Oct 27 2026

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Book Review: Tales From the Territory by Travis Baldree

Title: Tales From the Territory

Author: Travis Baldree

Series: Legends and Lattes #3.5

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: There are many tales yet untold . . .
‘GOBLINS & GREATCOATS’: Chaos goblin Zyll is involved in a case of mistaken identity, where she solves a murder at an inn whilst simultaneously stealing all the cutlery.
‘JUST A THIMBLEFUL’: The sweet rattkin baker Thimble finds a new home for his soon-to-be famous cinnamon rolls.
‘PAGES TO FILL’: An act of mercy leads to a life-changing discovery for warrior orc Viv.
In ‘MIROGRAPH’, young succubus Tandri assists a university professor on a mysterious project where art and science collide.
In ‘CAVALIERS & COFFEES’, Viv, now the owner of Legends & Lattes coffee shop, discovers that imitation is not the highest form of flattery. –Goodreads

Niki’s Review:

This collection was an absolute delight! I keep saying I don’t care for short stories, but I may need to re-evaluate, as I was hooked on this right from the first page. It helped that the first story (Goblins and Greatcoats) was about my single most favorite character I’ve met over the last few years: Zyll. This being is hysterical (and slightly unnerving), and her story was every bit as entertaining as the scenes we got with her from Brigands and Breadknives. It also provided a great backstory to how she came to possess a certain item…

And then the Thimble story!! Which was very reminiscent of Ratatouille, but I loved the twist Baldree put on the tale. This was the one for which I felt the largest emotional connection. It also best captured the cozy, day in the life aspect I loved so much about Legends and Lattes. Thimble spoke to my artist’s soul. He had an insatiable drive to refine his culinary confections to perfection without any external appreciation for his efforts. His story arc there was especially satisfying, and I think this is the one I’ll remember most from the collection (which is fitting because it’s the cover image feature on my Broken Binding copy).

Then we get into my least favorite of the collection, Pages to Fill. I found it oddly difficult to follow compared to the other stories and even had to go back and reread a good chunk of it at one point because I was so disengaged. It was almost as if it were missing something, but I can’t put my finger on what it was. The end half of the story was a bit more successful, and I finally found a story element I liked enough to keep my attention. While doing research after finishing the book, I discovered this particular story was written many years before the others in the collection. Interesting, then, that it’s the only one I had a struggle with. I think it signifies just how far the author has grown as a writer since his early publishing days, so I was still able to appreciate it as a good stepping stone.

And finally, a maddening but also heartwarming tale taking us to a time period after L&L with Viv and her coffee house crew. It’s fun to get a “where are they now” update, and I’m certainly hoping this isn’t the last we’ll see of them. Injustices in books, even in cozy books, stress me out, so this was probably the most evoking tale of the bunch. Even so, it ultimately left me with all the right emotions and was a good capstone for the collection.

Overall I’m not sure which story was my favorite, but I can say I think it is worth reading for fans of the series. It added a good bit of roundness to the world for me and I truly cannot wait to see what the author has in store next! I experienced the story both on audio (narrated by the author himself – a narrator by profession, so you know it’s good!) and via the Broken Binding hardback edition. The physical book I read had striking full color illustrations to go along with each story, which definitely enhanced the experience for me. Overall I’m thrilled to add this one to my library!

I’d like to thank Macmillan Audio, Travis Baldree, and Netgalley for the chance to listen to and review an early copy of Tales From the Territory!

Thank you to my Patrons: Dave, Katrin, Frank, Jen, Karen, Sonja, Staci, Kat, Betsy, Eliss, Elizabeth, Bee, Poochtee, Kinsey, Alysa, Derek, Kelly, Grace, Carmen, Leah, and Laura! <3

Other Books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Sep 23 2026

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Book Review: Bodies of Magic by Freya Marske

Title: Bodies of Magic

Author: Freya Marske

Series: N/A

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: At the Academie of the Grand Duchy of Sieuxerr, every mage with the healer’s gift has five years to master their power and to prepare for the infamous Grand Exam—a five-day trial whose results will determine their entire future.

The list of exam rules includes:
• You will perform five practical cases.
• Your exam group is chosen at random.
• You pass together, or fail together.

It does not include:
• On the first day, your exam group will find a classmate’s dead body in the exam hall.

