#travisbaldree

[torpublishinggroup]

Let’s get cozy with a COVER REVEAL! Feast your eyes on the stunning art for Brigands & Breadknives by #1 New York Times bestseller Travis Baldree  🥐🔪

Return to the cozy fantasy world of the Legends & Lattes series with a new adventure featuring fan-favorite, foul-mouthed bookseller Fern. Pre-order your copy today and add it to your shelves in hardcover, e-book, or audio on 11/11/25

Cover 🎨: Carson Lowmiller

[lesinthearchives]

Brigands & Breadknives

Travis Baldree

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book: 38

Favorite quote:

“I beg your forgiveness for the words I said. I beg your patience for the ways I fail. I do not expect it, but crave and strive for your regard.”

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor publishing group for the opportunity to read this ARC of Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree.

This book was so good. I loved that we got to really see what kind of character Fern is. I went into this book without any knowledge or what to expect. I loved Fern in the last book but I was not expecting to love a full fledged book about her. I feel like all the characters complimented the story so well and I cannot wait for the audiobook to come out. All I could hear was the author/narrator doing her accent the whole time. Zyll was actually my favorite of the characters in the book. All of her interactions were just top notch. I have this weird urge to draw her and her many pocketed coat. Picking a favorite quote from this book was a bit rough so I do just want to honorable mention;

“I want to learn what you laugh at, what makes you roll your eyes, what gets you upset, or passionate, or puts you at ease. Work is just . . .” He flapped a paw as they ducked under the eaves in front of the mercantile. “The stuff that holds the rest of it together. It’s like describing a house by talking about the nails.”

[peterrsthomas]

Book Review: Legends & Lattes

High fantasy, low stakes – with a double-shot of coffee. After decades of adventuring, Viv the orc barbarian is finally hanging up her sword for good. Now she sets her sights on a new dream – for she plans to open the first coffee shop in the city of Thune. Even though no one there knows what coffee actually is. If Viv wants to put the past behind her, she can’t go it alone. And help might arrive from unexpected quarters. Yet old rivals and new stand in the way of success. And Thune’s shady underbelly could make it all too easy for Viv to take up the blade once more. But the true reward of the uncharted path is the travellers you meet along the way. Whether bound by ancient magic, delicious pastries or a freshly brewed cup, they may become something deeper than Viv ever could have imagined . . .

Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes is a hit for a reason. Influenced by earlier books that brought elements of daily life into fantasy, notably Terry Pratchett’s works, Baldree revised the genre for the Covid era. At a time where people were kept away from their friends and family, when local meeting places were shut, the idea of a cosy story centred around a coffee shop was the height of escapism.

The narrative focuses on retiring adventurer Viv, who wants to trade in her sword for a quieter life. She builds her hopes around the Scalvert’s Stone, a magical item that promises to bring a ‘ring of fortune’ around its bearer. But this only draws more trouble…

The heart of the story is its characters. Viv’s journey is anchored to her relationships, in particular with Tandri. Both are loveable and compelling, and the way they find companionship is nuanced and authentic. Supporting characters Cal, Pendry and Thimble further enrich this, with their distinctive personalities each adding warmth and subtly. (Cal was a particular favourite of mine.)

Though the book promises ‘high fantasy, low stakes’, there is still much tension in a steadily evolving narrative. The cosy atmosphere is balanced against moments of conflict—with the cosy feeling enhanced in moments of resolution. This is driven mostly by the Scalvert’s Stone, which is surrounded by an air of intrigue and mystery—and riddles that characters struggle to fully make sense of. Quite what its presence means for the shop, and for Viv, and what it means should it disappear, is part of what drives the story forward.

The most compelling aspect of the novel is its immersive atmosphere. Reading it, you almost feel as if you are there, smelling the coffee, tasting Thimble’s cooking, hearing Pendry’s music. It made me really want to just sit down with a coffee and pastry, with a bit of a frost and a chill outside and a nice warming mug of something hot.

And, at the end of the day, that’s just what reading this book feels like. A nice, warming mug of something hot!

[thenerdynarrative]

There was something missing from my Legends & Lattes journal page....#Fixed

[turquoisemagpie]

Legends and Lattes.

