The Gingerbread Bakery: The new enemies to lovers cozy romance for 2025 from ...

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3.5/5 The Ginger Bread Bakery is the fifth book in the Dream Harbour series. It’s a cozy, small-town, enemies-to-lovers romance that follows Mac and Annie. Dream Harbour has always been one of my favourite fictional small towns. It reminds me so much of Stars Hollow, and with all that Gilmore Girls energy, I’ve adored this series from the start. But honestly, this one left me a little disappointed. I think the main reason was the hype surrounding this couple from the earlier books. Through those little glimpses and moments, Mac and Annie’s dynamic built up my expectations for a fiery, intense enemies-to-lovers romance. But when their story finally arrived, the spark I anticipated just wasn’t there. The chemistry existed, but it didn’t feel as sizzling or passionate as I had hoped. This book also leaned heavily on the miscommunication trope, which I personally dislike. At times, it even felt a bit childish, like it suited a teenage romance more than an adult one. That being said, if you read The Ginger Bread Bakery as a standalone, it might completely charm you. It’s cozy, sweet, and full of festive warmth. To sum it up, if you love small-town romances with an enemies-to-lovers vibe and all the Christmas charm, The Ginger Bread Bakery could be your perfect cozy read.

Hands down my favorite read of the year! It had everything I love small-town romance, found family vibes, and even a twist of enemies-to-lovers (though Annie and Mac were basically in love for years). The angst, banter, and all the little snippets from previous books finally paid off here, and I devoured it in hours. Annie, the “perfect girl” turned reluctant rival, and Mac, her childhood enemy/crush, had me hooked with their tension and chemistry. Sure, their big “incident” wasn’t huge, but the fear of facing it felt so real. Plus, the cameos from all the other Dream Harbor couples and side characters made it feel like coming home. Definitely the best of the series so far cozy, heartfelt, and full of banter. Now I can’t wait (and lowkey dread) the final book.

This book has been my most anticipated read after the first two books. Logan, Hazel and Annie are best friends. I have been looking forward to Annie's story for so long. Finally I have it and it met my expectations. The strangers to friends to enemies trope always has so much drama in the plot. This book also had the same amount of drama and even more. The situations that arose during Logan and Jeanie’s wedding were fun, erratic, hilarious and downright entertaining. The mystery of Nana going missing and the reason was funny. But I wish Mac’s backstory was more refined it felt like it needed something more. Annie was unapologetically Annie, loyal to a fault making her Ms. Dependable. The past story of what happened between Annie and Mac was super lovey dovey. The result was not so much. The hurt and anger that Annie carried for so long was finally put to rest. Great read overall.

The cover of the book is torn and not so good!