This was such a great book about comfort, finding yourself, and family. Family can be overwhelming, but at its heart it is exactly what you need sometimes.

Review: A Fellowship of Librarians and Dragons by J. Tenner
Rating: ★★★★☆

I was immediately drawn to A Fellowship of Librarians and Dragons by its cosy, whimsical feel—something that first captured my heart with book one in the Adenashire series. While it didn’t quite live up to the magic of the first installment, this book still delivered a heartwarming and thoroughly enjoyable read that fans of cosy fantasy will adore.

The story follows Doli, a sunshine-hearted Dwarf whose warmth and kindness are impossible not to love. Tasked with caring for a mischievous baby dragon (who absolutely stole the show), Doli finds herself navigating new responsibilities, unexpected companionships, and the possibility of romance with a surprisingly charming gargoyle. Her journey is one of leaning on her friends, embracing found family, and growing into herself.

J. Tenner’s writing is light and engaging, with a great sense of pacing that kept me invested from start to finish. The world of Adenashire remains as enchanting as ever, and I especially appreciated how themes of friendship and belonging were woven through the narrative. It’s a wholesome, comforting read—perfect for fans of Legends and Lattes or anyone looking for a gentle escape into a magical world.

Though it lacked a bit of the sparkle that made the first book stand out, it still left me eager for more—especially if future stories focus on Jez, the delightfully grumpy fennex.

If you’re in the mood for something soft, sweet, and a little bit magical, this is one worth curling up with.

What a sweet cozy fantasy this was! Just what I needed to reset my brain and relax for a few days, dreaming about dragons and pastries and strong gargoyles that give off Mr Darcy vibes. Family drama, a sprinkle of mystery, and romance in the air: Doli's story was like a hot cup of tea on a cold day. The village of Adenashire is now high on my travel list and I cannot wait to read the next book 😊

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the eARC.

It was a nice fluffy read. I got a bit bored, nothing really happens until the very end. I thought I would get a smidge more adventure since it mentions a “sinister plot”. I thought we would have a bit more to do there.

I found Doli to be pretty annoying. Just cry girl, don’t “hold the tears back”, a good cry can help so much! I loved Evvy, she was the absolute cutest. I really did like that part of the story and the ending was cool. I liked her pals, even though they could be a bit much, Jez- I’m talking about you! But Sarson was my favorite character, besides Evvy.

Overall, it was ok. I wont be reading any other books from the series, but happy I took a chance on this one.

I loved getting to know Doli more. This was such a cute story and adventure. Getting to know more about Doli and how she was tired of the people pleasing but didn't want to be seen as rude and I'm glad Evvy helped her come out of her shell and stand up for herself and Sarson was amazing! I loved him so much in this story.

The more magical worlds I read about, the more I want to live a cozy life with a magical familiar and my own shop.

This was a sweet, cozy continuation of the Adenashire series. Doli lives a quiet life; not quite meeting up to her parents standards, but living a cozy life as a tea magician with her circle of close friends. But when her parents come bringing trouble, her world is thrown into chaos.

A sweet, cozy read.

This book was much better and exceeded my expectations compared to the first. The author has grown and developed so much which I love to see. I have no doubts that each book following will be amazing and looking forward to it.

I loved Doli as a main character, her mannerisms and personality was developed greatly, that you could imagine her. I adored her relationship with Sarson. The world building was satisfactory with the orcs, dragons and all, I just felt the pacing was touch and go but still felt cosy in this world when reading. Sarson's backstory was introduced but I felt I was waiting for more, I would love to explore more into that but the slow-burn romance was great to follow as well while wanting more.

Overall, this is a comforting read, with no-spice which is good touch for this book and for fans that want to read fantasy, magical tea and the story of truly being yourself (don't worry you won't have to raise a dragon in real life).

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Fellowship of Librarians & Dragons by J. Penner is the 2nd book along with A fellowship of bakers and magic!

This lovely book focuses on the main character who practices Tea magic (how cool is this tho!) Though her life gets turned quickly into a whirlwind when her parents arrive back home with a dragon egg...and a strange gargoyle.

Her life is turned upside down figuring out who she is, and family pressures while navigating raising a dragon.

