What a lovely story. Loved the main characters and how the friendships that developed. Would definitely recommend this book.

Note: Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books, and author Kate Hewitt for the advanced reader copy of this book. What follows is my unbiased review of the book.

I'm not a fan of romance novels, as I've said often enough. Usually, the ones I like have another good story going on besides the romance whether it's a mystery or something historic. In the case of Kate Hewitt's Coming Home to Starr's Fall, it also deals with adoption.

Laurie Ellis is a young woman who has grown up in the foster care system. She was put up for adoption as a baby. At first, the reader doesn't understand how, in this day and age where white babies are so in demand, she languished in foster care. Laurie is searching for a place to call home with her dog, Max. The information she has on her birthmother is that she came from Starr's Fall, so that's part of what draws her there. She has plans to open a pet store/pet bakery.

Across the street is a bookstore that isn't really a bookstore anymore. It's owned by the local "Grinch," Joshua Reilly. When Laurie's dog chases the cat Joshua is watching, the two meet and begin an uneasy friendship that may lead to something else.

The feeling of Laurie coming to a small New England town is a familiar one to me. Before now, Laurie really didn't have a place to call home or any close friends. Almost immediately, the town seems to wrap its loving arms around her. All the while she's finding her footing, the search for her birthmother is at the back of her mind. As the relationship between Laurie and Joshua grows, she begins to open up to him about her life.

Hewitt does a terrific job writing about the effects of surrendering a child and the difficulties adopted children often face, even when an adoption goes well. That's not the case for Laurie, and it's also depicted well. It explains her difficulties getting close to people and trusting them. Landing in Starr's Fall is a hope to find a place where she finally feels like she fits in, along with the hope of being able to connect with the woman who gave birth to her.

All this talk about what it's like to be surrendered for Laurie has an impact on one of the town's older residents, who confides in Laurie that she surrendered a child back in the 1950s and has lived with that secret her whole life. Hewitt does a great job with this angle of the story as she shows the impact of adoption on a woman's entire life.

The romance here is sweet and gradual. There were no surprises, really, in that department. It's not all easy for Joshua and Laurie, and that gives it a real feeling. Both have reasons to hesitate to give their hearts to one another. They've been let down by the people who were supposed to love them all their lives.

I've mostly read (and liked) Hewitt's historical fiction and I have to say she also writes a good contemporary romance. She gets the small-town feel right as well as the feelings of adoptees who have a hard time finding their place in the world. This is one romance I can definitely recommend.

Coming Home to Starr’s Fall by Kate Hewitt is a beautiful, heartfelt story about family, healing, and second chances. The novel follows Nora, who returns to her small hometown of Starr’s Fall, hoping to mend old wounds and rediscover herself. Hewitt’s writing captures the deep, often messy emotions of coming home and facing the past, and I found myself deeply invested in Nora’s journey.

The characters are so richly drawn, and Starr’s Fall itself feels like a character—a place filled with both painful memories and the potential for new beginnings. This book reminds us that sometimes the hardest journeys lead us to exactly where we need to be.

If you love stories about finding peace, forgiveness, and a sense of belonging, Coming Home to Starr’s Fall is a must-read. It’s heartfelt, honest, and full of hope.

This was the first book I've read by Kate Hewitt and I'm so so grateful to have been introduced to this author!

In 'Coming Home to Starr’s Fall," lead female character Laurie Ellis is looking to make some changes in her life after receiving an unexpected inheritance from a former foster parent. Deciding to move to Starr's Fall, her plans are to open an animal bakery. And to see if she can't learn more about the family she never knew.

Across the street from her proposed animal bakery, she meets Joshua Reilly who is a grumpy bookstore owner. His immediate and obvious moodiness is the total opposite of her unwaveringly positive outlook.

I'm always up for a good ol' grumpy vs sunshine trope in a romance especially when it's set in a small town. And you can't go wrong when fall is the backdrop! This was a fantastic four star read and one I certainly recommend!

This book was absolutely wonderful. Wonderful characters, a delightful storyline.... just wonderful.

This book was absolutely delightful! Perfect fall read with lovable characters and even adorable pup . It made me want to live in Starr’s Fall.

If you are looking for a great autumn read, this is it! This was a good romance set in New England with the leaves changing and a slow burn brewing.

Laura is looking to make some big changes in her life, so she’s packed up her and her dog for a move and a new venture of opening a pet bakery and store. Josh grew up in Starr’s Fall and runs the family bookstore. He notices the new store owner as they begin to spend more and more time together. While sharing their pasts and loneliness they both begin to fall for each other.

I’m excited to see support characters stories expanded upon in future books.

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

What a fun romance this is! It is sweet, 100% closed door, and a perfect choice for a cozy fall afternoon!

Rating: 3 ⭐️
Pub Date: September 18, 2024
How I Read It: 🎧 📱

Synopsis
Laurie Ellis and her dog Max make the move from New Jersey to Starr’s Fall, CT; they’re starting over and Laurie is going to be opening up a dog shop/bakery in the small quaint town nestled in the Western Hills of CT. She looking for a new start, but is still searching for a missing piece of her past, and she’s hoping she can find the missing piece in Starr’s Fall. What she finds when she arrives, in her broken down van, is a friendly and accepting community, with the exception of one person, her neighbor Joshua Reilly who’s handsome but grumpy.

