diff --git a/fe/src/__tests__/AddNewView.spec.ts b/fe/src/__tests__/AddNewView.spec.ts
index d0a82fd3b..551141435 100644
--- a/fe/src/__tests__/AddNewView.spec.ts
+++ b/fe/src/__tests__/AddNewView.spec.ts
@@ -768,4 +768,21 @@ describe('AddNewView pagination', () => {
     expect(addBtn.text()).toContain('Added')
     expect(addBtn.attributes('disabled')).toBeDefined()
   })
+
+  // Regression: cold-add "root folder not configured" false negative.
+  // The addToLibrary() guard reads rootFoldersStore.folders synchronously, so
+  // the store must be populated on mount; otherwise the first add after a fresh
+  // page load wrongly redirects to /settings.
+  it('loads root folders on mount so the cold first add is not falsely rejected', async () => {
+    const apiModule = await import('@/services/api')
+    const getRootFolders = apiModule.apiService.getRootFolders as unknown as Mock
+    getRootFolders.mockClear()
+    getRootFolders.mockResolvedValue([{ id: 1, name: 'Books', path: '/books', isDefault: true }])
+
+    const router = createTestRouter()
+    mount(AddNewView, { global: { plugins: [createPinia(), router] } })
+    await flushPromises()
+
+    expect(getRootFolders).toHaveBeenCalled()
+  })
 })
diff --git a/fe/src/stores/rootFolders.ts b/fe/src/stores/rootFolders.ts
index ecab77a49..4f2f69069 100644
--- a/fe/src/stores/rootFolders.ts
+++ b/fe/src/stores/rootFolders.ts
@@ -38,7 +38,9 @@ export const useRootFoldersStore = defineStore('rootFolders', () => {
       }
     } catch (err) {
       logger.debug('Failed to load root folders:', err)
-      folders.value = []
+      // Preserve any previously-loaded folders on transient failure: a failed
+      // reload must not masquerade as "no root folders configured" (folders
+      // starts as [], so a first-ever failure still yields an empty list).
     } finally {
       loading.value = false
     }
diff --git a/fe/src/views/content/AddNewView.vue b/fe/src/views/content/AddNewView.vue
index 40f6c77ce..c0fbd7e6f 100644
--- a/fe/src/views/content/AddNewView.vue
+++ b/fe/src/views/content/AddNewView.vue
@@ -2998,6 +2998,11 @@ onMounted(async () => {
   await configStore.loadApplicationSettings()
   await configStore.loadApiConfigurations()
 
+  // Ensure root folders are loaded before addToLibrary()'s guard reads them.
+  // Without this, the first add after a cold page load sees an empty store and
+  // falsely reports "Root folder not configured" until a redirect populates it.
+  if (rootFoldersStore.folders.length === 0) await rootFoldersStore.load()
+
   const defaultRegion = normalizeSearchRegion(configStore.applicationSettings?.defaultSearchRegion)
   const defaultLanguage = normalizePreferredSearchLanguage(
     configStore.applicationSettings?.defaultSearchLanguage,
diff --git a/fe/src/views/library/AudiobookDetailView.vue b/fe/src/views/library/AudiobookDetailView.vue
index 14dbfc297..c00deac61 100644
--- a/fe/src/views/library/AudiobookDetailView.vue
+++ b/fe/src/views/library/AudiobookDetailView.vue
@@ -1171,6 +1171,10 @@ onMounted(async () => {
   syncActiveTabFromRoute()
   document.addEventListener('click', handleClickOutside)
 
+  // The path preview falls back to rootFoldersStore.defaultFolder; load it so a
+  // cold page load shows the correct destination rather than the legacy outputPath.
+  if (rootFoldersStore.folders.length === 0) await rootFoldersStore.load()
+
   await loadAudiobook()
 
   // subscribe to scan job updates
diff --git a/fe/src/views/library/AudiobooksView.vue b/fe/src/views/library/AudiobooksView.vue
index f7b7fa4ec..ddbf663d6 100644
--- a/fe/src/views/library/AudiobooksView.vue
+++ b/fe/src/views/library/AudiobooksView.vue
@@ -1911,6 +1911,9 @@ onMounted(async () => {
     libraryStore.fetchLibrary(),
     configStore.loadApplicationSettings(),
     loadQualityProfiles(),
+    // hasRootFolderConfigured gates the empty-state CTA on this store; load it
+    // so an empty library doesn't falsely show "Root Folder Not Configured".
+    rootFoldersStore.folders.length === 0 ? rootFoldersStore.load() : Promise.resolve(),
   ])
 
   // Load persisted view mode (if available) before layout calc