cozyscones's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death and Violence
Minor: Confinement and Animal cruelty
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST is a slightly bloodier (but still very cozy) prequel to LEGENDS & LATTES. Viv is an orc warrior, wounded in the leg just as she's starting out her career with Rackam's Ravens. She spends the summer recuperating from an injury in a seaside town named Murk, helping a local bookseller turn her shop around, and getting to know the cute dwarven baker down the street. It’s a story about finding joy and meaning and impermanence, appreciating something good even when you know it won’t last forever.
BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST is an unabashed love letter to books, bookshops, and booksellers helping the local bookseller get out of a rut and fix up her store. Viv is recuperating from a leg injury which sidelines her while the Ravens go after a necromancer. She hates being left out of the action and forced to slow down, but starts to feel the benefits as her forced rest continues, discovering an interest in reading.
As a prequel, BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST helps to explain why Viv would want to start a coffee shop when her adventuring is done, something Legends & Lattes didn’t dwell on in any detail because that wasn't the focus of its story. This can be read before, after, or completely separately from the first book, though the epilogue takes place after Legends & Lattes and contains minor spoilers.
BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST is an unabashed love letter to books, bookshops, and booksellers helping the local bookseller get out of a rut and fix up her store. Viv is recuperating from a leg injury which sidelines her while the Ravens go after a necromancer. She hates being left out of the action and forced to slow down, but starts to feel the benefits as her forced rest continues, discovering an interest in reading.
As a prequel, BOOKSHOPS & BONEDUST helps to explain why Viv would want to start a coffee shop when her adventuring is done, something Legends & Lattes didn’t dwell on in any detail because that wasn't the focus of its story. This can be read before, after, or completely separately from the first book, though the epilogue takes place after Legends & Lattes and contains minor spoilers.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Alcohol, Medical trauma, Cursing, Confinement, Violence, Blood, War, and Death
Minor: Ableism, Racism, Animal cruelty, and Slavery
ezwolf's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Bookshops and Bonedust follows Viv as she tries to take it slow and heal from a wounded leg in a small beach side town. She begrudgingly befriends the owner of a rundown bookstore and some other residents and her recuperation evolves into helping bring the bookstore back to life (haha) while also keeping an eye out for the necromancer that injured her.
I was so excited to get back in to this book universe and learn more about Viv! I was also once again so incredibly hungry while reading all of the descriptions of the delicious food stuffs. The stakes aren't quite as low as in Legends in Lattes, but it's still a relaxed read, befitting of a small town. This book is bittersweet, but not in any way that you aren't aware of from the beginning and the epilogue had me tearing up.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
I was so excited to get back in to this book universe and learn more about Viv! I was also once again so incredibly hungry while reading all of the descriptions of the delicious food stuffs. The stakes aren't quite as low as in Legends in Lattes, but it's still a relaxed read, befitting of a small town. This book is bittersweet, but not in any way that you aren't aware of from the beginning and the epilogue had me tearing up.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Cursing
Moderate: Death and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty
ezwolf's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Bookshops and Bonedust follows Viv as she tries to take it slow and heal from a wounded leg in a small beach side town. She begrudgingly befriends the owner of a rundown bookstore and some other residents and her recuperation evolves into helping bring the bookstore back to life (haha) while also keeping an eye out for the necromancer that injured her.
I was so excited to get back in to this book universe and learn more about Viv! I was also once again so incredibly hungry while reading all of the descriptions of the delicious food stuffs. The stakes aren't quite as low as in Legends in Lattes, but it's still a relaxed read, befitting of a small town. This book is bittersweet, but not in any way that you aren't aware of from the beginning and the epilogue had me tearing up.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
I was so excited to get back in to this book universe and learn more about Viv! I was also once again so incredibly hungry while reading all of the descriptions of the delicious food stuffs. The stakes aren't quite as low as in Legends in Lattes, but it's still a relaxed read, befitting of a small town. This book is bittersweet, but not in any way that you aren't aware of from the beginning and the epilogue had me tearing up.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Cursing, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Alcohol and Death
Minor: Animal cruelty
fanboyriot's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Read For:
Sapphic
Cozy Vibes
Slice of Life
Wholesome
High Fantasy
This has such a lovely vibe to it, the atmosphere of this book was much cozier than I was expecting it to be. I loved the story and the narrator did a wonderful job with bringing each character to life.
I actually haven't read Legends & Lattes yet but after this am definitely going to have to pick it up. I loved the worldbuilding and the character development, the writing style was so pleasant. This is the type of fantasy for me, there wasn’t a bunch of character names I needed to learn on the first page, and the plot was slow-paced in such a good way. I was able to fully follow along and everything unraveled really well, the ending really brought in all the feels and I couldn’t be happier with it. This book was amazing.
