3.5 stars ⭐️ A very cute, cozy fall romance! I had fun reading. This book definitely gave me Gilmore girl vibes and is a good lighthearted romance read. The setting and ambiance of the story was well done. The descriptions felt very real and I could picture everything the author described.

Thank you to net galley, the author, and publishers for this arc!

An unabashedly small-town romance set in autumn, it’s hard not to notice the obvious—this is basically 'The Pumpkin Spice Café 2.0'. From its naming conventions, to the heroine finding her way back to her roots, to the charming, corporation-free small town, and even setting up future couples (each with their own business) along the way—it hits every expected beat in the proven formula. Despite the lack of originality, I genuinely had fun with it.

If The Pumpkin Spice Café is a sweet seasonal beverage, The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn is like shoving sugar straight down your throat, cramming in every possible autumnal icon and stereotype (love dogs? Now there are two!) in its narrative. Most of the time, the excess reads like a playful romance satire (and I'm into how much it leans into caricature), but some writing choices feel clunky, and certain jokes—like the running gag about dementia—veer toward poor taste.

Still, The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn delivers exactly what it sets out to do and doesn’t dawdle in doing it. It’s no literary masterpiece, but if you’re looking for a heaping dose of cozy, cliché Americana autumn, there’s plenty here—and I’m intrigued enough to be looking out for the next instalment!

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley. It is the perfect autumn cozy romance, and I’m going to purchase a copy when it comes out to support the author. It feels like a hot apple cider on a crisp fall afternoon - absolutely idyllic setting and Hallmark vibes. I grew up in north Georgia and one of my favorite things to do was visit the apple houses. This book feels like a day trip to the apple house and I really can’t get over how cute it was. I’ve been completely googly-eyed over it and I really really really hope it’s going to be a series so we can follow the other potential couples.

Firstly, thank you Harper Collins for the Arc!!

I didn't expect to love this as much as I did. it feels so much like a good early 2000's rom-com holiday movie.

the characters were great. the main girl was pretty relatable and hilarious at times. the male love interest was so sweet but also pretty realistic. I just read the pumpkin spice cafe, going into that book wanting something that this book felt like. I will be reading this book every fall now.

you would love this if you're itching for a feel good autumn rom-com.

🍂 so cute

🍂 Bookish Thoughts
Ellie & Aiden foreverrrr 🫶🏾
This book hit the spot for my fall craving! The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn delivered all the cozy autumn vibes, and I’m a sucker for anything that feels straight out of a Hallmark movie.

The romance was adorable. Ellie returns home to help plan the Harvest Festival after a breakup, only to end up sharing the attic apartment with her childhood friend Aiden. It was chef’s kiss! Low angst, and exactly what I was looking for. Solid 4.5 stars!

🍎 What to Expect
• Event planner FMC
• Dog dad MMC
• Enemies to lovers
• Forced proximity
• Harvest festival
• Small town setting
______

📅 Pub Date: September 9, 2025
Thank you to Avon, Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own.

🍂 The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman is the perfect blend of small-town charm, fall coziness, and slow-burn romance. Ellie returns home to Harvest Hollow after her life in Manhattan falls apart, only to find herself working—and living—side by side with her childhood neighbor, Aiden. Between planning the town’s Harvest Festival and navigating their unexpected roommate situation, sparks fly in all the best ways.

This story has everything I love in a fall romance: nostalgia, warmth, family traditions, and just the right balance of sweetness and spice. It swept me right into the cozy atmosphere of Harvest Hollow, and by the end, I didn’t want to leave.

📖 I shared all my detailed thoughts (plus some extra swooning over Aiden!) in my full review on my blog — you can check it out here: https://www.moodvibesbooks.com/blogs/book-reviews-5/the-honeycrisp-orchard-inn-book-review

The honeycrisp Orchard inn is a slow burn, cozy romance book that takes place in Long island. After losing her job and getting dumped, Ellie returns home to her parents inn with the intention of helping plan a fall festival while simultaneously looking for a new job to return to the city asap This book very much had Gilmore girls meets hallmark channel vibes This story is a light hearted feel good romance with lovable characters. I absolutely loved the cozy, fall atmosphere: from the apple cider donuts and magical baking, tarot cards and dogs, this book has it all! There is some spice in this book but I didn't think it went overboard! it was just the right amount!

Quoting Ariana Maddix! Gilmore girls night at the drive in! Pumpkin the pug!
Ellie was done dirty by her boyfriend in the city and her job as an event planner. She gets screwed over and then her mom asks her to come out to their farm on Long Island to help with the harvest festival. 🍎 And for once, she says yes to escape her situation. But when she arrives, her childhood friend Aiden is already staying in her attic apartment above her family’s adorable inn!
ALL the fall vibes are brought with this one! 🍂 I would definitely recommend this one if you loved the Pumpkin Spice Cafe books. 🙋‍♀️☕️ It’s got funny and quirky local characters and scratches that same autumn itch in my brain.🎃 AND it appears it may be a series?! I can’t wait for the next one👀
Thanks to Avon and Harper Voyager, Valerie Bowman, and NetGalley for the arc!
Out 9/9!

