Welcome to the Cozy Fantasy Corner!
Looking for low-stakes, charming fantasy filled with heart and adventure? You’re in the right place! All the books on this page are written under my cozy fantasy pen name, R.J. Casta.
(Direct purchase includes ebook, prequel novelette, and exclusive mobile wallpaper.)
Soft Magic. Low Stakes. Found Family. Excellent Muffins.
At twenty-four, Wick Barrow is thoroughly done giving his best years to his father’s laundry business.
Hiring on aboard The Moderate Success—a river barge of questionable speed and precarious plumbing—is a chance to build a life of his own: scrub the linens, mind the boiler, and travel the realm. Room and board included.
Then he notices Ember.
Ember is a flame-like Smudge who has matter-of-factly appointed herself to be Wick's personal space heater. As it turns out, Wick is a Hearth: an inconveniently magnetic sanctuary for magical creatures. And Ember isn’t the only resident needing help. The captain is navigating the waterways with no name and a scattered soul. If Wick can't help him fix it, the captain may flicker out of existence entirely. Luckily, fixing things is Wick's specialty.
Traveling the Cardinal Rivers with a crew of misfits, Wick sets out on a journey, wherever the current decides to take him.
Pre-order Delivery Date: December 1st, 2026
(Direct purchase includes ebook, prequel novelette, and exclusive mobile wallpaper.)
Soft Magic. Low Stakes. Found Family. Even Better Muffins.
Trapped aboard The Moderate Success by bureaucratic nonsense involving the Board of Works, Wick Barrow desperately needs some gold to buy out his contract. His solution? Convert the vessel into a floating tea house, of course!
Between bouts of brewing and baking, and while trying to keep a baby dragonling Smudge from setting the ship on fire, Wick's routine gets a proper shake-up. Everything was going swimmingly until the not-so-infamous Pa Scurry snuck his way aboard one fitful night. The retired pirate's request? Save his sister, her crew, and help her to realize her lifelong dream of unlocking the secrets of The Cardinal Maze.
With his best friends and his sister by his side, Wick is ready to prove that no task is too small with a Barrow (or two) aboard!
The Cardinal Rivers Tales is a cozy fantasy novelette that presents to you glimpses of the origins of Wickham Barrow, Captain Percival Moss, and Gulliver—Gully, for short.
In chapter one, we experience Wick’s first unknowing connection with Smudges, magical creatures that will eventually be an ever-present part of his life.
In chapter two, we see exactly how desperate Captain Percival Moss will become to hide himself from a dreaded desk job at the Board of Works in Oubliette.
In chapter three, we witness the lengths a boy will go to gain approval from those he thinks are his friends.
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