I love how the author captures the essence of fall, with its crisp air, cozy vibes, and the feeling of starting anew. The emotional depth, the small-town charm, and the blossoming connection between these two characters make this an absolute must-read if you’re looking for something tender and uplifting. This book made me believe in the magic of second chances and the unexpected paths to happiness.

I previously read this story when it was indie-published, and was more than happy to read it again! This is SUCH a fantastic romance. As someone born in 1991, this gave me allllll the nostalgic vibes, and I was so here for it. The setting and imagery were done so perfectly and had me feeling like I was essentially in Stars Hollow or another cozy small town. Cliff and Michelle were so perfect for each other, and I was so happy his sweet girls had another strong female to love them as they deserved all of the love (they were so fun). Julie really knows how to make you feel like you are the one in the story with the way the small moments are focused on (such as the description of the baked goods and the smells, the descriptions of the atmosphere, etc.) As a single parent myself, this story truly resonated with me and I can only hope to find a love like this for myself and my daughter one day.

This was such a cute read. Gives all the warm and cozy vibes of the fall season. I loved all the 90's vibes and references it just made me so nostalgic. Just gave me all the feels for the season and is the perfect romance to read with a hot drink.

Loved this one! It's so cute and cozy and giving all the small town autumn feels. I loved the setting and the 90's vibes and references. I also loved the two main characters and how they share a similar history but handled it differently.

This was such a cute and cozy story. The vibes and romance were so good. Also loved that both main characters had similar but different divorce stories and how they handle it. Can’t wait for everyone else to read this book.

This was a great 90s rom com love story. Loved the descriptiveness of the town, all I could picture was the Gilmore girls town with the nosy neighbors ha! This was easy to get into and I easily read it in a day. Also, probably my favorite part was the dogs personality the author gave him. Too funny

This book was a perfect nostalgia read that I devoured. I won’t give too much away, but that epilogue… I was fine until the epilogue. 😭 😭

Sooo good!! I love that this was set in the late 90s. The plot and the characters were excellent!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

If It Makes You Happy is a heartfelt, character-driven story that captures the cozy charm of fall, self-discovery, and the joy of finding your place. The romance between Cliff and Michelle unfolds in such a natural, convincing way that it’s impossible not to root for them. Both characters feel authentic and relatable, full of quirks and insecurities that make them leap off the page. Rocket, Emily, and Brittany are lovable scene-stealers, adding humor and heart, while the town of Copper Run feels like a place you’d want to curl up in with a warm drink and stay awhile. The sense of community is warm and comforting, grounding the story in something deeper than just romance. It’s a sweet story with a sweet ending—one that leaves you smiling long after the last page.

An awesome nostalgic cozy read. Enjoyed the 90’s references. Loved all of the characters and the setting. Really want a doughnut now. The epilogue was “bark”.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC This was such a fun read. Kind of a new take on Gilmore Girls, a fun romance with a fall vibe set in a small Vermont town, I really loved this. The characters were fun and fresh, and the epilogue was the best part of the whole book. 4.5 stars.

As soon as I saw the playlist, I knew this was going to be a good time! While it dragged a bit at the end, it felt like I was transported back to simpler times in the 90s during fall.

4 ⭐️
2 🌶

Wow, was the perfectttttt slow-burn romance I've read in a hot minute!!! The setting was so cozy, the characters were so funny, and the romance was so sweet that you couldn't help rooting for Michelle and Cliff. I really enjoyed seeing Michelle grow in this book and come out of her shell.

After getting divorced from a man who truly didn't make her happy (and damn, was he a d*ck), Michelle heads to Vermont to take over the B&B her mom was running before she passed. Her sister is supposed to be the one who is taking it over but until she finishes school, Michelle takes charge and leave life in Seattle for small town living. This town reminded me of Stars Hollow (Gilmore Girls) and I wanted to visit ASAP! It is here where Michelle meets Cliff, her HOT, nice, nerdy baker next-door neighboor and his two daughters, Britt and Emily. The entire Burke family is a treat and the way they accepted Michelle was heartwarming.

I really enjoyed the relationship between Michelle and Cliff. He is the extrovert to her introvert and they really were a perfect pair the more the story progressed. There definitely was some miscommunication between the two of them that made me want to *scream* but once they figured themselves out, it was magic.

This book was wonderful and a perfect fall, cozy romance. Also, the epilogue made me cry 😭🤍 Thanks Netgalley and Berkley for an ARC!

Fall has always been the season that represents one of the most idealistic forms of happiness for me: football games with friends, Thanksgiving gatherings with rarely otherwise seen family members due to distance, haunted houses that offer a fear that's contained within the knowledge that someone is watching over you, keeping what's frightening at bay. It's a season that's exhilarating, because, between the inevitable cold fronts, a certain sort of wonder exists as we visually enter a new phase of life each year with the changing of the leaves. Fall is akin to my idea of home: a hopeful form of nostalgia I find myself chasing often, yet unable to quite replicate.

I’ve read a lot of small town romances, but none remind me of sitting at the dinner table with my friends after a long day, the moment of excitement right before kickoff at a local football game, of the feeling of having a community around you, built to help life feel like more than just existing quite the way this one does. If It Makes You Happy somehow manages to capture the idea I have of home, of the quiet tinge of sadness mixed with hope that comes with missing something that feels out of reach, but only just barely. It beautifully captures the simultaneous nature of healing while grieving, of finding happy moments to hang onto amidst periods of sadness. It embodies the idea that sometimes, you just have to keep going in order to get to the other side of the immediate pain that comes with loss. It shows that enmeshing yourself in your community can be one of the most pivotal ways to connect with the new version of you that's still learning how to exist in a world that looks a little different without someone you love physically being in it.

