A Tale of Mirth and Magic was a fantastic, quick read! Charming and cozy, and had a fair amount of great spice. Barra was adorably sexy, and while Elikki was incredibly stubborn to the point of frustration sometimes, I found myself relating to her more than I thought I would. The banter was great, Elikki teasing and Barra being so sweet and shy. I loved this and it helped pull me out of a bit of a reading funk!

thank you so much for the approval- i cannot wait to dive in, this is one of my most anticipated reads of the year! i will be sure to leave a review on GR/retailers to come! 💞

A Tale of Mirth and Magic is a deliciously fun and spicy cozy fantasy that I absolutely devoured! I adored the plus-sized FMC—confident, relatable, and refreshingly real—and the MMC was a total golden retriever type: sweet, loyal, and absolutely swoon-worthy. Their romance was so charming, with just the right balance of sweetness and heat. The spice was chef’s kiss—steamy but never overpowering the story.

The side characters were a delight (some of their bickering had me laughing out loud), and the villain was compelling and well-written. I especially loved the emotional journey the main couple goes through—learning to be vulnerable and work through their flaws felt so genuine and added depth to the story.

Also, fair warning: the food descriptions are next-level. I was craving gourmet meals and lemon cake the entire time!

If you love cozy fantasy with heart, humor, heat, and great character development—don’t miss this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever publishing for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This book was fun - cute and charming!

Elekki is a wonderful character - she's curvy, she's a bit sassy, and talent - a special talent for making jewlry! So she does and she travels around selling what she makes, unitl one day she comes across a bit of an ass and he makes her mad - so mad that she accidentally breaks his wrist. A giant watches all of this unfold and breaks the mans other wrist. A bit funny and deserving - but turns out the guy with 2 broken wrists in a nobleman and he goes rogue - setting a bounty on their heads. They travel together and come to know each other quite well.

It wraps up really cute and fun as well and I found myself just really relating to and enjoying Elekki and Barra!

A Tale of Mirth and Magic is a solid debut cozy, open-door romantic fantasy. (Are there enough adjectives in that sentence?). It is a solid 3-star read for me with issues that never kept me from staying immersed or continuing on. While the main characters were neither my cups of tea, they were well-written and their arcs—separately and together—made sense. Vale has a good understanding of romantic plotting and characters, which shines through. The world the author built wasn’t my favourite; it’s a D&D inspired world with little added on. Not the worst, but knowing the game certainly helps to understand some things about Vale’s world. The sexual content is present and definitely on the explicit side, which I appreciated in theory, but was jarringly written in reality. Another pass by an editor to smooth the transitions to and from these scenes felt needed.

All in all, I think I would gladly read more by Vale, especially as she gains more experience and smooths out some of the above mentioned issues. Thanks to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the ebook ARC. All opinions are my own.

This was a quick and fun read! Plus sized elf, lavender half-giant, both bi/pan/queer? Amazing!! This was both very unserious and semi-serious at the same time lol. Elikki and Barra both have issues they needed to work through (and need to continuously work through) but ya know what, they made it in the end. Also Barra is such a golden retriever angel baby (7’8 half-giant) I just adored him, what a sweetheart. And Elikki is a fucking badass, love her.

An Incredibly cozy and spicy fantasy romance! I was bursting out laughing every few paragraphs. The romance and humour is very reminiscent of Kimberly Lemming's work and I absolutely love it. The magic and fantastical lore of the characters and world is so expertly woven with the almost modern day dialogue. I can't wait to read more from this author!

An Incredibly cozy and spicy fantasy romance! I was bursting out laughing every few paragraphs. The romance and humour is very reminiscent of Kimberly Lemming's work and I absolutely love it. The magic and fantastical lore of the characters and world is so expertly woven with the almost modern day dialogue. I can't wait to read more from this author!

I truly enjoyed reading A Tale of Mirth & Magic. I love that the FMC is a self-assured plus-sized elf with a charismatic personality. The MMC is a purple giant, who's an absolute sweetheart. It was a quick read, and while the world-building wasn't overly intricate, it didn't detract from my enjoyment of the story. As a debut novel, it's pretty good, and I'm interested in what the author writes next.

2.5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley, Forever, and Grand Central Publishing for this advanced copy. You can pick up A Tale of Mirth & Magic on August 5, 2025.

I love a good cozy romantasy (especially one with plus-sized rep), and it seemed right up my alley at first glance. While it does have some charming characters, creatures, and scenes, unfortunately, A Tale of Mirth & Magic ultimately fell flat for me.

My main issue was the breakneck speed of the "relationship" and how shallow it felt. Within the first 20%, things are getting spicy -- and there's nothing wrong with that, especially when you pick up a book expecting that insta-lust dynamic. But it felt a bit out of left field in this case, especially with how quickly emotions developed soon after that.

The individual character arcs actually felt well-executed. Barra in particular felt well-rounded, and his fears about starting a physical relationship with Elikki when he knew it likely wouldn't go further made sense. Which is why her actions were frustrating and icky at times, especially when she pushed for more physical intimacy. There were times when Barra literally wanted to communicate and have an adult conversation, but Elikki would try to shift it into something physical or run away without talking/listening.

