Legends & Lattes (Legends & Lattes, 1) Paperback – Import, 10 December 2022

I loved the book. It's heart warming & amazing!

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree is a high fantasy, cozy fantasy romance with swoon-worthy characters along with queer elements to the mind-blowing plot. We follow Viv, the orc barbarian, and Cal, a hob. This is a cozy, heartwarming slice-of-life fantasy about found families and fresh starts.I so wish this book and the entire series had a Studio Ghibli adaptation; I think it would be so perfect, and I cannot wait for this to come to life someday. For someone who enjoys and lives around coffee, books, and cafes, I knew both books were going to be a hit for me. The City of Thune has never seen or heard of what coffee is, and Viv is here to introduce them to this and open her first coffee café in town.Moving ahead from their past trauma and the work these characters had to go through, this coffee shop allows all of them to create new lives for themselves. I loved how we have equal amounts of coziness with the descriptions of the menu of the coffee shop, be it the brewed coffee aroma or the bakery items created, along with the high stakes of the past rivals who are now on their way to success.The book is very different and has a unique plot combination that fits perfectly well. Definitely pick it up if you like these elements in a fantasy setting book, and this one will not disappoint. I enjoyed the journey of both Viv and Cal and cannot wait to read the prequel.

Made me crave coffee with an intense yearning. I love Viv.

This is a beautiful read. It has a very cozy vibe, a great sense of atmosphere and really likable characters. The prose is very good too, and though the stakes are low, I didn't get bored at any point at all. This was a very relaxing read and I highly recommend it to everyone.

Lovely book. Perfectly embodies the title. Sometimes bitter, sweet, warm and complex. My only complaint is that it finished too soon.

I actually did not even want to read the book and the beginning was so slow that I almost dnfed it. But something about these bunch of fantasy characters getting together and building a cafe in a town where people have never even heard of coffee had me feeling so comforted that I finally got out of my slump!!!! I definitely recommend it if you are looking for some slice of life low stakes fantasy with some found family vibe

I believe this story would appear better as a movie than a novel. The story is okayish, but the characters are well imagined.

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree.4.5/5 stars. An unusual fantasy story. It's a story about a retired orc named Viv who opens a coffee shop in town that's never heard about coffee. Viv goes through a fantastic journey to find and learn what's important to her. The story has excellent supporting characters; the ratkin, Thimble, is my favourite character. The main themes seem to be friends and companionship, with messages about defying social stereotypes. The pacing was just perfect. A short read: it left me with a lingering feeling of warmth and an itch to read more slice-of-life novels. There could have been more worldbuilding, but chunky epic fantasy novels have spoiled me :p. There is very little character development for the supporting characters. It's a must-read for everyone.

𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐝. "𝐖𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐭. 𝐊𝐢𝐥𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫. 𝐈𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝."This wholesome story is like a warm cup of tea on a cold day. It's so cozy and easy to read, this is my newest comfort book. The story telling was beautiful, but the story was a simple slice of life. I absolutely adoreeverything about Legends & Lattes.☕️ Cozy Vibes☕️ Queer Romance☕️ Tough FMC𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐕𝐢𝐯 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐮𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐥𝐥𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐭. 𝐀𝐧 𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐬𝐮𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧, 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐩 𝐞𝐧𝐝—𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐞'𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐞'𝐝 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐲. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰.I'm used to many of my books having multiple POVs, but we only see the world through the perspective of Viv in Legends & Lattes. The characters we spend the most time are only a small few, but it is enough. The character development is fabulous, and so heart warming.𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧, 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨𝐱𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐩. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐡𝐞'𝐝 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞, 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐭. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐥.The fabled artifact was fun and while the story is very predictable, it was fun. I devoure the entire book in one sitting. I will now be on the hunt for more cozy fantasy. It is a type of book I didn't know I needed.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

Reading this thing made me extremely giddy about a cat sitting on a bed and a goblin drinking a mug of coffee. I hate what this book does to me...10/10 would recommend

Um dos livros de fantasia mas gostosos de ler, com aroma de café e gosto de pão com de leite e canela, amei todos as personagens, mas Timble tem meu coração.

