Return to the cozy fantasy world of the #1 New York Times bestselling Legends & Lattes series with a new adventure featuring fan-favorite, foul-mouthed bookseller, Fern.
Fern has weathered the stillness and storms of a bookseller’s life for decades, but now, in the face of crippling ennui, transplants herself to the city of Thune to hang out her shingle beside a long-absent friend’s coffee shop. What could be a better pairing? Surely a charming renovation montage will cure what ails her!
If only things were so simple…
It turns out that fixing your life isn’t a one-time prospect, nor as easy as a change of scenery and a lick of paint.
A drunken and desperate night sees the rattkin waking far from home in the company of a legendary warrior surviving on inertia, an imprisoned chaos-goblin with a fondness for silverware, and an absolutely thumping hangover.
As together they fend off a rogue’s gallery of ne’er-do-wells trying to claim the bounty the goblin represents, Fern may finally reconnect with the person she actually is when there isn’t a job to get in the way.
Fern has weathered the stillness and storms of a bookseller’s life for decades, but now, in the face of crippling ennui, transplants herself to the city of Thune to hang out her shingle beside a long-absent friend’s coffee shop. What could be a better pairing? Surely a charming renovation montage will cure what ails her!
If only things were so simple…
It turns out that fixing your life isn’t a one-time prospect, nor as easy as a change of scenery and a lick of paint.
A drunken and desperate night sees the rattkin waking far from home in the company of a legendary warrior surviving on inertia, an imprisoned chaos-goblin with a fondness for silverware, and an absolutely thumping hangover.
As together they fend off a rogue’s gallery of ne’er-do-wells trying to claim the bounty the goblin represents, Fern may finally reconnect with the person she actually is when there isn’t a job to get in the way.
Title: Brigands & Breadknives (Legends & Lattes $2)
Author: Travis Baldree
Publisher: Tor/Macmillan Audio
Expected Publication Date: November 11, 2025
Review:
Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Tor, and NetGalley for providing me with an audio copy of this book to read and give any honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I really enjoyed the first book in this series. I did that one on audio, as well, and thought the author did a great job narrating his book. I mean, who better to narrate characters than the author who wrote them? Am I right? And he does an amazing job with making each character unique, with their own voice. My only complaint would be there are a ton of female characters in this book and I truly would have liked a female voice for them. I think this series would benefit from a full cast, to be honest. It would make it that much more enjoyable than it already is!
While I really liked the first book in this series, I ended up loving this one more. This book is all about the journey. Both physically and emotionally. Fern the Rattkin takes on a bookshop in Thune, the town where Viv and Tandry live. But she feels in her bones something is just not right. While books have been with her all her life, she no longer feels selling them is what she needs. She sets out on an adventure, inadvertently, and winds up with a new found family and huge introspection into who she is. I just love her character. She struggles with self doubt and fear and this really comes through in her development. She is faced with many challenges along the way to come to the conclusion of just who she really wants to be.
And the side characters! Swords and knives that talk, Orks, Goblins, Elves, and so much more. They are so fun to watch and listen to.
This was a fabulous installment into the Legends and Latte's world. The coziness it brought was above and beyond what I was expecting. Along with the serious topics the author chooses to explore, there is still laughter and banter. I definitely found myself laughing many times. The book brought a smile to my face more often than not.
I also liked the fact that while Fern's love life is touched upon, that is not the focus of the story at all. The focus is her journey into finding herself. Her mid-life crisis if you will.
If you haven't read Legends and Lattes and/or Bookshops and Bonedust, I highly recommend doing so before you read this. This one builds on those two installments and incorporates the world building, background story, and characters you meet in those books. I really hope Baldree continues to write stories in this world!
4.5 rounded to 5 Stars
Author:
#1 New York Times Bestselling Author of Legends & Lattes, Bookshops & Bonedust, and Brigands & Breadknives. Audie-winning. Audiobook narrator. Erstwhile game developer. Made Fate, Torchlight & Rebel Galaxy.
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