Summary
When Viv (Legends & Lattes) is injured fighting the necromancer Varine, her mercenary group moves on without her to hunt Varine while Viv stays in Murk to heal.
Viv is desperate to get back to “fighting strength” to rejoin the hunt, but pushing herself only makes things worse. So she slowly finds ways to make herself useful in Murk while she heals. But while Viv is making friends and helping at a local down-and-almost-out bookstore, Varine is still at large. And she might not be as far away as Viv thinks she is.
Review
Another fun “cozy fantasy” from Travis Baldree, this prequel to Legends & Lattes gives us a look at a younger Viv, earlier in her fighting career. Once again, the bulk of the pages were devoted to Viv and her new community and friends. And I loved it! The community has a different feel than the one in L&L, but both are great. There’s a lot of book-love in this story, and I thoroughly enjoyed that. And there’s a lovely book-related tie-in to L&L in the epilogue that I enjoyed.
I think I clicked with Viv’s journey and community a little more in L&L than I did here. This made me want to re-read the first book (publication-wise) to see how Viv grows and changes between this prequel and that book.
Fans of book 1 should absolutely pick this up. I think newcomers could start here without issue, but I liked reading these in publication order instead. I feel like L&L has the stronger set up for the character. I even tabbed this while I was reading it, which is an experience I am liking more and more. It helps me stay more connected to what I am reading and to think about how threads weave through a book. (Language, LGBTQ+)
Rating: ♥♥♥♥*
*♥♥♥♥ = Great! Might re-read.