Thank you so much to the author, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for this audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (5/5)
Release Date: 07, November 2023
POV: Third Person
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Rep: Queer (MC)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Cursing
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Violence, Death, and Confinement
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Sexual content, Torture, Alcohol, Medical trauma, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Murder
anotherbooklady's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This story is unbelievably charming, hilarious, and kept me entertained from the beginning to the very last word. Travis Baldree s not only an amazing, witty writer, but he is a gifted storyteller. He’s proven as much by being the narrator of his own audiobook.
What I love about an author reading their own work, is that you get a real sense of how the author sees this universe they have created. You hear the characters voices as the author hears them, you hear the pronunciation of the names as the author pronounces them , and you get the inflection and mood that the author is trying to portray. Now, any good author does that without having to narrate their own books, but there’s something so magical about having a book read to you by the author.
If the video game “Animal Crossing”, put out a D&D version of their game, then you would have the world that has been created in Bookshops & Bonedust.
Viv is a mercenary Orc who is recovering from wounds received from a powerful necromancer in her first battle. She’s stuck in the sleepy seaside port town of Murk with nothing to do. She’s already notorious among the residents for nearly choking to death the elf doctor who attended her wounds. Bored and missing battle, she happens upon a dilapidated bookstore and discovers a whole new world.
Viv”s fateful encounter with the proprietor of the bookshop-a foul-mouthed Ratkin called Fern-brings forth a cast of incredibly developed and (mostly) endearing characters who will all have a hand in helping shape this young Orc. Not all is as it seems in Murk and it turns out Viv just might be in the wrong place at the right time.
I didn’t know cozy fantasy was a genre I was missing in my life, but here I am, LOVING it. I didn’t want the story to end, I wanted more of the creatures that live in this world. My favorite characters were a homunculus, with a Jeeves-like personality, named Satchel, and of course Viv herself.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.
What I love about an author reading their own work, is that you get a real sense of how the author sees this universe they have created. You hear the characters voices as the author hears them, you hear the pronunciation of the names as the author pronounces them , and you get the inflection and mood that the author is trying to portray. Now, any good author does that without having to narrate their own books, but there’s something so magical about having a book read to you by the author.
If the video game “Animal Crossing”, put out a D&D version of their game, then you would have the world that has been created in Bookshops & Bonedust.
Viv is a mercenary Orc who is recovering from wounds received from a powerful necromancer in her first battle. She’s stuck in the sleepy seaside port town of Murk with nothing to do. She’s already notorious among the residents for nearly choking to death the elf doctor who attended her wounds. Bored and missing battle, she happens upon a dilapidated bookstore and discovers a whole new world.
Viv”s fateful encounter with the proprietor of the bookshop-a foul-mouthed Ratkin called Fern-brings forth a cast of incredibly developed and (mostly) endearing characters who will all have a hand in helping shape this young Orc. Not all is as it seems in Murk and it turns out Viv just might be in the wrong place at the right time.
I didn’t know cozy fantasy was a genre I was missing in my life, but here I am, LOVING it. I didn’t want the story to end, I wanted more of the creatures that live in this world. My favorite characters were a homunculus, with a Jeeves-like personality, named Satchel, and of course Viv herself.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an advance copy of this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Gore, and Cursing
uranaishi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood, Confinement, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual content, Slavery, Animal cruelty, Racism, and Torture
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
You got me with the bookseller who just wants to connect people with books, honestly. That angle was absolutely my favorite part of this one, as Viv gets into all of the books that she's recommended. It's honestly quite adorable!
This book has the same cozy vibes as [book:Legends & Lattes|61242426], with the epilogue bringing the two full circle. I would definitely continue to read stories set in this world because it's just so cozy and fun and a delight to read. Loving the fact that cozy fantasy is making the mark that it is.
Also, Travis Baldree reads the audio and does a fabulous job, honestly. Sometimes it's hit or miss with authors reading their own books, but he has a great narration voice. I would listen to more books with him as the narrator!
This book has the same cozy vibes as [book:Legends & Lattes|61242426], with the epilogue bringing the two full circle. I would definitely continue to read stories set in this world because it's just so cozy and fun and a delight to read. Loving the fact that cozy fantasy is making the mark that it is.
Also, Travis Baldree reads the audio and does a fabulous job, honestly. Sometimes it's hit or miss with authors reading their own books, but he has a great narration voice. I would listen to more books with him as the narrator!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Violence, Blood, and Medical content
Minor: Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Death
ninjamuse's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty
krisalexcole's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, and Death