Do you like Christmas?
Do you like Romance?
Do you like Cats?
Do you like people coming back after getting knocked down?
Did you answer YES to those questions? Hey, I have a book rec for you!

A Cat Café Christmas is a story about people who have been knocked down by people they thought they loved, and rebuilding. Throw in a meet cute, a cat café, lots of good deeds because it is Christmas of course, a growing love between two seemingly very different people and BAM – you’ve got a fun holiday read. Happy Catmas everyone!

**An honest review after receiving an ARC from #netgalley. #ACatCafeChristmas

Kara is co-owner of the Meow and Furever Cat Cafe- a quaint shop that allows people to visit (and adopt) new feline friends. Also a veterinarian, Kara’s dreams have remained, in part, unfulfilled. See, she’s always wanted to pair her love with homing animals with healing them. Unfortunately, limited funding and some bad press due to an ex boyfriend’s shadiness has prevented Kara from truly making this happen.

Then she meets marketing hotshot Ben Reese, a man who has begrudgingly taken on fostering a kitten, yet willingly signed on to help turn Kara’s cat cafe dreams around. The claws come out between Ben and Kara from the start- Kara an animal lover who doesn’t understand Ben’s indifference, Ben a confident business man who doesn’t get Kara’s reluctance. Putting their cat fight aside, the two call a truce for the sake of the animals. But the more they work on finding some fur-ever homes, the two start to realize they just might be purr-feet for one another, too.

I gravitated to A Cat Cafe Christmas for somewhat obvious reasons. Given the @purrfectpages moniker, it should go without saying I love cats and books. The fact that this story took place at Christmas was just gravy. However, for a good part of my adult life, owning a cafe just like this, only with the added bonus of books, has been a dream.

While I didn’t completely find myself “feline” the closed door romance between Kara and Ben, the story still worked in the way only a Christmas story can. In fact, I’d argue the genre of romance has always had its own version of nine lives. It just doesn’t get old. At some point, everybody loves reading about love. A Cat Cafe Christmas gives you kittens, cuddling, and Christmas. Really, what more can you ask for at this time of year?

Cats, Christmas, romance... A recipe for success in my book.

This is a story about saving a local non-profit Meow and Furever Cat Cafe, and a romance that's born between two people who have a lot of past relationship trauma, and who have completely different interests in life. Cute cat names, funny banter, light romance, great friendships, community... All of this, in one little book.

This type of Christmas book doesn't overdo it with Christmas. The focus isn't necessarily on Christmas traditions themselves, but more on the feelings and emotions that Christmas stands for. So, if you don't like your Christmas books looking like Christmas threw up on them, or if you just want to read something a bit different that doesn't centre around eggnog, Christmas tree decorations, or making angels in the snow, I think you might enjoy it.

In terms of romance, I think the parts when our main characters did get together, like for example, the first time they kissed, could have been done much better. I almost missed when they kissed, I had to go back and reread, because I was like, oh, did they kiss? There was no anticipation and not enough details to be quite honest for me to feel all the romantic vibes. I mean, the level of spice, definitely is a personal preference, I just wished these crucial moments were a bit more elaborated on.

I enjoyed the interactions between best friends on both sides, especially the friendship between Kara and Charity. Charity was the one who kind of smacked sense into our main character and made this friendship what it was.

I did feel like Kara was at certain points overly dramatic. She was presented as this super intelligent, witty, kind of chaotic, but quick on her feet person, but then due to this trauma she carries from her past relationship, she would react wildly to Ben's actions. I found this kind of annoying and it made me not enjoy Kara's characters as much as I could have.

For example, the moment when she heard Ben accidentally stumbled on the letter from Worthy... She claims that she wanted Ben to have more faith in her. But why would he? He only met you like a week ago? Why would you set such expectations on a guy you just met and who you didn't even consider as a potential partner.

Overall, I don't find that this book has any major flaws. I read it in a heartbeat, and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to my friends.

This sounded like a cute read, but I could tell very early on that it wasn't going to be. I'm not opposed to reading cishet romance, but I am opposed to cishet nonsense, and there was already a lot of it in the first chapter. The male main character made a fatphobic comment and continued to be judgy about the female main character in a really sexist way. I was never going to root for her to end up with him, so I decided it would be best to DNF.

As a cat person, Christmas lover, and romcom fan this book immediately looked cute. Now, having read it, it was cute, but I found it rather dull. Overall this book featured a mild romance, (butterflies and angst not included), marketing, and cats

What a fun read. It might have been a bit formulaic and predictable but the the enemy-to-lovers trope is amusing and the characters were quite sweet. This book was a quick and happy read - perfect for the holidays!