And as they will soon discover, this particular group all have something to hide… and all have a connection with the dead girl, a brilliant scholar who would have been first in their class.

Five scholars. Five secrets. Five days in which to solve a murder, pass the most important exam of their lives, and uncover a secret larger than all of their own combined. One with the potential to change the world.

Are you ready?

Let’s begin. –Goodreads (isn’t that a killer overview?!)

Niki’s Review:

One of my favorite books of the year!

I know better than to fall for the “for fans of X: this ridiculously popular book” spiel, generally. But in this case what is being advertised (A Deadly Education meets Grey’s Anatomy) is exactly what Bodies of Magic delivers! I’ve never come across a medical fantasy, let alone one with and academic framework, so I knew the moment I first saw it that I needed to read it ASAP. And you know what? It was fantastic.

Here’s the thing, when I pick up a book like this I’m expecting the medical school to play a strong role in the story (it did), I want a lot of detailed magical workings included (there were), and I want the mystery to be satisfying (it was decent). The author really delivered on all of the promises made, producing one of the best books I’ve read all year (and definitely one of my top academic books). It’s worth highlighting specifically what made the medical magic school aspect of this story so freaking good. You really get into the nitty gritty of how the magic works – everything from training on cadavers to experimenting with untested industry-advancing medical magic theory. Then we also get these complete case studies as part of their final exam where we get to follow the process all the way from symptom presentations to diagnosis to treatment plans. These students are brilliant, most at the top of their graduating class, and the amount of detail they get into during these final exams is so satisfying. It ticks all my boxes, and I’ll long remember this book for how perfectly it presented this aspect of the story. It was phenomenal.

So now I’ve explained how completely into the story I was for the medical magic, I’ll admit that the rest of the book was good, more than passable to be fair, but a bit more focused on the interpersonal relationship of the variety of “who is sleeping with who” than I usually prefer in books. It’s part of the reason the book is being likened to Grey’s Anatomy. And I think the main reason it worked for me where other books of the same vein may have not was because of how pertinent all of the social happenings were to solving the murder-mystery case. It felt very fitting and appropriate to include and also enhanced the collegiate atmosphere the story. I also found I was a bit more emotionally invested in the characters than I might have been otherwise. It worked because it was balanced so well with the magic aspect of the story, and the author never forgot to hone back in on the elements that were making the book special. Add to all of that some great pacing, a nice variety of focus, and an incredible momentum to the end of the book, and you can see why I’m so enamored.

Overall this was a huge success for me and I think it has a strong recommendability factor to those who love dark academia, to those who like mysteries in their fantasy books, all the way to the romantasy crowd. It hit a lot of good notes without diving too far into one thing, and I’m sure I’ll be recommending it often for years to come.

I’d like to thank Freya Marske, Macmillan Audio, and Netgalley for the chance to read an early audiobook copy of this book!

Thank you to my Patrons: Dave, Katrin, Frank, Jen, Karen, Sonja, Staci, Kat, Betsy, Eliss, Mike, Elizabeth, Bee, Poochtee, Kinsey, Alysa, Derek, Kelly, Grace, Carmen, Leticia, and Leah! <3

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Aug 12 2025

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Book Review: The Devils by Joe Abercrombie

Title: The Devils

Author: Joe Abercrombie

Series: The Devils #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: Holy work sometimes requires unholy deeds. Brother Diaz has been summoned to the Sacred City, where he is certain a commendation and grand holy assignment awaits him. But his new flock is made up of unrepentant murderers, practitioners of ghastly magic, and outright monsters. The mission he is tasked with will require bloody measures from them all in order to achieve its righteous ends. Elves lurk at our borders and hunger for our flesh, while greedy princes care for nothing but their own ambitions and comfort. With a hellish journey before him, it’s a good thing Brother Diaz has the devils on his side. –Goodreads

The Review:

This is Joe Abercrombie at his most indulgent. And you know what? I was there for it.

Abercrombie‘s humor is easily one of my biggest draws to his work. He has such a knack for that subtle, dry humor that hits you when you least expect it. So damn funny, he has impeccable timing (I could listen to him in interviews for hours) and a great instinct, so his humor almost always lands. Now here’s the thing, in The Devils he’s not subtle, he’s not pulling any punches (they come so often, it’ll almost reminded you of a Pratchett book) and the humor is often quite juvenile. Normally, immature, humor of this type doesn’t work for me, but I think it a combination of how much confidence I have in the author along with how well he timed the jokes and how far those jokes went to enhance character that made this work for me. I laughed out loud several times. I also rolled my eyes several times. It is what it is.

