title: The Cherry Blossom Boathouse
author: Laura Bloom
publisher: Dell
publication date: May 26, 2026
pages: 352
peppers: 3 (on this scale)
warnings:
- alcoholism
- adoption and child abandonment
- break-ins
summary: In a wine-fueled evening after losing her job and her boyfriend, Sophie decides to crowdfund her dream plan: buying a boathouse to turn into a bookshop. Unfortunately, when she arrives at her new dream home, it's a total wreck. Fortunately, the next door neighbor Luke knows the area and how to fix what's broken.
tropes:
- grumpy-sunshine
- new in town
- small town
- traditional-v-modern
- breaking down emotional walls
what I liked:
- bookshop work
- grumpy-sunshine moments
- learning to trust
- minor characters
what I didn’t like:
- town meeting was too derivative of Gilmore Girls
- in their dark moment, they're unrecoverably mean to each other
- mystery too neatly/easily solved
overall rating: 4 (of 5 stars)
As always, you can click on the photo above if you want to buy the book.