Along the lines of the popular Laurie Gilmore books, The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman was the nice fall escape that I needed at the end of this hot summer. I loved how the author described the fall scenery - with the apples, pumpkins, cinnamon, and apple cider donuts. It made me feel all cozy and warm. The relationship between the two main characters was so realistic and sexy, and I loved the humor infused throughout the book. This was the perfect novel to get anyone in the fall mood!

2.5 ⭐️
I really wanted to like this, unfortunately, I found it just a tad bit boring and too insta-lust for my liking.

Summary:
The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn follows Ellie, who, after being fired from her job, finds herself returning home to her small town to help plan a fall festival for her parents’ inn. However, when she gets to the inn and her room, she finds it occupied by Aiden, the son of the owners of the Orchard, and her old childhood friend. The two soon find themselves forced to work together to plan the orchard's Harvest Festival, fighting growing tension and feelings that soon begin to rise. As the future of the Orchard lies on their shoulders, their time spent together soon makes them wonder if maybe there is more to each other than they originally thought, and perhaps trying to plan a successful festival might just lead to finding love along the way.

Characters:
Ellie, our fmc, was fine. I thought she was interesting at first, especially after her entire life basically blew up in her face, but she quickly became…boring? I don’t know, I just felt really disconnected from her and found myself uninterested in her as a character. Her inner monologue was kind of a lot sometimes, and I hate to say it, felt really millennial. This, mixed with her character feeling one-dimensional and flat, had me not caring much about her internal struggles or goals.

Aiden honestly didn’t do it for me either. Like, I just finished this book, and I literally still don’t know anything about this man other than he farms and likes apples.

They both just lacked depth and complexity, making them feel like characters when I wanted them to feel like real people. In the end, I found myself caring more about the side characters and their relationships than Ellie and Aiden.

Romance:
My biggest gripe with this book was that it was very focused on insta-lust. From the second that Ellie sees Aiden again, all she can think of is how attractive he is. I don’t think there is anything wrong with a character commenting on the looks of another based on one interaction, but literally all Ellie would think or say whenever anyone brought up Aiden or she was with him was how hot he is or his physical attributes. This made it so hard for me to believe that Ellie ever even really liked Aiden aside from how he looked.

The chemistry was also lacking between the two, so whenever we did get a semi-romantic moment, which there honestly weren’t many of, I felt absolutely nothing. I kept waiting to smile or giggle, but Aiden and Ellie’s relationship felt very surface-level. I wanted them to build upon an emotional connection, and I kept waiting for a moment like that to happen, but it just never came.

Now, I am not the biggest fan of flashbacks in books, but in this case, I think this story could have greatly benefited from them. We got a few mentions of Ellie and Aiden’s friendship back when they were kids, and I think showing that would have demonstrated how close they once were, helping to add more tension and angst to the story, and creating a good foundation for Ellie and Aiden’s romantic relationship and feelings for one another.

Writing:
Writing can really make or break a book for me, and in this case, I didn’t love the writing. I thought that the dialogue between characters, especially Aiden and Ellie, felt really stiff. Developing a more natural flow, especially with the dialogue, would have helped bring the characters to life. I also think other things, like the pop culture references, took me out of the story or made me cringe. Small things like showing instead of telling would have helped a lot in this book, and while there’s nothing wrong with simple writing, this just felt too mechanical for my liking, and it ended up distracting me from the story.

Setting:
One thing I did enjoy was the setting and ambience of this story. The descriptions of the inn really helped to make this place feel real, and it was my favorite part to read. I wanted to visit the small town and stay at the orchard. The fall vibes were great, and the setting was a nice background for this book, but as much as I liked the setting, it wasn’t enough to help fix the other areas that were lacking.

Final Thoughts:
Overall, the vision for this story was there; the execution was just a bit off. I think spending more time building the characters, their goals, personalities, and relationships, would really help this book, and make it a cuter and meaningful story about second chances and finding your own meaning of success in life.

Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager, and NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved this story. It was a feel good small town romance. Also, gave a Gilmore Girls vibe. This would make a great Hallmark movie. Fingers crossed there will be a book with Jesse and Maria. I would love to see how their story plays out.

What a sweet, cozy romance book set on a woman who loses her job and decides to return to her small town to help plan a festival with a former high school friend. All the characters were so delightful and played fantastic parts. Ellie, our female lead, really begins to open up back in her hometown and sees so many things in regards to following your heart. The romance was built up nicely and wasn't overwhelming to the story. There were a few spicy moments, but nothing overwhelming or drastic. The fall cozy setting was properly expressed from the small town to the people themselves. Overall, if you are looking for a quick, cozy romance book set in a small town, this is your book.

