The Teller of Small Fortunes, by Julie Leong

February 7, 2025 Lark_Bookwyrm Book Reviews 0 ★★★★★

The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong
Published by Ace Books on November 5, 2024
Genres: Cozy Fantasy
Pages: 336
Format: eARC
Source: the publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Bookshop | Barnes & Noble | Audible | Chirp
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five-stars

A wandering fortune teller finds an unexpected family in this warm and wonderful debut fantasy, perfect for readers of Travis Baldree and Sangu Mandanna.

Tao is an immigrant fortune teller, traveling between villages with just her trusty mule for company. She only tells "small" fortunes: whether it will hail next week; which boy the barmaid will kiss; when the cow will calve. She knows from bitter experience that big fortunes come with big consequences…

Even if it’s a lonely life, it’s better than the one she left behind. But a small fortune unexpectedly becomes something more when a (semi) reformed thief and an ex-mercenary recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they’re joined by a baker with a "knead" for adventure, and—of course—a slightly magical cat.

Tao starts down a new path with companions as big-hearted as her fortunes are small. But as she lowers her walls, the shadows of her past close in—and she’ll have to decide whether to risk everything to preserve the family she never thought she could have.

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher.

A warm, beautiful, and ultimately comforting fantasy

I loved The Teller of Small Tales, Julie Leong’s debut novel. It’s a cozy quest fantasy with a found-family vibe, set in a vaguely British renaissance-era world. Tao, the main character, travels the land in a wagon, telling “small fortunes” and avoiding her ability to see major events in her clients’ lives. She is solitary, except for her mule Laohu, and she prefers it that way. When she accidentally reads a not-so-small fortune for a former mercenary seeking his lost daughter, Tao finds herself caught up in his quest, and reluctantly agrees to travel with Mash and his companion Silt, a former thief. Along the way, the trio are joined by a baker, Kina, as well as a cat. Slowly, Tao begins to trust her companions. But Tao’s use of her gift eventually attracts the notice of agents of the mage guild (from whom she has been hiding for years), putting not only Tao but her new friends in danger.

The Teller of Small Fortunes really is cozy fantasy, despite the dangers Tao and her friends find themselves in. The three major side characters are delightful and individual, and their several adventures serve to meld them together as a team. In fact, the novel feels very much like a D&D-style adventure—on a personal rather than an epic scale, and low on both violence and evil creatures. The party does encounter a few potentially dangerous magical beings, dealing with them ethically and creatively. I also appreciated how the villains turned out to be worse in Tao’s imagination than in reality. And as you might expect from a cozy fantasy, the descriptions of Kina’s treats had me longing for scones, cinnamon rolls, and other tasty baked treats.

The author, Julie Leong, draws on her own experiences in exploring themes of racial identity and belonging through the character of Tao. Born in Shinara, Tao has not seen her homeland since her childhood; following her father’s death, her mother married a Eshteran minor nobleman and they left Shinara for his land. Marked as foreign by her appearance, Tao faces suspicion and occasional prejudice in the villages and small towns to which she confines her travels. She feels she can never truly fit in in Eshtera, but nor can she go back to Shinara. Resolving that conflict is a major facet of Tao’s character arc. In fact, the meaning of home, family, and belonging are key to all the major characters’ journeys.

The Teller of Small Fortunes is a warm, beautiful, and ultimately comforting debut fantasy. I would love to see more books set in this world, especially featuring these characters. But regardless of the setting, I look forward to seeing whatever Julie Leong does next.

Challenges: COYER Unwind (2024), Chapter 4; NetGalley and Edelweiss Challenge 2024 (because I read it in 2024); NetGalley and Edelweiss Challenge 2025 (because I reviewed it in 2025.)