killianshea 's review for:

Coffeeshop in an Alternate Universe by C.B. Lee

3.5

---

While not nearly as cozy as I expected (

saving the world will never feel low stakes

), I did still enjoy this. The magic system was a little difficult to follow at first, but I think I got it sorted out, and the sweet romance between Brenda and Kat was a good counter to the less cozy aspects of the book. I always love interesting takes on Chosen One narratives, so Kat's arc was interesting to me, and Brenda's overachieving focus spoke to my teenage self.

I will say, I did have some things that I didn't love as much - the way too easy acceptance of magic was a running theme and I found the villain to be a little too predictable - but all in all a solid book.

3.5/5

Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/Feiwel & Friends and Netgalley for the eARC!