The Teller of Small Fortunes

A wandering fortune teller finds an unexpected family in this warm and wonderful debut fantasy, perfect for readers of Travis Baldree and Sangu Mandanna.

Tao is an immigrant fortune teller, traveling between villages with just her trusty mule for company. She only tells "small" fortunes: whether it will hail next week; which boy the barmaid will kiss; when the cow will calve. She knows from bitter experience that big fortunes come with big consequences.…

Even if it’s a lonely life, it’s better than the one she left behind. But a small fortune unexpectedly becomes something more when a (semi)reformed thief and an ex-mercenary recruit her into their desperate search for a lost child. Soon, they’re joined by a baker with a knead for adventure, and–of course–a slightly magical cat.

Tao sets down a new path with companions as bighearted as her fortunes are small. But as she lowers her walls, the shadows of her past close in–and she’ll have to decide whether to risk everything to preserve the family she never thought she could have.

Story Locale:Fantasy kingdom of Eshtera

About the Author

Julie Leong is a twenty-nine-year-old Chinese-Malaysian-American fantasy author. She grew up in Old Bridge, New Jersey, and lived in Beijing, China, for several years as a teenager. Her experiences of feeling too Asian for suburban America, and too American for China color her stories of identity and belonging. She studied economics and political science at Yale and now works at a startup, but she has always nurtured a deep love for sci-fi/fantasy beneath her corporate exterior. Julie lives in San Francisco, California, with her husband and their spoiled rescue pup, Kaya. When she’s not writing, she enjoys making unnecessary spreadsheets and flambéing things.

Author Residence: San Francisco

Author Hometown: New Jersey + Beijing