If you’re a fan of small town romance + enemies-to-lovers, Jeannie Chin’s The Inn on Sweetbriar Lane by will probably hit all the right notes for you.
It’s a hit-or-miss trope for me, and in this case, I felt like I’d read it before. All that felt fresh was better/more racial and LGBTQ+ rep. Main character June is Chinese American and has a friend who is trying to come out to her parents. Clay has Black and Filipino military buddies.
June helps run her family’s inn in North Carolina, while also dealing with their money issues after her mom’s stroke. Clay is a vet who served in Afghanistan and is pursuing his buddy’s dream to put a bar on Main Street in town. It’s ruffling feathers with the busybodies on the local business association. Located just across the street from the inn, it instantly puts June and Clay at odds with each other.
June, as the self-appointed family fixer, was super relatable. But I found the town busybodies’ provincial attitudes grating. And ultimately, I didn’t really find myself pulled into the romance. It was fine, just probably not for me.
CW: foster system experience as a kid, estranged bio dad, guilt / loss of a friend during military service.
3 stars
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