Mosswood Apothecary: A Cozy Fantasy Romance Adventure (Tales of Valdaes Book 1)

Great story, inclusive, joyful, suspenseful, and tugs at the heartstrings! I’ll be buying more from this author! Do yourself a favor and read his wonderful stories.

This was a wonderful read that I sincerely hope is going to become a series as I need more of these characters and this world. The worldbuilding was phenomenal and more detailed than I was expecting for a cozy fantasy. When someone has taken the time to figure out different types of alchemy and the logistics of using them, you know you have met a fellow nerd, especially when they do it well like the author has here. There was a good balance of show vs tell with the worldbuilding, and I’d love to see it further expanded on in more books. I also greatly enjoyed the characters. The banter gave found family vibes, which I love, and there were numerous parts where I burst out laughing (plant daddy vs plant twink was my favorite). I also enjoyed the small town side characters and cozy fantasy vibes. My one complaint that kept this from being a 5 star for me was the pacing. The story would end the chapter with a mini cliffhanger, then the next chapter would start three weeks later, with a follow-up explanation for what happened after the cliffhanger. It threw me out of the story to be told what happened after the fact vs actually seeing it play out like I was expecting. Furthermore, it was hard to see why Jimson and Rowan got together because again, they kiss, and then time skip, and suddenly it’s gotten very serious between them. I wish we’d gotten to see more of these moments play out rather than only seeing part of the scene and then being given a summary of the rest. Overall…

I was hooked from page 1!! Fell in love with all the characters and can’t wait for the next one!