I truly loved everything about this book and I'm so happy that more readers will get to experience the magic of it all with its traditional release!!!

4.5⭐

Awwwwww, may I say that the epilogue is better than the whole book 🥺🥺 this book could be a comfort book tbh. It's so cute for its own good. I found it endearing that the FMC made whole conversations with her dog in her head. And even though she doesn't have kids herself she became a mother figure to those cute girls 🩷 The MMC needs the best dad ever prize

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚𝕮𝖑𝖔𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝕯𝖔𝖔𝖗 𝕸𝖔𝖉𝖎𝖋𝖎𝖈𝖆𝖙𝖎𝖔𝖓𝖘˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

SKIP CHAPTER: 34, 36, 43

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚𝕻𝖗𝖊-𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖉˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

Guys I have a confession to make...... I love Berkley so much I might burst. 🥹♥️♥️ Thank you for approving my request for the eARC, love you, bye 🫶🏻

This was a super cute romcom set in the late 90s in a small town. After Michelle’s mom passes away she agrees to take care of her bed and breakfast temporarily until her sister arrives to take over. Next door there’s a single dad who gives off major Luke Danes vibes and is a baker. He has two daughters who were some of my favorite parts of this book (the kids aren’t annoying 😅). I don’t normally read a 500 page romance (especially not in only 2 days!) but it was so delightful. This was definitely Gilmore Girls & When Harry Met Sally mixed together and I’m not mad.

However, the reasoning for the main characters to not be together and their internal monologues were so frustrating. Slight spoiler - I don’t really consider this a spoiler - but the male main character would tell the female main character how much he loves her assertiveness and then she’d say to herself “he’d never want to be with a woman this assertive”. Like excuse me, what? 🤣 what did he JUST SAY?!? There isn’t technically a 3rd act breakup but the miscommunication (or the FMC just choosing not to listen) was annoying, lol.

Aside from that, this gave allllll the 90s feels with the best references (not overly done), fun family side plots, endearing characters that you’ll undoubtedly feel emotionally attached to, and there’s even a (kind of) sentient dog. This was FUN & perfect for the ‘ber months since it takes place over the course of September - December. Even with its flaws I loved it, and that epilogue was everything 🥹🥹🥹🫶🏻

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

If It Makes You Happy is a joyful romantic comedy! It comes with a lot of spice and everything nice! I absolutely loved this book! It is set back in the late 90’s, with nostalgic references in it and has all the cozy vibes! This storyline is located in a small town in Vermont during the Fall season.

It centers around the main characters, whose names are Cliff and Michelle. Even though these two characters are opposite, they start to become friends that turn into lovers. This book gave me Dawson’s Creek vibes, in the best way possible. Even though they have completely different stories! Be sure to read the content warnings! I highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a cozy, small town romance autumn read! I give this a solid 5 out of 5 stars rating!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Julie Olivia and Berkley Publishing Group for this digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Small town 90s fall romance? sign me up.

Everything about this book felt ideal to me. The longing was 10/10, the setting was perfect, the characters were impeccable and really developed, so good. It was super corny obviously but it fit the vibes.

Thank you, NetGalley & Berkley Publishing Group, for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

This book was a 4.5-star warm hug wrapped in flannel and scented like apple cider and vintage Bath & Body Works. If It Makes You Happy felt like the cozy fall rom-com I’ve been waiting for. Charming, nostalgic, and perfect for reading under a fuzzy blanket while your favorite fall candle burns nearby.

As someone born in 1997 and a cozy spooky season girlie through and through, this story hit a little extra special. The late ‘90s setting brought back all the vibes in the best way, and the small-town Vermont atmosphere made me want to move into a B&B and bake questionable scones while emotionally avoiding a hot single dad in flannel. Michelle and Cliff had the kind of slow-burn, friends-to-something-more dynamic that makes your heart ache a little... in a good way.

Cliff’s daughters were adorable without being overly saccharine, and the friendships and town dynamics gave this book serious Gilmore Girls energy. I could’ve happily stayed in Copper Run for another hundred pages, and I already can’t wait for more books in this cozy little world. Especially come next fall!

Julie Olivia, if you’re reading this: more 90s autumnal romances, please and thank you. 🍁📼💛

Imagine yourself curled up in your favorite reading chair with your coziest blanket in front of a crackling fireplace, while next to you is your hot beverage of choice. How do you feel? Content? Happy? Blissful? Now imagine that feeling as a book, and you’ve got yourself If it Makes You Happy by Julie Olivia.

The 90s throwbacks are what initially piqued my interest and had me pick up the book. I ended up staying for the beautifully relatable story and characters. Julie Olivia has the unique ability of using the element of time in order to allow the reader to see themselves in both the older main characters as well as the teenage characters by integrating our sense of nostalgia as a type of time machine. Because of this, every detail and plot point served a purpose. I found myself rooting for Michelle and Cliff from the very first pages, and Julie Olivia delivered a satisfying journey without being too heavy handed with the contemporary romance tropes.

If It makes you Happy was the warm hug I didn’t know I needed. I highly encourage you to make your way back to the 90s and enjoy this wonderful story of family and love.