Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree is a charming LGBT fantasy romance about an orc adventurer named Viv who decides to retire and open a coffee shop. The key that she hopes will be the success of her business is a supposedly magical item said to bring good fortune. Or maybe just fortune either good or bad since Viv’s entrepreneurial adventures have the standard ups and downs you might suspect of a new business in a city that’s never heard of the product being sold.
The romance comes in the form of a succubus named Tandri who takes a job at the coffee shop. It’s a very understated romance, where one character is a bit oblivious to the other’s interest, but they otherwise get along really well. I really liked the developing relationship between Viv and Tandri, and the way they interacted.
Of course, it’s not all adorable coffee shop canon. There is a subplot involving a nasty piece of work who is stalking Tandri, a former adventuring partner of Viv’s who wants the fortune-creating magic item, and the local Thieves Guild demanding protection money. These plot points are all resolved in interesting and unexpected ways.
The setting strongly reminds me of a cross between Glen Cook’s Garret P.I. novels and a fantasy RPG tie-in novel. (With maybe a tiny bit of Discworld.) The book is a fun light read and I really enjoyed it.
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