When I heard that one of my favorite narrators, who also happens to be a talented game designer and story writer was publishing his first book, I knew I'd have to check it out. Legends and Lattes is that book, and I will tell you upfront, this is one of my favorite books of the year. It's not shocking to me he wrote such a good story, but I was amazed at how much I came to really care for the characters and the world he creates.And what a world it is. Anyone who has ever played a game Travis wrote and designed knows he creates a world you can sink right into, and this one is no exception. Taking place mostly in the city of Thune, you are drawn into how this city resembles a medieval city. The various craftsmen and women and their businesses feel so real, and you can almost see the various sights, especially as Legend's and Lattes the business comes into being. The neighborhood feels warm and inviting, but we still get a good look at the other districts of the city as well, both good and bad. Its a world with magic and adventurers, and yet it feels like a fully realized world where you can step into a locally owned coffee shop and buy a latte and a pastry. It's the coziest of worlds, with a real intimacy that is surprisingly pleasant and heartwarming.The characters are such a treat. Viv is the orc warrior who gives up adventuring to take a chance on opening the first coffee shop in Thune, introducing it's denizens to the wonders of this gnomish treat. 22 years of adventuring were enough, and Viv wants to do something orcs don't generally do, which is live peacefully to a ripe old age and die peacefully in her sleep, not by an ax blow to the skull. She is such a fun character, because she has is the best kind of fish out of water story, wanting to put her violent past behind her to try and find peace for herself in something she thinks she'll truly be happy doing. She really could solve a lot of problems in the book by resorting to "Viv Smash", but she is dedicated to not being about that life, and its really heartwarming to see. How the story for her plays out is really unexpected, with a lot of twists and turns up until the very end.The secondary characters are excellent as well. The most important of these is Thandri, Viv's assistant who is actually more a second main character. She is a succubus, although she doesn't use her inbred abilities, and actually sees them as a hinderance more than anything else. She is a talented artist, and is a lot of help to Viv in growing the business. She too is trying to escape her past, which was much different than I expected, and she really plays a pivotal role in Viv's life. They have such great camaraderie, and they work together seamlessly, really enhancing each others strengths.There are quite a few other characters as well, such as the ratkin Thimble, who makes up for his silence, with a great work ethic and amazing ability to create sinfully delicious pastries. He is another vital part of the growth of Legends and Lattes, and his silent presence in felt throughout the story. The other characters are a fun bunch, from the nosy but nice neighbor to the shop, to the young wizard student who comes in to study, and is actually the cause of a new drink in the shop, created in a hilarious way. They all play so well together that you can't help but to want to go hang out with them yourself.The antagonists shift throughout the story. The initial antagonists ended up becoming friendly with Viv, so they became what I'd call more neutrally aligned. The antagonist who causes the most harm is actually a blast from Viv's past, and knowing Viv, has ideas how to ruin what she's worked so hard to build for herself. While he may have some insight, his own narcissism may be his downfall, without Viv having to resort to a life she swore to avoid again. It was very intriguing to see how this played out.The narration was handled by the author himself. Being a narrator by current profession, this was a logical choice, especially considering he knows the characters and story better than anyone. You can tell he poured his heart and soul into this one, and an already talented narrator puts on his best performance to date. The characters already had life, and he just enhances that even more, bringing all the character to life in new and exciting ways. You can feel the emotion throughout, and I'll be honest, you get hit right in the feelz several times. I highly recommend this format, although paper and ebook are excellent as well.It's not often a book about a slice of life, with characters building lives, friendships, love and a coffee shop would be first pick of mine to read, but I may have been missing out. The term cozy is thrown around a lot, sometimes as a pejorative, but this book kind of embodies the best of what a cozy kind of story can be. With some fantastic characters, interesting relationships and fun world building, you have the recipe for the best kind of story, the ones you re-read time and again. This is definitely one that will get an annual re-read at least, and is the best kind of comfort read. I highly recommend picking this up in whatever format you prefer, you won't be disappointed.

One of the best books I've read in a while! Loved the low stakes, the cozy vibes and lovely relationships and friendships