J. Penner creates a world of self discovery through this book, and places the importance of having a community in our lives to help us grow and develop courage to embrace ourselves.

Overall, I really liked this book with its cosy reading style, plot about self discovery and growth and the amazing characters that came to life ❤️

This just as the first one was such a fast paced, feel-good cozy fantasy romance! Doli is a dwarf that has to suddenly take care of a baby dragon, and although all her friends try to help her only the new gargoyle in town has the knowledge to do so. But is he hiding something? And why did Evvy end up with Doli? I loved the two MCs!And just as the first one I liked that the romance was a subplot as it focused more on Doli’s relationship with her little dragon Evvy. Again I cannot wait to get the sequel, I need it right now especially knowing it focuses on Jez that has a very similar personality to me. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

J Penner’s books have all the delightful elements of a cozy fantasy: baked goods, bookstores, mythical creatures, and the best of friends who become found family.

In this second book of the series, I really enjoyed Doli’s character growth and how she had to overcome her people-pleasing tendencies. And I loved her bond with her dragon Evvy.

My only quibble is that it was almost TOO low stakes and calm for awhile, and all the action happened very quickly right at the end.

I will absolutely keep reading this series! When the first one came out and was published independently, I asked both my libraries to order it, and they did. I am thrilled every time I think about more people getting to read about magical baking shows and delightful dragons. I am thrilled this book was picked up by a publisher so more readers will find it!

I find that cozy mysteries fall into two categories. The first type are books that are cozy, fun reads with an interesting plot, well developed characters, and actual stakes. The second type are stereotypical drivel with characters and a world primarily built around stereotypes, and no worthwhile plot. Unfortunately, this book fell into the latter type.

The plot, what little there is, centers around a dwarf named Doli (I guess it’s not cozy if it’s not alliterative) who works in a bookshop and makes tea (of course). She lives in a small town where every person you meet is a different fantasy race - an orc, an elf, a centaur, a fennex, even a talking badger. One day a gargoyle named Sarson comes into town and Doli thinks he’s cute and eventually you’ll get a “…” style interspecies romance moment. *Sigh* The main drama in the book centers around Doli receiving a dragon egg from a dead Uncle, which immediately hatches upon her touching it. I’m sure you’ll be excited for a dragon to appear, but don’t be fooled. Not only is the dragon basically just a little cat-imp creature with wings, but an adult dragon shows up at the end and proceeds to make puns. Kill me.

A sub-plot around Doli’s parents unexpectedly coming to visit soon goes nowhere as one two page conversation about respecting people and their boundaries solves all the problem ever faced by their family. I’m sure other things happened, but none of it is genuinely enough to keep your interest and you can certainly skip huge chunks of the book without actually missing anything.

Ultimately the main problem with this book is that the author has taken the sub-genre of cozy fantasy and assumed that no stakes, no world building, no character building nonsense will appease readers. Definitely not the case for me. Save yourself and skip this book.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

3.5 stars

This book was SO MUCH BETTER than the first! You can really see how much the author has grown and I love that and have no doubt that each book following will be better than the previous.

This was such a fun and cozy slice of life story. I definitely preferred Doli as a main character to Arleta- who I found quite annoying in book one. Doli had some great character development and I just adore her relationship with Sarson. Evvy the dragon was adorable and food obsessed a dragon after my own heart.

Things I liked:
Found family
Familiar characters
Cozy vibes
Small town
Low stakes
DRAGON

Some things I didn't like:
The confrontation conversation with her parents to go way too smoothly/easily after all that build up.
Why was everyone constantly pinning their lips?
I'm assuming it was a joke hearing about how much everyone was talking about the unicorn stampede but never actually telling the reader what was going on with that, b ut I didn't find it amusing, but annoying. Either tell the story or drop it.

I loved this book just as much as the first one. Still has that cozy fantasy and that desire of wanting to bake everything they made.

The reason why I gave it a 4 star: I felt like there wasn’t enough interaction between Doli and her parents for me to feel that strange relationship between them. Even when she finally opened up to her parents I wish there was more of a bounding time and a start of a new relationship between them, instead of her going home to read on her parents last day.

However, I will most definitely be rereading this book again and trying these amazing recipes!!

Not my usual read, but I was drawn in by the stunning cover and the promise of cosy, whimsical fantasy—and on that front, this book absolutely delivers.

