★★★★★ 5
Sweet Outer Banks romance
Format: Paperback
jenn mckinlay, what did you DO to me?? 😭
the concept alone had me hooked from the jump. hannah and simon each inherit 50% of their grandfathers' beloved beach cottage in cape split, nc, a place steeped in a love story that predates them both. it's a little wild, a little whimsical, and somehow completely believable, and i was fully obsessed with every second of it. forced proximity + shared inheritance + uncovering a hidden love story buried in the walls of an old cottage?? sign me UP.
but here's the thing, and i really mean this, this book hit way deeper than i expected from a romance. it's about grief, and found family, and what it means to finally let yourself put down roots somewhere. it gave me total emily henry vibes in the best way. like yes there's a slow burn, yes there's swoony moments, but at its core it's just… really beautifully human? the community around the Split felt so lived-in and warm and i genuinely didn't want to leave it.
and i have to be a little biased here, i grew up going to the outer banks and i go back almost every summer still, so reading about the NC coast and all those familiar atmospheric details just hit DIFFERENT for me. 🥹 i could smell the salt air. i could picture every scene. it genuinely felt like coming home in the best possible way.
if you love emily henry, abby jimenez, or any book that makes you feel like you've found your people, please pick this up.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2026