I don't mind a romance-driven storyline, but when the main plot is trying to convince someone to have a casual relationship who is decidedly NOT casual, that's a no from me. Others might enjoy the story, though, and the spicy scenes.

Special thanks to NetGalley and to the author for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

✨Thoughts ✨
I really enjoyed this! It was sweet, it was hilarious and it was spicy and I really liked the dynamic between the love interests!! My only gripe with the book was the pacing. It's kind of slow in the beginning and then everything just kind of happens and there's just a bunch of "lulls" and then it picks up again and then slows down again.

I wanted this to be for me but it just wasn’t. It was definitely cozy, which was great but I felt like I was forcing myself to read it every time I picked it up. I could have just read it at the wrong time though! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc ebook in exchange for an honest review.

A fun, cozy fantasy read about a sassy jewelry making elf who comes across a half-giant lavender lover boy. The spice is good, the romance is cute and the story overall gave good, warm fuzzy vibes.

To be honest, it wasn't for me. However, fans of the Mead Mishaps series may want to check this one out as it has a similar light romance-with-fantasy-elements kind of vibe.

TL/DR: Alright, you’ve read the synopsis, right? Awesome, just buy the book. If you like cozy fantasy romance, with magic and the perfect amount of spice, this is the book. Still not convinced? What if I told you that the two main characters each have their own insecurities; one who didn’t feel love as a child and uses sex to fill that void and the other who loves too quickly, has been hurt in the past, and has sworn off getting that close to anyone again? Oh, and there are bounty hunters. Also a HEA that will leave you smiling. Can you tell I loved this book?

Ok, so our FMC, Elikki, is an elf who can make beautiful jewelry that she can infuse with her magic. Unfortunately, she hasn’t quite mastered her magic and when she loses her temper, let’s just say her jewelry pieces respond in kind. She’s also been on her own for a long time and feels like she isn’t worth loving for more than a short period of time (again, her temper plays in here too). However, I love her vivaciousness, her love of adventure and her fearlessness (even when she’s scared out of her mind).

Then there is our MMC, Barra, a nearly 8 ft. tall, violet, half giant. My favorite thing about him is he tries to blend in and not draw attention to himself. He lives with his Mas and 3 sisters, keeping the books for the family business and traveling to give and receive orders. He is surrounded by love. In other words, opposites attracting doesn’t even cover it.

This book has all the elements of a cozy fantasy romance, but the stuff the characters are dealing with is something most of us have probably felt at some point. There are still outside forces against them (remember the bounty hunters?). However, in this book it’s the characters’ insecurities that they fight against that makes it different and special. Oh, and don’t forget about the spice. Yeah, that’s in there too.

I would like to thank the author, Kristen Vale, publisher Forever and NetGalley for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and voluntarily given. As always, I wish you happy reading!

A Tale of Mirth & Magic is a quick and cozy fantasy read centering around Elikki and Barra as they are on the run after Elikki has a disastrous encounter at a local market. It’s short, to-the-point, and very steamy!

I think this book is perfect for those who need a light and fast-paced read, especially for anyone currently in a reading slump. This will definitely help get out of it! It also has great diversity in the characters and world, and was entertaining while being low-stakes.

I liked the setup for this book but didn’t feel enough personal or relationship development was included. I didn’t buy in to the love story but could feel the attraction between the characters on a physical level.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Cozy, lighthearted, and fun without being too silly! Perfect length and tone. I think any longer and the story would've become drawn out unnecessarily.

Thank you to Kristen Vale and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!!! I have been reading a lot of fantasy related cozy type books., and this is just another good one. This has a tad more spice than the usual cozy fantasy book so really its the best of both words. Solid world building. AND A FMC that isn't short, just a really tall MMC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC. I loved the idea of it so much!!

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever Publishing for providing me an eArc in exchange for a review!

A Tale of Mirth & Magic promises to bring cozy vibes and spice as we follow Elikki, an elf who uses her magic to create special jewelry and Barra, the soft half giant who ends up in her path. After rude man tries to make of with one of her most expensive pieces, Elikki's temper snaps...along with his wrist. Now on the run from town guards, Elikki and Barra, who had stepped in to help her escape, wind up in the forest. As they spend time together on the road, a relationship blooms.

The positives first. I really appreciated that Barra was the softer, more emotional one in the relationship. It's very rare to see in a genre so full of alpha male love interests. He truly was a gentle giant. There was another great subversion with Elikki being big in all senses of the word, big personality, big height, and big body. It's refreshing to find a heroine who isn't meek and basically a speck of dust. The pace is pretty quick which helped me move through easily.

But my biggest disappointment...the romance. There is just nothing there. The book is very short so it leaves their relationship progression to feel incredibly rushed. The first sex scene happens within the first 25% and after the characters have only known each other for maybe a few hours. I actually said to myself "oh, okay, guess we're doing this now" when it happened because it felt so sudden. There were also a few things Elikki said about relationships that really made me side eye her and those things are never brought up again either. Barra was so open and always tried to communicate but Elikki would always divert any thing he said by trying to initiate intimacy. It gave me a bit of an ick.

As I said, the pace is fast, but everything bends around the short page count. The romance is breakneck and the plot is paper thin. I feel a bit guilty giving this a low rating, but I think the biggest crime of romance book can commit is making me feel surprised when characters say 'I love you'.