Coffee, Tea & a Cozy Fantasy

Cozy novels (or “cozies” as they are often referred) generally feature a small cast of characters and are centered on familiar and comforting places — like a small town, a suburb, a book store, a pub or a library. You won’t necessarily find complex plots, intricate character development or lofty themes in a cozy novel. Take them as advertised — they are the book equivalent to a cardamom latte served with a freshly baked scone or the perfect cup of chamomile tea on a rainy day. They are intended to sooth and delight rather than challenge and provoke. 

​Mysteries were the first genre to popularize the “cozy,” but this has expanded in recent years to include romance, fantasy and history. (But essentially any genre can become a “cozy” if it includes some of the aforementioned elements.) 

For my purposes, I’m featuring cozy fantasies which combine slice-of-life ambiance with stories that are healing, comforting and uplifting. But because they’re also fantasy novels, they include elements like magic and magical beings, creatures drawn from myth and legend and exotic realms. 

Since, a lot of cozy fantasies feature food and drink in some way, I’m pairing my book recs with a few drink recipes that compliment the fantasy themes.

​Tuck in and enjoy. 

Explore some drink recipes:

Pair your drink to a cozy fantasy:

A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking by T Kingfisher

Bookshops & Bonedust by Travis Baldree

Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree

Cursed Cocktails by S. L. Rowland

Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

Keeper of Enchanted Rooms by Charlie N Holmberg

Legends & Lattes: A Novel of High Fantasy and Low Stakes by Travis Baldree

Rewitched by Lucy Jane Wood

The Baker and the Dragon: Love, Magic and a Catastrophe in a Teapot by Anne Pengelly

The Honey Witch by Sydney J Shields

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune

The House Witch: A Humorous Romantic Fantasy by Delemhach

The House Witch 2: A Humorous Romantic Fantasy by Delemhach

The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong

The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches: A Cozy Romance by Sangu Mandanna

Under the Whispering Door by TJ Klune

Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne

A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske

Daughter of the Moon Goddess: A Novel by Sue Lynn Tan

Dreadful by Caitlin Rozakis

Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune

The Bear and the Nightingale: A Novel by Katherine Arden

The Cat Who Saved Books: A Novel by Sosuke Natsukawa

The Cat Who Saved the Library: A Novel by Sosuke Natsukawa

Shoestring Theory by Mariana Costa

Sorcery and Small Magics by Maiga Doocy

Accomplice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Apprentice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

A Fellowship of Bakers & Magic by J Penner

A Fellowship of Games & Fables by J Penner

A Fellowship of Librarians & Dragons by J Penner

The Baby Dragon Cafe by A T Qureshi

The Wishing Game: A Novel by Meg Shaffer