Cozy Books for Chilly Days

A Wizards Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher

Mona is a fourteen-year-old wizard, with a sourdough-starter familiar named Bob and an excellent knack for making bread do her bidding (if only the rest of us were so lucky). She works in her Aunt Tabitha’s bakery, making sweet buns and gingerbread and doing everyday bakery things. That is until she’s accused of murder. There’s a body on the floor of the bakery, other Magickers are going missing left and right, and there are rumors of an assassin on the loose. So, who else is there for the Inquisitor to blame? But Mona just wants to use her talents to make people happy, not get tied up in politics, murder plots, and a coming war on wizard-kind. She shouldn’t have to be the one to save the world– but she just might have to.

Mismatched by Anne Camlin and Illustrated by Isadora Zeferino

There are a lot of things Evan loves — ballet, makeup, cute boys, being in the spotlight, and especially matchmaking. He swears he was the key to his sister and their next-door neighbor’s marriage, and has a whole notebook full of eligible candidates from around the school he thinks would just be perfect for each other, if nudged in the right direction. So when Evan takes Melissa, the tragically awkward new girl, under his wing, his first goal is to set her up with someone “perfect”. After all, with a bit of makeup and a guiding hand away from any “weirdos”, she just might make it in the wild world of high school. Mismatched is a gender-swapped retelling of Jane Austin’s Emma, full of charm and just enough drama to keep things interesting till the end.

Taproot by Keezy Young

At Mr. Takashi’s garden shop is a boy who has a knack for plants… and for seeing ghosts. Hamal loves working at the garden shop, even if his coworkers think he’s a little strange for always “talking to himself”. When Blue, the ghost that’s been haunting Hamal (for perfectly normal, totally not head-over-heels in love reasons) begins to slip in and out of the Reaper’s dying forest, it’s scary for both of them. Neither Hamal or Blue want to lose their closest companion, and the thought of it begins to pull their relationship up by the roots.

Last Chance Books by Kelsey Rodkey

Two passionate, bookish rivals face off in the battle over a beloved local bookstore. Maddie works at the quirky independent bookstore called ‘Books and Moore.’ It’s her dream to run the shop when she gets older, but those dreams end up on thin ice when a new bookstore comes to town. The massive chain that opens up across the street begins stealing their customers and threatening to put their shop out of business. When Maddie meets Jasper, one of the chain’s employees, she’s furious that her biggest rival is also so frustratingly crush-worthy. As they navigate their heated rivalry, the two discover unexpected connections and shared dreams, challenging their preconceived notions about books, business, and each other.

The Sprite and the Gardener by Rii Abrego and Joe Whitt

Wisteria is a garden sprite, a tiny creature that helps plants to grow and blossom. But when humans took over the natural world, cultivating their own gardens, it left the sprites with little to do. They retreated into the shadows, foraging from wild plants and gardens, keeping out of the human’s way. But when Wisteria moves to a new town, her explorations lead her to make a discovery– not every human can do the work of the sprites on their own. When she accidentally meets Elena, the girl with a barren garden and a desperate desire for a green thumb, the two band together to make Elena’s backyard into something special. 

The Sprite and the Gardner are short and sweet and exactly the kind of story to keep your heart feeling warm and fuzzy until spring!