the story it was good. And there were so many sweet moments that just made me smile. But like the fake marriage, there were some random scenes that were thrown in there. Some of it was weird and it could’ve been left out perhaps cause it felt like it waffled a little, but that’s probably just me (thinking of the part where they were petting a bee 🤦🏽‍♀️)
For each of the character’s POVs their intimate scenes felt repetitive on the wording front, and sometimes during other chapters, it’d just be worded differently. For example, his eyes darkened, he clenched his jaw, etc. a lot of these phrases were repeated quite often. Gotta spice it up ya know?

Overall, I did enjoy the story, just not as much as I hoped it would. If the flow of the characters love bloomed a little differently, then perhaps the story would’ve felt better instead of it feeling rushed.
The romance was really nice thought. Some of the sweetest things were being said that made my heart melt. And when it actually got to the spice, it wasn’t heavy spice which was nice for a change. I’d say it was either 1.5 or 2 out of 5 🌶️

I have to say I really wanted to like this book. The cover is so appealing and it sounded like a fun book. But I found it a bit boring and lacking in depth. It had the makings of a good book but for me it was just missing that spark. In its own way it is cosy and is cute but was slow to get started.

I must say it is not a book for me but could see a younger generation might enjoy it.

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers Australia for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a cozy read. The dragon cafe was a cute idea. I enjoyed the slow burn between Saphira and Aiden and I loved Sparky. I would have liked more of sparky and the dragons but was a good read.

There is
* fake marriage
* slow burn
* small town
* grumpy x sunshine

Okay truth circle here my friends - This was a little bit of a struggle for me.
Don't get me wrong, I do like the idea of this story - A cute and fluffy romance in a Gilmore Girls-esque world where little baby dragons are pets equivalent to the likes of puppies and kittens. Our main female character Saphira (sunshine and sparkles galore) runs an adorable dragon café and when she runs into some trouble to keep things afloat - queue the only coffee machine in a café being destroyed by said dragons - along comes (gorgeous, rich, and awkward) Aiden to save the day and fund the repairs, while Saph trains his pet dragon in return and sparks fly...
This was a low stakes contemporary cosy fantasy where everyone gets their happily ever after with enough doors open to future storylines with side characters/interconnected series.

It was sweet and the low stakes made for an easy read - However... I wouldn't say this is classed as an adult book at all - it read very YA and quite simplistic - there were so many points that were repeated that it almost became insulting - yes I do remember that statement from 2 pages ago thanks no need to let me know again - and there was a lot of TELLING rather than SHOWING which made it really hard to connect with the characters and their feelings.
Our 'grumpy vs sunshine' is a little more just 'awkwardly shy vs extroverted' and the fake marriage lasts like 2 seconds before it's a legit relationship - which to be fair this is only a 300ish page book so understandable things can't be dragged out, but it did feel like not much even happened in the first half.
The end 15-20% of the book started to redeem itself as more started happening, and I did start to enjoy the interactions between characters a bit more, there was a little more action with the dragons themselves rather than them just being a prop - because let's face it without more interactions with the dragons this is just a standard meet-cute in a café where she ends up training his pet and the fall in love.

I DID like some aspects of this story. I just don't love it. I would probably recommend this to some teenage family members looking for a cute cosy fantasy romance (because the 'adult' content is pretty PG at most) as it's probably a nice stepping stone into the genre.

I LOVED this book!! Everything I expected from this book I got and then more. This cozy fantasy came at just the right time for me and I NEED the rest of the Series ASAP because I just couldn't get enough of this world and the characters.

Saphira, Aiden and Sparky have my whole heart. The cozy romance vibes were off the charts, the grumpy x sunshine dynamic was perfection, wrap it all up in a small town story and it could not be more perfect. I devoured this story in just a few days and already want to read it again and again.

LOVE LOVE LOVED IT

The Baby Dragon Café is an adorable and cosy fantasy romance with just the right mix of sweetness and charm. From the very first page, I was drawn into Saphira's world as she tries to keep her café running while wrangling mischievous baby dragons. The idea of a café where tiny dragons can roam freely is such a fun and whimsical concept, and I loved how it was brought to life.

Saphira is such a determined and lovable character, especially in how she honours her grandmother's wishes and works tirelessly to train Sparky. Her relationship with Aiden, the grumpy gardener with his own unruly dragon, added another layer of heart to the story. Their dynamic was engaging, and I enjoyed watching them navigate their differences.

