Much Ado About a Latte

Written by Kathleen Fuller

Narrated by Lauren Berst

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.

Praise for Much Ado About a Latte:

“You’ve heard of friends to lovers; now get ready for childhood friends, to coworkers, to fake-dating coworkers, to business rivals, to lovers. Much Ado About a Latte has it all—charming and sweet, with delectable dialogue and just enough biting tension to keep you on the edge of your seat. Readers will love the beautiful setting of Maple Falls, the gratuitous food descriptions at Sunshine Diner, and Anita’s adorable cat, Peanut.” —Carolyn Brown, New York Times bestselling author

“Something’s brewing in Maple Falls and you’re going to be rooting for the romance every step of the way. Kathleen Fuller has created a wonderful small-town setting for this sweet reunion romance. How these two first-kiss kids ever kept their distance until now is beyond me! Just goes to show if true love is meant to be, there’s no escaping it.” —Nancy Naigle, ECPA bestselling author of The Shell Collector

• Sweet contemporary romance
• Second book in the Maple Falls series, but can be read as a stand-alone
• Book length: 77,000 words

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: Jan 4, 2022
• ISBN: 9780785238164

Kathleen Fuller

With over two million copies sold, Kathleen Fuller is the USA TODAY bestselling author of several bestselling novels, including the Hearts of Middlefield novels, the Middlefield Family novels, the Amish of Birch Creek series, and the Amish Letters series as well as a middle-grade Amish series, the Mysteries of Middlefield. Visit her online at KathleenFuller.com; Instagram: @kf_booksandhooks; Facebook: @WriterKathleenFuller; Twitter: @TheKatJam.

Reviews for Much Ado About a Latte

[Becca · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a fun, sweet story for easy reading. I really enjoyed it!

[kris_anderson-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Much Ado About a Latte by Kathleen Fuller is the second A Maple Falls Romance. Each book in the series can be read as a standalone. I enjoy reading Kathleen Fuller’s Amish novels, so I wanted to check out her Christian romances. I found Much Ado About a Latte to be different from her Amish novels. They contain good writing, but I thought the characters were lackluster and flat. Tanner and Anita have been attracted to each other since high school, but neither of them has acted on their feelings. Ten years later, Anita and Tanner work at the Sunshine Diner and their feelings are still present. We get to hear how Anita likes Tanner’s looks (over and over) and Tanner finds Anita to be pretty (numerous times). Tanner also likes Anita’s personality. Tanner wishes to purchase the Sunshine Diner and elevate the food. He has plans to give Anita a promotion. Anita wants to purchase building #3 next to the diner and turn into a café where people can get quality coffee drinks and delicious pastries. Anita figures the diner, and her new enterprise will complement each other. Neither Anita nor Tanner have told each other about their plans. Tanner and Anita need to work through their feelings, their doubts, and insecurities before they can move forward personally. They also need to admit how they feel about each other. Tanner and Anita are friendly characters, but I was not a fan of either of them. I wanted to like them, but they drove me nuts (especially with Anita constantly obsessing over Tanner). Anita is portrayed as a woman with a learning disability (who never received the help she needed to conquer it). She is a wishy-washy woman who I wish had pulled herself by the bootstraps instead of needing a man to help her. I did not feel any chemistry between the pair (no tension or burning love). I was glad when the pacing had a slight uptick in the last half of the book (it was so slow in the beginning). The story had a good ending. Much Ado About a Latte did not feel like a Christian novel. There is a drunken episode that is completely out of place (as well as the comment about knockin’ boots). It was missing the Christian element completely (“thank the Lord” does not cut it). Much Ado About a Latte was not the right book for me. I will stick to Kathleen Fuller’s Amish fiction which she does very well. Much Ado About a Latte is a fluffy romance novel with good food, diner drama, a wonderful wedding, a startling smooch, fine friends, and a meddlesome mother.

[virginia51-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a fun contemporary romance that I really enjoyed. Tanner and Anita are two wonderful characters. They do not come from the same side of town but they become friends and then become more than friends and then may have to compete with each other. This is well written and I love the story. Both Tanner and Anita find what they need and want in life. I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

[arlenadean · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Title: Much Ado About a LatteAuthor: Kathleen FullerPublisher: Thomas NelsonSeries: Maples Falls # 2Reviewed By: Arlena DeanRating: FiveReview:"Much Ado About a Latte" by Kathleen FullerMy Opinion:'Much Ado About a Latte' was a sweet story of how two people knew each other in school but didn't have any real connection other than Tanner Castillo had once tutored Anita Bedford with her studies due to some learning disabilities. Oh, yes, there was that childhood kiss. However, there had been no other communication with each other. After ten years in Maple Falls, they are coworkers working at Sunshine Diner, where Tanner is the assistant manager and head cook and Anita a waitress. As the story goes on, we find a space next door to the Sunshine Diner, and Anita is thinking of buying it and opening up a coffee cafe. Will this present a problem for the already established Sunshine next door...a competing business? By Tanner and Anita not talking about this situation, what will happen when he finds out her plans for the next-door property? The story had some intriguing characters that will put a smile on your face and have you shaking your head as you are reading through the story. Be ready for a read that will let one see what can happen when there isn't enough communication, therefore, bringing on lots of drama as it did in this romantic story. By the end of the story, will Tanner and Anita be able to get to move forward and get to that happy place for a HEA? You will have to pick up this read and see how well this author brings it all out for the reader.Thank you, Netgalley and Thomas Nelson Publishing, for the opportunity to read this book and share my honest opinion.