The perfect fall read—it feels like being transported straight into a hometown fall fest with chilly air, warm drinks, and small-town charm. 🍂

-Slow Burn
-Friends to Lovers
-Forced Proximity
-Fall Vibes

I loved Aiden and Ellie! They were so great together. A very cute romance and some spicy times. The setting gave off Gilmore Girls vibes and I love it. Perfect seasonal romance book!

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for the arc of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book for my honest review.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Review: OMG! Could this book be any cuter?!? I never wanted to put it down! I just wanted to curl up and sip on a cup of pumpkin spiced hot chocolate the whole time while reading it. The fall vibes?! The swooning?! Even Gilmore Girls in it?! Stop! This book had it all for me. I just, ugh omg. And Aiden? BOOK BOYFRIEND MATERIAL! I hope this is a series because I want to read them all even if they’re not even being written yet. I also didn’t miss the duo POV because it was so well written in Ellie’s perspective but it would have been cool to read Aiden’s thoughts too!

Ellie - when you decided to go back by your nickname Ellie instead of Eleanor, I just knew you found home again. I loved your determination and your drive. Your heart was in it for your family it was not unnoticed by all. I also loved she was my age too!

Aiden - I just have no words. You were perfect for Ellie back as kids and for her as an adult. You were just what Ellie needed to understand what she was missing by not coming home. I also appreciated that you weren’t pushy with her towards the end of the book.

Tropes: forced proximity, small town, found true love, fall romance, childhood sweethearts, autumn

**if you love someone, let them go. If they come back, they’re yours but if they don’t, it wasn’t meant to be. And you two are meant to be!

This book helped me out of my reading rut I was in after finishing The Cinnamon Bun Book Store and now I want more fall romances 💜

I was very excited to receive an ARC copy of The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman. A 4 ⭐️ read for me, this cozy fall tale was the perfect escape from the 115 degree August weather. Thank you NetGalley for this opportunity!

Within twenty four hours, New York City event planner Ellie’s life has been thrown into a tailspin. First, her boyfriend of two years breaks up with her. Then she finds out he stole her event presentation, meaning she also is swiftly fired from her job. Feeling lost, she returns to her hometown, and The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn, the family business she left behind and never looked back on. With the inn, and attached apple orchard in financial distress, Ellie must team up with Aiden, her childhood friend, turned sexy apple farmer to plan the best Fall Festival ever, and maybe even fall in love along the way.

I really enjoyed The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn, everything felt very low stakes in a good way, and the cozy atmosphere that Valerie Bowman created has me even more excited for pumpkin spice season. It was an easy and predictable read, which was everything I wanted. Pumpkin the pug was a stand out icon and I absolutely loved him. I also really enjoyed how Ellie became more confident in herself and her abilities as the story went on. Overall, it was just an extremely pleasant seasonal read.

Is it fall already? Nope. 🍂 But am I so ready for it? Absolutely yes. And The Honeycrisp Orchard Inn by Valerie Bowman was the perfect book to get me in that cozy autumn mood. 😍

Think Hallmark movie meets Gilmore Girls… but sexier. Ellie’s life takes a sharp left turn, so she heads home to her family’s apple orchard inn to help with the Harvest Festival and reset. What she doesn’t expect? Her temporary apartment already being occupied by a very distracting tenant—Mr. Abs (fine, his name is Aiden, but good luck un-seeing it 😂).

This story has it all:
🍎 Small-town charm
🍎 Forced proximity
🍎 Grumpy-sunshine vibes
🍎 Apple orchard coziness that screams fall

It’s a standalone (for now 👀), but I’m crossing my fingers it’s the start of a series because I need more books set in this world.

Thank you to the author, @harpercollins, and @netgalley for the ARC! 🧡

I loved this book so much. It felt like it could lead into a series which would also be interesting. Perhaps Charlotte and/or Maria's stories? The town felt real as did the quirky characters. Aiden felt almost too good to be true. Loved the Gilmore Girls references and the GG nights at the drive in-how fun! Wish that was a thing where I live. Had a nice wrap up and you could really see Ellie's struggle to balance what she loves.

This book was marketed for fans of The Pumpkin Spice Cafe- I loved this one more! Like a love letter to Gilmore Girls.

I absolutely enjoyed this fall romance read. It got me totally in my cozy feels which was perfect for a tough week.
I really loved Ellie and her spunk and tenacity. She's a no nonsense kind of girl but she also has to admit the cozy life at home is just what shes missing (along with the seriously hot Aiden). Their tension and banter are swoon-worthy and the build on their relationship and rekindled long lost feelings is seriously sweet with a side of yes, please. I love that the story allows both characters to find themselves individually and together.
It's straight out of a hallmark movie, but better.
I think the pacing and writing style are perfect for this book and I look forward to reading more from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon for the eARC of this book!