Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice

Briar Glen #1

by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc, Emily Ellet (Narrator)

Gilmore Girls fans! Pour yourselves a hot cup of tea and get ready to fall in love with this cozy YA romance that will have you dreaming of autumn all year long.

Fall is a big deal in Briar Glen, a quaint and charming village in New England. That's when tourists from all over the country descend upon this picturesque town to see the babbling brooks and colorful leaves while sipping hot chocolate or pumpkin spice lattes.

But sixteen-year-old Lucy Kane hates the uber-popular PSL. She finds it overrated—especially when you consider the fact that there isn't even pumpkin in it!—which is bad because she works at Cup o' Jo, the local coffee shop her mom owns. Business at Cup o' Jo hasn't been great in the off-season, but that's okay because it always picks up during the fall...

Until Java Junction, a multinational coffee chain, opens across the street and makes things harder for the small shop. And to make matters worse, it turns out Jack Harper, the new kid in school and Lucy's secret crush, is the son of the owner. Suddenly, fall doesn't seem like it'll be all it's cracked up to be. Will Lucy find a way to save her mom's coffee shop?

Genres: Romance, Young Adult, Fiction, Contemporary, Audiobook, Contemporary Romance, Cozy

Audible Audio

First published August 6, 2024

About the author

I'm the #1 New York Times Bestselling author of four young adult novels, including two that are part of my Briar Glen Cup o' Jo book series. I wrote the first of those, Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice, while being treated for cancer. I'm healthy now and working on my fifth young adult novel, also part of the Briar Glen Cup o' Jo world! I live in New York's Hudson Valley with my family. When I'm not writing or reading I'm walking somewhere too fast, and probably thinking about chocolate chip cookies.

Reviews

[Linz_loves_books (Semi-Hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh boy where do I begin??
I was immediately excited to read this when I seen the cover and thought I was getting a cute and cozy fall read. Then we threw in the fact that it is for Gilmore Girl fans and a YA romance. Everything that I love about the fall season is right there. I wanted to love it so much but unfortunately this just fell so flat for me.

In the beginning, I did get Gilmore Girl vibes. The story is set in a small town of Briar Glen where everyone knows everyone. The town gives you all the fall vibes with local fall festivals, pumpkins, baking contests, mazes, Halloween costumes, you name it and its there. Lucy, our FMC, has an extremely close relationship with her mom, whom is a single parent, and owns the local coffee shop Cup o Jo'. Lucy works at her moms local coffee shop after school helping to come up with new recipes to bake for the shop. Then, Java Junction, a multinational chain decides to build a new location not only in Briar Glen but literally right across the street from Lucy's moms store. If matters couldn't get worse, the new boy at school who Lucy has a crush on, is the son of the owners of this new competition.

First, this was supposed to be a YA romance and romance where??? The romance part of this book was so overshadowed by the aspect of a "perfect pumpkin spice latte" that the most we got from this was a hug. I am not even sure if they even admitted to liking each other. The romance aspect of this was very dissapointing.

Secondly the character development was minimal and it was hard to connect to the characters. The female main character was kind of annoying and her attempts at "banter" was simply just rude. Overall, this book seemed a lot more juvenile then what I expected. The plot/storyline got lost and unfortunately it was just not what I was expecting.

Thank you to NetGalley, Scholastic Press, and Katie Cicatelli-Kuc for early access to this arc in exchange for an honest review.


Pre-Read Review: I am so behind on my arcs but finally getting around to reading this one! They got me when they said it was for Gilmore Girl Fans!

It looks super cute and I am always looking for a cozy fall read!🍂🍂

[Oceana Reads Co. · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 🌼

I wanna say I would recommend this to teens.
It was pretty basic. No language other than omg.

Romance was light and mostly had fall vibes.

The fmc was super annoying and whiney imo. No relate there. I think 16 year olds are more mature than this but maybe I’m out of touch.

[chantalsbookstuff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apart from Lucy being aggresive and self obsessed, I liked the storyline which unfortunately seems to be one I've read a few times too. Opposite coffee shops having a war. If only there was something to make it push past the old trope and envoke some deep feelings in us. 2.5 rounded up.