Set in the magical town of Adenashire, the story follows Doli Butterbuckle—a sunshine dwarf, people-pleaser, and tea-magic aficionado—whose quiet life is upended when she inherits a dragon egg and her overbearing parents arrive unannounced. Add in a charming gargoyle with a mysterious past, a mischievous baby dragon, and a loyal circle of friends, and you have a lighthearted, feel-good adventure steeped in warmth and found family vibes.

This is the second book in the Adenashire series, but I had no trouble reading it as a standalone.

While I really enjoyed the cosy, Hallmark-esque world-building (orcs, dragons, gargoyles, and all), I found the pacing a bit uneven. The first two-thirds of the book meandered and felt a little repetitive, while the final few chapters suddenly rushed through the action. Several intriguing threads—Doli’s relationship with her parents, Sarson’s backstory, and the slow-burn romance—were introduced but never fully explored.

Worth noting: this is a no-spice romance, which fits the cosy tone, but may be helpful for some readers to know going in.

Overall, this is a sweet, comforting read that will appeal to fans of gentle fantasy, magical tea, and stories about embracing who you truly are—even if that means raising a chaotic dragon on your own terms.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Super cozy fantasy. Normally I don’t like cozy stories because they seem boring and super slow paced. But this one I enjoyed. The characters were realistic and not stereotypical. I loved the main characters being different types of creatures (dwarf, gargoyle, fox, etc.) and if I were ever in a cozy happy fantasy story I’d like to be in this one. Also, there are recipes at the end! I’ve never had a fantasy book give me recipes before and I love it! It’s a nice touch.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for providing me with an earc in exchange for an honest review. This book comes out June 3rd.

I enjoyed this book. Cozy, fun. However I didn't enjoy it as much as the first book as nothing major happens till like middle of the book. I prefer if something happened already at the beginning. I still loved this book

This short, cozy fantasy had everything I wanted and more. Mythical creatures, magic, found family, mouthwatering baked goods, romance and an FMC, Doli, who is the sunshine in all of her friends’ lives, but is struggling with her own internal battles. Doli, a tea magic-wielding dwarf, has left her hometown of Dundes Heights in search of a happier, more fulfilling life indulging in the things she loves – especially books. She is employed at the town’s bookshop and rents the apartment above it with her fennec friend, Jez. Fate happens upon her doorstop not once, but twice, when an unexpected delivery arrives not long before a handsome gargoyle named Sarson sweeps her off her feet (literally). I appreciated the diverse array of characters and creatures in this story; it helped me feel truly immersed in the world of Adenashire. Evvy’s antics were so much fun to imagine as was watching the bond between her and Doli grow. I also love love love a grumpy-sunshine friendship so naturally I adored Jez and Doli’s relationship. All of Doli’s friends are incredibly supportive, kind and interesting, but seeing Jez come around to not only Evvy, but Sarson too, was heartwarming. And the romance between Doli and Sarson was so sweet I swear my teeth were aching by the time I finished reading. I’d definitely pick this up again and recommend to those who just want to escape into a happy, cozy place for a little while.

A whimsical, clever tale that celebrates books and bravery. The humor was spot on, and the found family vibe was heartwarming. Great pacing and fun references for book lovers.

I went into this book not having read the earlier books, and now I have to go back and read them all! After a few darker books, this was the ultimate palate cleanser. I loved how wholesome and cosy it was. Cant wait to read them all!

3,5⭐️

First of all, thank you very much to J. Penner, Poisoned Pen Press (Sourcebooks, Inc) and NetGalley for giving me the access to the ARC.

Such a cozy reading this was! This fantasy book is so beautifully written, all the details about the scenery, the rich and diverse characters…an absolute must read!
Had a lovely time following Doli’s journey through Adenashire, watching her discovering herself whilst meeting new people and finding her love! Her kind soul made me feel so joyful, like…a lot of times I truly wished I could have hug her!I adored the way the author connected Doli’s self discovery journey to the dragon egg development, it gave the story a very special meaning, imo!

If you’re looking for some fantasy cozy reading, with characters diversity, a strong and lovely FMC and good amount of laughs I 100% recommend this book. I had such a great time reading it and my heart was so filled with happiness!