The Cinnamon Bun Book Store is a 2024 novel by the best-selling novelist Laurie Gilmore and the second book in the Dream Harbor series. A cozy romance about love, change, and adventure, The Cinnamon Bun Book Store centers on Hazel Kelly, a bookstore manager whose life is starting to feel stagnant. With the help of a handsome fisherman, Noah Barnett, Hazel learns what it means to have fun and take chances while still being herself. By employing many classic tropes of contemporary romance, Gilmore explores themes of moving From Self-Doubt to Self-Acceptance, finding The Courage to Change, and discovering Romance as a Source of Self-Confidence.

This study guide refers to the 2024 HarperCollins e-book edition of the text.

Plot Summary

Hazel Kelly is two months away from turning 30 when she realizes her life is at a standstill and that her twenties weren’t as full of fun and adventure as she believes they should have been. Hazel has always preferred to stay home reading rather than go out partying, and she notices that her life has hardly changed since she arrived in the small town of Dream Harbor. While working at The Cinnamon Bun Book Store, she finds a book that is misplaced on her tidy shelves. Inside this pirate romance novel is a dog-eared page with a highlighted quote saying, “Come with me, lass, if you want an adventure” (11).

Hazel has the uncanny feeling that she was meant to see this quote, as does the town heartthrob, Noah Barnett, who finds her reading it. Noah suggests that Hazel consider the quote a clue and follow it on her own adventure. Though Hazel initially thinks Noah is just playing a prank on her, she continues to find quotes highlighted in misplaced books, all of which beckon her to get out of her comfort zone and have fun. This leads Hazel to decide that she needs to have some reckless fun before her upcoming birthday at the end of the summer, and she knows exactly who can help her with that.

Noah Barnett is known for his adventurous and flirtatious personality, yet he has harbored a crush on the quiet bookshop worker since he arrived in Dream Harbor a few years ago. When he finds Hazel drunk and alone at a party their friends are throwing, she tells him about her plan to enjoy the last weeks of her twenties and enlists his help following the clues she receives in the books. As her first act of recklessness, Hazel kisses Noah, but he pulls away in part because he believes he isn’t good enough for her. Noah feels ashamed of having dropped out of high school, and he has a complicated relationship with his family. These factors make him feel that he is unworthy of others, especially Hazel, who he believes deserves better than him. Even so, Noah helps her follow the clues in her books as they take Hazel more and more out of her comfort zone.

Though Hazel wonders who is leaving her the clues, she never comes close to finding the culprit when she asks others around town. The quotes in the books lead her and Noah to classically fun activities like sailing, drinking milkshakes, and picking berries. On a trip to the local carnival, Hazel feels brave and adventurous following the clues, and her newfound confidence leads her to kiss Noah. Their relationship quickly becomes physical, but since Hazel knows that Noah never has serious relationships, they agree to keep things casual despite their mutual attraction. 

Gossip circulates around town about the relationship between Noah and Hazel, and both are frequently warned by their friends not to fall for each other. Though Hazel starts to gain self-confidence during her time with Noah, he still feels as though he has to prove himself to be with her. Noah has an idea to turn some old fishing shacks on the beach into vacation rentals, something he thinks will make Hazel think of him as more of a serious person while also proving himself to his family. Before coming to Dream Harbor, Noah unexpectedly left his family’s business, causing a rift and leaving his father particularly disappointed. As a result, Noah hardly ever goes home, yet when his sister calls and tells him she is having complications with her pregnancy, Noah knows he must help her.

Hazel finally gets the confidence to tell Noah that she wants something more than a casual relationship, but before she can do so, he tells her that he will be leaving town and returning home. While Hazel is happy that Noah is reconciling with his family, this news confirms what she already believes: that their relationship will never be serious. However, her friends convince her that Noah must have a grand gesture prepared for her before he goes because they believe he is the one who has been leaving her clues. Hazel starts to buy into this idea, as it would mean that Noah orchestrated their adventures to get closer to her, especially when she receives another clue informing her of a surprise planned for her on her birthday.

On the day of her birthday, Hazel tells Noah she knows he is behind the clues, but quickly sees that she is wrong. When her father and many of their neighbors show up for an impromptu surprise party, she learns that they put together the clues, not Noah. Hazel acts happy but is mostly disappointed, believing that Noah will not be staying in Dream Harbor for her. While hiding from the rest of the party, Hazel learns from a mutual friend that Noah will only be out of town for a few weeks and that his feelings for her are more than casual. Simultaneously, Noah recognizes that he must tell Hazel the full truth of his feelings before he leaves.

When Hazel returns to work the day after her birthday, she finds a stack of dog-eared books on her desk. Unlike the last clues in the books she found, the highlighted quotes in these books all have to do with falling in love, and Hazel knows they are from Noah. She meets Noah where the last clue told her to go, and they reconcile and confess their love, with Hazel confirming that Noah doesn’t need to prove he is good enough for her because he already is. Noah reconciles with his family, Hazel helps him to start renovating the vacation rentals, and they continue to take time to go on adventures together.