Something about October puts me in the mood for autumnal, chilly fantasies – ones that make you want to curl up with a warm drink and soft blanket to read the evening away. I read the blurb for “The Quill and the Vial,” and it sounded like my perfect October cozy read. This light fantasy – with its soft magic system, plant magic, stormy nights, and sprinkles of romance – had everything I was looking for and more.

The Blurb:

“Plants lie, and Jayce can hear them.

For seven years, a deadly plague has threatened the realm. Jayce has survived by using her plant magic to make and sell remedies, but most of her funds are sucked dry by a corrupt debt collector and the impossible debt she owes the realm.

When the debt collector threatens Jayce with prison unless she’ll marry him, she flees into the woods. There, she runs into a nameless baron who agrees to pay her debt if she’ll help him find the last of the seers who remembers the prophecy of the Plague King.

Together they’ll face warrior monks, carnivorous reindeer, and their own dark pasts as they journey to find a cure before the Plague King rises to wipe out the realm.

Jayce failed the world once. Can she prevent it from happening again?

THE QUILL AND THE VIAL is the first book in the Plague King Chronicles, a magical epic fantasy trilogy that is both cozy and dark. If you like warm drinks by the fire, vast lands, and fantastic adventures, you’ll love the Plague King Chronicles.

Travel the realm of Neldor with Jayce and Sav when you buy this book today!”

The Review:

I truly enjoyed Jayce’s story. While this was a cozy fantasy, it was also dark, damp, deadly, and, at its core, a story of a woman who is on an adventure while also recovering from past trauma.

While we don’t know all of Jayce’s story, we come to understand that Jayce has trauma because she failed a really big task in her past that was placed in front of her to help save the realm. At least, that’s how things appear at this current juncture. Sav is a mysterious scholarly baron who wants to know Jayce’s story; however, Jayce’s memory is locked behind some pretty powerful trauma that she doesn’t want to address.

I can’t say enough good things about magic of the book. I hate to call it a magic system because it was such a light system. Some people are essentially gifted certain abilities at birth or later in life. Jayce can feel plants talking to her when she touches them. The brilliant twist is that plants only tell lies. Jayce spends her time and her skill by working as an apothecary so she can heal people. What she sees as a flawed and unhelpful magic clarifies with time and study. It is so genius and well-done and a delight to read.

At the center of this story is a mystery and a horseback adventure with both Sav and Jayce. There is a light romance, but it is ever-present. I adored Jayce, but Sav sometimes frustrated me with his mood-swings. While he is absolutely my favorite romantic choice of the bunch, he was a touch dramatic (Jayce’s word choice, not mine) and moody. They had so many sweet moments, though, that it was impossible to stay mad at him for long. Especially with all his hot chocolate. <3

Final Thoughts: This was a delightfully cozy fantasy with a great setting, great friendships, and great characters. I adored Jayce’s plant magic and her growth with her magic. I eagerly await the next book!

Rating: 4.5/5 stars.

You can find “The Quill and the Vial” on Amazon and Goodreads.

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Thanks to the author and StoryOrigin for an advance copy of this book for review!