This one was so fun. Twyla and Frank have been partners as Tanrian Marshalls for the past 8 years, and now that the issue of the undead was handled, they were doing far more boring work. That is, at least until they found one of their own dead and covered in...glitter?

Stumbling upon something they believed to have been extinct for millennia, Twyla and Frank seem to have discovered that there are dragons in Tanria once again. As they work together to figure out what this means for the future of the dragons, they also try and figure out what their own futures hold.

This was funny and the characters were just so lovely!

It was so fun to revisit the world of Hart and Mercy, and I have to say that Twyla and Frank were just as interesting and fun as them. It was quite fun to see a different kind of romance than in the first book, where here you have long time friend/coworker to lover, with both experiencing a second chance at love (after marriage and family, considering they both have grown up children) , which I feel I haven't really read many of. And I really loved it.
Can I say how much I adore Twyla and Frank. There is just something so fun and sweet about them both, and I definitely would want to hang out with them if they were real. And it was so nice to see them with each other, to see how much they cared about each other even before they got together. To see Twyla give love another chance, after having lost her husband many years ago. To see them finally find each other romantically.
There isn't just romance in this book, there is also the same interesting world to get more of. And to see how the world has evolve following the ending of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. And there are dragons. Can we talk about that? I'm always down for dragons. It was just too much fun.
Overall, it was such a fun read, filled with romance, comedy, actions and just great banter. I cannot wait to read the next book, which seems to be coming out next summer. I definitely will have to get my hands on that one too, because it's been such a fun series.

I was super excited for this follow up to The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. Especially when I heard it would feature two middle aged characters who have been best friends for a very long time.

Twyla Banneker and Frank Ellis are neighbors, best friends, and partners with the Tanrian Marshals. Twyla is widowed with three adult children and multiple grandchildren. She is comfortable with her life, and her job enables her to pay for her daughter’s medical school. Frank is divorced with two adult children and I’m pretty sure has been in love with Twyla for years but is afraid to rock the friendship boat so is comfortable just to carry on with their relationship the way it is.

That all changes with the discovery of dragons, a dragon expert arriving who is interested in Twyla romantically, a nefarious plot from outside forces, and Twyla and Frank realizing that their lives are in danger. Even with all that the pacing in this book is slow, and as much as I was interested in the overall story, I did put it down for a time and turn to other review books. Once I came back and the action picked up, I was all in right up until the end.

This is a romance between older characters, which I adored, and it also focuses quite a bit on Twyla’s reemerging sexuality and the best friends overcoming their fear of ruining their friendship and admitting they are in love. It’s lovely, dragon spit and bombs going off under beds aside.

The worldbuilding is fantastic, and I was so excited to not only see Hart and Mercy’s wedding but having the chance to catch up with all the rest of the secondary characters. Duckers remains my favorite and I’m kind of hoping he is the main character in a future book.

Looking forward to continuing this series when the next book releases next year.

Book 1 in this series was a dream, so I was highly anticipating this next story! However, it was missing the zing of the first one. The banter didn’t feel quite as fresh and there was nothing that felt new or exciting in the plot despite a semi-fantastical setting. I still think this author is a Queen writer and can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

This was cute! I really enjoyed reading about an older couple - most fantasy books are about people in their young twenties, so it was very refreshing. Thank you NetGalley and Orbit Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Twyla and Frank have been partners with the Tanrian Marshals for the last eight years, but they have been best friends for longer. Since Twyla's husband died and Frank's wife left, they have always been able to count on each other. Both are just about ready for retirement and settling down together with a Bed and Breakfast when they find the dead body of a fellow marshal covered in glitter and the trail of the killer leads them to the discovery of a lifetime, DRAGONS. The two team up to solve the case alongside a rookie and a dragon specialist whose eyes have been wandering more in Twyla's direction than the dragons.

The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy was one of the cutest reads of 2023 for me. I have been impatiently awaiting the release of the second book in the series since I read the last page. I got a little tired of waiting and for some reason Orbit gave me early access to the ebook through Netgalley.

I actually went into this book completely blind. All that I knew was that it was about Twyla and Frank (obvs!) who made a smidge of an impression in Hart & Mercy. Honestly I was just really excited to get back to the world of Eternity and Tanria. Megan Bannen created this super expansive world but didn't make it overwhelming. It's cozy, and a little chaotic. What's not to love?