The writing style felt light-hearted and almost childlike at times, making it seem like the perfect YA fantasy romance. If not for the occasional adult scenes, I would have easily recommended this to younger teens. The small-town setting, fake marriage trope, and dual POV made this book even more enjoyable.

Overall, this was such a charming and cosy read. If you love low-angst romance with a touch of magic and plenty of adorable dragons, this is definitely a book to check out!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Collins Australia & Aamna Qureshi for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 1 star.
Spice level: mostly clean.
Genre(s): new adult fantasy romance.

Overall impression: I fell in love with the blurb and was so excited to read The Baby Dragon Cafe that I preordered the Forbidden Wing special edition before reading the eARC. I've been reading a lot of high fantasy and adult romantasy novels recently, and was craving something a bit more cosy and low stakes. Unfortunately, this pick wasn't for me and didn't live up to my expectations at all. I pretty much exclusively read adult novels because I no longer feel like I can relate to or tolerate young adult/new adult themes. Despite the characters in this book being mid- to late-20's, they both acted like teenagers. They had over-the-top immature reactions to everyday challenges (i.e. having a crush) and some of the most bizarre dialogue I've ever read. The romance was another huge sticking point for me. It felt juvenile and the characters refused to make the first move for no reason at all, so we were left with these terribly awkward scenes where they would have constant horny thoughts about each other and nearly kiss but then run away at the last minute. Slow-burn is my favourite trope but it felt completely pointless in this book because they insta-lusted right from the first pages. I would have spent some time talking about the plot but it was practically non-existent. I really had to force myself to finish this book and it bordered on unreadable with all of the issues I've mentioned. Unfortunately, it was not something I could enjoy at all.

Tropes:
➵ Young adult themes
➵ Closed door romance
➵ Grumpy x sunshine
➵ Opposites attract
➵ Insta-lust & insta-love
➵ Fake marriage
➵ One bed
➵ Adorable pet baby dragons
➵ Mental health representation (i.e. social anxiety)
➵ No stakes

⤷ Plot:
Unfortunately, the only two things that happened in this book were: 1) Sparky got trained by the FMC; and 2) the FMC and MMC started a relationship. This was pretty much summarised in the blurb already, so I was confused when there was no conflict the characters had to overcome or a plot twist to make things more interesting. I thought dragon poachers were going to play a part in the story given Aamna brought them up a few times but this was a missed opportunity and didn't amount to anything. I don't really see a point reading a book that doesn't have a logical start -> middle -> end, where there is no challenge to overcome and the characters aren't given room to develop.

⤷ Characters:
I really didn't like the main characters Saphira or Aiden because they were immature and unrealistic. Their interactions were cringey and they had constant horny thoughts about each other which felt so uncomfortable. I'm not opposed to smut but this felt like something grimy with the way the characters sexualised every single interaction they had. Their dialogue wasn't much better and it went way beyond being sickly sweet. Here are a few quotes I wrote down that I found bizarre:

"Right...right...why would you notice? You were only gazing into his eyes like you wanted to crawl into them."

"Look," Saphira said, voice soft. She had tilted her head back to look at the sky, her eyes wide. "How can anyone be blue when the sky is pink?" There was amazement on her face, a smile tilting her lips, and all he could think as he looked at her was: "How can anyone be blue when they're standing next to you?"

"Are you okay?" he asked, holding her hand to inspect it. A prick of red blood bubbled to the surface, and instinct took over: he brought her finger to his mouth and sucked on the wound.

"How are you so happy?" he asked, curious. "You have no one."

"Huh. It was hard to believe her, she could have told him the sky was raining donuts and he would have gone out with a basket to catch them for her."

One positive - Sparky and the other baby dragons were so cute. I loved the way they hopped around and I could picture them causing mischief. They reminded me of toddlers!

⤷ World-building:
The world was very fluffy and cutesy which I didn't mind. The cafe was in the middle of a town surrounded by mountains with dragons flying overhead. The fantasy elements were pretty bare bones though - and the dragon lore almost non-existent. The dragon training seemed to be babysitting with no real schedule, which makes me think the FMC didn't need to be hired after all.

⤷ Writing:
The writing was my number #1 issue with this book. I started it under the impression that it was an adult cosy romantasy but was quickly disillusioned of that. It felt like a YA novel despite the characters being too old for that genre. The dialogue, inner monologue, romance, characters and general feel to the book were extremely immature - which made it unreadable to me. I pushed through because I had the eARC but I would have dnfed it in ever other instance.

