REVIEW: The Rainy Day Bookshop by RaeAnne Thayne

The Rainy Day Bookshop by RaeAnne Thayne: Emma Lucas had been a model daughter and student. After her father died in an accident she blamed herself for, her life went downhill quickly and she left home. She eventually ended up in Las Vegas. When she gets pregnant, she decides to keep the baby even though the father wants no part. She has still vowed to not go home to her small town.

Then Emma gets an urgent call that her grandmother has been injured and can no longer run the family store, The Rainy Day Bookshop. She picks up and moves back home with her daughter Olive in tow.

Emma’s mother Rosie, who started the bookshop, can’t take care of the bookshop. After her husband died, Rosie had to step up and take over Lucas Construction that she had really paid very little attention to. For a while things look rough, but with help from other employees and more jobs things are getting better.
Rosie’s latest project is renovating a large home that she once wanted. The owner is a famous author who has moved from California after his home and belongings were totally destroye by wildfire. Andrew has two young children who he is raising after his wife died. Rosie is attracted to Andrew, but he has young children and she has already been through that. Can they ever be they ever be more than project manager and employer?

Emma takes on the bookshop as a project. It is in desperate need of a huge overhaul and renovation. It’s much more than she can do alone, especially on top of raising her sweet daughter Olive. Bryce, who she barely knew in high school, now work for her mother’s construction company. He had a big crush of Emma in high school, despite their very different backgrounds. Even though he is already working long hours, he volunteers to help Emma with the bookshop renovations. Can they ever be more than friends and will Emma stay in town after the bookshop is fixed?

I loved that this story was one of two different generations and how they dealt with family and romantic relationships. All the characters had serious past baggage and weren’t sure they would able to move on. It was great that children were important and woven into the plot.

As soon as I saw the title of this book, I knew I would love it. Books about books are one of my all time favorites. It was wonderful how the author showed the importance of independent bookshops.

Tropes
💕 Later-in-life romance
👩‍👧 Family reconciliation
🧲 Opposites attract
🌤️ Grumpy x Sunshine
👨‍👧‍👦 Single parent romance
📖 Small-town bookshop setting

Themes
📚 Family healing
💞 Second chances
🤍 Mother-daughter relationships
🔐 Buried secrets
🌧️ Fresh starts
🏡 Community & belonging

The Rainy Day Bookshop is a heartfelt story about forgiveness, rebuilding trust, and discovering that love and healing can still find you after the hardest seasons. Perfect for readers who love emotional family-centered fiction, cozy small-town settings, and stories where hope grows quietly through everyday moments.

QOTD: Do you prefer books with family drama, romance, or a mix of both?

Book Info:

Publication: June 2, 2026 | MIRA |

Sandwiched between caring for her mother and rebuilding the relationship with her estranged daughter, Emma, Rosie Lucas’s life is full. In the best way. With Emma and her 3-year old daughter, Olive, back home, Rosie has a partner for The Rainy Day Bookshop, the family business, and a chance to fix the past. What she doesn’t have time for is a romantic relationship. And even if she did, Andrew Morgan is the last person she’d choose. Not only is he an arrogant and reclusive writer, but he’s a single dad with two young kids. She’s already been there, done that. Still as an irresistible flirtation builds between them, he becomes her unexpected confidante on the distance Rosie can’t seem to overcome with Emma, a secret she can’t quite unravel…

Emma isn’t proud of her past. But she’s pulled herself up by the bootstraps, caring for her own daughter, and protecting her mom at all costs. Just as she always has. She never told Rosie what she saw all those years ago and she never will. But some secrets refuse to stay buried, and sometimes the truth is more shocking than fiction. Rosie and Emma will have to navigate an unimaginable path forward. Together.