(Such a cozy book by @travisbaldree . I highly suggest it.)

[hpbunionks]

Thank you to @travisbaldree for supporting our union! 💪🤝📚

[else-creates]

Just finished "Bookshops and Bonedust" by @travisbaldree

Naturally I'm gonna be waiting for Brigands and Breadknives....And also hoping that we get to see some interaction between Thimble and Fern

Although I realize as I type this the title suggests it's gonna be a Maylee book doesn't it

[rachelillustrates]

Thank Gnome it’s Friday!! (with Fanart Friday double plus bonus!)

So, in-between/in the background during work on many things, I took my dear friend Troll (of Shoptroll – LOOK ) through @travisbaldree's “Legends & Lattes” and its prequel, “Bookshops & Bonedust.” Which I adore, and are a delight to read (and listen to) every single freaking time.

And finally, fiiiiiiiiiinally, I have drawn Gallina.

Stabby stabby Gnome Queen. She who teaches unconditional self-regard, especially when no one is gonna step up for you but you 💕

Thank you, Master Baldree, for your lovely works. Hoping, so very much, that there are more to come!

~

Bonus art and stories ~ Prints, comics and more!

[glove-head]

I had the time to sit down and finish Legends & Lattes by @travisbaldree and I LOVED IT! It's definitely one of my new favorite books so drawing some quick fan art before bed was an absolute MUST. I had to draw my favorite little guy, Thimble won my heart simply because I love rats and I love kind little dudes who love baking. It's unfair how tailored Thimble was for me, since all the characters are great.

If anyone who's reading this hasn't read Legends & Lattes, READ IT! IT'S SO GOOD!

[i-oooo]

I just woke up from a dream and I *have* to let you all know this fanfiction idea:

Viv and Tandri AU: Music shop instead of the café.

They could still host gatherings, there might even still be coffee. And they would definitely still have a little scene for start ups like Pendry's band.

They might even have a boardgame room. Maybe they play pen and paper, but indtead of D&D the guests play Malls & Managers 😆

And Amity would be there for sure too, ofc.

We could call it....

Legends & LPs

@travisbaldree what do you think? 😊😅

[geekcalligraphy]

Squeaking in just under the wire, we have some fan art to close out 2024. Featuring inspiration from @travisbaldree and @tkingfisher.

Preview image shows a pastel on black stylized menu with the lines still visible.

[torpublishinggroup]

GET BOOKT

A guide of books to gift the people in your life and yourself!

For the people looking to put a different kind of magic into their holidays…

The Fragile Threads of Power by V. E. Schwab

For the genre connoisseur with a love for high concepts in short form… 

Africa Risen edited by Sheree Renée Thomas, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, & Zelda Knight (now in paperback!)

For the treasured party member who’s saved your character’s life many times on TTRPG night…

Bookshops & Bonedust by @travisbaldree

━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━

For those who love (or possibly are 👀) gay werewolves

Wolfsong by TJ Klune

For the mutual who devoured the epic highs and lows of Riverdale and craves more…

The Luminaries by Susan Dennard, now in paperback!)

━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━

For your brave and luckless friend, constantly trapped in transit purgatory and upset about it…

The Dead Take the A Train by Cassandra Khaw & Richard Kadrey

For the true buckaroos trotting beside you…

Camp Damascus by @drchucktingle

For the friend who says “but have we considered burning it all down?” on an alarming and refreshingly regular basis…

Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin

━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━

For the friend who has a hot date on Friday night (with their book)...

Fall of Ruin and Wrath by Jennifer L. Armentrout

For the avid doodler who sketches plans for their future volcanic villain lair equipped with a space laser…

Starter Villain by @jscalzi

━ ˖°˖ ☾☆☽ ˖°˖ ━

Not enough books? We agree. Check out our other GET BOOKT guide.

[lesinthearchives]

Legends & Lattes

Travis Baldree

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book of year: 03

Favorite quote:

What flames could not consume, never shall be extinguished!