My Thoughts
This book was really cute! It was a little slow for me, but it was a short book that gave all those cozy small town fall Gilmore Girl feels, so if you’re looking for a heartwarming small town love story with the community vibe of a fall festival in a Hallmark movie, then this is the book for you!

❗️Of Note
Adoption

Themes
Family
Community
Love

Ratings
Characters: 4 ⭐️
Pace: 3 ⭐️
Enjoyability: 3.5 ⭐️

Thank you Boldwood Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this book! The characters, the setting, are the details/writing are all so well done. I always love a good Fall centered romance and this was no exception. The Gilmore Girls vibes and grumpy sunshine trope are added bonuses. This a great book to cozy up with if you are looking for a feel-good romance story. I will recommend to others and absolutely look forward to future titles from Kate Hewitt.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC the review. All opinions are my own.

When I tell you that I couldn’t put this book down!! It was phenomenal. Kate Hewitt is one of this auto buy authors to me!

This was such a fun fall vibe. I felt like I had entered stars hallow all over again while reading this book. A must read for fans of Gilmore girls.

3.5/5 ⭐️

I received this book as an eArc from NetGalley to review. The premise of this book was sweet with a woman adrift in life returning to where her birth mother was from, to start her own life and hopefully find and reconnect with her mom.

It was a cute, cozy read. Perfect for fall and those that like romance with closed doors/no closed doors. Sunshine/Grumpy. Idyllic small town feel. Hallmark movie in a book.

My one and only gripe with this book was the beginning 30% of the book I don't know how many times I had to read that she felt adrift, lonely, lost and wanting direction/companionship. I fully understand that was a huge part of her as a person and her story arc but it kinda became unbearable. Once we moved past that and it was only mentioned a few other times I really enjoyed her upbeat character attitude and the relationships she built with the grump across the street and the friends she made in Starr's Fall.

I would happily read more from this author if she continues in this series. I'd love for Annie to find love and Jenna and Jack.

This was a cute read, and the town was so reminiscent of Stars Hollow. At times, it felt like there was too much extraneous detail and too little happening, but I liked the book overall. The ending was frustrating and I wish they’d expanded on Henrietta Starr’s storyline. There were almost too many characters to fully flesh out any of them so some of the dialogue felt pointless and meandering. I did enjoy how the town came together to support Laurie and how she was able to finally build a community for herself.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

This is a lovely story and I think the start of a new series, I absolutely loved the setting Starr’s Fall, it is autumn and the leaves are turning and Laurie Ellis is making a big change in her life, packing up with her small dog Max and moving to firstly open up a new business, Max’s Place a pet store and pet bakery, but she is also there to see if she can find some answers about her biological mother.

★

Laurie is moving to the small Connecticut town of Starr’s Fall with plans to open a pet bakery and a personal quest of searching for relatives. She ends up making friends, falling in love, connecting with the community, and doing all the other wonderfully fluffy things you’d expect in a feel-good seasonal story.

Ironically, these are the things that made this book dull. Laurie is juggling friendship and entrepreneurship and community involvement and romance and familial connections, but neither Laurie nor the plot are strong enough to anchor these things to any significance. They all just become floating elements.

As for Laurie, I really wanted to like her but her character felt too cookie-cutter perfect. She’s bubbly and presents herself as supremely optimistic, yet she has a tragic background that doesn’t seem to affect her all that much in the end. This made her personal history seem like a crutch to relate Laurie to another character rather than something of true significance.



All that to say: The elements for a decent story were present, but the effort didn’t seem to be.


Thank you NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the e-arc!

This was absolutely amazing! I was totally enthralled with this story from beginning to end, I could barely put it down, and when I finally read the last page, the house was dark, I was hungry, thirsty, needed to pee and my neck was stiff. But damn, it was worth it!

I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but with this one, the story and setting are as sweet and quaint as the cover. This was a quick, enjoyable read, perfect for the fall.

Thank you to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review and opinion.

This book isn’t my usual read, but I was in desperate need of a palette cleanser. I needed something that was so far away from my day to day life, and this is the one that jumped out at me.
It’s always been a dream of mine to visit a quaint, cozy, small town America and this is exactly how I imagine it to be.
I absolutely loved this book. It gave me everything. The descriptiveness from the author was amazing, I found myself fully immersed in the town, the atmosphere, the story itself. When I say, I fell asleep reading this because I just didn’t want to put it down.
I was gutted when I came to the end as I wasn’t ready to leave.
The story itself was well thought out, great pace to it, the characters were real, flawed and relatable.
I cannot wait to read more from this author in the future!
Thank you so much for the ARC, couldn’t have come at a better time.

The perfect cozy small town read. It is Gilmore Girls vibes with a grumpy sunshine romance and an adorable dog. The side characters in the town are perfectly written and truly felt transported to Starrs Fall. It is emotional and heartwarming and the perfect read for fall!