I don’t know about you but I’m so ready for some cooler temperatures, yes I’m wishing summer away but I’m so over the heat. If you are feeling like you’re ready for fall this was a delightful little seasonal read that I enjoyed. I wanted the feeling of a cozy fall in a quaint town and that’s exactly what I got. Things aren’t exactly perfect in Starr’s Fall though and I appreciated that it wasn’t exactly your typical small town romance, it still delivered in its own unique way. Laurie was the sweetest character with some sad trauma in her past and I really like the journey the author took her on. Her relationship with Joshua was a slow burn and this one is closed door so just a little kissing which made this one really sweet and tender. Definitely recommended if you want a cute romance, fun fall activities and a charming and quirky small town.

This is such a cozy, heartwarming, sweet read perfect for autumn afternoons. I loved meeting Laurie and Joshua. They were both so lovely and watching them work through their traumas and finding themselves was inspiring and endearing. This has Stars Hollow vibes and all the charms of small town life. 🍂🐶🐱🧡

Thank you to @netgalley and @boldwoodbooksnl for this ARC. I enjoyed it so much!

Add this to your TBR. Pub day is September 18th! 📚🗓️

In the book Coming Home to Starr’s Fall by Kate Hewitt, Laurie Ellis has made up her mind to move to Starr’s Fall to start over because she believes that it is her town of origin. Having grown up in foster homes, she now finds herself wanting to belong somewhere. The people here are welcoming and others are grumpy, Joshua Reilly being a good example of the grumpy ones. Life has taught her to be positive, which is the way to go when dealing with him. Surely there must be something buried deep within this handsome, grumpy bookstore manager, who seems to be living in a world of his own, needing no disturbance, even though he is her immediate neighbor. As she settles in this small town, life takes a different turn, making her make several life decisions. Find out more in this book, Coming Home to Starr’s Fall, by Kate Hewitt.

I like how simple yet intense the book is; maybe it's the setting of the story, which is based on a small town. The story draws out the contrast between small-town and city life. The plot is excellent, as it is very engaging, and the author seems to be talented in engaging her readers.

I did not like gaps between chapters; an example is the gap between chapters 8 and 9. I also found the end to be a bit abrupt, which is likely to leave readers hanging.

I rate this book Coming Home to Starr’s Fall by Kate Hewitt 3 out of 5 stars for the above reasons.

I recommend to those whose readers who love simple yet engaging books based on small-town livelihood bringing out its simplicity and love, they will find this one quite entertaining. I also recommend it to those with life hurts and scars. The book is about going through life with hope and appreciation despite life's pain and unfulfilled dreams, being grateful for what you have and what you don't have too, because that too can be a blessing in disguise.

I enjoyed the coziness of this small town romance! Laurie’s story was fun to see her grow in her new community, and I loved how welcoming the people of Starr’s Fall were. I think her personal growth outweighed the romance in the story, which is totally fine, but I do wish there could’ve been a little more to the budding chemistry of Laurie and Joshua. But overall, I really enjoyed this book and it’s a perfect fall read!

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the reviewer copy of this book.

Coming Home to Starr’s Fall.

The cosiest book I’ve read all year!

If you love a small-town romance, you’ll love this book.

Laurie Ellis, and her dog Max, move to the small town of Starr’s Fall with the hopes of opening up a pet store and bakery. There she meets and gets to know the locals, including the antiquarian book store owner Joshua Reilly (AKA The Grinch). It turns out there’s another reason she’s moved to this sleepy town that includes her past and a possible link to Starr’s Fall.

This book is perfect for fans of Gilmore Girls, enemies to lovers, and grumpy/sunshine relationships.

This book was probably the cosiest book I’ve read all year, and definitely perfect for Autumn. I loved all of the characters, the setting descriptions, and the storyline. I come away from the book with a genuine feeling that I’ve been to Starr’s Fall and have experienced the warmth and tight-knit community there. I loved that there was serious issues intertwined with the romance and cosy aspect of the book. It was an incredibly enjoyable read for me.

