Publication Date: August 11, 2026
A cozy fall romance wrapped in small-town charm reunites the owner of a bed-and-breakfast with her childhood sweetheart for a celebrity matchmaking scheme which has them both seeing stars.
Julia Schaeffer might run the most romantic little bed-and-breakfast in Upstate New York, but as far as that infuriating Ethan Duchamp is concerned, this older, wiser Julia has a strict “no vacancy” policy. Sure, she’s teetering on the edge of a financial cliff, and his half-baked plan to pair up his celebrity clients at her inn will undoubtedly be good for business…but how much forced proximity with the man who abandoned her is she supposed to take?
Ethan needs this to work. The dreamy, autumnal-and blissfully secluded-cottage from his childhood summers is the ideal setting for playing matchmaker to Hollywood’s next power couple. It’s the only way to save his PR career from the tabloid toilet. He knew that the inn and Julia’s warm, comforting homemade touch would inspire real feelings-he just didn’t expect them to be his. Again.
But as old wounds reopen, and their connection rekindles, Julia and Ethan are forced to confront the truths they’ve both tried to bury. In a town where nothing stays hidden for long, they’ll have to decide if they can rebuild what was lost-or if their second chance will be derailed by scars that have yet to heal.
The Matchmaker’s Cottage by Kat Sloane is a second-chance romance that offers forgiveness without forgetting the hurt inflicted.
Julia owns the cottage that had been his family’s, which she’s converted into a B&B. Ethan works in PR as a celebrity matchmaker, and Julia doesn’t look too kindly on his career choice.
Their paths unexpectedly cross eight-plus years after their falling out when Ethan asks to use the B&B for a work project. We don’t learn details about their history or their falling out until almost the end of the book, which made it feel like something was missing throughout the story.
As the stage is being set for their meetup, there are gaps, which was disconcerting. The story also becomes a dual timeline I wasn’t expecting, and initially we harken back to 2004 alongside the current storyline. The next blast to their past takes us to 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, and, surprisingly, 2001. Different stages of their lives are presented, showing their friendship, their emotions, and how they were there for each other until they parted.
Julia and Ethan sometimes return to how they were before their falling out, and then push any feelings aside, remembering that was all left in the past. But is it?
There are vivid descriptions and details throughout, and we get the small town feel in this upstate New York location. The secondary characters added some much-needed depth. The epilogue provides closure and a happily-ever-after, but there were still a few loose ends.
The Matchmaker’s Cottage has family and friends and a small-town feel, along with a better-than-expected second-chance romance when the drama was set aside.
Kat Sloane has been writing stories for as long as she can remember, with a particular knack for dreaming up new ways to get her characters to kiss. These days, as a middle school teacher she also channels her English literature and fine arts degree into other outlets. When she’s not teaching, she’s spending time with her family in the suburbs of Toronto. Most of her writing takes place late at night, during her coveted revenge bedtime procrastination hours.
