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A review by raesengele
Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
As much as I loved this book, the writing kept it from being a five star read for me. Not that the writing was bad exactly, I've definitely read much worse, but not only was this Baldtree's debut novel, it was also apparently a NANOWRIMO book and it kind of shows. Baldtree clearly didn't develop his confidence until late in the book (the epilogue and bonus chapters almost feel like they were written by someone else, someone with a ton more confidence) which isn't surprising since it's kind of standard that it takes writing 2-3 novels for a writer to really figure out what they're doing. It's also why I believe wholeheartedly in the advice to have 2-3 books under your belt BEFORE you pursue publication. 1) because then you have 2-3 books to shop around, and 2) you'll have already gone through the growing pains of writing 2-3 novels.
As for Legends and Lattes, I really don't agree with the concept of "show, don't tell" and this book is a good example of why. Because of Baldtree's lack of confidence through most of this book there's almost too much showing. I could see everything that was happening just fine, but I couldn't feel anything about it. We didn't get a lot of space in Viv's head, exploring her anxieties and nerves. I was told she had anxieties and nerves, but I never felt them. Same with her attraction to Tandri--I knew it was supposed to be there because I was told it was, but I never felt it. And it wasn't the fault of the genre. Literary fiction is known for not doing a lot externally because it's all happening internally and that could have been done here, as well, resulting in a low stakes fantasy that still keeps you invested emotionally. And I started to see that in the epilogue and the bonus story which is what makes the rest of the book kind of frustrating, for me at least. Baldtree clearly has it in him, but he hadn't quite found it yet with this first book and unfortunately his editors didn't prioritize getting it out of him either. What results is a book with so much potential and that is admittedly really good, if you're not a hardass editor who can't turn it off (aka me, unfortunately).
As for Legends and Lattes, I really don't agree with the concept of "show, don't tell" and this book is a good example of why. Because of Baldtree's lack of confidence through most of this book there's almost too much showing. I could see everything that was happening just fine, but I couldn't feel anything about it. We didn't get a lot of space in Viv's head, exploring her anxieties and nerves. I was told she had anxieties and nerves, but I never felt them. Same with her attraction to Tandri--I knew it was supposed to be there because I was told it was, but I never felt it. And it wasn't the fault of the genre. Literary fiction is known for not doing a lot externally because it's all happening internally and that could have been done here, as well, resulting in a low stakes fantasy that still keeps you invested emotionally. And I started to see that in the epilogue and the bonus story which is what makes the rest of the book kind of frustrating, for me at least. Baldtree clearly has it in him, but he hadn't quite found it yet with this first book and unfortunately his editors didn't prioritize getting it out of him either. What results is a book with so much potential and that is admittedly really good, if you're not a hardass editor who can't turn it off (aka me, unfortunately).