[Addyson…Harris20 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I feel so disgustingly violated for having to read this. I feel like this book took 10 years off of my life. Like I’m literally 5 seconds away from dousing myself in gasoline and lighting myself on fire from how absolutely horrendous this book is. Why is she acting like pumpkin spice lattes killed her entire family right in front of her like? BITCH…it’s a drink it’s not that deep. The main character is so freaking insufferable like how does she have friends?! Im genuinely so confused. It’s also EXTREMELY obvious this book was written in 2020 because this dialogue makes me want to kill myself, like genuinely if you gave this 5 stars….seek help.

[Alyssa Nieves · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alright, I’m the problem here. I kinda feel bad leaving such a low rating, because this was not a bad book. It just was not for me!

I tend to not read many YA romances because I usually feel too old to be there (when they are light and fluffy like this one) but this looked super cute for fall so I decided to pick it up. It did deliver the fall vibes and it was quick to read, which is probably why I didn’t dnf it but it was very bland. Not much substance to it and a little cringy at times. I think a younger audience (which is obviously the intended audience) or someone who is just looking for a cute, spice free, fall book would enjoy it more! It was good for a quick fall read, but I’ll probably forget about it tomorrow.

[Samantha ♡ ( Percy’s Version ) · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5⭐️

I thought this was a romance. It was advertised as a romance. It was not a romance. They didn’t even kiss once. They weren’t even a couple at the end or at any point in this book.

[⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆ Kim ⋆˚୨ৎ˚⋆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

જ⁀➴ 2 stars

“Favorites don't always have to have some complicated reason why they're our favorites. Sometimes it's just as simple as everything felt perfect. Everything just felt right.”

.𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘.𖥔 ݁ ˖
Did I finish this book before midnight? Yes. Did I also spend about an hour after the fact stewing over how much I didn't like this book? Also, yes, unfortunately. I feel like I was duped by the synopsis a little bit, based on what was in the blurb on the back of the book and what was actually in the book. It's a fast read and a cozy fall read if you're looking for one, but don't go into it expecting anything groundbreaking or amazing.

✎𓂃Full review to come soon!
.𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘⋆ .𖥔 ݁ ˖🍁๋࣭ ⭑🍂༘.𖥔 ݁ ˖
⋆˙⟡ 𝒫𝓇𝑒-𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒹: Happy Labor Day weekend to all my fellow American GR friends!🍂🍁 I know it's the last day of August, but I'm trying to get some last-minute August reading in before midnight to see if I can get one more book in before the end of the month. I know so many people are already doing August reading wrap-ups over on my Bookstagram, but I'm the kind of person to wait until the last minute because August isn't over until the clock strikes midnight! Let's see how far I get! (It's 7:30 PM EST at the time of me writing this!)

I also want to say that YA contemporary romances aren't my thing anymore. I feel like I've mostly grown out of the YA contemporary genres at this point (although YA fantasy will still have a special place in my heart and I'll still read them), so I'll go into this with an open mind and see how it is.

(P.S. You can get this book for $5 at the Barnes & Noble cafe with any purchase right now!)

[•anna• · Rating 1 out of 5]

I think you’d like this if you were 12

[Rhonda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love fall. It is my favorite time of year. In “Pumpkin Spice And Everything Nice”, I definitely got a great dose of the fall season! 🍁 It is filled to the brim with all of the visuals, tastes and smells that evokes the season. In fact, the main female character, Lucy, works at a local, small town coffee shop owned and run by her mother. She also loves to bake all of the goodies they keep stocked in the shop, called Cup O’ Jo. The problem? The new family in town just opened up a national coffee chain shop, giving Cup O’ Jo some serious competition. ☕️

Jack, the new guy at school, his parents just bought the shop across the street from Cup O’ Jo to open a big chain coffee shop. Suddenly, this new guy isn’t so cute—he’s competition that will hurt Lucy’s mom’s business.

While this book is labeled young adult romance, you get a feel for all the teenage angst that goes on during the high school years, without a lot of romance. Lucy has a few close girl friends who are always available for her when she is struggling with a problem. I really appreciate that about this story, because I think good friends are important during this time, and it sends a positive message for teens. Lucy’s friends are kind and supportive. As the reader, you see problems unfold for Lucy and solutions to them revealed. You see how Lucy grows through what she learns about Jack and his family and how she and her mother deal with this new situation in their lives. 🎃

The grand finale is in the big pumpkin spice latte competition between the two coffee shops. This book is perfect for fall and will give you all the cozy feels! 🍂🌻🧡

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Publish date, August 6, 2024!

