The Teller of Small Fortunes
The Teller of Small Fortunes is a cozy quest fantasy set in a vaguely British, renaissance-era world. Tao, an immigrant from Shinara, wanders the villages of Eshtera with her mule, offering only "small" fortunes — whether it will hail next week, which boy the barmaid will kiss — having learned the hard way that bigger predictions carry bigger consequences.
Her quiet routine changes when a semi-reformed thief and an ex-mercenary hire her to help find a missing child. As the search widens, they're joined by a baker with a "knead" for adventure and a slightly magical cat, and Tao finds herself part of an unlikely found family. But as she lowers the walls she built to survive, the shadows of her own past close in, forcing her to decide whether she can risk everything for a home she never thought she'd have.
A USA Today and Sunday Times bestseller, Julie Leong's debut has drawn comparisons to Legends & Lattes and The House in the Cerulean Sea for its warmth and gentle adventure.
Immigrant fortune teller who travels between villages with her mule, telling only small, low-consequence fortunes.
Ex-mercenary who recruits Tao into the search for a lost child.
A semi-reformed thief who joins Mash in recruiting Tao for the search.
A baker who joins the found-family group partway through the quest.
A slightly magical cat that travels with the group.
No — it's a standalone novel. Julie Leong's follow-up, The Keeper of Magical Things, is set in the same world but follows an entirely new cast of characters, so it isn't a direct sequel.
Not primarily. The story centers on found family, self-discovery, and a gentle quest rather than a central romantic arc, and several reviewers have noted its ace/aro-friendly take on companionship.