The Faraway Inn by Sarah Beth Durst
Thank you to Sarah Beth Durst, Delacorte Press, and NetGalley for providing this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. Commissions may be earned on links in this article.
Book Recap: After going through a messy break up with her boyfriend, sixteen-year-old Calisa goes to spend the summer with her great aunt at her B&B. From the moment she steps on the property, Calisa realizes that there is something magical about this place, but she doesn’t know exactly what that may be.
Top Tropes/Themes:
✨ Cozy Fantasy
🐉 Magical beings
❤️ Friends-to-lovers
Spice Rating: 🫑 (glimpses and kisses)
Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 stars)
Let’s Talk About It…
When this ARC request got accepted, I squealed out loud. I have loved Sarah Beth Durst’s cozy adult books, The Spellshop and The Enchanted Greenhouse, so I was interested to see how her young adult cozy book turned out. Overall, I enjoyed the book but not as much as her adult cozy fantasies.
This story had so many fun elements that have made me love her books in the past such as sentient objects, quirky characters, and a cinnamon roll main male character. The inn is filled with mysteries and cozy elements that made me feel at home as a reader of her past works. The guests at the inn were my favorite part of the story and I could read more from this world if they could be explored further.
The romance in this story was a downside for me. It seemed like a side plot and the main plot really didn’t take form until over half way through the book. The relationship between Calisa and her ex-boyfriend as well as the main male character felt forced. Too much time at the beginning of the book was spent pining after the ex-boyfriend and the transition from friendship to romance for Calisa and the main male character was unexciting. I didn’t feel like he had much of a personality and it was more like he was the only option instead of making me want to root for him. I think that younger readers likely would connect more to the romance than I did so I wouldn’t say the romance in this book is bad, but rather would be more well received by a different audience than myself.
Since this book was set in the real world and had magical elements, there were a few times I felt pulled out of the story where those real world issues and objects were discussed, but there weren’t many of them and they didn’t seem to appear in the most critical parts of the story.
The writing of this book was its biggest strength. Sarah Beth Durst has a wonderfully cozy and lyrical writing style that makes each impactful line come off the page. There were so many lines I highlighted and loved throughout the book.
This book is for you if you love Sarah Beth Durst and want to read a cozy fantasy about an inn that will warm your heart. I can see this book becoming the go-to cozy fantasy for teen readers looking to test out this subgenre.
