I've recently developed a real taste for all things cosy - whether mystery, romance or fantasy - maybe because of how utterly full-on real life has been in these past few months, maybe because they feel safe and comforting and leave me buzzing with warm, fuzzy, positive feelings. Or maybe both. Regardless, when I read the blurb for Can't Spell Treason Without Tea, I immediately knew I had to read it, because it sounded exactly like the type of book I would love. Perhaps that's why the disappointment I felt over this book stung worse than others, but it was probably the worst let-down of the year so far.

For starters, I feel this was mislabelled as cosy fantasy. The fact that the main characters drop everything to open a bookstore and tea room in a remote town is not enough for this to be a cosy fantasy: the main plot lines are rife with danger and the stakes are high - life-threatening even - involving both a vengeful royal and dragons, whereas everything related to Reyna and Kianthe's new life is so easy and conflict-free it would almost be laughable if it weren't boring. This is, essentially, a fantasy with some cosy elements and, in truth, not even a great one at that.

The worldbuilding is insufficiently developed, and when we do get any information it's usually through exposition, either in dialogue or in one of the main characters' internal monologue - of which there is a lot. I was also incredibly annoyed by the blatant attempts to be "woke" and diverse by continuously drawing attention to any elements pointing in that direction, some of which frankly made no sense in the context of a semi-medieval-feeling world. One clear example is a lengthy passage in which the use of pronoun pins by a very minor non-binary character is discussed. Pronoun pins, seriously?? Couldn't characters just, you know, use the correct pronouns? But perhaps was that too radical a choice for a fantasy world…

The main characters also came across as really bland. Any conflict between them is immediately resolved with a lengthy conversation and the use of great communication tactics, which of course comes with a side of commentary on just how good they are at communicating and a detailed list of all the things they do to keep such a good level of communication between them. The book is told in alternating POVs and, at least in theory, we're told just how different these two characters' personalities are but, in practice, I sometimes had trouble distinguishing between the two voices and forgot whose POV I was supposed to be following at that moment. I did like the idea of them having a pre-existing relationship, but I didn't really feel as if I got to see them being in love - though I was repeatedly told just how much they loved each other and how good they were together.

This was, essentially, the main flaw of Can't Spell Treason Without Tea for me: everything was told, nothing (or very little) was shown. The overarching storylines are not even resolved in this book, leaving everything hanging in anticipation for the next one, while the cosy fantasy plot is solved even too quickly: everyone in town immediately loves Kianthe and Reyna, including the local lords; the shop is magically fixed in one afternoon; suppliers are secured with one trip to the neighbouring city.

I listened to the audiobook for this one and I did like the narrator: Jessica Threet did a great job at trying to infuse some life in these characters and differentiating between them in some way, but she couldn't fix everything else that just didn't work here. It was a real shame as I was truly looking forward to this book and I think it had great potential, but it just ended up not working for me.

I received an advanced review copy of this audiobook for free from the publisher via NetGalley. This did not affect my opinion of the book in any way. ( )

So disappointed in this one. Its been hyped up to me SOOOO much, and for me it fell completely FLAT. There was no action and no drama and everything was tied up with a pretty bow and it all worked perfectly. Don't get me wrong, I realize this is marketed as a cozy story.... but theres nothing to hook my interest. The plot wasn't really a plot... it just feels like the housekeeping of a story that could have had some real zeal to it. Theres no reason to seem the MCs as a pair, its already given to you with no details until you get to that mini story at the end..... I really don't understand why we couldn't have had the mini story and explaination of how they got together at the beginning of the book with a small time hope to avoid the drama and angst.... So they're pre-established so no passion or romance... all conflicts are solved by the power of friendship or some quick wit.... it just comes off as SO stinking boring, and it kills me, at least with Legends and Lattes you got to see the relationship building and were invested in both characters. The queen isn't even all that evil. Not down voting it because its not a bad story...it just had no interest for me.... I'm highly unlikely to pick up book too. ( )

Reyna's girlfriend Kianthe has been asking her for awhile if she didn't want to leave the vindictive queen she guards and run away to start a book and tea shop. One day, after getting injured while defending said queen from an assassin, she decides to do just that. Reyna and Kianthe find a likely spot in a small village to start over and begin renovating a barn for their new venture.

A cozy, queer fantasy inspired by [Legends and Lattes]. Some folks may love that cozy feel. In here, I felt like the stakes were even lower and the characters more perfect than in Legends. It made it very easy, even when I was mostly enjoying myself, to put it down and read other things. One of the main conflicts (that of Reyna's treason) gets resolved in a way I didn't quite buy into, and the other main conflict (dragon attacks!) are left very open for a sequel. This was originally self-published in 2022 and got picked up by a traditional publisher. I get the desire for a cozy kinda book, but somehow this one didn't hit right for me. Doubt I'll look for the sequel. ( )

Fantasy in the Legends and Lattes style with 2 lesbians fleeing a vindicitive queen. It's cute but I didn't quite buy into the author's world-building. I will probably not continue this series. ( )

A fantasy featuring a lesbian couple, one a queen's guard and the other a mage. Reyna (the guard) finds her life stifling and escapes with her mage friend Kianthe (the mage)with the end goal of buying a tea shop with easy chairs and books. They are well on their way to their happy lives for a while until an agent from the queen finds them and drags them back. What happens? You have to read book two. ( )