Synopsis
After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.
The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success—not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.
If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won’t be able to go it alone.
But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.
Rating
★★★★★
Long-Winded Introduction
Warning! I’m going to enter extreme geek territory with this review since this book was an incredibly nostalgic read for me. If you’re not interested in my D&D follies, you can skip down to the “thoughts” section for the (mostly) no-nonsense book review.
Anyway, I’m not an orc or a succubus, but I do have many years of gaming under my belt. When I read this book, I had no doubt that its author was a gamer. Upon investigation, I found that Baldree is not only a gamer, but he is actually a game developer, as well!
Ok. My long, nerdy backstory in relation to the context of this book…
In March 1994, on a snowy day in Ithaca, NY, weeks before I turned 19, one of my fellow geeky college friends introduced me to the internet, e-mail, and online gaming. In rapid succession. Mind blown! Life changed! It was all love at first sight for me.
MUDDs (multi-user dungeons & dragons) are what we played back then. They were text-based versions of the graphics-style fantasy games that are available today. If you were born after that era, it might be hard to imagine how something like that could be addictive without images, but it was. It was like a good book. For the first time, fantasy lovers and bored or curious people from around the world were able to connect with each other and team up to chat, explore faraway lands, use various forms of magic, fight against evil monsters, and so much more. We virtually drank ale in pubs, rested while we regained mana (magical juju), and lived inside these virtual characters, which previously only existed in our minds or a good game of tabletop D&D.
Fast-forward a few years to early-1998. Brad (McQuaid), whom we only knew virtually through the MUDD we played—which was based on R.A. Salvatore’s Forgotten Realms books, which we worshipped in those days—approached a few of us via e-mail with a pitch. He had been working with Sony on this new game, which was like a Forgotten Realms inspired MUDD with graphics. Sony needed people to play it and help the team iron out wrinkles and find bugs. Ok. Wow! We knew Brad was a few years older than us and worked an actual job, but that was it. When we gamed together, we were in that alternate reality and left our real lives behind. So, next thing you know, I’m beta testing EverQuest, one of the first MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing game). It was nothing short of epic! I may have even called in to work to run a corpse retrieval once upon a time. It was so good that I had to quit cold-turkey when I was in graduate school so I could stay focused on my studies.
I left gaming behind for nineteen years while I finished my degree, built my career, and raised my family. Then I met this man, and we somehow ended up on the topic of the old days of EverQuest. Needless to say, we fell in love. As we entered new chapters in the middle of our lives, we began gaming together. We played World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, and even Final Fantasy XIV. We still dabble in gaming from time to time. (And yes, that is our World of Warcraft Official Cookbook pictured in the background.) However, we both agree that MMORPGs have largely changed for the worse, mainly due to corporate politics and greed. So, we started to read more and game less.
Enter Legends & Lattes!
Thoughts
I knew within a few pages that this story was written by an old school gamer. The tone and descriptions immediately resonated with me. I felt like I had returned home. I was taken back to my very first role-playing character, a greatsword-wielding heroine made up of pixelated letters and my imagination. I felt very strong World of Warcraft vibes from this book, too. And I liked it!
You don’t have to have any exposure to D&D or gaming to fall in love with Legends & Lattes, though. It is a cozy fantasy story full of lovable characters, good food and drink, and heart. You get to witness Viv transition from a murderous orc to a beloved member of her community. It is a joy to watch her learn, inspire, and love along the way, despite the many bumps in her path.
As you may have guessed, I cannot wait for the November publication of Baldree’s book, Bookshops & Bonedust, which follows Viv on another adventure. The same main character, with books? I’m obviously in! The review will naturally follow.
Question
Is there a quirky book that makes you feel nostalgic?