The Pumpkin Spice Café (Dream Harbor, #1) by Laurie Gilmore

The Pumpkin Spice Café (Dream Harbor, #1) Reviews

• 
  deniz

  2,75 ☆
  
  I have to admit that this was not my usual read, but with a perfect blend of fall vibes warmth and the grumpy×sunshine trope, this book was an absolute treat.
  There's some steam ,a little mystery woven throughout the tale as well as a host of wonderful characters
  
  The book was aiming for something different. It's about enjoying the simple pleasures of a feel-good, heartwarming story without expecting it to redefine literature.Made me think about the act “art of noticing”.
  
  
  "No one could live a laid back, quaint, small town life with a murderer outside their back door."
  
  🍁Cozy autumn/ fall vibes
  🍁Grumpy/sunshine
  🍁small town romance
  🍁a bit of spice
  🍁found family
  
  One of the sub-plots was mystery. I'd have liked a bit more from this if l'm honest, but I still enjoyed it nevertheless.
  The midnight ghost hunt, complete with all the snacks you could ask for.
  
  
  “ was a strange time for a reinvention. Fall was better for snuggling and eating food covered in gravy"
  
  
  When Jeanie inherits the Pumpkin Spice Café, she brings her cheerful spirit and pumpkin spice lattes to the town.
  Logan, a grumpy (hottie) farmer with an aversion to town gossip (he has a reason for it), will find his world turned upside down with Jeanie's arrival.I loved the relatable hesitation from Logan after his broken heart and Jeannie trying to prioritise re-inventing herself over her niggling fondness of Logan
  
  
  "Wow, new Jeanie was bold. Maybe it was all that farmer smut she'd been reading; the way that milkmaid really chased her own pleasure."
  
  I have to say, the love story moved very fast which was slightly unrealistic & the town was a little too perfect.
  It definitely has Gilmore Girls vibes, but it also made me think of Hart of Dixie and Virgin River which i adore.
  
  So, take it for what it is: a delightful escape into a cosy world,with a little bit of a pumpkin spice🌶️🤏🏼
• 
  Lydia

  This had the potential to be a really cute, autumny romance but ugh, I hated the love interest.
  Up until the epilogue I wanted to shout “go see a therapist!”
  
  Also, this is one of them books where if you took a shot every time there was miscommunication, you’d end up on the floor.
  
  And to top it all off, there was the insta-love!
  Like, you people barely know each other, you are not in love. Stop it.
• 
  Brady Lockerby

  3.75/5 - The Pumpkin Spice Café with an emphasis on the SPICE okayyyy Logan 😛 Literally Gilmore Girls in a book! Small town cafe owner and a hot farmer, what else can we ask for? Allll the fall vibes, cute banter, and a good amount of spice. Loved it! Can’t wait for the next one!
• 
  Rida

  everyday i tell myself not to listen to tiktok reviews but it doesn’t work and then i waste my time
• 
  Nicole

  Ta książka jest tak głęboka jak brodzik na basenie.
• 
  Cameo-Rose

  I hated everyone but Casper the cat.
• 
  ♥︎ Heather ⚔

  2.5 stars
  
  This is a really cute, quirky, small town, grumpy/sunshine romance perfect for autumn (obviously, right? lol)
  
  I think the best way to describe this book- is that it's a lighthearted, delightfully funny campy read.. I am not a Gilmore Girls die hard fan or anything so don't come for me if you read this and say it's not comparable but I found it to be similar in setting and characters.
  
  ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ಇ. Jeanie our FMC is a pretty neurotic, OCD and funny woman who has recently left her high stress, high pressure job in the bustling city of Boston and has moved to a small, tight knit town to take over her aunt's café and get a fresh start.
  
  ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ಇ. Our MC Logan is a sexy farmer and a total cinnamon roll btw who has had a troubled past with love and has been burned before, so opening up again is a bit of a challenge for him - I love him.
  
  The town has a cluster of friends who are all very quirky and fun in their own right, very reminiscent of how I feel when I watch Gilmore Girls, or even Virgin River with their book clubs, or sewing circles. And always meddling in your business but with the best intentions always.
  
  ˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ ಇ. Not my typical type of read, but I was really craving something lighthearted, funny, autumnal with endearing characters and Laurie Gilmore hit the mark for me. Definitely recommend if you're looking for a book that serves as a little chicken soup for the soul.
• 
  Freya Nightingale

  Read this in a day. Perfect book in between heavier books, it was just what I needed. Super quick easy read and sometimes it's nice to have predictability in a book! I will say I was not expecting the spice though 😂 it started off so tame but it's wild towards the end! It's always the innocent looking covers that shock you the most xo
• 
  Kay

  More than pumpkin spice!
  
  I enjoyed this one and bumping 3.5⭐ up for the sexy farmer who carries kitty food in his truck in case he finds stray cats. 🛻😻
  
  Don't let this cute and cozy cover fool you, it's not a cozy mystery but rather a lite mystery with spicy open-door romance🌶️🌶️🌶️.
  
  This novel has a perfect autumn vibe in a small New England town of Dream Harbor. Jeanie is the new owner of The Pumpkin Spice Café when her aunt decides to retire. She's new in town (moved from Boston) and new to the business which happens to be the only coffee shop in town! But not everyone is happy with the new owner and seems to be causing Jeanie some headaches.
  
  A quick listen. Will definitely read the next!
• 
  Alex Graham

  This was worse than a Hallmark movie (and I love Hallmark movies). I know I’m choosing to read cheesy, cliche fall books - but this one was almost unbearable. The writing and dialogue made me want to cringe the whole time. I could barely make it through…almost a DNF. Best part of the whole book were the farm animals being named after pop stars.
• 
  Snjez

  3.5 stars
  
  A cute setting with perfect fall vibes. I really liked the cafe, all things pumpkin, Logan's animals, town meetings and the mayor's dreams, and all the quirky side characters with their book clubs, trivia nights and fall festivals.
  
  I liked Jeannie and Logan as main characters. They are instantly attracted to each other, but both are really fun most of the time. What I didn't like was a forced miscommunication towards the end of the book and a string of steamy scenes in the last 50 pages or so. I wish the story was more Hallmark-y in that regard.
  
  There's also a mystery of sorts, not that I found it mysterious at all. It brought some additional entertainment to the story, but I didn't find the resolution satisfying.
  
• 
  Esther

  Boring and eye-rollingly bad. One star for the cover.
  The setting was cute and the vibes were there. Autumn in a small New England town, a coffee shop, pastries galore... What could possibly go wrong? Alas, as I quickly found out, a lot COULD go wrong.
  
  The characters and plot simply did not deliver.
  This novel promises to be a grumpy-sunshine romance, but grumpy ain't really grumping in my opinion. He was an introvert, not grumpy. Sue me.
  
  In addition, this book features insta-love, which is a trope that is not for me. What is a romance novel without some good tension?
  The only tension in this novel stemmed from the "great conflict" (will the reformed city girl turn her back on the small town life after all????) seemed super stupid and was hilariously easy to overcome.
  
  They could've seriously cut down on chapters and words, and nothing would have changed.
  
  P.S.: what straight white male farmer names his chickens Taylor, Beyoncé, etc. and his alpaca Harry Styles? Sorry, but this just SCREAMED millennial white woman to me. Signed, a millennial white woman.
• 
  Kate ☽

  A cute Hallmark style read with spice and all the fall vibes. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
  
  This was an enjoyable and really easy read with third person dual POVs (I always prefer first person, but third fits this type of book). Think small Gilmore Girls-style town, a big city girl looking to start fresh by running her aunt's former cafe, and a shy/romantic/hot lumberjack guy who works at his grandparents' farm. They meet. They fall in love. Its cheesy and sappy but ultimately adorable. There's nothing deep or profound about this style of book, nothing to analyze or dissect for hidden meanings--its sole purpose is to entertain and slap a sticky sweet smile on your face, and thats what this does. I gave this 3 stars because I would have liked this better if there was actually less spice and more of Jeanie and Logan getting to know each other. The spice almost felt out of place because everything else was so wholesome, but this really wasn't a huge deal.
  
  Read this come September/October and you'll enjoy it, no matter what your favorite genre is. Its a comfy cozy fall romance that'll leave you happy! Craving pumpkin flavored anything! Wanting to escape the big city chaos! Dreaming of flannel! It's sweet. It's spicy, both steamy and pumpkin flavored (see? I'm still feeling sappy after just finishing this). It's got the romance. Its got the HEA. And its got the cozy fall vibes. Overall fun read.
• 
  ✨Julie✨

  This was a pretty average cozy mystery/romance. I wasn’t overly impressed, but the Stars Hollow vibes were on point. I can’t speak for everyone, but I’d say people loved this in direct proportion to how much they love Gilmore Girls which gave this book an unfair boost.
  
