The Pumpkin Pie Book Nook Review: A Cozy Small-Town Romance

There are books that make you want to visit the place they’re set in, and then there are books that make you want to move there, find a job in the local bookstore and never leave. The Pumpkin Pie Book Nook by Harper Graham was very much the second kind for me.

And considering there’s a bookstore, a small town, a scavenger hunt, a single dad, found family and a sweet romance involved, I probably never stood a chance.

Before anything else, Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Author: Harper Graham
Genre: Contemporary romance / small-town romance / cozy romance
Series: Maple Falls
Themes: Small town romance, Found family, single parenthood
Trigger Warnings: References to grief and loss, family difficulties, and relationship breakdowns.

**This post contains affiliate links. I may earn a tiny commission- likely spent on more books, obviously!

Book Review: The Pumpkin Pie Booknook by Harper Graham

Robyn takes a sabbatical from Yale and finds herself in Maple Falls, where she starts working at the local bookstore.

The bookstore belongs to Meg, who is thinking about selling it, and Robyn becomes part of the effort to keep the much-loved shop going. While settling into life in Maple Falls, she meets Tyler, a single dad, and the two discover an unfinished romance manuscript that belonged to Robyn’s great-grandmother.

Their search for the missing pages turns into a little scavenger hunt around town, bringing together the people of Maple Falls and slowly bringing Robyn and Tyler closer too. And, naturally, things get a little complicated when the two start falling for each other.

I went into The Pumpkin Pie Book Nook expecting a cozy romance, and it gave me exactly that — but there was enough happening around the romance to make the story feel fuller.

The first thing I really appreciated was the characters.

Robyn and Tyler are both mature, which made such a difference to the romance for me. There was no endless cycle of misunderstandings or people refusing to communicate just because the plot needed some drama. They felt like two adults getting to know each other, figuring out what they wanted and slowly allowing themselves to become part of each other’s lives. I really enjoyed watching their relationship develop, and by the time they started getting closer, I was completely rooting for them.

The Bookstore and Maple Falls

The bookstore is such an important part of the story, and I loved that it wasn’t simply there to give us a pretty backdrop for the romance.

Meg is considering selling the bookstore, and that becomes an important thread throughout the story. The shop clearly means so much to the people of Maple Falls, and I loved seeing the community come together around it.

It also ties beautifully into the found family aspect of the book.

Robyn gradually becomes part of this little community, and those relationships were some of my favourite parts of the story. There’s something incredibly comforting about watching someone find a place where they feel wanted and where people genuinely show up for each other.

Honestly, I wanted to spend an afternoon wandering around that bookstore and then stay for whatever everyone was doing afterwards.

The Scavenger Hunt

I wasn’t expecting the scavenger hunt to become one of my favourite parts.

The unfinished manuscript gives Robyn and the others a reason to go looking for the missing pieces, but it also becomes a way of bringing the community together.

It gave the story a little more depth beyond the romance and kept me curious about what they would discover next. I also liked that the scavenger hunt didn’t make the book feel like a mystery. It was still very much a cozy romance, but the little adventure running alongside it gave the plot something extra to hold onto.

Single Dad

One of the sweetest parts of the book for me was Tyler’s relationship with his daughter, Emma.

The father-daughter moments felt very natural and added another layer to Tyler’s character. I loved getting to see him not just as Robyn’s love interest, but as a dad trying to do his best for his daughter. And watching Robyn become part of that little dynamic made the romance feel more meaningful too. These were the kinds of scenes that made me smile without even realising it.

Is it a perfect feel-good romance?

This book really does feel good to read.

It has the kind of setting you want from a cozy small-town romance, but the characters are what made it work for me. There’s romance, friendship, community, family, books and a little adventure, all wrapped up in a story that never feels too heavy.

And yes, the pumpkin pie element absolutely adds to the whole autumnal mood.

The Pumpkin Pie Book Nook is available on Amazon Kindle Unlimited, so if you have a KU subscription and this sounds like your kind of read, you can add it to your list.

In a gist, here’s what you can expect from this book.

💫small town romance💫found family💫single dad💫bookstore and cozy autumn vibes

Yes.

This is the kind of book I would happily recommend when someone tells me they want something comforting after a run of heavier reads. It made me want to curl up with a blanket, make something warm to drink and pretend I lived in Maple Falls.

📖 Rating: 4.5/5

Where to buy The Pumpkin Pie Booknook

You can grab a copy of The Magic We Made from Amazon US and The Magic We Made from Amazon India

Find all my book reviews here.

Like it? Pin it!

You can follow me on my Bookstagram at ReadingWithMuffy.

Looking for more cozy fall reads? Check out my other book reviews and follow me on Instagram at @readingwithmuffy for more romance, fantasy, and cozy book recommendations.

That’s all for now!
Share and connect with me on social media.
Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Pinterest