Welcome friend! Ariel and I continued the Legends & Lattes series by Travis Baldree and like the two books before, Brigands & Breadknives was a treat! You might have noticed it in our Armed with A Book Choice Awards 2025 — it was winner in 2 categories! Take a look at the synopsis and our thoughts below.
Travis Baldree | Goodreads
Legends & Lattes #2
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.
Brigands & Breadknives – Discussion
Kriti: We first met Fern in the prequel novel to Legends & Lattes, Bookshops & Bonesdust. In Brigands & Breadknives, Fern had relocated to the city of Thune and opened a bookshop next to Viv’s coffee shop. This is her first time seeing Viv after corresponding with her in letters, and I really enjoyed being re-introduced to the Legends and Lattes café and goodies through Fern in the audiobook. Fern’s voice and personality offer a great protagonist. Travis really knows his characters and is able to infuse her foul-mouthed, weary tone really well in his narration. I had forgotten so much about her, and everything came back easily.
Ariel: That really is what is so fun about this universe; even after months and months in between reads, it’s easy to dive right back into the story! I liked that this book didn’t feel like a total repeat of previous stories in this world, and Fern was quite distinct of a protagonist compared to Viv.
Fern wants a new start at her new bookshop, but even on opening day, surrounded by new books and stories, she is unable to find joy. She feels a heaviness and is distraught that after all the help Viv has offered her in setting up shop, she is not happy. She decides to tell Viv the truth but ends up avoiding it by falling asleep in a stranger’s cart. She meets Astryx, the elf maiden, who is transporting a goblin for a bounty, and the story is part Fern taking a very long way back to Thule, part apology letter to Viv, and part rediscovery. I loved how Brigands and Breadknives continued to be a cozy fantasy out in the wilderness. It explores the idea that fixing one’s life isn’t a single decision but an ongoing process, and our closest friends and companions can offer us guidance even if they haven’t gone through the exact situation.
Did you connect with this theme?
Yes! I liked that a “cozy” lifestyle didn’t necessarily mean being stationary in one place; sometimes the coziness is the friends we make along the way 🙂
For me, Fern’s initial unhappiness made me think of the newborn days. Here was a beautiful being, and I was so exhausted that I couldn’t find joy in her. The doubts were heavy. Like Fern’s bookshop, it was a new start, and yet it was so hard. I remember how you came to my rescue, Ariel. 💞 Viv and Fern’s correspondent friendship also made me think of our own!
Yes, that was a powerful part of the story. So often we look forward to something and when we get to it, it’s harder than we anticipate and we don’t feel the emotions we were expecting to. I liked how this approached this familiar feeling without judgment and Fern worked through those emotions over the course of the story.
I enjoyed being on the road with Fern, Astryx, and Zyll . Eventually, more characters revealed themselves— Breadlee and the sword. It was quite the unlikely group. Astryx is calm and composed, living life in principle, while Zyll is mischievous and sharp. Fern turns squire and scribe as their journey progresses. Old feuds and magical beings show up, and the journey has cunning companions ready to deceive them, and Fern’s sixth sense is a good one.
Breadlee’s quips were my favourite, but the whole group and their interactions made this book immersive and easy to return to.
The jokes and snarkiness was also a great part of this story, and helped bring levity in some of the more existential moments.
The imprisoned goblin, Zyll, with a love of silverware, adds humor and tension. She offers assistance to Fern so many times, and though she comes off as a mischievous character who doesn’t care about others, she has a way of rewarding help like no one else. With few words and big grins, she is another favourite of mine in this series. I would love to be on adventures with her. I might just have to pick up Goblins & Greatcoats.
Agreed, I also want to read through Goblins & Greatcoats soon now too! A future buddy read!
Legends & Lattes was truly coziness, with hot beverages and baked delights — I crave cinnamon buns every time I think of this book. Bookshops & Bonedust was suspenseful and literary. Brigands & Breadknives is definitely more advantageous than the other books. I love how versatile Travis Baldree is in creating these distinct characters and storylines while still keeping a cozy fantasy level.
Fern’s level of cozy is distinct from other cozy novels, and the adventure kept the story moving along!
This year, through our body reads, we have continued to enjoy many different cosy fantasies, and after reading The Keeper of Magical Things and Brigands & Breadknives, I’m really starting to see how many unique versions of cozy can exist that we can enjoy together! It’s probably our most read subgenre, and considering all the new books in these series come out in November/December, they are exactly the cozy reads I need as the year closes! What do you think of the timing of these releases and our energy for them?
It truly is the perfect season to wrap up in a warm blanket with a hot beverage and read these types of fantasy novels! I have zero complaints, and they help us wrap up the year in warm fuzzies!
Have you picked up this series yet? Check out the discussions of the rest of the series at:
Thanks for reading!
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