e-ALC, 08:43:58
Narrated by: Rebekkah Ross
Release Date: September 2, 2025
Published by: Simon & Schuster Audio
Read from: August 31-September 6, 2025
Bramble Falls, #1
Source: From the publisher and LibroFM (I received a free ALC from the publisher and LibroFM. This did nothing to influence my review)
Content Warning: Infidelity, Abandonment, Toxic Relationship, Death of a Parent
For Readers Interested In: Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Cozy, Sparkly Covers, Realistic Fiction, Romance, YAGilmore Girls meets Jenny Han in this autumnal teen rom-com about a city girl stuck in a quaint small town who must confront her future and her old flame while the town prepares for an annual fall festival.
Ellis has a lot of expectations for her senior year, but moving from Manhattan to Bramble Falls, Connecticut is not one of them. Yet in the wake of her parents’ separation, that’s exactly where she and her mother are headed.
Bramble Falls might be charming, but it’s also full of distractions. Like local barista Cooper Barnett, Ellis’s one-time best friend—and first kiss—who has not only majorly glowed up but wants nothing to do with Ellis.
Then there’s the Falling Leaves Festival, a month-long tourist attraction run by Ellis’s aunt—celebrating everything autumn. The festival seems nice and all, but Ellis doesn’t have time to be roped into her aunt’s enthusiastic planning. Dragged to each event, she can’t stop bumping into Cooper, the one person she’s hoping to avoid.
But the longer she stays in Bramble Falls, the harder it is to pretend she’s not falling for this town and the people in it. As her return to Manhattan gets pushed further and further out, Ellis is forced to confront exactly what she wants for her future—and what that means for her present.
*MY THOUGHTS*
This was a no-brainer for me to read. I’m not a Fall person AT ALL (it quite literally makes me sick LOL) but the aesthetic always gives me life. So when I saw this book I knew I had to get it in my hands. And I was not disappointed. This book was so much fun!
Ok so the main thing that stood out to me about this was the setting. I loved the way the author gave the subtle hints about the place where this book was. Pairing that with the cover and I could see this place very clearly, even though I’ve never been to this state before. I did wish there was more, but I wanted her to show us vs tell us . But again, it wasn’t bad. I already had something in mind’s eye. It just had a do a bit more work.
As for the characters, I did think she was dramatic. Because what do you mean you told someone that their dream was crazy and didn’t make sense. I wanted to smack her. How did she think this was ok? And then there was the yelling at everyone instead of the right person. I know she was blinded by love, but even with all the evidence, she must have chosen not to see it. Everyone else in this story is 1000% someone I would be friends with in school. I know it’s sad because of all of this and no to the MC, but you’ll understand it when you get to it.
The whole time I was reading this, I was pretty pissed that I couldn’t go to this festival. This sounded like so much fun! I would love to see this in real life. Like I’ve said, Fall is not fun for me, so I was LIVING for the things they got to do during this festival. The costumes, the hay rides, the pumpkin carving and more. I loved being able to experience it all without my allergies punishing me for it.
The romance was cute. I thought they had some good chemistry and I was excited for them and their second chance at everything. They were cute and all, but I don’t think it was anything to write home about. But its because she was mean! Not really mean, just very much, put her foot in her mouth more than once. I was just very glad when she finally got her act together. They were pretty great after they did.
This was a lot of fun! I just knew this book about the Fall was going to fall to my strict standards. But this is going to my recommendation vault where I will be using this all the time when the time comes up. And with the first official day of Fall coming up, I can guarantee that I will be doing just that lol
Overall, I give this
