First and Forever by Lynn Painter Genres: Adult, Contemporary
Published by Berkley on May 12, 2026
Also by this author: The Do-Over
Format: Audio/Physical (320 pages) • Source: Purchased, Spotify Audiobooks
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A football star and a diehard fan entangled in a PR stunt—that only one side knows is fake—might be the right play in this new romantic comedy by #1 New York Times bestselling author Lynn Painter.
Duffy Distefano loves three things: her dad, the family cat, and Minneapolis Coyotes football. So when she gets booed out of a game and becomes the internet’s villain, she is distraught—and disgruntled. All she did was shove Coyote Carl away when he made a move on her, but everyone else just saw a woman attacking their team’s beloved mascot. Eager to clear the air, Duffy agrees to an interview on a hit morning show. She doesn’t expect a co-guest to join her—especially not the Coyotes’ star tight end.
When MVP Connor Cunningham gets tasked with damage control to help his team out of their PR nightmare, he thought that meant saying a few words on the team’s behalf. Instead, he finds himself in a highly amusing verbal sparring match with a recently wronged fan on live TV. Duffy pelts him with fiery jabs but is also clearly diehard about the Coyotes—color him intrigued…and attracted.
The interview instantly goes viral, and the public is obsessed with them. A strong push from the Coyotes’ PR team to ride the wave results in Connor asking Duffy out. Despite his distaste for PR stunts, he’s surprised to discover being with Duffy is much easier than he thought, and somehow it doesn’t feel fake to him. Harboring this secret can only blow up, but all he knows is that if he messes things up with Duffy, it’ll be the greatest fumble of his life.
Lynn Painter is an author where I have so many of her books on my TBR but have only actually read one, prior to this. I feel like her YA books are sweeter and maybe more my speed, because sometimes YA authors writing adult romances (or books in general, like Holly Jackson’s adult debut mystery) can make them feel a little too immature. I saw that she had a football-based book out and grabbed it on a whim, even though the last time I read a book about a sport I like it did not go well. I find myself nitpicking about inaccuracies, but can you blame me? I want realistic books about my favorite sports! Unfortunately I had a similar experience where this book just did not do it for me.
I wish I just read my physical copy because the audiobook narrators made it even cringier than it already was. Connor was good enough, but for some reason he swore (fuck/fucking) so often, it drove me crazy, and I am a big fan of swearing! If it’s too much for me, you know it’s way too much. I think Painter tried a little too hard to make Connor seem like the perfect thoughtful dude; it was nice obviously to see all the cute gestures but it was giving too-perfect. Duffy, on the other hand, was too “not like other girls” and it annoyed me so much. “Duffy wouldn’t like flowers” and “she’d think it’s cheesy to go to a pumpkin patch,” etc. The entire chapter with the zombie paintball thing and her refusal to end the game until she won was so cringe-worthy.
Feel free to skip this part if you don’t care about the football inaccuracies, but I have to get it out. The synopsis and book call Connor an MVP despite the fact that a tight end has never won MVP in the history of football. He’s playing his sophomore season and they say that he won Rookie of the Year, but did he somehow also win MVP that year? I highly super doubt that. There’s another “Hall of Fame tight end” referenced which is insane because you can’t be an active player and be in the Hall of Fame… nor would this team get lucky enough, if it was possible to have an MVP/ROTY tight end *and* HOF tight end on the same team at the same time? Truly baffling. Those elements were just not needed; otherwise the football stuff wasn’t that bad.
The book follows their fake dating journey, which starts as a PR stunt for the team and quickly turns into more to Connor. You can obviously see the reason for the third act conflict coming from a mile away. In this one, the breakup/reconciliation felt super rushed and glossed over (which usually wouldn’t bother me to be honest) but I just felt nothing the entire book leading up to it.
I feel like this review is super negative for something I gave three stars, but I think the overall writing and romance were fairly cute. I didn’t HATE this to the point where I would veer into 2.5 star territory, when the worst things about the book with the cringe and the slightly incorrect football stuff.
Duffy had a best friend who was referenced in passing like three times but there was an allusion to the fact that there COULD be some enemies-to-lovers with one of Duffy’s brothers, so I wouldn’t be surprised if another book came out to create a companion series. I might consider reading it.
Sidenote: this review on Goodreads definitely summed up some things better than I did!
The Cinnamon Spice Inn by Harper Graham Series: Maple Falls #1
Genres: Adult, Contemporary
Published by Hachette on August 28, 2025
Format: Paperback (336 pages) • Source: Purchased
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Love is the sweetest spice of all.
A fiery, coffee-loving city girl. A laid-back handyman with irresistible hazel eyes. Is this a recipe for disaster? Find out in this totally cozy and unputdownable enemies-to-lovers romance in the small town of your dreams! Gilmore Girls + spice + everything autumn = 🔥
Self-confessed coffee addict and food writer Madison has convinced herself she belongs in NYC. But then she’s called back to the small town of Maple Falls to save her childhood home, The Cinnamon Spice Inn. She’s NOT looking forward to seeing her ex,
Zach—now a sexy bearded handyman who knows exactly how to push her buttons. But she won’t let anything distract her from the inn’s relaunch… right?
Zach is frustrated in more ways than one when his latest job brings him face-to-face with the girl who got away. He’s already agreed to renovate her family’s inn and he’s nothing if not a man of his word. But the last thing he wants is to work side-by-side with that stubborn, infuriating—fine, totally gorgeous—red-head.
Sparks fly as they prepare for the big Halloween opening. Will Madison save The Cinnamon Spice Inn and have a second chance at love, or will it all go up in flames?
Grab your favourite spiced latte and settle in with this steamy romance, packed with small-town charm, scorching chemistry, and the perfect HEA. If you love Laurie Gilmore, Emily Henry, cozy autumn vibes and plenty of spice, this is perfect for you!
I’ve had mixed luck with books like this – THE CINNAMON SPICE INN promised to be sweet and cozy but also have some spice, and I found that combo didn’t really work for me with another popular series. I was hopeful that this would hit the mark for me and was so pleasantly surprised that it did!
This is a cozy fall romance set in a small town, kicking off a companion series following other locals and business owners. AKA one of my favorite things. The book follows Madison as she returns home from NYC to help her father fix up and revitalize the inn they own. Naturally, her high school boyfriend Zach is there as the handyman, bringing back old feelings that never truly left for either of them.
I think the characters were a little weak from a personality perspective – they SAID Madison was fiery but we didn’t really see it. A bit of telling versus showing in some spots. I did enjoy the romance and could tell that they had feelings for each other and chemistry. Some of the internal dialogue was super repetitive early on (ex: them rehashing why they broke up) but settled down later when issues were resolved.
The setting was where this book shines. The small town of Maple Falls is picturesque and adorable, with a ton of great local characters to set up for future books. I loved the inn and little shops, along with the Pumpkinfest event that the town puts on. This is a perfect book for autumn; my only wish is that I read it in early October instead of September!
The spicy scenes were present but pretty tame; unlike THE PUMPKIN SPICE CAFE, they didn’t feel out of place. This was not a cheesy romance, which they sometimes can be for small town cozy books, so the steaminess worked and didn’t feel out of place. This ended up being a really pleasant surprise for me to kick off the fall season!
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