"But I don't know how to be a dragon." - Frank

Do you ever start reading a book and get like a quarter of the way or less in and know whether you are going to love or hate it? I knew that The Undermining of Twyla and Frank was going to be my favorite in the series (yes I do know there are only 2 out and it's a 50/50 chance it would be my fave) about 100 pages in. The relationship that is created between Twyla and Frank and their families sets the groundwork for this really incredible story arc that is about parenthood and the necessity sometimes to take a step back and remember that you are a person as too. I think the fact that Twyla and Frank were older also added that extra layer of "you're old, not dead" that I think many can relate to.

My absolute favorite thing about this book? Okay, everything was my favorite about it except the poor communication skills of the main characters but, it had to be the glitter breathing dragons. Just the outrageousness of it added a layer of whimsy to the story that I don't think we had in the last book. I will say that I literally stood in my kitchen with my jaw on the counter for a full 2 minutes trying to compose myself when the villain was revealed. Did I have an inkling it was them? Duh! Was I still in complete and total disbelief? 100%! Hands down this book is freaking fantastic and gets ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (if you couldn't tell already by my rave review). This is one of those books that I will recommend to everyone. Always.

Psst! Just so you know, some of the links sprinkled here are affiliate links. If you decide to click and treat yourself, I might get a little high-five in the form of a commission at no additional cost to you. Cheers and happy reading!

This is an adorable friends to lovers fantasy story and fantastic continuation of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy.

If you are looking for fantasy books with mature MCs, look no further. Frank and Twyla are in their 50s, have each been through one marriage already, have kids and grandkids, but are also badass Marshals and the best of friends. They are so loveable and I found myself giggling at their banter.

There is some action, but I would classify this as a cozy fantasy. If you like cozy fantasy and friends to lovers, you should absolutely pick this up.

Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my review!

(3.25/5 stars) I waffled between 3 and 4 stars for this follow up sequel to The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. I suppose my expectations were high going into it based on the first book, and some expectations were met - again, I enjoyed all the characters, including the side characters. I thought the characterization of marriage and motherhood was well written (and I thanked my husband after reading this book for always holding me close but never holding me back). I love a good cozy fantasy and this felt like it met that bar.

I think where it fell short for me compared to the first book was the lack of a dual POV, I think that helped the first book shine and I would've liked it here. And, similar to the first book, I wish the worldbuilding had been better. Unlike the first book, the ending and tying together of everything was less redemptive than the first go round which didn't bring my rating up.

Will I read the third book? Of course. I enjoyed the world and the writing enough to jump back in. I was just a tad disappointed in this one.

This is a soft DNF for me, I would definitely come back to it when I’m in the right mood. I love that the characters are older and I’m intrigued by what I’ve read so far. I also like the little Easter eggs from the first book that I’ve caught in the beginning. I just wasn’t in the mood for it when I started but it has a really promising start. Full review to come

The world of Tanria that Megan Bannen has created is everything I want and desire in a supernatural romcom! Here are just a few of the reasons that you HAVE to pick up this amazing book!

* Middle-Aged Main Characters! (Both Characters are 50+!)
* Friends-to-Lovers (This will ALWAYS be my go-to trope!)
* Dragons! (They are truly adorable though)
* Twyla is a widowed mom who is just trying to do her best, which is so relatable to so many mothers!
* Low spice, BUT it is so sweet and intimate and meaningful
* Love-Triangle actually done right!

If that doesn’t convince you, let me say this…If you loved Megan Bannen’s first book, The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy, you will absolutely find yourself loving this book as well. Megan brings her same quirky penmanship to this story that you loved about the first book. And while this is set in the same world, it can still absolutely be read as a stand alone.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book and I am sure you will too!

Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for the e-arc!
I absolutely adored The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy it when it came out and I am so excited to continue with this world and author! The first book in this world was an absolutely epic love story with adventure and perfect vibes. I am so glad to say that in this book, we follow Twyla and Frank in an absolutely adorable and action-packed fantasy romance.
One of my absolute favorite things about the story is the world is just as amazing as in the first book! I love the addition of dragons and the fact that there is a bit of a mystery plotline going on. Honestly, any book with dragons is an immediate must-read, especially if it's a cozy romance like this. Not only that, but the main romance is an older couple that starts out as adorable friends and slowly burns into lovers! It is just the absolutely perfect setup with such an adorable mean couple!

