What I am reading this August: The Pumpkin Spice Cafe

Hello, my Darlings!

I hope all is well wherever you are when you find this little post.

I have already started welcoming autumn into my space with a little seasonal reading. The book that has welcomed me into the season is The Pumpkin Spice Café, which I have been enjoying alongside a cup of herbal tea—sometimes hot, sometimes iced, depending on what August decides to do that day.

I know I am a bit late to this book.

I actually purchased it about a year ago, but I didn’t want to read it while everyone else was reading it. So it sat patiently on my bookshelf until I was ready for it.

And apparently, this August was the right time.

August always feels like the hallway between summer and autumn for me. Summer hasn’t quite left, but I can already feel myself longing for cooler evenings, slower days, and all the little comforts that come with my favorite season.

I wanted something lighthearted and easy to settle into, and so far, The Pumpkin Spice Café has been exactly that.

I am currently 112 pages in, and I am pleased to say it is everything I seem to need in my life right now.

There is humor, wit, and the kind of everyday conversations between characters that remind me of the little bits of conversation I overhear while going about my own day.

The story moves quickly, but it is descriptive enough that I can picture the scenes as I read them. In many ways, it feels like reading a Hallmark movie.

And I mean that as a compliment.

My mother always watched Hallmark and Lifetime movies on Sundays when I was growing up, so there is something strangely nostalgic and comforting about this kind of story. It reminds me of those quiet Sunday afternoons from my childhood.

So far, one of my favorite things about the book is simply listening to the characters talk to one another.

Is it a little predictable?

Yes.

But surprisingly, I don’t mind that at all.

Sometimes I don’t want a story that requires me to solve something, analyze every detail, or prepare myself for a devastating plot twist. Sometimes I just want to make a cup of tea, get comfortable, and allow the story to carry me somewhere cozy for a while.

I am on chapter twelve now, which means I am getting close to the halfway point. I have decided that instead of trying to predict where the story is going, I am simply going to let it unfold.

There is only one problem.

I have been reading this book for two days, and this morning I realized that I am treating it exactly like a Netflix series.

I am binge-reading and binge-listening.

And considering that I am trying to create a slower pace of life for myself, perhaps flying through the book in three days defeats the purpose a little.

So I think I am going to slow myself down and try reading a chapter or two every other day.

Not because there is anything wrong with finishing a book quickly, but because I want reading to become part of the stillness I am trying to create.

This autumn, I want reading and journaling to become little anchors in my season—something that encourages me to sit down, quiet my mind, and spend a little more time away from screens and constant noise.

I have even started learning how to take tiny notes while I read. Nothing complicated or scholarly. Just little thoughts, observations, or sentences that help me remember what I was thinking and feeling while I was inside the story.