***Spoilers***

The only thing I would say is that I want to know more! I want to know more about Laurie’s mum; why she was being so mysterious and rude, why she gave Laurie up for adoption in the first place. I want to know who Laurie’s dad was also, as I just assumed it would be whoever played Lysander in the production, but we never find out. I want to know more about Henrietta’s daughter and if she ever heard from her. I wanted to experience Laurie helping the town create the Winter Wonderland Festival.

Overall I really loved this book and hope there will be more to come!

I absolutely devoured this cozy little fall read! I loved watching Laurie find community and peace in her new life. Definitely recommend this clean, fall romance!

I have read almost all of Kate Hewitt's books and while this book wasn't awful it wasn't my favourite. I found it read like mid level Gilmore Girls fiction and I missed her English country side setting.

A good cosy story. I loved Max’s place, and really enjoyed the community feeling the book made. Particularly with Laurie finding her people, going to town meetings and helping Henrietta Star.

However to improve, it would have been really lovely to see more growth as the shop was built from a tiny dusty space to a bustling business it became at the end. Plus the part about Laurie finding her mother after all these years. It all felt a bit rushed which caused a lack in the important details, making the book extremely slow and boring at time. Other than that a good read.

Thank you to NetGalley and BoldBooks for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved reading this book. New author to me. Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. It was hard to put the book down to work. Hopefully this will be a series.

This is a Hallmark movie in writing, it has all the cosy vibes and had to be read whilst drinking a PSL!
If you like Gilmore Girls and cheesy movies, you will absolutely love this book.

A totally gorgeous, brand new romance from million-copy bestselling author, Kate Hewitt! Welcome to the town of Starr’s Fall, where Autumn can feel like it goes on forever, and two people have a chance to fall in love…
The leaves are falling, with a crispness to the air, along with the scents of coffee and pumpkin spice, past a half-empty street of shuttered storefronts and a bandstand that has seen better days…

Just like the whole town of Starr’s Fall, thinks Laurie Ellis – as she and her beloved dog Max head to collect the store keys. Maybe she has seen better days, too, but she’s certainly ready for a new start—and to leave her past behind. Still Laurie wonders whether she made a terrible mistake in coming to lovable but shabby Starr’s Fall. Will she even find customers for her pet store and bakery, never mind a community to welcome and accept her?

Not according to Joshua Reilly, the handsome but grumpy manager of the bookstore across the road, who claims he’s never heard of anything so ridiculous as a bakery for dogs.

But Laurie remains stubbornly undeterred. She’s starting over, right here. Not least because she has another secret reason for being here… one she isn’t telling anybody, at least not yet, as it involves her own tragic past.

What she doesn’t yet know is that a clue to the mystery is hidden deep in Joshua’s bookstore. And he doesn’t yet realize that Laurie herself might be the key to mending his own battered heart… for Laurie and Joshua and the whole town, it’s going to be a fall to remember.

I chose this book because I enjoyed Kate Hewitt's World War II saga 'Into the Darkest Day'. Although this is a very different genre - a warm, Hallmark-movie hug of a book set in smalltown Connecticut in the fall - I trusted her to tell a good story with an emotional punch.

It's a very easy read. Laurie Ellis is a likeable protagonist to root for. If I have a minor criticism, it's that the initial description of the romantic hero Joshua as "like a grownup Harry Potter" was a bit off-putting, though kudos for him being an antiquarian bookseller...

Favourite line: "Life could hurt because no one got through it unscathed, unscarred. But the scars were signs of survival, badges of grace."

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

Laurie Ellis is about to start life anew in a small town called Starr’s Fall, northwestern Connecticut. She is going to open a pet store and pet bakery.
Joshua Reilly runs the dusty bookstore opposite Laurie, handsome but grumpy.
Laurie is optimistic that Starr’s Fall will be just what she’s looking for in life.

I very much enjoyed reading this book. The authors writing description was so vivid I felt as if I were there, and could picture everything perfectly.
The book does have some sensitive issues but in general I thought it was caring and positive.
Laurie is a very likeable character.
I am so looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Publisher for an advanced e-book copy. Opinions about the book are entirely my own.