This is what I would call a cozy fantasy romance. It was so fun to see that Twyla found a rewarding job for herself after hitting middle-age with her neighbor Frank. Of course this job was a little bit different in that they were patrolling an area with dragons. I love the world building and how everything just could be seen in my head as it was written. I really enjoyed seeing an older romance unfold before my eyes. The progression of Twyla and Frank from friends to lovers was done in a way that makes sense to the story. The mystery involved was also fun to

Let me start by saying that The Undertaking of Hart & Mercy is one of my favorite books ever, so I went into this with high expectations. Did it live up to them? Yeah it did (said in my best Joey voice)! I mean, it checks off a lot of boxes for me: middle-aged heroine/love interest (can we get more of these, please? 40+ somethings deserve love too), witty banter, just the right amount of incredibly well-done spice (the word cock was not used at all!), and dragons (that breath glitter)! Oh, and some really great lines about the isolation of motherhood. If I had anything to nit-pick, it would be the frequent mentions of the female MC's "soft" body. We get it, our bodies change as we age. I LOVE that we have a desirable middle aged woman with some extra softness, but I'm not sure we needed to harp on it as much. Let her be desirable as she is! Again, though, I'm nit-picking. Now, can someone go get me a glitter-breathing dragon??

The residents of Eternity, and the beauty of Tanria, return this July in The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen. We first encountered these two characters in Bannen’s first Tanrian novel, The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy and now we get to take a closer look at another odd couple from this odd but beautiful place. Where in the first book we were given enemies to lovers, now we see what happens when you start as best friends.

Twyla Banneker and Frank Ellis have been next door neighbors for over twenty years. Twyla was there for Frank when his wife left him and took their daughters away. Frank was there for Twyla when her husband died. For over a decade they have been each other’s “person.” They are also partners, that is partners as Tanrian Marshalls, patrolling the Mist and Eternity to safeguard the populace. The job is a lot safer now that there are no drudges to defend against, but the world is still full of the vestiges of the old gods. On a routine patrol, they come up against the traces of something that can only be a dragon, but dragons have not been seen in two million years, so that can’t be it can it? Well of course it can! Now Twyla and Frank have to contend with grown up kids, an odd professor of Draconology, the upcoming wedding of Hart and Mercy, and whatever this tension is that has “suddenly” sprung up between them. Oh, and dragons, lots of dragons.



I was about halfway through reading this book when I realized I had been grinning like a Cheshire cat the entire time. After just one book in this universe, I am already fully invested in the lives of these people. Where Hart and Mercy had to fight their own sarcastic and cantankerous natures, Twyla and Frank are two of the nicest people you could hope to meet, and it’s their own disinclination to rock the boat that they have to battle.


All Images: Orbit Books
The other relationships are not neglected in this book. We get to see more of Pen and Duckers, and see the love birds in all their harmony but also how flush new love can be with its own brand of worry. And of course we attend the wedding of Hart and Mercy.

The old gods are explored a little more in this narrative, as Twyla is more religious than either Hart or Mercy. Bannen takes on religious need and apathy in such a sensitive way, that I wish more religious people in our real world could adopt her approach. The scene where Twyla is spoken to directly by her deity of choice is wonderful, but the wedding scene in particular reveals so much about the nature of religion and tradition in this world. It is a beautiful rendition of things that are because of our stories, but also things that we hold dear because of our futures.

Dragons and amphibious transportation aside, the realness of the characters, especially the women is a tender spot for me. It is nice to read into characters that are experiencing some of the same complicated emotions that I have been through as a young woman, and as a mother. In their relationships with Hart and Frank respectively Mercy and Twyla, are disarmingly genuine. In both books, when they finally get together with their menfolk, both are wearing granny panties! And both men have the same reaction, neither cares. Time and time again Bannen uses her characters to subtly remind us that the things we worry about are probably things we have no need to worry about. I love the equivocation she gives each woman that is promptly followed by a big dose of self confidence. With almost two teenagers in the house, the awakening of Twyla to her own wants and needs outside of motherhood is delightful and inspiring to this mom of three. Bannen is also able to use these characters to explore the vestiges of the patriarchy in their world and how it mirrors our own world with a clear and cutting commentary.



“Everett is a sweetheart. I love Everett. But I also know that it means to be on the losing end of the Old Gods’ tug-of-war between This is Male and This is Female. It didn’t go away when the New Gods won the war, and it didn’t go away when the Old Gods took their place on the altar of the sky. And if you think it’s not coming for you the second you tie yourself to the person who comes with the equipment that puts him on the winning end of that game of tug-of-war, have I got news for you.” —Twyla to her daughter

While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it was definitely more focused on Twyla than Frank. In The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy, both main characters were equal leads. Time was spent exploring both of them and it was definitely a dual POV. Where in The Undermining of Twyla and Frank, we are focused almost entirely on Twyla’s perspective, with much of Franks’ thoughts and opinions being obvious to an outsider. He did a few things that surprised me, but you really knew this was about Frank waiting for Twyla to read the writing on the wall. I think more time could have been spent on Frank’s point of view, but the lack of it did not in any way upset my enjoyment of the book.