2.25 stars
★★☆☆☆

'It wasn't the kind of cafe you went to for interviews or meetings; not even the kind of cafe you went for studying or for work. It was the kind of cafe you went to for lattes on a first date, or to meet up with old friends over a pot chai, or to read a book by the fire while sipping on a mug of hot chocolate with extra mini marshmellows.'
A place where people connected - where you felt at home. Where you felt the very opposite of lonely.'
- Saphira

Unfortunately, The Baby Dragon Café by Aamna Qureshi was not a book for me.

Saphira is a 25 year old café owner that has run out of her savings from all the baby dragon related incidents. The latest dragon accident destroyed a $3000 espresso machine. It is a well known fact, that you need a coffee machine in a coffee shop, Enter Aiden, a tall, handsome 28 year old from an old, wealthy, dragon family with a 6 month old baby dragon that won't behave. After a meet-cute in the town square fountain, they come to a buisness arraingment. Saphira will train little baby Sparky and Aiden will pay her for her time and labour, an this money will keep her café afloat.

The marketing and promotion of this book came with the popular buzz words 'cosy fantasy'. Regardless of your feelings of the influence of booktok on publishing and marketing and the rise of tropefication within the book world, it is happening, it is staying and it will continue to grow and evolve. The Baby Dragon Café is simply another book trying to rise in this world, with popular book comps of Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree and The Pumpkin Spice Café by Laurie Gilmore.

For that being said, the tropes in this book include; grumpy/sunshine, small town romance, fake dating, fake marriage, cute dragons, class and wealth disparity, rich mmc, poor fmc, interracial romance, no spice, clean romance, Pakistani fmc, brown fmc, Pakistani author, Muslim author.

I too succumbed to the lure of 'cosy fantasy.' I had hoped it was similar to the popular 2024 release The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst. The similarities are not unfounded, as both books have a male protagonist who helps the female protagonist in a small town with their garden, and the presence of magical animals is conducive to their growing attraction and relationship. Both books are actually vastly different. Unfortunately, the range of books within the concept of 'cozy fantasy' is wide as it is still very new. With any new sub-genre, it brings about people trying new things, and seeing what type of books call to you and that you enjoy, and that is the beauty of reading, and experiencing storytelling. The Baby Dragon Café was something new that didn't work out for me.

The first thing that jumped out at me was the overall aesthetic this book potrayed - cartoony. I can literally imagine Aiden walking around town with a rain cloud above his head, and Saphira is the sunshine that makes his life better. Everything feels overly saturated and reminds me of Lazy Town, but as a romance book. Also, not to be unhinged and nit-picky but it is categorically insane that her café opens at 8 am. I was flabbergasted that a place that sells coffee opens so late. You could argue that this is a fictional town, one that has dragons flying overhead. That is true, but it is ultimately rooted in reality, with smart phones and online banking. I grew up in a small town where to get anywhere is a 10min drive. This town feels like a shiny picture book town.

I believe The Baby Dragon Café is a fantasy romance that skews more heavily into romance, with the baby dragons being the only aspect of fantasy within this world. If the dragons were removed, it would simply be a contemporary romance. As someone who doesn't read contemporary romance, this was a huge struggle to get through as I simply wasn't emotionally invested in anything happening in the story. The fantasy elements are miniscule and as someone who almost exclusively reads fantasy, it was a guarantee that I would struggle to engage in this when the fantasy worldbuilding and magical elements were non-existant. I fully understand that this is not the books fault but a me problem. There was no stakes, no complications and no drama. Any issues were almost immedately resolved within a chapter or two, and the characters communicated (quite healthy I might add) when there was something bothering them. It was peppered with romance movie cliches and suffered from simply the crime of being boring.

''He wanted to be around her, to spend time with her. Usually, he didn't want anybody to see him because he knew they wouldn't understand, but he had an uncanny desire for her to know him, to see him.
Maybe he should let her in.
- Aiden

With all that being said, there were aspects that I did like. I did like Aiden as a character. I believe there is a world where he could possibly be some what neurospicy. I enjoyed a hot recluse man who overthinks and under-talks. His relationship with his family, in particular with his sisters felt infectious and that bond between siblings was lovely to see potrayed so accurately and lovingly.

Saphira was an interesting character, as she was sweet, kind and enjoyed life to the fullest. Her love and pride for her culture was a shining element that this world needs more of. If I was younger, this representation of a brown girl celebrating her culture in all aspects of her life would have meant the world to me and I think that in reviews, this is undertalked about. The food, the outfits, the decorations from her Pakistani heritage being spotlighted was amazing to see. Saphira is such an important character, and her success and jubilance for life is inspirational.

