While stuck in quarantine pre surgery I needed an escape and the The Tourist Attraction was the perfect ticket for me. It was cute, funny with just a smidgen of drama. I couldn't recommend it enough.

Perfect Rom-Come for light reading and the winter season!

I have this 3.5 stars, but round up on my star ratings on Goodreads/Amazon.

This story revolves around two main characters who fall in love with each other in the span of two weeks. The relationship is super rushed, and seems to be just surface level. I wasn't expecting a whole in depth thing here though, so I'm ok with it.

My favorite parts though, revolves around the Moose. Ulysses is probably my favorite side character, he's a funny animal that I grew to adore.

My main qualm with this book is that it took a lot longer to get to the end than it should have. The middle felt a bit drawn out to me, and there were lots of random interactions that didn't result in much of anything.

Overall though, this is a great light read for stressful times!

The Tourist Attraction is Book 1 in the Moose Springs, Alaska Series.

The story centres around Graham the grumpy local who spends his days flipping reindeer dogs to an endless string of tourists at his diner The Tourist Trap. Then one day in walks in Zoey the sweet and enthusiastic tourist. I loved them both and really enjoyed their banter.

The author did such a wonderful job in describing the scenery and I felt like I was experiencing everything Alaska had to offer myself. It was such a perfect holiday read.

I adored this sweet and fun story that has plenty of laugh out loud moments that left me feeling warm and fuzzy and I am very much looking forward to reading the others in this series.

I want to thank Source Books and Netgalley for generously providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I love Jake and how he's the sweetest and smartest dog ever (even though I don't believe it for a second because my border collie is a demon). It bothered me that Graham was so adamant about hating tourists, but his restaurant was part of the attraction. I guess that brings character to him though.

Initial rating: 3*
New rating: 2* after some reflection.

This wasn’t the best start to my reading year, unfortunately. I had mega high hopes for this one but found it lacked a lot of substance in that the main characters felt very flat; as if they weren’t given enough detail in order to become interesting characters and the plot was mostly lacklustre. The relationship between the two main characters was so flat also; they hadn’t been given a chance to truly develop as a pair before they were head over heels in love and though I don’t have an issue with insta-love, it becomes an issue when I just can’t believe the feelings they supposedly have for one another. It felt like their relationship was in its early stages rather than both of them possessing the ability to know they were in love and I think it should’ve been developed loads more before it came something deeper. That could just be a personal preference, though, but to me it felt incredibly hollow. Overall the book was enjoyable enough, but it certainly wasn’t anything special for me. I wish it had been though, because it had so much potential. It just felt very flat and lacklustre; and their entire relationship was unbelievable, not to mention the whole “I run a really popular restaurant but I’m horrible to patrons” issue becoming really repetitive and irritating at best. It could’ve been played out so much better.

Unfortunately I also won’t be finishing the series as I hold no desire to because I don’t feel any hope or excitement for it.

Look. I'll be the first to admit headstrong ladies who know what they want and curmudgeon men with a secret heart of gold ranks high on my list of favorite tropes. The Tourist Attraction is no exception. Zoey seems like the type of woman who would choose to spend the rest of her life in a place she only visited once, but it doesn't seem forced. When you know, you know.

The only thing I didn't particularly care for was the fact that Graham and Zoey seemed to move so fast in their relationship that it almost seemed like Zoey was staying FOR Graham and not because she truly loved Moose Springs and felt home there.

I have to say, I was not expecting this book to be everything that it was!

Zoey is on her once-in-a-lifetime vacation in Moose Springs, Alaska -- a town that is home to a large, fancy resort, and the grumpiest of diner owners, Graham. When Graham and Zoey meet, it's pretty much love at first sight (minus one incident with a chainsaw). Graham, the grumpy tourist-hater, immediately takes a liking to Zoey, and could be said to act like a puppy in love. The Tourist Attraction features the cutest actual puppy, Jake, a great cast of local characters, and a ridiculous amount of snotty tourists.

First of all, if you love cheesy rom-com movies, you will love this book. The entire time I was reading it, I was picturing a made-for-TV cast, the Hallmark logo in the corner, and all the cliché day-gone-wrong mishaps. It was ADORABLE. If you don't love cheesy romance, though, this book probably isn't for you. Because let me warn you -- it lays it on thick.

The Tourist Attraction is full of great one-liners, and Grumpy Graham (who isn't actually so grumpy) is KING of cute comebacks. Seriously, if this was meant to be a grumpy/sunshine trope book, it didn't accomplish the mission. Graham is as sunshine-y as they can get.

At 400 pages, this book did take a little while to get into. At first -- and really for most of the book -- I didn't like Zoey. She's not a strong heroine, and she's pretty much just along for the ride the entire time. The ONE person who made this book adorable and worth reading is Graham. And the icing on the cake is Jake the dog and Ulysses the moose.

I did love all the mishaps that happen to Zoey and Graham, even though they would absolutely make me cringe in real life. Their story is cute, surprisingly sweet, and enjoyable. The conflicts aren't very huge, so it's a very nice low-stress happy read! And last but not least... for anyone curious about the steamy rating: it's PG-13, fade to black.

Graham and Zoey’s story was so funny and sweet. I adored their connection and time spent together. The setting in Alaska made for a unique reading experience for me which I appreciated. The small details about wilderness living added a lot of charm to the story.

Absolutely zero smut in this one which I normally steer clear from, but the author made it work! I barely noticed the lack of steam.

I found the author’s writing super easy to get into. With the exception of a few overused pet names and annoying side characters, I truly enjoyed this book from beginning to end. A solid 4 star read!