Coming back to this world has firmly established that the nimkilim (postal workers) are my favorite vestiges of the old world, and I can wait for a stand alone about them as long as they continue to feature so prominently in the narratives. In The Undermining of Twyla and Frank, we are introduced to Hermia, a clumsy emotional hedgehog, who Twyla has a soft spot for and Frank is easily irritated by. We also get a quick revisit with our nimkilim friends from the previous book, who are present at the wedding of Hart and Mercy.

If you enjoyed the first book, you will enjoy the second, and I for one cannot wait for a third and fourth journey into Tanria.

GeekMom received an ARC for review purposes

This was such a different kind of fun experience for me that I didn't know I needed. I want to start off by saying that I did not read The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy but I was not lost at all. Immediately went to buy physical copies of both for my collection. Twyla and Frank share a real friendship that I absolutely adored, they are so sweet! I love the world, the plot, the characters, and dragons!

Because I enjoyed The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy so much, I had extremely high expectations going into this book and I have to say, the author did not disappoint. This was thoroughly engaging and enjoyable to read. I love that Frank and Twyla are given their spotlight, but we also get callbacks and get to revisit with some of our favorites from the first book. Additionally I think the spicy scenes were very well done and incredibly representative and realistic, something not often seen in books.

In book 2, two older marshals are trying to figure out what their lives look like now that the original purpose of their force has ended. I love an older couple romance, even if the third act break up was a bit dramatic. I adored Frank and his relationship to Mary Georgina (IYKYK), as well as how both of them relate to their adult children (with all the bumps real life includes). Plus, their songs together! Duckers also provides comedic relief again.
-Older protagonists
-Friends to lovers
- Love triangle 🔺️
-Dragons!

Wow oh wow this book was such an amazing breath of fresh air! First off this world is absolutely wonderful and I love it so much! Twyla and Frank were ultimate cinnamon rolls and I loved that they weren’t some young adults that they were mature adults with children and they find each other much later in life. Uuugghhhh this story is going to live in my heart rent free for a while because I just can’t and the epilogue was just swoon worthy!

3 stars

I adored Bannen’s previous work in this world, and so The Undermining of Twyla and Frank was a highly anticipated read for me. Unfortunately I wasn’t as swept away by it as I was its predecessor, but I still very much enjoyed my time with it. I think in The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy I was in love with both the creative world and with the romance, whereas in Twyla and Frank I was into the romance but felt like the fantasy setting struggled.

I loved our main couple, Twyla and Frank. Twyla is essentially That Midwestern Mom transplanted to a cozy fantasy setting, which I loved. Both characters are middle aged (53) and I enjoyed their dynamic as longtime friends navigating life with grown children leaving the nest. Twyla’s anxieties felt totally relatable, and I enjoyed the complexities of her personality, that her character was both confident and capable at work and also insecure and easily steamrolled at home.

I should have been all over the fantasy elements of this novel, which focus on the discovery of dragons in the newly undead-free land of Tanria, but they ended up disappointing me. The cheerfully quirky aspects of this cozy fantasy setting (such as the magic animal mail system) worked really well in the last book when tempered with the creepiness of the undead, but in this story there is no creepiness; some danger, yes, but always undercut with something sugary sweet or ridiculous, constantly reminding the reader that this is Safe and Cozy, to the point where it lost my interest. The ’villain’ of the story (which I think would have been worlds better without a villain) was both obvious and annoyingly twee.

The family dynamics in Twyla’s and Frank’s lives were nicely set up and beautifully resolved; it’s a shame the fantasy plot let me down, which is why this review feels lopsided. I loved our main couple, and was swept along in their romance (the ‘stop me’ scene was deliciously steamy), but left disappointed with all the elements around them.

Oh my gosh! What to say about Twyla and Frank? I love this world and was so happy to be back.

Twyla and Frank are so charming. Truly the best of friends, just enjoying being marshals together. But everything gets complicated when they discover dragons in Tanria!

The plot of this one reads like a Scooby Doo mystery and I was delightfully surprised by it. I also really enjoyed the friends to lovers romance. It gets so messy in the best way. I was absolutely screaming at Twyla and Frank to just figure their stuff out already haha. They each had baggage that they needed to unpack with each other before they could move forward and it was done beautifully. And bonus, we get more Duckers in this book. He is the best, I was so stoked that he is in this one in such a big role too.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the advance reader copy!

I will be posting my review to Instagram this week as well and will add the link to my NetGalley feedback.