The Cinnamon Spice Inn by Harper Graham

Love is the sweetest spice of all.

A fiery, coffee-loving city girl. A laid-back handyman with irresistible hazel eyes. Is this a recipe for disaster? Find out in this totally cozy and unputdownable enemies-to-lovers romance in the small town of your dreams! Gilmore Girls + spice + everything autumn = 🔥

Self-confessed coffee addict and food writer Madison has convinced herself she belongs in NYC. But then she’s called back to the small town of Maple Falls to save her childhood home, The Cinnamon Spice Inn. She’s NOT looking forward to seeing her ex, Zach—now a sexy handyman who knows exactly how to push her buttons. But she won’t let anything distract her from the inn’s relaunch… right?

Zach is frustrated in more ways than one when his latest job brings him face-to-face with the girl who got away. He’s already agreed to renovate her family’s inn and he’s nothing if not a man of his word. But the last thing he wants is to work side-by-side with that stubborn, infuriating—fine, totally gorgeous—red-head.

Sparks fly as they prepare for the big Halloween opening. Will Madison save The Cinnamon Spice Inn and have a second chance at love, or will it all go up in flames?

Grab your favourite spiced latte and settle in with this steamy romance, packed with small-town charm, scorching chemistry, and the perfect HEA. If you love Laurie Gilmore, Emily Henry, cozy autumn vibes and plenty of spice, this is perfect for you!

My Review

Omg, I can’t tell you how excited I am to review this book. I was able to get approved to review it in audiobook form from a NetGalley arc. I am leaving an honest review 

We begin the book with Madison, who is back in her childhood home, The Cinnamon Spice Inn. She found a strange letter under the pillow. Oh, I love the scent descriptions they bring right into the autumn vibes. Madison loves a good puzzle, and the writer of the letter is the best one for her to solve. She drops it all in the big city and goes back to Maple Falls, her hometown. 

This book is set in the Midwest, and the thunderstorm descriptions must be my favorite thing so far.  She is organized and has a big idea to fix up the Inn and get back to the big city. She is a popular food writer and can totally do this. Madison is strong and confident, high-maintenance, and has an overactive imagination, but she might get a little overreactive to certain situations. 

Oh, this gets deeper as her dad’s guy is the last person she wants to see, her ex-Zac. They have a history of childhood sweethearts, best friends, and instant attraction. We do get Zac’s pov, but the audiobook isn’t dual narrative.  Zac has an emotional reaction to seeing her again. It comes out in an angry tone. He helps people and is a contractor; he cares abundantly for the townspeople and this small town. 

They have a whole enemies thing going on from the start, with the whole petty comments and barbed banter. They do still have tension, but I’m not sure if it is good or bad. It is sparingly at best, only when they happen to be in any sort of proximity. 

Oh, the fantasy of Zac is smoking hot. Zac has renovated his family’s heritage home with an apple orchard as well, and now it needs work too. That storm was a doozy and starts us on the path of the storyline, or at least I thought that was what this book was about. 

Apparently, the Inn is a whole family affair with her grandmother, her father, and Madison. Zac mentions other small-town people by name and profession. Like Liam the pumpkin farmer, Liam’s brother Jackson, who is in the military, they are also connected; many more are mentioned and voiced through the story. I knew the whole town better than I knew the main characters. 

He is so getting voluntold by his mom to assist The Cinnamon Spice Inn with renovations and live there during it, much to his chagrin. I love the forced proximity; it puts him right in Madison’s path. His mother is very convincing with her arguments and meddling. So, this part is interesting, and I was expecting a typical romance. This is where the book lost me. 

Miscommunication and unspoken expectations are what sank their past relationships, and Madison has all but abandoned her old friendships along the way. This book leans heavily into a slow burn with plenty of fluff, and while the seasonal atmosphere is charming, the constant back-and-forth feels unnecessary. There are far more memories and reflections than real-time interactions, and while Zac and Maddie clearly share a history, it doesn’t quite present itself on the page early on.

The town elders, on the other hand, are a delightful surprise. Their sharp, no-nonsense banter, especially when they rope Madison into a Pumpkin Fest committee meeting, is both comical and entertaining, adding some much-needed spark.

The pacing, however, drags. The first portion of the book is weighed down by flashbacks, random encounters, and endless internal monologues. The storm damage set up in the beginning is left hanging while we circle through self-care routines and self-deprecating thoughts. At first, I appreciated the layered backstory, but after several chapters, it began to feel repetitive. Honestly, Madison would benefit more from working through her issues than running from them. 

When Zac and Madison finally interact, it’s prickly but refreshing, because at least something is happening between them rather than just in their heads. Still, Madison often retreats into cozy nostalgia and grief, and their push-pull dynamic wanting each other, denying it, revisiting old wounds, starts to spin in circles. I swear these two spin around like a tornado. 

They do eventually talk honestly (helped along by peer pressure and a few drinks), and Zac shines as the genuinely good small-town guy. Their outdoor kiss is smoking hot, but instead of progression, we get more of the same hesitation. The story seems stuck on repeat: memories, reasons they can’t be together, more internal angst. Renovations? Forced proximity? The romance payoff? Still waiting. The character development isn’t there, and it’s stretched thin by too much repetition.

I’ll be honest, I struggled. I wanted to love this story, especially with the autumn vibes and small-town charm woven in. But the emotional connection never landed because the characters rarely do anything together. Most of the angst lives in their thoughts, which makes it harder to feel authentic as a reader. The mix of tropes childhood sweethearts, second-chance romance, and enemies-to-lovers creates more confusion than tension.

That said, once we hit chapter twenty-one, the writing noticeably improves. The girl talks, the revelations, the real growth. This is where the book finally hooks me. If the story had trimmed down some of the fluff and started stronger, I’d be much more invested.

The intimacy that does arrive is steamy, but it feels abrupt, coming without enough interaction to build up to it. Arguments, misunderstandings, heated moments… but still, nothing truly resolves. Madison remains conflicted, torn between Zac, the town’s judgment, and whether long distance could work.

By the final chapters, the pace picks up and things become more engaging, but honestly? If I could have skipped from chapters 1–5 straight to 21, I think I would have loved this a lot more.

They finally broke the ice, and the pumpkin festival brings out their playful side, but Zac is still very meek. I liked his character a lot more by the end of the book, but I started to be annoyed by Madison.  His voice parts are quick and simple one-liners that you have to focus on to catch the inclination. Happiness looks good on them, but they also steal moments of intimacy in public, which again is awkward. I enjoyed the bidding war. 

This part of the book is so much better than the beginning; it is like night and day. This is more of what I expected in this autumn romance. But still, nothing is resolved in this story. If only the writing were like this all the way through. But honestly, this book gave me whiplash.

If you would like to read The Cinnamon Spice Inn by Harper Graham, you can find this book on Amazon. As an Amazon Assocaite, I earn on qualifying purchases.

If you like these tropes I have other books I recommend more in these categories: Autumn, Forced Proximity, and Opposites.