The Lumberjack From the Cabin Next Door + Giveaway

Welcome to Maple Bay—where bucket lists are sacred, small-town gossip travels at Wi-Fi speed, and your next-door neighbor might just ruin your plans in the most inconveniently charming way possible.

Kate only came back to Maple Bay for two 

Handle her late Aunt June’s will.

Leave again before anyone ropes her into some quaint, small-town matchmaking scheme.

But June’s “Not-So-Ordinary Bucket List” has other ideas. Written in floral stationery (coffee stains included), it’s full of items like dance under the stars, try a maple bacon donut, and kiss someone who makes you laugh. Kate’s convinced she can speed-run the list, check every box, and get back to her big-city life—without getting attached.

Enter Harper—the bakery owner with a crown of blonde curls, the matchmaking instincts of a rom-com best friend, and a habit of stealing Kate’s phone to save her number under names like Muffin Dealer / Life Coach. And then there’s Eli—Kate’s gruff, flannel-wearing neighbor who’s supposed to be a lumberjack but somehow also… sketches like an illustrator and flies planes for a reclusive billionaire.

The more Kate gets tangled in June’s list—and the more breakfasts, donuts, and accidental heart-to-hearts she shares with Eli—the harder it is to keep her walls intact. But when her estranged mother shows up with plans to help her sell the cabin, Kate has to decide if she’s willing to fight for the roots she never meant to grow… and for the man who somehow ended up starring in her next novel.

Filled with laugh-out-loud banter, faith woven in the cracks, and a romance sweeter than Harper’s cinnamon rolls, this small-town romantic comedy is about finding home in the last place you expected—and choosing to stay there.

My Review:

Well, this was totally unexpected. I mean, the book came highly recommended by a reader I trust so I knew I’d enjoy it…I just wasn’t prepared for the impact it made on me. Like being smothered in a big old bookish hug that squashed the stuffing out of me! 🙂

Because my emotions were immediately engaged despite, or maybe because, of all the hilarity. Rom/com brilliance cloaked in clever storytelling and descriptive phrasing that zings. “The trail started sweet – flat and pine-needly and very “look at me, I’m nature” – and then immediately decided to impersonate a StairMaster invented by a personal trainer with unresolved issues.”

This book was a delight to read and my copy is now mired in tabs to mark the passages I knew I would want to revisit. Colour coded even, for inspirational, snippets of wisdom, romantical and good old snazzy zingers. First time I’ve ever annotated a fiction book but the phrasing was just too luscious not to!

So, the comedy part of the story is vibrantly descriptive and full of rapid fire banter that’s laugh out loud funny. But there’s a quieter side too because Kate is on a “scavenger hunt for grace” that totally transforms this book into something much more than a rom/com.

It’s about grieving loss and finding faith; reconciliation and forgiveness. It’s messy and awkward and just a little bit heartbreaking. But hopeful too. Because Kate’s Aunt June’s wisdom lives on in her well worn bible, her written words and the memories kept alive by the people who loved her.

“June told me once that forgiveness never starts with can. It starts with can’t. You tell God you can’t do it, and He doesn’t argue. He helps.”

And the romance…oh my! Slow burn. Patient. Gentle. Expectant. Eli is the epitome of book boyfriend material. My toes haven’t quite uncurled all the way yet, but that might be because I keep revisiting the swoony bits.

“The Lumberjack From the Cabin Next Door” is my first Emily Hampton book, but it definitely won’t be my last! On the hunt for her backlist now!

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

US –  paperback or ebook – winner’s choice 

Canada – paperback, ebook or audio — winner’s choice

International – ebook if you have a US Kindle account

If you would like a chance to win a copy of The Lumberjack From the Cabin Next Door, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoread AT yahoo DOT ca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it’s easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday August 15 2026.

42 thoughts on “The Lumberjack From the Cabin Next Door + Giveaway”

  1. YES!!!!!!! I don’t know if it was me but I knew you’d love it!!! I absolutely loved this book for so many reasons. Emily is a sweetheart. This book is hysterical and I highlighted a ridiculous amount of things. It’s so much more than a romcom!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Yay, glad to make the introduction. I learned about it from a reading friend – so neat the way the news of great books are spread by word of mouth…or keyboard. 🙂 Good luck, Jo Ruth!

      Like

      Reply

  4. I know I read another raving review about this book somewhere and I think I added it to my Amazon wish list, but at this point there are so many books on that list, who knows when I would get around to it. It really does sound delightful!

    pattymh2000(at)yahoo(dot)com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  6. Yay, yay, yay! I’m so glad it hit you like it did me! In fact, your review is so good I want to go back and read it again, lol.

    Emily only has 2 novels out as of now and a bunch of devotionals. Dancing Toward Forever was over 400 pages but I did not hesitate to read it as soon as I finished The Lumberjack. It was SO good I did not want it to end. I want to live in Emily Hampton’s world! She has the quirkiest sense of humor and such spiritual depth in her writing. She was a Selah Award finalist for Dancing Toward Forever in the first novel category. That all sounds like a sales pitch, haha, but her work stands on its own. Talking about annotating your book, go to Emily’s page https://www.spoonandscriptbyem.com/ and look at her Bible annotation pages, amazing.

    Have a great reading Thursday!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. Thank you so much for raving about this book so I just had to pay attention. 🙂 I tried to find a website for the author but couldn’t find one in a google search. Just an instagram account so I see your intrepid reporter investigative skills are working well. I’ll definitely be checking out Emily’s page and her other fiction book. Happy Reading, Tracey!

      Like

      Reply

  7. Annotation with color coding is next level, Kav. Great job! I haven’t read any novels by Emily Hampton, but your review makes me want to. 🙂 Thanks for the giveaway!

    Jolene – iwant2save34 at gmail dot com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  8. WOW! Reading your review that’s all I could say. THE LUMBERJACK FROM THE CABIN NEXT DOOR sounds like it pushes all the buttons and has it all rolled up into one super amazing book. It’s definitely now on my TBR list and I can’t wait to open the cover and be prepared for a all in one sitting read.

    Love you color coded method of marking passages. I need to start working that in as well.

    Thank you ever so much for the chance to win a copy of this amazing book!

    2clowns at arkanasas dot net

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  9. Commenting to let everyone know it is on Kindle Unlimited! So no need to enter me into the giveaway because I will read it on there! This looks like an awesome book!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  14. I like the cover of this one, it just looks fun. And maple bacon donuts! It’s been awhile since I’ve had one, but they are wonderful! I’ll have to add The Lumberjack from the Cabin Next Door to my “want to read” list.
    pmkellogg56[at]gmail[dot]com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  18. This one sounds like one for the keeper shelf! I keep picking up “heavy” reads recently-completely unintended!! I am still in a season of needing lighter reads. I am looking forward to this one. Fabulous review. cilydav at hotmail dot com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  19. Thanks for the review and chance to win a copy, Kav! This sounds like exactly what I need to read between some of the more intense books.

    whthomas13 at yahoo dot com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment