In the heartwarming, uplifting fantasy adventure novel The Teller of Small Fortunes, Julie Leong's debut, a small-time fortune teller hiding from the highest echelons of power finds herself at the nucleus of a close-knit band of friends.
Tao travels from town to town with only the mule that pulls her wagon for company, selling her services telling fortunes. "I tell small fortunes only," she warns her customers. "No war, no politics, no harvests or famines; those are strictly for Seers with the greater vision, and I don't deal in such things." She leads a solitary existence, but putting down roots isn't possible. Tao came to the kingdom of Eshtera as a little girl but has the physical characteristics of someone from her birthplace, the kingdom of Shinara. Villagers often show her their xenophobic tendencies, and the truth of her fortunes unsettles people over time. She also worries that the Guild of Mages could be right at her heels, ready to drag her back to the city of Margrave.
A fallen tree blocking the road changes her life when two men happen upon her trying to chop through it to make way for her wagon. Her suspicions about the pair aren't exactly allayed by the assertion that "we're not highwaymen... we're thieves!" She soon learns one of the men is a reforming thief; his friend, a former mercenary, is on the road searching for his lost little girl. They decide to join Tao on her journey to the next town, where their party is joined by Kina, a baker's apprentice who sells "sweet buns, handpies, [and] tarts, er, of the edible variety." The group's adventures on the open road bring them closer together, and soon Tao is surrounded by a circle of support she never could have imagined. As her past dogs her heels, Tao must decide how far she'll go to protect herself and to help her friends.
Leong is unafraid to head into deeply emotional territory in this sweet, earnest story of found family and finding one's truth. She strikes a lovely balance between high stakes, humor, and touching moments. Each character's growth feels logical and earned. Readers of Travis Baldree or T.J. Klune will enjoy following wherever Leong leads, and they can be sure she will only take them down dark paths to show them the light waiting at the end of the trail. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads
Shelf Talker: A fortune teller on the run surprises herself by finding friendship in this sweet, heartwarming fantasy adventure.