When an injury throws a young, battle-hungry orc off her chosen path, she may find that what we need isn't always what we seek. In Bookshops & Bonedust, a prequel to Legends & Lattes, author Travis Baldree takes us on a journey of high fantasy, first loves, and second-hand books. Viv's career with the notorious mercenary company Rackam's Ravens isn't going as planned. Wounded during the hunt for a powerful necromancer, she's packed off against her will to recuperate in the sleepy beach town of Murk—so far from the action that she worries she'll never be able to return to it. What's a thwarted soldier of fortune to do? Spending her hours at a beleaguered bookshop in the company of its foul-mouthed proprietor is the last thing Viv would have predicted, but it may be both exactly what she needs and the seed of changes she couldn't possibly imagine. Still, adventure isn't all that far away. A suspicious traveler in gray, a gnome with a chip on her shoulder, a summer fling, and an improbable number of skeletons prove Murk to be more eventful than Viv could have ever expected.

Mormon women today might be surprised to learn about their foremothers' views on feminist theology and women's issues, according to Maxine Hanks. In 1842, founder Joseph Smith foresaw the LDS Women's Relief Society as "a kingdom of Priests," that he "would ordain them to preside over the society...just the Presidency preside over the church." Originally, the LDS Women's Relief Society paralleled the LDS men's priesthood quorums. Women were "ordained" to various positions, as well as set apart to be healers "with power to rebuke diseases." In the 19th-century, Mormon theology also spoke of a Mother God, having "all power and glory" with the Father in Heaven. Mormon doctrine also hinted at the divine status of Eve, Mary, and Mary Magdalene. The 19th-century Woman's Exponent , published by the LDS Women's Relief Society, editorialized in favor of "equal rights before the law, equal pay for equal work, equal political rights." The magazine's masthead read, "The Rights of the Women of Zion and the Rights of Women of All Nations." One Relief Society founder, Sarah Kimball, referred to herself as "a woman's rights woman," while another leader, Bathsheba Smith, was called on a Relief Society mission in 1870 to preach "woman's rights" throughout southern Utah. According to the Woman's Exponent, a woman's place was not just "in the nursery" but "in the library, the laboratory, the observatory." Women were encouraged to pursue formal education and career opportunities, study medicine and involve themselves in politics. Mormon women were assured that "when men see that women can exist without them, it will perhaps take a little of the conceit out of some of them." Women who served inside LDS temples were termed "priestesses," while LDS Women's Relief Society president Eliza R. Snow was known as a "prophetess." Snow discouraged women from confiding their personal issues to male bishops, saying that such matters "should be referred to the Relief Society president and her counselors." In 1875, LDS Women's Relief Society president, Emmeline B. Wells, could say with "Let woman speak for herself; she has the right of freedom of speech. Women are too slow in moving forward, afraid of criticism, of being called unwomanly, of being thought masculine. What of it? If men are so much superior to women, the nearer we come up to the manly standard the higher we elevate ourselves."

A Novel of High Fantasy and Low Stakes. After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time. The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success—not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is. If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone. But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

When an injury throws a young, battle-hungry orc off her chosen path, she may find that what we need isn't always what we seek. In Bookshops & Bonedust, a prequel to Legends & Lattes, author Travis Baldree takes us on a journey of high fantasy, first loves, and second-hand books. Viv's career with the notorious mercenary company Rackam's Ravens isn't going as planned. Wounded during the hunt for a powerful necromancer, she's packed off against her will to recuperate in the sleepy beach town of Murk—so far from the action that she worries she'll never be able to return to it. What's a thwarted soldier of fortune to do? Spending her hours at a beleaguered bookshop in the company of its foul-mouthed proprietor is the last thing Viv would have predicted, but it may be both exactly what she needs and the seed of changes she couldn't possibly imagine. Still, adventure isn't all that far away. A suspicious traveler in gray, a gnome with a chip on her shoulder, a summer fling, and an improbable number of skeletons prove Murk to be more eventful than Viv could have ever expected.

An inventive and fantastical reimagining of Anne of Green Gables—with magic and witches!—that explores found family, loss, and the power of a girl's imagination, from the acclaimed author of The Language of Ghosts and The School Between Winter and Fairyland. Grace has never been good at anything except magic—not that anyone believes her. While other children are adopted from the orphanage, nobody wants Grace. So she decides to make a home for herself by running away and offering herself as an apprentice to the witch in the nearby woods. After all, who better to teach Grace to use her magic? Surely the witch can’t be that bad. But the witch is that bad—she steals souls for spells and gobbles up hearts. So Grace offers a deal: If she can learn all 100½ spells in the witch’s grimoire, the witch will make Grace her apprentice. But if Grace fails, the witch can take her magic. The witch agrees, and soon an unexpected bond develops between them. But the spells are much harder than Grace expected, and when a monster from the witch’s past threatens the home Grace has built, she may have to sacrifice more than her magic to save it. Inspired by Anne of Green Gables, this is a magical story of found family, loss, and the power of a girl’s imagination.