[anna · Rating 2 out of 5]

1. cringe
2. cringe cringe cringe cringe
3. the conflict was literally the perfect psl 🙄
4. romance???????????? where. literally where.

[lia 🎀 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well.. this was certainly something. (SPOILERS)
Got this book for the cozy autumn vibes, and it definitely delivered on that front. However, this book felt like it was the authors first time writing a YA book and she didn’t know how teenagers act or talk to each other

[kitcantspell · Rating 3 out of 5]

ive seen eight year olds write better literature than this
( jack you were the only reason i kept going )

[anna ୨ৎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is not a romance book and it’s extremely YA. Lucy has a crush that goes absolutely nowhere. The most that happens is the MMC saying ‘I care about you’ and that’s it.

[Amber Ortiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked reading this book. This was a cute cozy read where the main character learns to just be a teenager and not take on too much responsibility for her mom’s coffee shop. It had great character development and is good if you want a crazy fall read.

[McKenna Lewandowski · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book solely for the vibes on the cover, hoping for a cutesy fall romance but this was more of a romance between Lucy and coffee, which meh. I don’t know what sophomore in high school is so concerned with their parents financial situation and refusing to sell a drink? It does bring me back to all the drama of being in HS but this felt over the top. And what’s with Lucy being so hard about PSL?? Those make money gf, let mama sell them. Then again I am 30 reading a book probs meant for 12 year olds.

[Autumn · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars - Will Lucy find a way to save her mom's coffee shop?


my opinion: i genuinely dislike this book. it was horrible. i strongly disliked ( i don’t want to say hate) Lucy, i think she was a jerk to jack and her friends and it made me sooo upset and honestly the only reason i made this a 2 star read was because i did really enjoy the setting and the vibes, i definitely made sense why this would be for gilmore girls fans because of the small town cozy vibes but that was it


favorite character: i have no idea because i didn’t enjoy this book but i think ill just say jack because i think he was sweet and actually developed well and was nice to Lucy even though she was such a jerk to him…(she threw a pie at his face..)


plot: i did like how she much she baked because it made me want to bake…that’s it

[Lindsay Payne · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was so atrocious. Advertised as romance with minimal to no romance. The most passion in the book was the insufferable main characters hatred for pumpkin spiced lattes.

[readwithriley · Rating 1 out of 5]

it feels sacrilegious to rate a fall themed book a 1 star…but this book genuinely pissed me off 😭

i have three main issues with this book:

first of all, the plot of the story was ridiculously idiotic and the characters were awful. the fact that the main character had such an emotional gripe with a pumpkin spice latte is absurd. and speaking of the main character, she was absolutely insufferable and made me beyond angry. her attitude and the way she treated her friends as well as jack was disgusting. her friends had no personality of their own outside of being lucy’s personal support minions and jack was far too kind and polite to lucy when she time and time disrespected him (also he was way too kind and polite for a teenage boy in general). the only character i MINORLY enjoyed was lucy’s mom, but even then she was just a watered-down version of lorelei gilmore.

second of all, the dialogue in this book was horrific. it was genuinely the most unrealistic, poorly written dialogue i have ever read. i’m not sure if the author has gone outside in the past 20 years, but not one person (let alone teenagers) speak like the characters in this book do. the awful dialogue really took me out of the story and annoyed the shit out of me.

and lastly, my biggest issue with this book is in the false advertising. in my opinion, if you are going to market a book with a romance cover that says “get ready to fall in love” on it…THEN THE BOOK SHOULD IN FACT HAVE ROMANCE IN IT. this book, in fact, did not have ANY romance in it. now, since this is a YA book, i never expected there to be sexual content in the story (nor did i want any sexual content; i hate smut in general and skip those scenes anyway). however, if you market your book to be a romance, then you need to have at least ONE kiss scene or romantic scene other than a “long hug” (this is not middle school babes). the reason why this false advertising annoys me is because consumers deserve to know exactly what they are buying. my guess is that the author and scholastic knew that this book was horrifically boring in itself, with awful characters and a lacking plot, so they needed to find a way to make it marketable. which was smart, to give them credit, because if they had actually advertised this book correctly, then i prob would not have bought it.

overall this shit was ass. but at least the cover is cute ig 🙄

rating:
1.0 pumpkin spice lattes 🎃

[Kylie ve · Rating 2 out of 5]

This just wasn’t for me if I’m honest…..
There was basically no romance? Unless the hug was the romance?
And the FMC was very immature and just annoyed me the whole time.

