So it Grows is a small town romcom about second chances, healing, and community. Felicity and Nic share a courtyard plaza and sparks fly when they disagree about the best way to use the space.

Felicity inherits a plant store from her aunt, right next door to Nic’s trendy mac and cheese restaurant. When a developer threatens to put in a parking lot that will block the sun from her plant shop and destroy the vibe of their community, they join forces to protect it. My favorite part of the story is watching the shop owners come together to save their community – the events along the way are fun, including a Halloween Festival with an ocean theme, paper fish decorations and an undersea pumpkin patch reef!

Both Felicity and Nic manage mental health challenges that the author handles with care – the story includes neurodivergence, addiction, grief, PTSD and trauma. Nic has an abusive father while Felicity lives with chronic pain and PTSD from something that happened to her three years earlier, (which we find out about later, as the story unfolds). Felicity works hard to stay healthy but she still has hard days and as she and Nic grow closer, he’s there looking out for her.

The pacing felt uneven at times and I found myself rereading sections to make sure I hadn’t missed something – the story jumps from Thanksgiving straight to planning a Valentine’s event, briefly before it switches to a plumbing problem in Nic’s restaurant, then to a friend’s medical emergency and more. There is also a big twist toward the end that I wasn’t sold on, but it’s balanced by sweet moments, like when Nic describes his love for Felicity: “Love is carrot cake…” This is a subtle, slow burn romance.

I enjoyed the banter and chemistry between Felicity and Nic and the found family with their circle of friends in the community. Thank you to the author, St Martin’s Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC.