Camden Whitman has always been in my life. I met him when I was five and he was seven, but when he and my brother became best friends, I became nothing more than the pesky little sister he didn’t want around.
There was a period of time when I thought I felt a connection between us, but he shut that down faster than I could blink. Fast forward to adulthood years later, and here I am, still the annoying little sister he can’t stand.
Now there’s one difference: I want nothing to do with him.
I’m happy running The Kitty-Corner Cafe in my small town of Windy Harbor, Minnesota, and love living in my little slice of paradise on Lake Superior…until Camden decides to move here and open up a new restaurant.
Who cares if he’s a well-known chef who can prepare the most delectable food? He will never hear that from me. He’s wrecked my small-town, stress-free bubble and filled it with his abrasive comments and intrusive looks.
But then the unexpected happens. One night, when both of our walls are down, I see a glimpse of something other than distaste in his eyes. And it has me wondering if I’ve misjudged the man that has always gotten under my skin.
When those boundaries are crossed, there’s no turning back. Camden is on a mission and will do whatever it takes to make me his…
Willow Aster was able to create such a beautiful, deeply satisfying read for me . It’s the kind of book that quietly works its way under your skin and then just lingers there. From the very beginning, I was pulled in by the the tension and the pull between Camden and Juliana, and that feeling never truly let go.
Their history is everything. They didn’t just meet once and spark — they grew up together. Camden has always been there, from childhood kitchen experiments to teenage years where feelings started to shift into something heavier and more dangerous. And then came the pact. The “sisters are off limits” rule between Camden and Juju’s brother that shaped everything that followed. Watching Camden try to honor that loyalty, even when it cost him the girl he loved, was heartbreaking in the quietest, most realistic way.
“More than I can say. All the time, every day, every day since it happened…since we stopped being friends, I’ve never stopped missing you.”
Adult Juju absolutely stole my heart. She’s built a life she loves running the Kitty-Corner Café in Windy Harbor, creating her own safe little bubble, that is, until Camden comes back and blows it wide open by opening a restaurant of his own. The animosity between them? It lands perfectly. The banter is sharp, heated, and layered with years of hurt, misunderstanding, and feelings neither of them ever dealt with. You can feel how much they want each other, even when they’re pretending they don’t.
“Because I’ve always cared about what you thought, whether it’s trying to get a reaction out of you, making you mad to see how you’ll fight back, wanting to know what you think about my cooking, wondering if you’re having a good time, or if you want to kiss me as much as I want to kiss you…”
What I loved most is how earned their relationship felt. This wasn’t rushed or flashy. They danced around each other, hid behind busy schedules, traded snide comments, and leaned on family members who acted as buffers, until the walls finally came down. And when they did? It was so incredibly satisfying. The stolen moments, the sneaking around, the hiding in closets and empty apartments because they just couldn’t get enough of each other, it all felt so natural, intimate, and full of longing that had been building for years.
“How have I gone this long without you?”
The small-town atmosphere is everything I want from this kind of romance. Windy Harbor feels warm and lived-in, filled with meddling grandparents, supportive friends, family group chats, and that unmistakable found-family energy that makes you feel like you’re part of the town too. The grandparents, especially, were absolute scene-stealers. They were funny, shameless, and surprisingly romantic in their own right.
I also adored the way the story wove in glimpses of the past. Seeing Camden and Juju as kids, then teenagers, helped everything make sense on a deeper level. You understand why Juju’s hurt runs so deep and why Camden’s fear and guilt shaped so many of his mistakes. It all builds into him finally facing those feelings, choosing Juju without hesitation, and turning their homecoming into something truly rewarding.
“Being with you was the only time I wanted the moments to stand still.”
What It Takes is cozy without being boring, emotional without being heavy, and tender in that quiet, steady, “it’s always been you” way that hits so hard. Willow Aster continues to prove that Windy Harbor is a place I never want to leave. Camden and Juju’s love story felt like fate, years in the making, and I closed this book with the biggest smile on my face and that warm, content feeling I always hope for after a great romance.