Between the adorable cover and title, A Cat Cafe Christmas was one of my most anticipated holiday reads of 2022. While it had a cute concept and some sweet, fun moments, overall I found this book underwhelming.

I appreciated that Kara and Ben had past hurts that left them with obstacles to overcome, and I liked how they helped each other, but I didn’t feel the connection or chemistry between them. I also thought there was occasionally too much detail (how many times do we need to know that Kara washed her hands before doing something? And I’m not sure I needed to know how to catheterize a cat) that slowed things down and took me out of the story.

Also, for a Christmas story, this has very little actual Christmas. Some of the cats have punny Christmas names, Kara and Ben went to look at some lights, and they talked about all the Christmas events, but I expect more actual Christmas in my Christmas books - holiday fun, Christmas magic, traditions, etc, and that was lacking.

This was such a cute and festive holiday romance! I admit, i'm a bit of a cat fanatic so this book was perfect for me! I loved the concept of having each adoptable cat as the intro to a chapter. There was enough romance that it kept my attention, but it wasn't overly done. I can appreciate the back story of Kara and why she is so scared of love, but there came a point where it felt too much. Ben was the absolute sweetest human in the world and Kara looked for any and every excuse not to be with them. The back and forth did get a little old toward the end. I'm so glad that she finally realized he was the real deal, and someone that could be trusted.

I’m a sucker of stories that have cute cats included and there was no shortage of that in Cody Gary’s A Cat Cafe Christmas. The quirky mannerisms of these furry critters made me laugh out loud, along with the many giggle-worthy moments that happen in the story. I especially loved the cat adoption bios. They were so creative and very adorable.

On the other hand, although the main characters’ backstories seemed to be very complicated; Kara’s especially was resolved a bit too quickly for something that was pretty intense.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and all the Christmas components of it made it even more likable for me.

Cute, sweet, opposites attract with adorable cats added in!

If you love cute romances and cats this one is definitely for you
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Veterinarian Kara Ingalls dream was to open Meow and Furever Cat Cafe to help find homes cats for adorable adoptable cats. However she has more cats, then customers, and the cafe is going into the red. Ben may be annoyingly smart and frustratingly bossy, but he hatches plan to get the cafe out of the red and into the green by Christmas.

This was a really cute, sweet, romance and I loved the fun addition of all the cats. Kara and Ben were sweet together and I really enjoyed the side character development as well.

A really cute Christmas book to put you in the holiday spirit.

Thanks NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

"A Cat Cafe Christmas" by: Codi Gary is a delightful Christmas romance novel that follows veterinarian Kara Ingalls and marketing expert Ben Reese as they navigate their way through the holiday season and all of the ups and downs that could come with it. I was absolutely over the moon when I found this book and I am so happy that it lived up to the hype I set up for it in my mind. This book had everything I love: cats, coffee, Christmas, and a wonderful cast of characters. Not only were Kara and Ben absolutely delightful so was the supporting cast of characters that Codi Gary included in this novel.

One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is to devour as many holiday romance novels as I can get my hands on. "A Cat Cafe Christmas" was one of my first holiday picks of this season and it started off the season with a bang! The setting was well done and again the characters were absolutely wonderful which is such a big factor in a good Christmas romance.

I will admit at the very beginning it did take me a chapter or two to get accustomed to the characters but once I did I fell in love and fell hard.

"A Cat Cafe Christmas" is an absolute MUST READ for your holiday season TBR!

"A Cat Cafe Christmas" is an absolute MUST READ for your holiday season TBR!

This story was absolutely adorable and just what I needed to get into the holiday spirit. Christmas stories are always good for that, and this rom-com was light, funny and purr-fect for the holiday season.

If you love coffee, cats and Christmas and a good rom-com, this book is for you!

A Cat Cafe Christmas is a cute, quick Holiday romcom. It’s lighthearted, but still focuses on some heavier traumatic issues that our MCs have recently gone through.

I loved the fact that the cats were almost their own MCs in this novel. You meet various different kittens and older cats and get to meet them, learn their personalities and watch them find their forever homes. I loved that aspect of the book.

Kara & Ben. Two extremely grumpy, introverted MCs that happen to almost, accidentally fall for each other. The character development that these characters go through is pretty beautiful. While this is a lighthearted Christmas romance both of our MC are still moving on from some personal issues in their past.

I felt this book was lacking details in certain aspects of the stories, while also giving me more than necessary in other places. I felt that the first 30% of the book i was considering putting it down and not finishing it, but about 30% in I started to enjoy it more.

Overall, it was a fun Christmas Romance.

Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for supplying an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A super sweet holiday read!