Dnf at 35%

Too boring for me, nothing happened at all. I hoped for more fall-ish vibes but the book didn't delivered that. I couldn't keep on going with this book unfortunately...

I am still absorbing this story...a story of loneliness, love lost, love found, and ...finding home. When life doesn't turn out the way you've always hoped it would, how do you handle any disappointment? By sinking into despair, or by looking for a brighter tomorrow? The characters of Coming Home to Starr's Fall show their losses, disappointments, and flaws. Yet, they embrace hope and each other. Such a great read.

Releases Sep 18th. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

An easy to read book with a leading character that integrates into a community in order to open a shop but also find out more about herself. Thanks to Kate H and her publisher.

Laurie moves to Starr's Fall hoping to find a home and more about her past. She meets grumpy bookshop owner Joshua on her first night, who is determined not to get involved. Both characters learn a lot from each other and feel like they have a genuine connection rather than being thrown together to fulfil the brief of a romance. I appreciated the slow burn romance - with Laurie's history explained in particular, it feels right for them.

I was captivated by this story. At a certain point, I was desperate to find out what was going to happen - if I'd been reading in print, I'd definitely have flicked forwards to find out!

Laurie's backstory (no spoilers!) feels really well researched, providing an emotional background to everything she does.

Starr's Fall has some Gilmore Girls vibes - it is set near Hartford just like Stars Hollow! - but in a dilapidated way. Laurie is a breath of fresh air in Starr's Fall, she seems to bring new town developments with her every few chapters! There are quite a few characters mentioned, with key characters where you get backstory. This is an intriguing start to a series as there are some unresolved stories - Henrietta Starr, Annie and Mike, Zach, and obviously the epilogue and the new arrivals on Main Street.

This was my first Kate Hewitt book and I'll definitely be reading more. The scene setting and descriptions were so clever and immersive (and I definitely learned a few new words!). I can't wait for book 2 in this series and I'll be looking up her other books.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded. This is such a sweet book with Gilmore Girls and small town vibes. It feels like a hallmark movie. It was the perfect end of summer book.

: ̗̀➛ 4 stars

I absolutely loved this small-town novel with its cozy fall vibe—Starr's Fall felt so real that I could almost hear the crunch of leaves and smell the bakery's sweet treats. The author crafted a beautiful, immersive story that was a breeze to read, making it hard to put down. Laurie, the female protagonist, moves to Starr's Fall in search of a community and finds herself opening up to new friendships and the possibility of romance with the gruff bookstore owner across the street. Her journey of self-discovery and connection was both heartwarming and engaging.

The book offers everything you'd expect from a feel-good fall romance, but it also dives deep into serious themes like grief, parental loss, and the challenges of growing up in the foster system. I loved the depth and emotional resonance the author brought to the story, which added richness to the sweet, wholesome narrative.

This novel is perfect for anyone who enjoys a good, clean romance with a strong sense of community. The characters and the town of Starr's Fall were so endearing, and I can't wait for the series to continue. I adored this book and am excited to explore more of the author's work!



Thank you, NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

This was a very cute read! I enjoyed the cozy vibe present throughout the entire story. While I can’t say this was a “hard to put down” book, it was definitely interesting. There were a few parts of the story that lagged a bit, but it kept my attention for the most part. I enjoyed each of the characters and appreciated that we were able to learn quite a bit about them in such a short amount of time. I also think the author did a great job of hinting at future storylines with bits and pieces of intrigue here and there. My favorite part of the story was the ending—I loved how realistic it was! Everything isn’t always “sunshine and rainbows”; sometimes things are just awful, and I appreciated the way that was portrayed. I will say that the romance, while sweet, lacked a bit for me. I didn’t feel any real chemistry between the characters. However, I did appreciate their friendship/relationship as it relates to the “found family” that Laurie discovers in Stars Fall. Overall, it was a nice, feel-good story, perfect for fall!

Coming Home to Starr’s Fall is an enjoyable story set in a small town. It's full of heartwarming characters, romance, and fresh new beginnings.