I did find that she was somewhat optimistic to a fault and fell on the wrong side of naive. As a 25 year old, the attitude felt like someone younger. Not to mention, her knowledge of how to train a dragon was questionable. When you don't believe the book's initial premise, I think there is a big chance it is only downhill from there. They only had slow moments that all blurred together and felt the same.

Another aspect well handled was the grief both characters were experiencing. It was a well executed aspect of both their characterisations.

I loved the classism discussions and that Saphira recognises the generational power, privileges and disparity of wealth that Aiden has been born into. The treatment and feeling of being an 'outsider' was well done and authentic. I, however, found these themes were surface level observations, and that didn't truely complicate the relationship. Aiden was quite oblivious for the most part. This is a classic lower class falls for higher class love story, and with that comes struggles in breaking class barriers and in Saphira's case, race barriers as well. Saphira acknowledges there are class issues, but simply stating that it was an issue was insufficient. There needed to be a deeper exploration of these complications and class struggles. Not to spoil anything, but there is no magical rock that can bring prejudiced people to accept you into their social class. Love does not conquer all.

I wasn't particularly moved by Saphira and Aiden as a couple. They were quite boring and bland. Their relationship should have been affected by their class differences, by societal expectations and their differing personalities, but any issues were minor, and quickly resolved. This was meant to be a cosy read with a romance to swoon over, but by the 50% mark, I was simply dragging myself to finish this. And not to be horn-dog but they don't even kiss until the 76% mark into the book.

What a disappointing first read of the year. I believe that it can only go up from here.

oh yeah and the dragons were cute i guess.

Would I recommend this book?
This would appeal to people who like slow, low stakes books with a lot of romance and great friendships, I would recommend this book. It is a light, cosy book, that would suit people who loved The Phoenix Keeper by S.A. MacLean (which I loved and reviewed here), Bridgerton season 2 (Anthony and Kate), Pride & Prejudice (because of the classism and wealth disparity), and basically any Hallmark movie.

**I was provided with an ARC from HarperCollins Australia & New Zealand / Avon for an honest review **
☞ Content Warnings: **contains spoilers**
burns, classism, death of a parent, death of a sibling, fainting, fire, grief, medical treatment, physical injuries.

Very grateful for NetGalley & HarperCollins Australia who provided a digital copy to review.

This was an incredibly sweet cosy fantasy read featuring some of my favourite tropes, including small town, pretending to be married, and grumpy sunshine.

I absolutely loved the idea of a little cafe where you could bring baby dragons while you had a latte, and Sparky just seemed like the sweetest, most mischievous little dragon. I appreciated the found family vibes and diverse characters on offer. There was some depth to each of the main characters and their backstories as well, and I really liked the critique of class barriers and how people are viewed as outsiders.

Personally, I don’t love a duel POV. For me, it takes away some of the tension and subtlety when building the relationship. This book also leans more into romance than fantasy—not a criticism at all. It just means I want to see more of the fantasy world that’s been built!

Definite cosy vibes, an easy read for when you need to escape. You’ll be left wanting a little Sparky of your own though!

This read was super cute, cozy and warm €
3. It follows
a young bubbly business owner Saphira and her baby dragon cafe made possible by her late Nan. And yes, as the name suggests in this cute fantasy world, the wealthy own dragons and take care of the baby dragons, which Saphira takes care of in her cafe. In comes Aiden, an introverted recluse from one of the most prestigious drakkon families. The two work together to train Sparky and all sorts of small adventures ensue.
This story is low stakes, palatable fantasy with such an adorable romance story! It was just what I needed after a slew of epic fantasy books.
Highly recommend this story for anyone to pick up. I had giggles, was kicking my feet and it was refreshing for there not to be a giant complication and instead small hurdles throughout. The characters and side characters were well developed and I really appreciated the found family element.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me access to an ARC of this book.

I have only recently discovered cozy fantasy and so was excited to read this book. Unfortunately, while the premise is excellent the quality of the writing didn't quite live up to my expectations. I would suggest aiming this more at a YA market than adults.

I thought this sounded quite cute….but unfortunately it didn’t really live up to its promise. It had potential but I felt like it hyper focused on some things that it didn’t need to and ignored other things that would’ve helped flesh out the world and create an actual plot.

