The Pumpkin Spice Café (Dream Harbor) (Book 1)

The first book of the viral Dream Harbor series by #1 New York Times and Sunday Times bestselling author Laurie Gilmore! 🍁
TikTok Made Me Buy It – Winner of the TikTok Shop Book of the Year 2024, Sunday Times and USA Today bestseller. As seen on Good Morning America!

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When Jeanie’s aunt gifts her the beloved Pumpkin Spice Café in the small town of Dream Harbor, Jeanie jumps at the chance for a fresh start away from her very dull desk job.

Logan is a local farmer who avoids Dream Harbor’s gossip at all costs. But Jeanie’s arrival disrupts Logan’s routine and he wants nothing to do with the irritatingly upbeat new girl, except that he finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.

Will Jeanie’s happy-go-lucky attitude win over the grumpy-but-gorgeous Logan, or has this city girl found the one person in town who won’t fall for her charm, or her pumpkin spice lattes…

The Pumpkin Spice Café is a cozy romantic novel with a grumpy x sunshine dynamic, a small-town setting and a HEA guaranteed!

Tropes:

Grumpy x Sunshine
Small town
Found family
Spicy

The Dream Harbor Series

The Cinnamon Bun Bookstore
The Christmas Tree Farm
The Strawberry Patch Pancake House
The Gingerbread Bakery
The Daisy Chain Flower Shop (coming May 2026)

Laurie Gilmore is a #1 New York Times,Sunday Times and Globe & Mail bestselling author who writes small-town romance. Her first novel, The Pumpkin Spice Café, won the TikTok Shop Book of the Year award in 2024. Her Dream Harbor series is filled with quirky townsfolk, cozy settings, and swoon-worthy romance. She loves finding books with the perfect balance of sweetness and spice and strives for that in her own writing. Laurie is currently based in upstate New York.

PRAISE FOR THE PUMPKIN SPICE CAFE:

‘Gives off the same level of endorphins as taking a sip of an actual pumpkin spice latte… all the makings of a top tier Hallmark movie that happens to include a nice dash of spice’―People

‘With a name this cute and a cover this autumnal, how could I not cozy up with my blanket and relax with this adoring book?’―New York Post

‘Witty and fun… set in a small town an entertaining enemies-to-lovers read that gives all the feels’ Reader review

‘I truly adored the setting, this adorable little town where I'd move in a heartbeat, and Jeanie and Logan were absolutely fantastic’ Reader review

‘Fall is my favorite season and this book totally captured that perfectly’ Reader review

‘This book is what happens when you turn a pumpkin spice latte into a story… perfect for fans of Hallmark movies’―People

The Pumpkin Spice Café by Laurie Gilmore is a cozy, small-town romance that feels like stepping into a warm coffee shop on a crisp autumn day. The story is set in the charming town of Dream Harbour, a seaside place full of quaint shops, friendly locals, and the kind of community where everyone seems to know everyone else’s business. The main character, Jeanie, arrives there with her life in transition. She has recently lost her job and is feeling a bit adrift, unsure what comes next or where she truly belongs. When her beloved Aunt, who owns The Pumpkin Spice Café, needs help running the place, Jeanie decides to come to Dream Harbour and stay for a while. At first, it’s meant to be temporary—a way to regroup, help out, and maybe figure out a new path. But the café and the town quickly start to feel like more than just a stopover. They begin to feel like home.

The Pumpkin Spice Café itself is the heart of the book. It’s cozy and inviting, full of baked goods, hot drinks, and a gentle buzz of conversation. Regulars come in every day, families gather, gossip flows along with coffee, and the smell of cinnamon and pumpkin seems to hover in the air. As Jeanie steps behind the counter, learns to handle orders, and gets to know the customers, she slowly finds her rhythm. She discovers the quiet joy of serving people, remembering their favorite drinks, and listening to their stories. The café becomes a place where she can be useful, creative, and surrounded by warmth. It also becomes the stage for her personal journey—from someone who feels like life has slipped out of her control to someone who begins to claim her own choices and future.

