Title: Much Ado About a Latte by Kathleen Fuller
Maple Falls Series Book Two
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
Length: 336 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley
Summary:
A coffee war is brewing in Maple Falls, where Anita and Tanner are serving up plenty of sparks to keep the town buzzing.
Anita Bedford needs to face reality. It’s time to decaffeinate the dream that she and Tanner will ever be more than friends. Growing up in small-town Maple Falls, she’s had a crush on Tanner for years. But he’ll only ever see her as good, old, dependable Anita. Now she’s finally ready to make her own goals a reality. In fact, that deserted building next door to Sunshine Diner looks like a promising location to open her own café . . .
Tanner Castillo may know how to operate a diner, but he doesn’t know beans about love. After pouring his life savings into buying the Sunshine Diner, he needs to keep his mind on making a success of it and supporting his widowed mother, not on kissing Anita Bedford. First order of business: improve his customers’ coffee experience. Next, he should probably find out who bought the building next door . . .
It’s a bitter cup to swallow when ambition turns longtime friends and coworkers Anita and Tanner into rivals. Now that they own competing businesses, how could they ever compete for each other’s hearts? Or will the two of them come to see what’s obvious to the whole, quirky town of Maple Falls: potential for a full-roast romance, with an extra splash of dream?
Welcome to Maple Falls, where everyone knows your name, your coffee order, and your relationship status.
Review:
Much Ado About a Latte by Kathleen Fuller is a lovely, light-hearted friends to lover romance. Although this latest release is the second book in the Maple Falls series, it can be read as a standalone.
Twenty-six-year-old Anita Bedford is a waitress at the Sunshine Diner. She is very sweet which makes it easy for the customers to adore her. Anita’s relationship with her parents is a little strained because she feels like a disappointment to them. She is also insecure because of her learning disabilities but when she grows tired of her unrequited love for her co-worker Tanner Castillo, she decided to open her own business, a coffee shop next door to the diner.
Tanner has long hoped to purchase the diner so he jumps on the opportunity when the owner decides to sell. He has big plans in mind after the sale goes through, but he holds off revealing his recent acquisition. Tanner works long hours and continues to honor the promise he made to his father before his death. He enjoys spending time with Anita but he has no room for romance due to his business aspirations.
Much Ado About a Latte is a wonderful romance with a delightful small-town atmosphere. Anita and Tanner are charming characters whose biggest problem is their inability to communicate. Anita lacks confidence in her ability to get her business off the ground and she stubbornly refuses to accept help. Tanner’s reaction to Anita’s purchase is unfair and he is extremely slow to clear the air between them. Their romance is very understated but believable. Although the ending is a little abrupt, Kathleen Fuller’s epilogue is very heartwarming and sigh-worthy. I am a huge fan of the Maple Falls series so I am very much looking forward to Harper’s book!