[gemm ♡₊˚・₊✧ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I bought this book because it was supposed to be a cutesy little YA romance. But apparently the romance must have just flown off into the clouds because there was none. I spent my whole time reading this book waiting for it to get good but I just couldn’t enjoy it. There was constant tension between the mc and “love interest” but EVERY TIME they got close there was something that had to separate them or Lucy was like “Sorry!” “I have to go!” or “This is awkward!” Like please SHUT UP!!!! OH MY GOODNESS

[bookyarmond · Rating 5 out of 5]

Il faut prendre ce livre pour ce qu’il est : une cheesy rom com façon téléfilm de Noël mais autour de l’automne. 🍁

Tous les axes narratifs ont déjà été vus et revus. Il n’y a aucune surprise (mais c’est aussi ce qui confère un caractère si réconfortant) mais pourtant, il y a tout ce qu’il faut.

Une lycéenne, Lucy, qui rencontre Jack, le fils des propriétaires de la chaîne de café qui ont installé leur nouvelle boutique en face de l’authentique coffee shop de sa mère.

Une ambiance automnale comme on en rêve : odeur de cannelle, sacs remplis de pommes, feuilles d’or et d’orange qui craquent sous les pieds.

Un festival d’automne dans le village version Stars Hollow, un concours de la meilleure pâtisserie puis du meilleur pumpkin spice latte…

J’ai adoré cette lecture qui m’a donné envie d’allumer une bougie, de boire un pumpkin spice latte et de profiter des couleurs automnales.
La lecture saisonnière parfaite si vous avez besoin de douceur et réconfort. 🍁

[Joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s the perfect book to read to get you into the fall spirit!!

[chroniclesofmariana ~ mariana nunes · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 ☆
não se passa nada neste livro...
não há romance, é só um livro de 336 páginas todas à volta de criar um pumpkin spice latte com abóboras verdadeiras
li em trabalho, se não tinha dado dnf

[Cozy Puppy Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice is a simple, cozy, YA seasonal romance for fans of Hallmark-channel style movies. However, the overall experience left me with mixed feelings. The story felt like it was trying too hard to emulate the quick wit of Gilmore Girls, resulting in a caricature without the charm.

I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator felt super intense when it came to the theatrics. For most of this book, the main character was screaming about Pumpkin Spice lattes and being super confused about the male love interest. It was alright but wouldn't reread. The story ended flat and abruptly, and I feel like I could have skipped this one.

[Mari Johnston · Rating 1 out of 5]

This might be one of the worst books I’ve ever read. Lucy is definitely one of the most horrible main characters I’ve ever experienced - mean to everyone, terribly self centered, and annoying. No wonder Barnes and Noble sold it for only five bucks with a bakery purchase.

[Joana’s World · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fall vibes, cozy, small town, pumpkin spice

[Olivia Riddering Hayden · Rating 1 out of 5]

hahahaha NO

[KellyJ1028 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was absolutely a perfect Fall read. I loved the setting, the characters. The writing was incredible.
This is a new to me author but I'm definitely looking forward to more books by her.
I cannot say enough good things about this book. If you want a cozy, atmospheric read, full of Fall vibes check this one out!! I’ve seen a lot of lower ratings and it being YA but I loved it!

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free copy of, Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice, by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I love autumn, the sights the smells, thee is no season better. New England is so beautiful during the fall, and that is where this book takes place, in Briar Glen. Teenager Lucy Kane, think pumpkin spice is way overrated, though she works at a coffee shop her mom owns. This autumn will be different as they have competition with a new coffee shop in town. I really enjoyed Lucy, she is your typical girl next door.

[liza(saved by His Grace✝️)·˚ ༘ · Rating 2 out of 5]

okay.. so cringe😃 like why you complaining about pieing a guy in the face for literally the whole book😒

but the fall vibes okay 😛