Alongside this, the book introduces Logan, the grumpy but attractive local farmer and single dad who supplies fresh produce, including pumpkins, to the café. From the moment Jeanie and Logan meet, there’s friction. Logan is reserved, private, and reluctant to let new people into his life. He has responsibilities, pain from his past, and a firm routine that doesn’t easily make space for newcomers. Jeanie, on the other hand, is chatty, upbeat, and curious. She wants to know people, wants to connect, and often speaks before fully thinking things through. Their first interactions are filled with misunderstandings and stubbornness. He thinks she’s too city and too temporary; she thinks he’s rude and unnecessarily closed-off. Yet beneath the irritation, there is a spark neither of them can ignore.

One of the core charms of the story is watching Jeanie and Logan slowly shift from prickly strangers into something more tender. The change doesn’t happen overnight. It grows through small moments: an unexpected smile, a shared joke, a quiet act of kindness. Logan’s daughter, a sweet child who loves the café and its treats, becomes a gentle bridge between them. Jeanie is good with her, patient and caring, and this softens Logan’s view. He begins to see Jeanie not just as a passing inconvenience, but as someone who genuinely cares about people and isn’t afraid to invest herself in their lives. Jeanie, in turn, learns that Logan’s grumpiness is a shield. Underneath it is a man who has been hurt, who worries constantly about doing right by his daughter, and who carries more tenderness than he lets on.

The town of Dream Harbour plays a big role in their love story. The locals are nosy in a loving way, pushing Jeanie to join in events, festivals, and community traditions. Seasonal celebrations, especially those tied to autumn—harvest fairs, pumpkin carving, cozy nights at the café—create a backdrop that feels almost magical. Through these moments, Jeanie slowly opens up about her own fears: the loss of her old job, the feeling that she has failed somehow, and the worry that she doesn’t have a clear direction. The town doesn’t see her as a failure; they see her as a welcome addition, someone who brings new energy and warmth. This acceptance helps her believe that it’s okay to start over, that new beginnings can happen in unexpected places.

Logan faces his own struggles as well. He has history in Dream Harbour, and not all of it is pleasant. He worries about the impact of any relationship on his daughter, protective and cautious. He’s also tied tightly to his work on the farm, which demands long hours and keeps his world small. Falling for Jeanie means risking change—letting someone new into his life and the life of his child, trusting that they won’t leave or cause more pain. The book shows him gradually lowering his guard, not through grand gestures at first, but through everyday choices: showing up, helping when Jeanie needs it, letting himself listen instead of pushing her away.

As Jeanie becomes more rooted in the café, the question arises: is this really temporary, or is she building something lasting? The café needs her, the town likes her, and Logan, though he may not say it clearly at first, wants her in his life. Jeanie has to decide if she is willing to let go of the old picture she had of success and find a different kind of fulfillment—one that includes community, love, and a quieter, more grounded happiness. There are moments of doubt where she wonders if she should leave and chase the kind of career she once thought she needed. There are also moments where old fears make her pull back from Logan, uncertain that she deserves the kind of love and belonging that seem to be forming around her.

The romance between Jeanie and Logan deepens as they learn to see each other clearly. She learns that his silence often hides worry, not rejection. He learns that her talkativeness masks insecurity and a genuine desire to be valued. They begin to share more of their histories, their hurts, and their hopes. Little by little, trust grows. The story emphasizes that love can develop in ordinary moments: a late-night conversation in a quiet café, helping clean up after a busy day, working together during a festival rush, comforting each other after a hard memory surfaces. It’s not just about big declarations; it’s about choosing each other over and over, even when life still feels uncertain.

By the end of The Pumpkin Spice Café Jeanie has found something she didn’t know she was searching for: a place and a group of people who feel like home. She has built a new life within the walls of the café and in the embrace of Dream Harbour’s streets, and she has fallen for a man who once seemed completely wrong for her. Logan, too, has opened up to the idea that love can come again, that his world can be bigger than just his farm and his worries. Their story is gentle, warm, and filled with the coziness of shared meals, steaming mugs, and changing leaves. It leaves the sense that sometimes the best things happen when you think your life has fallen apart—because that’s when you’re free to step into something new, something softer, something sweeter, like a pumpkin spice latte on a cold day that you didn’t know you needed until it’s in your hands.