  _____________________________________________
  
  It’s currently 80 degrees in Nashville, but I’m forever a Fall girlie 💁🏼‍♀️. Bring on all the cozy Stars Hollow vibes. 🙌🏻🍁☕️🍂🐈‍⬛🫶🏻
• 
  Sarah

  The Pumpkin Spice Cafè was the most perfect, easy-read for the start of October. No, it’s not the most amazing, mind-blowing book I’ve ever read, but a solid 3 star cozy romance for this time of the year! It goes between autumnal descriptions that made me feel warm inside, to hot & heavy steamy moments 😅
  
  Jeanie is in need of a fresh-start, away from her boring office job. She needs more excitement in her life. So when her aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in a small town called Dream Harbor, she takes this as her perfect opportunity to start again.
  As soon as she moves there, Jeanie notices some weird noises at night. At first, she is convinced a serial killer may have broken in… but she discovers it is just a local guy called Logan delivering produce. They are quickly drawn to each other, she is more happy-go-lucky and upbeat than him. Will Jeanie end up being swept away into a whirlwind small town romance? And is this the life she truly wants?
  Mysterious happenings still go on at the café, could this be the work of a ghost? Does somebody want her out of the town and could throw a spanner in the works of her burgeoning romance with Logan?
  
  🎃☕️🍂🧡🖤
• 
  abi-mai

  once more i have been aggressively lied to by tik tok
  
  the male love interest in this has an alpaca named harry styles and a chicken called lizzo, and that honestly tells u everything u need to know about this book x
• 
  Fifi’s Bookshelf

  4 stars because there’s an alpaca named Harry Styles in this
• 
  The Gist

  4.5 stars rounded up
  
  What a perfect fall book. This book gave me all the warm feels. It was like being wrapped up in a warm and fuzzy blanket. It matched perfectly with my blanket and psl!!
  
  I originally decided to read this because I love everything about fall, and yes, pumpkin spiced lattes are my absolute favorite.
  
  As soon as I started reading this book, though, I fell in love. This had many of the typical cozy tropes, and I ate it all up. I loved Jeanie and Logan and the typical tropes.
  
  I will definitely be reading the second book.
• 
  Tori Stonehouse

  This was bad. Every other chapter was basically a conversation about what happened in the previous chapter. Complete snoozefest that I was really debating on DNFing. Obviously I was thinking it’d be a cute hallmark read but I was annoyed the entire book.
• 
  Kaitlin Merkowsky

  This book reminds me of if AI watched 100 Hallmark movies and every episode of Gilmore Girls and then wrote a book.
• 
  Mrukbooki

  Baaaardzo przyjemna książka. Taka idealna na zimne wieczory.
• 
  Lavinia Reads

  The perfect & cozy small town romance 🍂📖
• 
  Yasmine Van

  Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
  Spice rate: 🌶️🌶️
  Vibe in emoji’s: 🧸🍂🍁🎃☕️🌧️👻🛠️🐱
  
  •Tropes: small town romance (massive Gilmore Girls vibes), small cafe owner, new to town, grumpy x sunshine, forced proximity
  •TW: not really. It does deal on fear of abandonment and loss. (Last one isn’t very much touched on)
  
  •Review:
  If you love Gilmore Girls (hello Luke), autumn vibes and a good smutty small town romance: THIS IS FOR YOU.
  I adored this so much, it had all the vibes and it will be an intertwined series, so the next book is about Hazel (Jeanie/Logan’s - our MC’s - friend/neighbor who owns a bookstore) and Noah, who’s Logans friend as well.
  I also have a feeling we will get a book about Annie and Mac… 👀🧁
  
  Can’t wait for what’s to come.
  This was such a cute, fluffy, smutty romance book!
  
  I would 100% recommend
• 
  rae ✿

  Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review
  
  •✿•➳2.5✫
  
  

  "𝐼 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝓀 𝓂𝒶𝓎𝒷𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓊𝓈𝑒𝒹 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓉𝑒𝒹 𝓇𝒾𝑔𝒽𝓉, 𝒥𝑒𝒶𝓃𝒾𝑒."
  𝐻𝒾𝓈 𝓌𝑜𝓇𝒹𝓈 𝓁𝒶𝓃𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝒽𝒶𝓇𝒹. 𝒟𝒶𝓂𝓃
  
  When her aunt bequeathed Jeanie her Pumpkin Spice Cafe, Jeanie moved to this small town determined to be the best owner of the town's only coffee shop, but weird things started to happen in the cafe, which worried Jeanie, and with the help of this hot lumberjack, they tried to figure out what happened.

  
  
  It was such a fun, cute little read. The story is so light, but I don't really feel the chemistry between them because everything happened so fast. The insta love and the miscommunication between them stress the hell out of me.
  
  The plot feels messy and out of place, and with the trauma each of them has experienced in the past, I feel like they should get to know each other more.
  
  But I love the cozy feeling this book gives me. I love the people in their small town. The people in the book club? I adore them, and I would love to join them🍂
  
  
  --------------
  starting a cozy fall book a little bit early because i need it
• 
  Jan Agaton

  SO FREAKIN CUTE. my only gripe is i wish it were longer so i could spend more time getting to know these characters because it felt way too quick! loved all the small town fall vibes, the steamy scenes, the main AND side characters, the realistic conflicts, the silly shenanigans, all of it. i can't wait for the sequel!!
• 
  Sammie Reads

  This book was so cute and cozy!!!!! A quick and sweet romance, perfect for a fall read. I expected nothing less of a book called The Pumpkin Spice Café! Jeanie has inherited aforementioned café from her aunt, right at the perfect time. She’s ready to leave her Bostonian life behind, escaping the hustle and bustle for a slower, small town life. And then she meets Lucas. Well…maybe it’s more accurate to say that Lucas delivers a box full of pumpkins to her café and is met at the door with a face full of baseball bat. Almost, anyway.
  
  There are some strange and spooky things happening around the café since Jeanie took over, so Lucas offers to help her stakeout the situation. He’s still nursing a wounded heart after his girlfriend turned down his proposal in front of the entire town, so he’s not exactly in the market for romance. But Jeanie is adorable and so pretty….if he can just keep the town off their backs. Which, I LOVED! Small town romances are my favorite, I loved the funny quirks and the people and the nosiness and just the whole dynamic. Jeanie was a doll, Lucas a dream…I had a great time!
• 
  Emma.catherine

  4.5 ⭐️
  
  I rarely buy into seasonal reads…mostly because I usually find them too corny. But after seeing so many great reviews for this book, topped off by Cara’s review yesterday I couldn’t help myself…I gave in to the hype and I loved it!
  
  I mean what is there not to love about this small town mega-cozy autumnal read. Or should I say fall, given it’s American…nevertheless the vibes were perfect; not too over the top and a jam packed story line. Oh and I can’t forget to mention the fabulous cast of characters.
  
  I felt like each character had their place in this story and a story it was…not just the fall, pumpkin vibes but this book brought the SPICE too!
  
  I loved that their was a strong mystery component to this book - “The ongoing case of the pumpkin spice mysteries” - in fact, I would go as far as saying it the mystery added an extra ⭐️ for me.
  
  Now, let’s talk about Logan…he’s a local farmer that delivers produce to The Pumpkin Spice cafe, that Jeanie has just come to inherit. He also has a small animal sanctuary at his farmer and just so happens to be extremely attractive with a heart of gold. Orphaned as a baby, he lives with his grandparents. Estelle, his grandmother, I absolutely loved, her sweet old lady yet cool grandma vibes, her beautiful home and garden; I’m also a sucker for her late-blooming dahlias, as we have many in our own garden.
  
  But will his past dictate his future?
  
  And will Jeanie stick around long enough to see the mystery through and patch things up with Logan?…..
  
  If you’re looking for a quick, fun, cozy read this autumn, I’d highly recommend giving it a read.
• 
  Yara Adorablebooks.nl

  Wat een geweldig leuk verhaal!! Ik heb me soms een beetje geërgerd omdat de personages niet echt met elkaar praten maar wel verwachtingen hadden - maar het stoorde me niet. Het leuke aan dit verhaal is dat het dus een hele herfstige vibe heeft, het speelt zich af in een klein dorpje en de hoeveelheid spice viel me alles mee!
• 
  Nenia ✨ I yeet my books back and forth ✨ Campbell

  This is the most autumnal thing I have ever seen and I'm proud to report that I have downloaded this and preordered the sequel! Also my mom did too and we're going to BR them together ♥