Comedy adventure meets queer cozy romantasy in the immensely enjoyable, constantly funny, and friendship-filled The Last Best Quest Ever by F.T. Lukens (Love at Second Sight), about an adventurer who lied about her accomplishments and must now achieve the "nearly impossible" to save her brother's life.
Decorated quester "Ellinore the Brave" (17, fair-skinned) is ready to retire. She's earned enough gold to buy her parents a house and knows she needs to quit while she's ahead--she doesn't want to push her luck with the whole "hero" charade. If she keeps adventuring, someone might find out she has completed her quests in unorthodox ways: instead of taming the fearsome mountain ancients plaguing a village, she simply rehomed the fire salamanders who were "causing [the] ruckus"; the tale about her vanquishing a golden dragon at 13 years old should really be about how she befriended the dragon (Dave) and paid him to stop terrorizing the populace. But retirement is postponed when Ellinore's wily yet reckless twin brother, Zig, wagers his heart on Ellinore killing the fabled, god-like Elder Beast.
Zig demands to go questing with Ellinore; the pair is also joined by Ellinore's rival, Princet Aven (18, fair-skinned), and two adoring fans: the "absolutely too bubbly" Farrah (Aven's "golden-brown"-skinned teen cousin) and "mage who needs to focus," Rylan (brown-skinned teen bard). Ellinore, to maintain her archetypical persona, chooses the "riskier" paths en route to the beast. Her decisions unsurprisingly land the party in near-death incidents with mythical monsters, magical earthquakes, a haunted forest, and one particularly haughty lord. These setbacks, plus lying to the "unfairly attractive" Aven, send Ellinore spiraling to the conclusion that the real Ellinore can't save anyone.
The Last Best Quest Ever is a droll high-stakes fantasy, a touching found family story, and a satisfyingly slow-burn rivals-to-lovers romance. Ellinore's fear of being discovered a fraud and her budding relationship with Aven complicate her obstacle-ridden journey toward freeing her true self. This cleverly parallels the heavy burden of expectation on Aven, last in line to the throne, who longs to shed their "Pointless Princet" nickname and prove their worth. Lukens packs the D&D-reminiscent journey with excellent, stress-relieving humor--"I wasn't writhing.... I was merely rolling in the dirt"--including a self-proclaimed "delight" of a dragon ("Sir, you are a dragon. You're very conspicuous."... "I could wear a hat."). Lukens delivers a thoroughly entertaining escape that beautifully illustrates the boons of leaning on loved ones. --Samantha Zaboski, freelance editor and reviewer
Shelf Talker: A famed adventurer who lied about her feats accepts a death-defying quest to fell a god-like beast in this highly entertaining YA cozy romantasy adventure.