I chose Rebecca Thorne’s Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea as the January fantasy book club selection for The Ripped Bodice LA. I love tea, cozy magic stories, and sapphic romances.
Palace guard Reyna and royal mage Kianthe run away to open a tea shop in the town of Tawny. Reyna’s queen is quite horrible and would never let them be together. Through flashbacks, we learn how they met unexpectedly at a royal function. They had nighttime rendezvous for a while, but yearn to move in together. So they impulsively leave to carve out a peaceful existence together. The novel follows the couple as they open up the shop, make friends with the townspeople, and sometimes fight magical creatures.
The shop is super cute, and I love the found family they assemble. My favorite parts were when Kianthe had to go on a magic quest or when they were solving problems in town with magic. This was indeed cozy, but I needed a touch more conflict and romance. Most of their issues as a couple are easily resolved through calm conversation. We see what brought the women together, but there wasn’t much keeping them apart beyond a mad queen whom we don’t meet again until the end. There’s something about starting with their happily ever after, and seeing what’s next when you’re barely familiar with the characters. I plan to read the next books in the series. I liked the world-building enough, and am holding out for more fantasy and romantic conflict when meeting new characters.
If you like the cozy elements of Legends and Lattes or anime like The Apothecary Diaries, give this book a shot.