The Tourist Attraction is a delightful little romance set in the small Alaskan town of Moose Springs. I loved the banter between local Graham, who hates tourists, and Zoey, a tourist he just can't stay away from. What I really liked about this book is that it never fell into the cliches other romances tend to- there is no angst that could be solved by a conversation, everyone says how they feel, etc. This really gave me a Gilmore Girls/Northern Exposure mash up feeling in the best way. I can't wait to read the rest of this series.

2.5 STARS


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As huge fan of rom-coms, especially those set in the winter/wintery places, this had so much potential but unfortunately was a complete miss for me. It started off strong (and super cute!) but eventually I found myself skimming pages and struggling to pick it back up. Personally I found the banter between the H/H forced and I didn’t feel connected or invested in either character.

THE TOURIST ATTRACTION will please readers looking for a quick, quirky romance but unfortunately wasn’t for me.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for my copy!

This was a cute story. I loved the scenery around the characters in Alaska. Zoey is quirky, independent, smart, and follows her own heart.
Graham is smitten with Zoey from the moment her sees her. And though he had sworn of tourists he can't seem to stop thinking about her or wanting to be around her. I thought there should have been a bit more back story told about Graham's love life, some of the choices he makes and his fear of losing this new relationship and how it causes him to lash out, makes me think something happened in the past more than just with Hannah to make him this way.
It wrapped up like the ending to a classic rom-com, but I found myself still enjoying it and rooting for Zoey and Graham none the less.

**Review posted on Goodreads and personal book review Instagram page

When Graham Barnett named his diner The Tourist Trap, he meant it as a joke. Now he's stuck slinging reindeer dogs to an endless string of resort visitors who couldn't interest him less. Not even the sweet, enthusiastic tourist in the corner who blushes every time he looks her way…

Two weeks in Alaska isn't just the top item on Zoey Caldwell's bucket list. It's the whole bucket. One look at the mountain town of Moose Springs and she's smitten. But when an act of kindness brings Zoey into Graham's world, she may just find there's more to the man than meets the eye…and more to love in Moose Springs than just the Alaskan wilderness.

this one is a pass for me! I hated how "quirky" our main female character was and how she's so different from other girls. It was marketed to me as a gruff mountain man who doesn't have time for our main female character but he just falls for her so fast AND flirts with everyone in the process. gross!

I now own both of the installments released but to be honest I was not the biggest fan of this book. I thought the writing was very choppy and I didn't connect with the characters that well.

When Zoey Caldwell finally saves up enough money for the trip of her dreams, she packs her bag and heads to Moose Springs. The small Alaskan town is beyond picturesque, making it easy to see why it's such a popular tourist destination. Upon her arrival, she meets Graham Barnett, the owner of the infamous Tourist Trap. Even though Graham has a firm "no dating the tourists" rule, Zoey quickly catches his eye and potentially even his heart.

The Tourist Attraction definitely delivered upon its promise of a cute romance and small town charm. Add in a love-struck moose and a blind dog, and you have the ingredients for a fun, light romance novel. I adored Graham's relationships with both the moose and the dog. As a reader, you could tell that he truly loved both of them, and the interactions with either animal brought a smile to my face. Morgenthaler did a great job creating the characters, and they all added a unique element to the story.

While I enjoyed myself while reading this, there were a few things that didn't work for me. For one, Graham's behavior was too aggressive, and I felt it should have been addressed or not happened at all. Punching a hole through a wall while upset isn't the end of the world, but beating someone to a pulp takes things too far. If that had occurred in real life, he probably would have faced charges and jail time, and there would have been a much larger fallout within the community. I understand that the author was trying to portray how deep his feelings for Zoey were, and it wasn't point of the novel, but to me, it was simply too much. Also, there were several moments that I would have loved to witness more of Zoey's emotions and reactions, such as the helicopter ride. That was a big deal to her, and we got to see her joy, but through Graham's eyes and after they were already in the air.

Regardless, I truly enjoyed this book and I'm already looking forward to reading the next one. Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

Book One in the Moose Springs series, sounded funny and charming. It lived up to my expectations and I am so excited to dive into book two Mistletoe and Mr. Right.

Moose Springs is a lovely little town in Alaska. To the locals dismay a ritzy resort was opened on the mountain, flooding their town with Ritchie Riches who act like spoiled brats at times. Zooey is a truck stop waitress and not the usual tourist seen in Moose Springs. The local grumpy diner owner, Graham is struck at first site but he has a strict "no tourist" policy. Can this meet cute make it to a Happily Ever After? Will the town and tourists be able to overcome the divide between them?

A Hallmark like read without all the sappiness and bonus hot mountain men.

A silly chick lit romance. Good for a quick, super sweet read. A bit unrealistic. I would like to visit Alaska though. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

This was a fun book that was as much about romance as showing a love for Alaska. It’s set in a small town in Alaska called Moose Springs. You have a grumpy hero with an optimistic heroine. She is visiting Alaska and seeing it through her eyes makes me want to visit. The romance is cute and the side characters are interesting. It’s a cute small town romance with a fantastic setting.

I realllllly tried to get through this book, I wanted to like it. But I found it tough to immerse myself in Zoey and Graham's story. But the pacing was little bit too slow for me and found things a bland. I definitely want to give this author a try again.

DNF

I really enjoyed The Tourist Attraction by Sarah Morganthaler. This book swept me away on my own Alaskan vacation through the eyes of Zoey. And of course I'm always a fan of the grumpy sunshine trope. A great start to the series. Perfect for readers who love sweet romances and travel!