This book has been sitting on my TBR for what feels like an eternity, and I’m thrilled to have finally picked it up. As an avid fan of cozy, food-themed stories like House Witch, Tomes & Tea, and The Tea Princess Chronicles, this one felt perfectly tailored to my tastes. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, and so far, my favorite characters are the Dire Cat and the Baker Mouse—who I can’t help but imagine as a nod to Despereaux from The Tale of Despereaux. It was a fantastic read, and I can’t wait to dive into Bookshops & Bonedust next!

[romilly-jay]

COSY CATASTROPHE: What and why?

Cosy catastrophe is a description I found late last year in a history of science fiction (Roberts, 2016, p.482).

I felt an immediate tug of recognition. It sounded like what I was trying to achieve with my WIP: a narrative with a broadly dystopian framework but which, in the detail of the storytelling, remains tonally upbeat and optimistic, even though every main character experiences at least one loss, tragedy, or painful reversal.

From a Guardian feature by author Jane Rogers (2012), I discovered she had also experienced an initially positive response – that ‘click’ – only to find that the phrase was absolutely not a compliment.

Rather, it was coined by Brian Aldiss in his 1973 history of science fiction as a critique of John Wyndham’s heroes who, Aldiss felt, had too good a time as unlikely survivors of systemic level devastation.

As per science fiction author and critic Jo Walton: Cosy catastrophes are science fiction novels in which some bizarre calamity occurs that wipes out a large percentage of the population, but the protagonists survive and even thrive in the new world that follows. They are related to but distinct from the disaster novel where some relatively realistic disaster wipes out a large percentage of the population and the protagonists also have a horrible time (2009, n.p.n.).

Thing is, I think there's something important - relevant - zeitgeist - about that uff of recognition. There are many sad and terrible things happening in the world, there's suffering, stress, and existential threat in most of our pasts and - we fear - many of our futures...

I believe this leads to a number of responses but one is a longing for cosiness - hence the massive popularity of Danish hygge and the trend towards the 'cosification' of many genres. Cosy crime - of course. Cosy fantasy (just read Travis Baldree's Legends and Lattes and really love his pitching this as 'high fantasy and low stakes'*). Cosy - um - horror? Apparently, yes, it's being considered.

Yet also, for some, not all of us, perhaps what we want is not *just* cosiness - because the multiple sources of disquiet are too close and too loud. You know what, cosy horror is starting to make sense to me.

Presumably this whiplash reaction, the huh, what? is why some people have the ICK reaction to cosy catastrophe - and some of us identify with it, own it, want to embrace it.

This sense of identifying with cosy catastrophe and wanting to 'own' it is the golden thread that goes through the presentation I'll be making at City, University of London's postgraduate conference and which I'll be sharing, a bit at a time, here.

[*BTW, Travis Baldree discusses the creative and administrative choices he made in taking Legends and Lattes to self-publication in 2022 in the below Medium article - he also notes that he hasn't updated the article for everything that happened subsequently i.e. with the book being picked up and traditionally published at Tor.]

References:

§Aldiss, B. (1973) Billion year spree: the history of science fiction. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.

§Baldree, T. (2022a) 'Self published book launch A-Z', Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@travisbaldree/self-published-book-launch-a-z-39ec6f9257e1 (Accessed: 30 May 2024).

Baldree, T. (2022b) Legends and lattes. London: Tor.

§Macfarlane, R. (2019) Underland: a deep time journey. London: Hamish Hamilton.

§Roberts, A. (2016) The history of science fiction. 2nd edn. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

§Rogers, J. (2012) ‘Jane Rogers’ top ten cosy catastrophes: the author of The Testament of Jessie Lamb lists her favourite great books where the safe, happy world as we know it comes to grief’, in The Guardian, 05 July. https://www.theguardian.com/books/2012/jul/05/jane-rogers-top-10-cosy-catastrophes

§Walton, J. (2009) ‘Who reads cosy catastrophes?’, Tor.Com, 14 October. Available at: https://www.tor.com/2009/10/14/who-read-cosy-catastrophes/ (Accessed: 5 December 2023).

[thenerdynarrative]

The magic isn't *in* the story, it *IS* the story.

@travisbaldree knocked it out of the park...AGAIN!

[turquoisemagpie]

Bookshops and Bonedust.

(The sequel to @travisbaldree ‘s Legends and Lattes; just as cozy and charming.)