Viv, an orc who’s spent her life fighting and collecting bounties, is finally ready to hang up her sword and embark on a new dream: opening the very first coffee shop in the city of Thune. Along the way, she makes new friends, faces old foes, and introduces the wonders of coffee to a city that doesn’t yet know it needs it.
Let’s be real – I avoided this book for the longest time because of the cover. I knew it was supposed to be a cozy fantasy, but green orcs aren’t exactly what comes to mind when I think cozy. Still, after hearing so many glowing reviews (and realizing I needed a brown-covered book to complete my “read the rainbow” challenge in my reading journal), I decided to give it a try.
Maybe my expectations were too high, but I thought I’d love this one more than I did. I mean, cozy fantasy and a coffee shop? It sounds like it was written just for me. But I found myself feeling a bit lukewarm. The characters were interesting enough, but I never really connected with them, not enough to make me want to pick up the next book in the series.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this book. It’s gentle, warm, and filled with charming coffee shop moments: Viv pouring lattes, cinnamon rolls baking in the background, all those comforting little details. Honestly, the coffee shop must smell heavenly with all that cinnamon and freshly brewed coffee.
It’s a good book, just not a magical one for me. I think I might be missing whatever spark made this story so beloved by others, and that’s okay. Sometimes even the coziest reads just don’t quite click.
So sorry it didn’t click for you. I am on my third book in the series now and really enjoying it.
My friends really liked this book and I’m bummed I didn’t enjoy it more.