I've read a couple of other books by this author and I often come away with the same conclusion: the writing isn't that great, but they are trying to show a world that is inclusive, and point out that it's weird that more places aren't welcoming to all. I do read some romance as a way to chill, and this one isn't that exactly, but I didn't mind. 

I also wonder that if the writing had been smoother and the messages more subtle, if I would have had this many thoughts about the state of small town and cozy romance and who is typically represented there. The political implications of writing people you find undesirable out of your fiction, and the implications of creating a better fictional world on paper/screen that you can look to for hope that such places may exist one day.