Now don’t get me wrong, events in this book are downright brutal. The overall tone was funny, but it’s still an Abercrombie. It’s not a good day’s work until someone is getting eviscerated on the page. Proceed with caution.

My favorite thing about the story were the characters. No surprise there. The book was a slow, measured experience with this wildly interesting group of individuals, all of them sort of enigmas. I lived for the many reveals of character as the story went along and found myself latching on to the least likely of them (the werewolf is my favorite). Such great character work, everything from the dialogue to subtle mannerisms – Abercrombie is truly a master at making his people distinct.

If you’re more of a plot reader, I think you’d find The Devils a bit of a slow burn. However, if you’re a character reader, I think you’d feel like things were progressing with each of them at a good clip. I’m somewhere in the middle, so I think elements of plot were too repetitive and the pacing could have moved along just a tad faster. But because I was enjoying myself with the characters, it wasn’t a huge factor.

I’ve heard through the grapevine that this is going to be, at least initially, a trilogy, with the subsequent books containing entirely new story arcs but still following a sporadic mix of the same characters. I’ve enjoyed this one so much that I can’t wait to see what he’s going to do next! He gets massive points for creativity in his world-building.

Recommendations: if you’ve never read an Abercrombie before, I’m afraid the intensity and outrageousness of this book might scare you off reading anything else by him. So I’m hesitant to say start here! However, I think if you’ve read a ton of other Abercrombie and are a fan of his general overall being, you’ll enjoy the heck out of this. It’s nice to see him do something that’s not quite so serious.

Other books you might like :

by Niki Hawkes

Jan 18 2018

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Top Three Thursday [3]: Top Three New Releases for the First Half of 2018?

Top Three New Releases for the First Half of 2018?

This is a new feature hosted by Fantasy Buddy Reads over at Goodreads. :)

Being a book lover wouldn’t be nearly as much fun without new releases on the horizon to look forward to. Although I’m anticipating many in 2018, these are the three titles at the top of my list:

Guardian by A.J. Hartley

Starless by Jacqueline Carey

[July 17, 2018] Nyxia Unleashed by Scott Reintgen

Guardian is book three in the Alternate Detective series by A.J. Hartley. The covers are what first caught my attention, and then I was lucky enough to receive a copy of the second book from TOR Teen, and from there I was hooked! Everything about it screams originality to me, because I can’t say as though I’ve read anything quite like it before. I am eager to see what mystery unfolds next in this third book.

Starless is the latest from Jacqueline Carey, one of my all-time favorite authors (famous for her Kushiel Saga, which I love). It appears to be a stand-alone novel. I can’t wait to get back into this writer’s beautiful prose and immersive world building. She’s one of the most lovely writers I’ve ever read and I will continue to devour anything she chooses to write.

Nyxia Unleashed is the second book in Scott Reintgen’s Nyxia Triad series, and even I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the first book. It had great elements of competition and an interesting concept, and I think it’ll only get better as the series progresses.

Honorable Mentions: Burn Bright by Patricia Briggs (not included because I’ve already read it :D), Iron Gold by Pierce Brown, Last Dragon Standing by Rachel Aaron, and Child of a Mad God by R.A. Salvatore (currently reading).

What 2018 releases are you eager for? :-)

Dec 4 2013

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Out This Month – Noteworthy Releases December 2013!

A dance of mirrors

One of my favorite things about working in the shipping department of a large bookstore was opening up boxes of new releases – it felt like Christmas all year round! So now that the holidays are actually upon us, here’s a look at some new and upcoming releases for the month:

December 3, 2013

December 17, 2013

December 3, 2013

December 10, 2013

December 3, 2013

December 24, 2013

I wish I could say I was excited to read any of these novels… The trouble is, I’m not caught up enough in the series to enjoy any of these this month but I will say the Gini Koch books always catch my attention.

What releases are you excited for?

by Niki Hawkes

Oct 5 2013

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New Releases: October 2013

I don’t know about all of you, but this month feels like the new release jackpot! The star being, of course, Allegiant – the conclusion to Veronica Roth’s Divergent series. I’m also super eager to read anything new by Ann Aguirre. Here’s a look at these noteworthy releases: