The stories in the anthology were cute. Based in Moonbright, Maine, they center around the annual Halloween extravaganza put on by the town. I haven't read any of the other anthologies based in this town, so have nothing to compare this iteration with others that have preceded it.

I have to go back to my first impression on all three novellas. They're cute. I think too much time was spent with the 'look in the mirror on Halloween at midnight and find your true love' thing. In the age of female empowerment, this just doesn't sit well, but maybe that's just me.

Very easy reads and easy to follow story lines. I'd recommend these for a lazy afternoon cuddled under a comforter, with a warm drink and an apple cider doughnut. Perhaps a bit of napping between stories.

Thank you to Net Galley and Kensington for allowing me to read an ARC of this book. The review is my own.

This book has an all star writing staff. With authors Marina Adair, Kate Angell and Stacy Finz, how could this book go wrong? For those of you new to these authors, you are in for a treat.
Each short story is set in Moonbright, Maine. There, the residents have a legend that if you will see your future husband in a refecting glass before midnight on Halloween. While each author added their own details to the legend, all three make it something special.
Each of the stories are contemporary and quaint. They will just plain melt your heart strings. This is a great fall book to warm you up as the weather gets cooler. If you follow any of these authors, you may just recognize a side character or two.
Many thanks to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

This a compilation of three stories set in Moonbright, Maine. Each story is told by a different author.
Each has a man and a woman who find their paths converging and they make the choice to build a relationship.

I liked each of the stories. I think the first may be my favorite. At the end there are some recipes including the blueberry butter cake that makes an appearance in Kate Angel’s story. It sounds divine.

Each story has sexual content. It’s open door sex but not in the erotic category.

If you like romance, this book will tick your boxes as long as you aren’t disappointed by short stories that don’t spend lengthy amounts of time developing the characters.

Three stories is set in Moonbright, Maine where during Halloween the tradition is that if you see a man's reflection in a mirror he is the one you will marry. Sweet

If you are dog tired of the dog days of August then The Café between Pumpkin and Pie by Kate Angell, Marina Adair, and Stacy Finz will give you the perfect shot of cool fall romance relief. Moonbright, Maine has the legend of moon beans, mirrors and finding true love to go along with the delightful Corner Café during the annual Halloween parade. I was all ready to enjoy this anthology since my grandmother told me a similar story from her childhood involving a mirror and a nearby stream. And enjoy it I did.

These three novellas by the superb writers make this a wonderful anthology from beginning to end. It is difficult to choose a favorite since all three has elements I truly liked but are written so well. They are novellas so I was prepared for a quicker than usual ending with only so much character development but that is expected from shorter works.

Love Over Easy written by Kate Angell has a female lead that I could easily identify and sympathize with out of the stories. Jake needed to look beyond his nose to find that Hannah had been there all along.

Love Rising by Stacy Finz is a second chance romance one of my favorite tropes. Well done with Sydney returning back to Moonlight to settle a family estate. There is Nick along with the hope of a second chance these many years later.

Romance On Tap by Marina Adair gives the reader a long term crush that perhaps was misguided on the wrong twin but a switch-a-roo might just be the chance needed to correct it.

An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The premise for these three stories that are slightly linked is that if a woman says a chant by midnight on Halloween, she will shortly see the reflection of her true love. All three of these were really cute stories, but I'd have to say that my favorite is the first that is written by Kate Engell. The MC is in charge of her triplet nephews for the Halloween parade. They are dressed as sheep and she is, of course, Little Bo Peep. Her love interest refers to her throughout as "Peep". I just found that really adorable. That may have been adorable, but his intentions were much hotter.

The other two stories were really good as well. There are those rushed moments, because it is an anthology. If you're in the mood for some seasonal Halloween romance stories, I highly recommend The Cafe Between Pumpkin and Pie.

I was gifted a copy of this book via NetGalley. All thoughts are my own.

Feel good stories. Each of author wrote a fantastic story. A great collections of stories a person could curl up and read on an autumn weekend.

I adore fall, so I requested these stories as soon as I saw them on Netgalley. I also loved the clever title of this book. This is the first time I've ever really enjoyed all the stories in an anthology. I've read books by all three of these authors so that helped. All the characters in these three stories were well developed which made for super fun read. Small town romances are my favorite, so naturally, I fell in love with Moonbright, Maine. Marina Adair's story, Romance on Tap, had my heart the most though. I loved Mila and Hudson's story.
Huge thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this anthology.

THE CAFE BETWEEN PUMPKIN AND PIE is an anthology that includes three novellas written by three different authors. The stories all take place in Moonbright, Maine at Halloween. They are filled with the Moonbright Legend, holiday happenings, love, and even some magic! We get to know the goodness of the town and can feel the magic in the air. There are several recipes in the back of the book that are woven throughout the story, and I plan to give a couple of them a try.

LOVE OVER EASY by Kate Angell

LOVE OVER EASY has the café at its core with Nan, the owner, two of her granddaughters who work with her, and staff and regular customers. This is Hannah and Jake’s story, and it is hot from the minute their eyes meet across the parade route. She’s trying to ride herd on her triplet nephews, and Jake steps in to give her a hand. From then on, they seem to be an instant couple. But does he have one foot out the door since he’s only there to visit with his elderly grandfather? Her sister, Lauren, who has a past with Jake but is happily married with the triplets, keeps telling her that’s his M.O.

Jake and Hannah seem to hit it off, although he’s more worldly than she is and Hannah’s more of an innocent whom everyone looks out for, especially while she’s waitressing. The Moonbright Legend, the belief that you will see your future husband in a reflective surface before midnight if you say the magical chant, is a fun part of the story. Hannah says the chant and throws caution to the wind. She and Jake work well together and have definite chemistry, but will their romance stand if he leaves? The small town gossips add humor to a terrific love story.

Angell is one of my favorite authors. This is her third visit to Moonbright, Maine, and I hope she’ll be returning for more. (She normally writes contemporary romances with baseball and the beach at their core.) I eagerly await each one.

LOVE RISING by Stacy Finz

LOVE RISING has Sydney in town after the death of her beloved grandmother (who raised her.) She’s there to settle her estate and get her grandmother’s lovely Victorian house ready for sale. Then Sydney will return to her life and business in San Francisco. When Nick, a contractor her grandmother hired, shows up and is tearing apart the carriage house to install a commercial kitchen, she doesn’t know what to think. She doesn’t understand why her grandmother designed the kitchen and paid for it in full knowing she was dying. As Nick and Sydney grow closer, her grandmother’s reasonings seem to come to light. But will those reasons be enough to keep Sydney in Moonbright?

There are some hot moments between the sheets, along with a hefty dose of romance between Nick and Sydney–who knew each other a long time ago–and some rough goings with Sydney’s business partner. Will things work out the way her grandmother planned? A great romance with an epilogue (which takes place a year later) that’s just the icing on the cake.

Ms. Finz is a new-to-me author. I have several of her books on my TBR pile.

ROMANCE ON TAP by Marina Adair

ROMANCE ON TAP is Mila and Hudson’s story, but Mila only has eyes for his twin brother, Ford. Events that happened seven years ago mix with the present, and Mila has to rethink what she’s believed all that time. As Hudson and she get closer, they both have trouble expressing what they want. Not communicating almost costs them their future. Good thing they both seem to come to their senses at about the same time, and Hudson has his brother to thank for some of it.

Together, Mila and Hudson seem to make a great team. Mila’s a window artist in Moonbright, decorating a lot of the businesses windows to make some money. Hudson seems to be wherever she is. Their relationship builds gradually, and the romance is genuine. But will life and their obligations keep them apart if she gets a new job in L.A.? Great pacing and terrific characters make this a really fun and satisfying story.

I’ve read several of Ms. Adair’s books and always enjoy them. I look forward to reading more of her work.

I rated the book 4.5 stars but rounded to 5 stars here and on other sites.

In the town of Moonbright, young woman who chant some specific lines on Halloween are destined to see the reflection of their true love before the night is over. Three loosely connected stories explore the romances of 2021.

Love Over Easy by Katie Angell
Hannah Allan is in a little over her head. Dressed as Bo Peep so that her sister's children (her sister is home with a cold and her brother-in-law is at work as a policeman) can go to the Halloween parade and then go trick-or-treating. She didn't expect to run into Jake Kaylor. He is the man that every woman in Moonbright wants. Hannah's sister was his girlfriend for awhile but they didn't work out.
Hannah's family owns the Corner Cafe. She works as a waitress and may not always get everyone's orders right, but she is pleasant and the town loves her. Jake is beyond what she can imagine, the bad boy extraordinaire. Yet he somehow has eyes for her. And she's looking back...
Some of the language by Angell is a bit formal and I'm not sure I bought an HEA but for sure there was an HFN.

Three stars.

Love Rising by Stacy Finz
I've read Stacy Finz before and was happy to recognize some characters from previous books. Of the three stories, this felt the most cohesive and it may have helped that the main characters knew each other in the past and seemed to be willing to meet each other halfway to make the relationship work.
Sydney Byrne is only in Moonbright to sell her grandmother's house and then she's going back to San Francisco and back to her bakery. She's not sure why Nick Rossi is at the house at o'dark thirty, nor does she know why he's tearing down the wall to her grandmother's crafts room but she never suspects that her grandmother may have made alternate plans.
Nick doesn't know why Sydney's grandmother hired him but he always fulfills his clients requests. Especially when it means that he's tweaking Sydney's nose at the same time. The two were close in high school with Sydney tutoring him. But then his girlfriend caught them kissing and spread horrible rumors about Sydney that Nick did nothing to stem. Now they're all grown up, both single, and he's thinking that they can test the waters again. But Sydney's life is across the country, how can they make it work?

Three and a half stars

Romance on Tap by Marina Adair
I really liked that Adair wrapped in the experiences of a child adopted from another country but still loves her adoptive parents. Mila Cramer is back in Moonbright so that her parents can have one last Christmas in the house she grew up in. While she's in town, she's determined to lift the curse that Ford James put on her when he kissed her during Seven Minutes in Heaven in high school. That was the last time she kissed a man with whom she had such chemistry. But Ford's twin brother Hudson might book a spoke in those plans.
Again, having characters who already have a history served the author well in this short story. It made me believe that they might have a shot at an HEA because they do know each other... at least their histories.

Three and a half stars

Three and a half stars
This book comes out August 31st, 2021
ARC kindly provided by Kensington Books and NetGalley
Opinions are my own

I have been really enjoying this series. Each fall we get a new one. Something to look forward to bring in the cooler weather.

I read all three stories and have to say I enjoyed them. Each story is standalone but has a touch of the other in it. Not enough to interfere with the story but enough to tie them together. The cafe is mentioned in the stories.

So up first is Love or Easy by Kate Angell, I really enjoyed this one it starts out strong and keeps going. I really enjoyed both characters and felt they worked. Her being so shy and totally not what you'd think he'd go for adds to the story. add a bitchy sister and her cute kids and you have a story. I liked that he didn't like the sister enough to stay but would for her. A solid 4 stars.

After that, we have Love Rising by Stacy Finz. Another one that I really enjoyed. I found it to be easy to read and at times a little heartbreaking. Her losing her grandmother is very sad to me. I really felt for her. She had so much on her table and at times you wondered if he'd be able to be there for her and then they show you how much they really care for each other. So glad I read this one. It's another 4 stars

Last of the bunch is Romance of Tap by Marina Adair. I will admit that this one wasn't my favorite of the three. I'm not sure if it was the characters or the writing. She's not an author I read often so that might be it. I had trouble connecting to the main characters and at times thought...who cares! Not something you want in a romance. I'm sorry to say I can only give it 2 stars. I'm sure others will love it.

The first two stories make it well worth reading and enjoying. As a whole, it's a good book with at least two great stories.

Four and a half stars

A delicious collection of fall holiday romances set in the town of Moonbright, Maine!

Love Over Easy by Kate Angell
Hannah Allan and Jake Kaylor cross paths in the annual Halloween parade, when Jake helps Hannah corral her rambunctious triplet nephews. A gentle story of coming to listen to one’s heart in matters of love, while honoring tradition and the ties of loving family.


Love Rising by Stacy Finz
Sydney Byrne and Nick Rossi shared a shattering kiss in high school. And then parted ways for a decade. Sydney returns to Moonbright when her grandmother passes away and leaves her a partly remodeled house, which Nick is contracted to complete. A lovely unfolding as Sydney and Nick grow to enjoy each other’s company as adults and friends first.



Romance On Tap by Marina Adair
Mila Cramer and one of the James twins share a life changing kiss during a session of Seven Minutes…. Seven years later, can she sort things out with the right twin? A sweet read with a touch of steam.


I enjoyed all three stories, and look forward to reading more by all the authors!

A legend or a curse? All the women in Moonbright chant this words “Mirror, mirror on Halloween, will my future spouse be seen?” But it’s what they see what really will happen? Will bad boy Jake convince shy Hannah he is in town to stay and have a future together? Will Nick and Sydney have a second chance at love And happiness after their kiss in high school? Will Mila choose the right twin this time and stay in Moonbright or will she chase her dreams and love town for good? Three amazing, sweet, funny and lovely stories.

The Café between Pumpkin and Pie is made up of three novellas centred around Halloween in Moonbright, Maine. All three authors, Marina Adair, Kate Angell and Stacy Finz were new to me.

The reader follows three couples and all are absorbing tales. If pressed for a favourite I would choose Love Over Easy by Kate Angell as I liked the connection between Jake and Hannah. The stories are also linked by the Corner Café mentioned in the book's title. Love Rising by Stacy Finz and Romance on Tap by Marina Adair were also great stories. Love Rising is a second chance romance with a first love and Romance on Tap contains sweetness and humour. These novellas are a great way to discover new-to-you cozy romance authors and love the seasonal/festival theme they have. Very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Kensington Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

The Cafe Between Pumpkin and Pie is an anthology of stories all taking in Moonlight, Maine. Very enjoyable stories.

Love Over Easy by Kate Angell
Love Rising by Stacy Finz
Romance on Tap by Marina Adair.

This book contains 3 lighthearted short novellas. I don't usually read romances but this quick read hit the spot. Maybe it was the magical Halloween legend?? For lovers of the Hallmark Channel this is the perfect read.

Really enjoyed this book which contained 3 short novellas. Easy light hearted read, great for lifting the spirit. Would love to see them as Hallmark movies. Highly recommend and would love to read more from this author.
Thank you to @netgalley for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.

The Café Between Pumpkin and Pie consists of three enchanting novellas. Set in Moonbright, ME around Halloween, three singles explore the possibility of finding true love with the help of a magical legend. Chanting a specific spell, they hope to see their forever person reflected in a mirror on Halloween night. This is a fun story complete with romance and enchantment; three quick and easy novellas to enjoy over a weekend or maybe curled up on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate.

I’ve started to love these types of novella sampler books, such a great way to discover new authors. This book in particular felt like, with a little tinkering, they could easily be 3 Hallmark movies plots.

The Café between Pumpkin and Pie by Marina Adair; Kate Angell; Stacy Finz
Publication Date: August 31, 2021
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Description
“As warm and frothy as a spiced pumpkin latte on a crisp autumn day, this trio of magically romantic tales set in the charmingly festive small town of Moonbright, Maine is the perfect Halloween indulgence from bestselling authors Marina Adair, Kate Angell and Stacy Finz!

In Moonbright, Maine, there’s a pumpkin on every porch, fresh brewed apple cider in every cup—and the sweetest sorcery in the air…

Before, after, and even during the excitement of the annual Halloween parade, gathering at the Corner Café is a beloved Moonbright tradition. Costumed revelers of all kinds come for the famous whoopie pies, the heartfelt hospitality, and the chance to hear the town’s spookiest stories and local legends whispered to the younger generation…
 
The most magically romantic legend of all promises that a Moonbright woman will marry the man she sees reflected in a mirror on Halloween. For three such singles, the crunch of fall leaves and the fragrance of fresh-baked pie sets the perfect stage for this most tantalizing trick—and most delightful treat—the genuine enchantment of true love.”
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Thank you to @netgalley @kensingtonbooks for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.
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My thoughts…
Cozy romance. All these three authors were new to me, so I thought reading a short story collection was a good introduction. I enjoyed this, wishing it was cooler weather and I was sipping pumpkin spice latte, because the three stories were cozy, but also steamy. The three stories were connected and based in Moonbright, Maine. I thought the theme of Halloween and the legend of how single Moonbright women found love on Halloween was sweet. This is book 3 from the Moonbright Series, but worked as a stand-alone. I will look up the two previous books closer to Halloween 👻