Tea, Tomes, and Dragons (The Ashcroft Bookshop Mysteries)

Fire-breathing librarian seeks quiet life… and cookies.

Every retirement plan has flaws. Beatrice's involves spontaneous combustion. After a small incident involving her dragonfire and a very flammable library, sixty-three-year-old Beatrice Ashcroft retreats to Emberville to run her family’s bookshop. She wants peace, pastries, and absolutely no incidents that require a fire extinguisher.

Unfortunately for her, the Ashcroft Bookshop has other plans.

Warmth hums through the floorboards. Runes shimmer across the walls. A ghostly founder sends unsolicited mail. And the town council cheerfully informs her that unless business drastically improves, the shop will be reassigned to a “more suitable custodian” by week’s end.

Her only hope? Partnering with the one person she hoped to avoid for the rest of her natural Celeste Moonshadow, an impeccably dressed high-school rival turned werewolf councilwoman.

Between a talking pig who insists on acting like the world’s grumpiest housecat, a teenage assistant with unpredictable moonlit magic, and a powerful ex-boyfriend who still thinks the quickest way to a dragon’s heart is through her two stomachs, Beatrice begins to suspect a truth she’s avoided for maybe not all problems can be solved with dragonfire.

Perfect for fans of Legends & Lattes and Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea. A cozy, sharp-witted fantasy about second chances, unexpected allies, and finding family where you least expect it.