Today is a special day, because I finally get to share the cover for David Green’s newest book! A Healer’s Guide to Adventuring is a sapphic cosy fantasy about a Mind-Mage who helps battle-scarred heroes heal the wounds no one else can see. It is no secret that I am a big fan of David’s books, and this one has been on my wish list for ages. So without further ado, let’s take a look!
Tanwin never wanted to be an Adventurer. After surviving a disastrous campaign that left her scarred in ways no potion could heal, she abandons Lanriel’s glory-seeking Adventurers’ Guild and opens an apothecary instead.
Soon Tanwin spends her days helping battle-scarred heroes confront the emotional wounds no one else will treat, one steaming cup of tea at a time.
Until Lanriel’s most fearsome warrior arrives begging for help.
Fang-Ripper’s son is missing. A dragon is involved. And somehow Tanwin finds herself trekking into the dangerous Wilds with a handful of unlikely companions, a curious moondrill in her pocket, and absolutely no desire to become part of anyone’s heroic quest.
But as ancient grudges resurface and war threatens to ignite between dragons and humans, Tanwin discovers that monsters are rarely who the stories claim they are.
And when the elf who has captured Tanwin’s heart is called back into peril, the peaceful life she has built begins to unravel.
Just look at this cover! It is so cute, and yet so packed with little details that I keep spotting new ones. As an archer and a book addict, I am of course very curious about the quiver and the books tucked in between the flowers. A dragon makes sense on a quest. A hedgehog, though? Now that’s an adventure I need to hear about! Every corner of this cover radiates cosiness and fun.
A few words from the Author
I’ve long been interested in exploring mental health in fantasy. My previous work explores the subject, as well as the different kinds of neurodiversity, but A Healer’s Guide To Adventuring asks a simple question: What would happen if you brought therapy into a fantasy world?
Tanwin El-Massa is this world’s first therapist, a Mind-Mage, and she sets about helping Adventurers heal the wounds no one can see. This book has cosy aspects, it has adventure, dragons, quests, whimsy and romance, but it also takes a serious look at what unchecked trauma can do to a person. It explores kindness, self-acceptance and the importance of the quiet moments in life.
A Healer’s Guide To Adventuring is a book I’m incredibly proud of. It started out as a stray idea—”My D&D character needs therapy after anything that could go wrong in a D&D session went wrong”—and became my trad debut with Boldwood Books, and a book about being the person you are and being happy in that space. I hope you love it.
~ David Green
Tea brewed. Potions packed. Quest accepted, and not reluctantly at all! My ARC only arrived yesterday, so sadly it came too late to read before the reveal. But now my own adventure begins, and my quest is a simple one: devour this book in no time at all. No dragons will slow me down, no hedgehogs will distract me, and the tea will stay hot the whole way through. Well, maybe the hedgehog will distract me a little.
My review will follow very soon. Until then, if you want to join me on this adventure, you can pre-order A Healer’s Guide to Adventuring here.
About the Author
David Green is a neurodivergent writer of the epic and the urban, the fantastical, the cosy, and the mysterious. With his character-driven dark fantasy series Empire Of Ruin, or urban fantasy noir Hell in Haven, David takes readers on emotional, action-packed thrill rides. If you are looking for something on the cosier side, David recommends Magic, Maps, and Mischief, the first book in his Greton’s Marvellous Maps series, followed by Charms, Charts, and Conspiracies.
Hailing from the northwest of England, David now lives in County Galway on the west coast of Ireland. When not writing, David can be found wondering why he chooses to live in places where it constantly rains.
David’s Path Of War was nominated for Best Novel at the 2023 BFS Awards and Beyond Sundered Seas and At Eternity’s Gates were both nominated for Best Novel in 2024. He is repped by Laura Bennett of LLA.
