The Bread Witch

W/W Cozy Fantasy Romance

Status: Brainstorming!

Maeve Fletcher is nothing if not a dedicated village witch.

When her villagers pine for their lovers, she makes them iced buns for love. When they start a farm, she makes them rye loaves for bounty. When they set off on a journey, she makes them sourdough for luck. So, when a traveling prince named Quentin asks for his fortune told through bread, she sets to baking. After all, the prince’s gold will keep her people fed through winter, and she is nothing if not a dedicated village witch.

But when Maeve’s loaf predicts danger and uncertainty for the prince’s diplomatic mission, Quentin panics and conscripts her into his retinue. He promises that if she tells his fortune every day, her village will see riches beyond their wildest dreams. Maeve agrees and finds herself traveling with a menagerie of oddballs—a dramatic prince obsessed with bad poetry, a kleptomaniac chef obsessed with spice, and a beautiful lady knight obsessed with annoying Maeve. To make matters worse, the prince assigns the knight, Andi, to guard Maeve while she tells his precious fortunes.

After all the quirky couplets, ghost peppers, and spats with Andi, Maeve is ready to throw in the dishtowel and haul her sourdough starter back to her village. But right as she prepares to leave, Prince Quentin is kidnapped by bandits eager for a ransom. When Maeve and Andi realize Quentin’s family won’t pay the ransom, it’s up to them to save the prince before his mission is ruined—or before the bandits kill him mid-sonnet. Along the journey, the women uncover layers of mystery in magic, their pasts, and their potential future together.