Bookshops & Bonedust

A battle injury interrupts young Viv’s mercenary career and leaves her recovering in a seaside town while her companions move on. Rest does not suit an orc eager for action, but an ailing bookshop and its outspoken owner begin to give her days an unexpected purpose. Books, new acquaintances and a flirtation with a local baker draw her into a life she had not thought to want. Even here, however, unfamiliar visitors and lingering dangers complicate the quiet. Set before Legends & Lattes, this fantasy explores an earlier turning point for Viv, when an enforced pause opens the possibility of friendship, first love and another way to live.