Orcs Live Here

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.

Mate-bonding with a co-worker is against company policy... accidentally or not. Janice knows better than anyone that entanglements with co-workers are risky business. But when Janice accidentally breaks a co-worker's nose, she finds herself accidentally mate-bonded to an orc, and under Monster Resources' scrutiny. Khent from the IT Department is quiet and nerdy, despite the tusks. His emails are overly wordy. He won't stop apologizing even though she's the one who broke his glasses. All Janice has to do is stay away from Khent until the bond dissipates. Easy enough, except... ...Her company laptop chooses this week to need the orc from the IT department, repeatedly. ...She accidentally clicks on orc porn at work and has to take remedial phishing training with Khent. ...The bond has her horny 24/7 and suddenly she can't stop running into Khent at work.

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, New York Times bestselling 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.