Saphira has opened a cafe that welcomes baby dragons in this world, which is basically like our world in a small town in rural….anywhere…..except that some families have dragons as pets. And when these dragons are babies, they accompany their owners everywhere, much in the way that dogs do and a business that welcomes baby dragons is appreciated in this town. However there’s a flaw in this plan in that baby dragons still breathe fire, which often leads to Saphira’s cafe being damaged in ways her insurance doesn’t completely cover. Also the people that own the dragons don’t seem to make appropriate restitutions for the damage their baby dragons cause which is….odd? Anyway.

Saphira isn’t from a dragon family but she desperately wishes she was. She’s drawn to dragons but it seems that dragons are a bit of a classist thing. She meets Aiden and his baby dragon Sparky. Aiden didn’t want a dragon but he was left an egg by his late brother after his death and that egg hatched into Sparky, a rebellious little baby dragon who needs some help. Aiden isn’t interested in bonding with him or training him and Saphira seems to have a knack with Sparky so Aiden employs her to train him.

Saphira and Aiden have an instant attraction and as they spend time together (where she forces him to take part in Sparky’s training), it continues to grow. Saphira is plagued by feelings of inadequacy though as Aiden’s family are basically dragon-owning royalty and she no longer has any family and is definitely not seen to be as the same ‘status’ as Aiden’s family.

I really struggled to get invested in this book – I didn’t care for either Saphira nor Aiden, especially Aiden. His grumpy behaviour at the beginning of the book sends him into outright asshole territory, especially when he holds himself distant from and yells at Sparky. I didn’t enjoy their interactions, didn’t really feel any of the so-called chemistry between them. Saphira spends a lot of time musing how hot he is, it’s actually very repetitive. She and her assistant in the cafe giggle over every interaction like they are two high school girls interacting with a first crush.

There was no depth to this. Saphira felt defined by her lack of family and Aiden by his wealthy, influential one. Although I appreciated how kind and sweet Saphira was to Sparky, at times her obsession with dragons and wanting to be involved bordered on being a bit much. The writing felt more suited to young adult or maybe even middle grade than an adult fantasy romance although the only fantasy in this are the dragons (and there’s mention of some other creatures), which behave much in the way of puppies when they are babies. There are things that come up in this (such as Saphira’s mother, as an example) which are touched upon but then really go nowhere. The world isn’t particularly well well rendered, the characters even less so. At one stage, Aiden comes up with the idea that they pretend to be married for *reasons*, actually believing that the person they need to convince wouldn’t be aware of the heir of one of the most influential dragon families having gotten married. And even though that scenario had all the classic tropes that often go along with it, such as only one bed etc, I never felt like it conveyed their want and longing. I am repeatedly told, but I was never shown.

And that was unfortunately, how this entire book felt for me – a bunch of scenes where I am told that people are doing things and feeling things but I’m never really given a chance to immerse myself in those interactions and feelings and see it.

*Thank you to NetGalley & HarperCollins Australia for providing a digital copy to review*

If you love a cosy read with some romance and baby dragons then this one is for you.

I loved the premise, a cafe that caters to people with baby dragons as they are not typically allowed everywhere, kind of like dogs. However, imagine a puppy who can breathe fire and also fly. There’s going to be some mishaps, which is what Saphira has to manage and figure out. She loves dragons and needs money and luckily for her Aiden has those things and also needs some help.

I loved how we got both Saphira's & Aiden’s perspectives, showing us just how obsessed they were with each other. While Sapphira is bubbly and outgoing, Aiden prefers to be alone and I really related with him, especially with needing to plan and rehearse conversations. They both have their own insecurities and with each other’s support, they are able to overcome them.

While I loved their relationship I did get annoyed with Saphira waiting for Aiden to make the first move and Aiden thinking Saphira didn’t care for him like that. Just have a conversation! The will they, won’t they got annoying after a while.

This book is very cutesy and sometimes got on my nerves, specifically Saphira and her baby talk to the dragons. Yes, they’re baby dragons but it just got annoying. Saphira & Aiden’s relationship was the thing I liked most about the book, especially when they made things official.

Thank you for letting me read this book.

I found it to be an okay read. Not amazing but not terrible.

It was more contemporary romance with slight fantasy elements than a fantasy romance.

It was a nice low stakes read.

Firstly I would like to acknowledge and thank the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an early eARC of this novel.


As much as I loved the premise for this book, and was enjoying the world which was briefly explored throughout 'The Baby Dragon Cafe', I didn't think too much of it. I believe the main reason this novel wasn't a hit for me was the writing. It's very matter of fact, which to me doesn't flow well and creates an impression that the editors didn't bother to restructure sentences to make them read more naturally. 

