The Faraway Inn - Sarah Beth Durst

[goodreads]

Title: The Faraway Inn
Author: Sarah Beth Durst
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 5/5
# pages: 370
Date read: June 2026

When sixteen-year-old Calisa arrives at her great-aunt’s bed-and-breakfast for the summer, she’s shocked to find it run down rather than cosy. Grumpy and eccentric, Auntie Zee is determined to keep anyone from messing with her beloved inn . . . even though she clearly needs the help.

To convince her great-aunt to keep her around, Calisa sets to work fixing up the inn, enlisting extra help from the groundkeeper’s (handsome) son. But the longer she stays, the surer she is that there’s something strange about the B and B―and its residents. Something almost . . . otherworldly.

The inn is hiding a magical secret―but secrets are like doors. Once Calisa opens this one, she won’t be able to go back . . .


I was already a fan of Sarah Beth Durst thanks to "The Spellshop" and "The Enchanted Greenhouse", but this is by far her best work. Cozy fantasy of the absolutely best kind. I couldn't put it down, but never wanted to story to end.

It is just the right combination of domestic coziness, magical whimsey and fanciful characters mixed with enough of a plot to keep the story going, while still being (relatively) low stakes.

I loved every single minute of it.