In my honest opinion, I felt like this should have been a novella. There's a lot of writing here which is repetitive and unnecessary padding out scenes. The 3rd act drama appeared to have taken place 100 pages into a 320 page novel. Not to mention the ending of the novel was rushed and out of place.

I agree with the sentiment that if you're a fan of books like 'Pumpkin Spice Cafe', 'Legends and Lattes' or even 'Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies', this will hit the same spot. It was cozy, it was very easy to read, and didn't take a lot of thought to enjoy the story being told. I would also forward this book onto readers who enjoy Fantasy, but don't want to be overwhelmed with the nuance of the genre, and Romance readers who don't like a lot of spice in their reading.

rating: 3.5/5

this is the poster child of a cozy fantasy romance (but i would say it leans pretty heavy on the romance side). Although I love a good fantasy book with a fast paced plot and heavy angst, the baby dragon cafe felt like a breath of fresh air. This book reminded me of a slice-of-life story with pretty low stakes and wholesome vibes. Though i will point out that it felt a bit slow in the middle, this book gave us the time to get to know saphira and aiden. I swear this couple screams grumpy x sunshine and i couldn't help but kick my feet in some moments. At the end of the day, I loved all the characters we got to meet, especially sparky!

this was a fun and entertaining read and i can't wait to read more from this series and genre <3

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Baby Dragon Cafe (2025) is a low-stakes, cosy fantasy that entwines modern life with a cute reimaging of dragon folklore. Written by Pakistani American Muslim author A. T. Qureshi (Ammna Qureshi), who “through her writing, wishes to inspire a love for the beautiful country and rich culture that informs [sic] much of her identity” (Harper Collins, 2025).

The book is a dual POV that follow Saphira, who opens the only baby dragon friendly cafe in the quaint town of Starshine Valley (think Stars Hollow from Gilmore Girls), and Aiden. Giving the classic grumpy / sunshine trope, the story unfolds as we join Saphira as she struggles to keep her new business running, as she quickly is realising why there are no other baby dragon friendly venues in the town. One day, town recluse and reluctant baby dragon owner Aiden comes in to her cafe, seeing how well Saphira deals with the baby dragon chaos in her cafe, he asks her to help him train his “little menace”, Sparky.

This slow burn (capsicum level spice) novel is exactly what it advertises itself to be - a cosy fantasy. If you are looking for novel that is high octane, high stakes with a demanding mental load to unpack the world building, this is not the book for you. If you are having a hard day, and want to lie down under a chenille blanket with your favourite squishmallow and a cup of chai, and have your hand held as you immerse yourself into a new story, than this is a book that will snuggle with you.

At times I did find the prose to be slightly expositional, and Qureshi re-establishes connections to other characters a few times through out the book, but because of the genre of this story, it goes with the tropes of this type of story-telling. It also means that if you put this book down, and decide to pick it up again later, you won’t need to flip back and remind yourself who the characters are in relation to one another. A bonus, is that it also means that this book would be good for a wider age range, I would say from ages 13+. Parents, if you want to check the spice level beforehand, read Chapter 24.

I was lucky to be able to read an ARC version of this book thanks to Netgalley.

Thank you for approving me for this review copy. Unfortunately, I have decided to DNF it.

At around 35% it struck a pet peeve of mine: a comment about vets being "rich". As a former vet myself, this is hilariously not true for the average vet. I hope that this is a misconception the character has -- and that they'll quickly learn how untrue it is once they go through vet school and actually start working as a vet -- but I suspect that won't happen until future books.

I will also say what I read of this book is cute. The baby dragons are hilarious and adorable. But I wasn't gripped enough to keep reading past that dialogue that annoyed me -- maybe if I felt more connected to the characters I would have pushed on, but so far I don't know them well outside of their budding romance and frankly found them a bit boring because of that.

Thanks again for the opportunity to read this early copy. I won't be posting this review anywhere - I don't like writing DNF reviews.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

DNF on page 32.
Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me. The writing style was all telling over showing. The first three chapters were all exposition, nothing was organically communicated. Every time the main character referred to the baby dragons as draggos, a small part of my soul withered away. And that was only in 32 pages. She also got way too offended when someone said they didn't like coffee. I understand she runs a cafe, but she does realise there are people (hey, I'm one of them) that don't like or drink coffee, right??
Anyway, wasn't for me. I will not make myself cringe through the other 290 pages.