I’m a cat lover so I obviously had to read this book this season!! I loved that Kara co-owned a cat-cafe and every chapter starting with a little graphic and blurb about the adoptable cats was absolutely precious.

The romance part of the book was lacking, I didn’t feel the huge connection between Kara and Ben but I still loved the story and how everything came together in the end.

If you’re a cat lover - I think you’ll really enjoy this book! If you’re a dog lover - this book is still very cute and sweet and perfect for a happy holiday read!!

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an eARC copy of this book on exchange for an honest review!

There is just something about cats and grumpy men that will forever warm my heart. When Ben stumbles upon Meow and Furrever Cat cafe he hatches a plan to help them save before Christmas. When Kara forces a kitten on Ben since the shelter side of the cafe is full they start down the road to friendship and then sparks.

I really enjoyed both Ben and Kara and how complicated both of them were. Add cats and Christmas and I had a great time reading about their love story. I would recommend this one for anyone who is looking for a Christmas book that does not completely revolve around the holiday season.

ᗷOOK ᖇEᐯIEᗯ

"𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒂 𝒄𝒂𝒕.” - 𝑳𝒆𝒘𝒊𝒔 𝑪𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒐𝒍𝒍

I don't know about you, but I adore cats and when the opportunity opened to read and review A Cat Cafe Christmas by Codi Gary I jumped fast! Thank you Forever publisher and Grand central Publisher for the free gifted copy. All opinions expressed are mine alone. Please swipe for the synopsis and I must give credit to my very first cat, Shadow making an appearance today.

✔️ Holiday Romance
✔️ Closed Door Romance
✔️ Grumpy/Sunshine
✔️ Opposites Attract
✔️ Sworn Off Relationships
✔️ Lovers in Denial
✔️ Emotional Scars
✔️ Fish out of Water

I loved the premise of this book- two seemingly opposite but broken people meet and cautiously fall for each other. Add in a dash of felines, saving a cat cafe from closing, Christmas and you have a fantastic recipe for a heartwarming story.

Additionally, I admired the chapter headings which featured a sketch of each adoptable cat with its name and cat puns included.

Apart from the story taking me far too long to finish, I was becoming uninterested toward the end (which was worthy of a star dock to me), I would recommend this read to anyone that enjoys a heartwarming story surrounding Christmas, cats, and coffee. Some of the best things in life, in my opinion.

Princess Fuzzypants here: I am not a fan of the romance genre. I do pick up, read and enjoy romance books that have prominent cat characters but this is the first one where the cats were an added bonus. I loved it. If you enjoy romance with some raunchy bits, give it a pass. This is definitely Hallmark material but it is enchanting, uplifting and delightful.

Kara and her bestie Charity have started a cat cafe but it’s future is anything but sure. Kara, who is a vet, wanted to start a low cost clinic but there are doubts whether they will even be in business after the holidays. Enter Ben. He is in marketing and has put together a social media scheme to drive people into the cafe. Kara explodes at the unexpected intervention. They have such a rocky start you know they are destined to fall in love.

Both are deeply wounded by past loves. Ben’s fiancé is now with his brother and the first inkling was when she returned his ring. He is bitter and hurt and not in the mood for a relationship. Kara’s experience is worse. Her fiancé had used her to embezzle funds and personal information from the non-profit where she held a responsible position. Although cleared of any wrong doing, trial by social media has ruined her life. So when this new guy figures he will “help” her with social media, he and his ideas are the last thing she wants to consider.

Needless to say there are many trials and tribulations in front of them before she turns him into a cat person and he turns her into a vindicated woman. The clinic and all its residents have happy endings and both Kara and Ben are able to put their demons to rest and start afresh.

If you are looking for something light and feel good, check it out. I enjoyed it thoroughly. Five purrs and two paws up.

A fun Christmas romance! This book would make a great hallmark movie. This book for cat fans for sure. I hope there is a second book and this becomes a series as I became invested in the characters.

We are following Kara and Ben, who are both grumpy, pessimistic, troubled souls for different reasons. Kara’s ex-boyfriend was a fraudulent thief (who stole her customer info) and is being released from prison soon, and Ben’s brother eloped with his former fiancé. Both of those situations have left them feeling depressed, angry, cautious, and distrusting.

This novel does not start off well. Kara is having anxiety over the amount of people showing up at the cat café, so she is snippy and rude to Ben after she finds out his company is responsible for the marketing, and Ben thinks she is over-emotional, ungrateful and crazy for expressing her emotions and having anxiety. (it came off a tad misogynistic)

Both of these main characters are going through a lot, but they both were insufferable at different points in the novel. At one point, Kara literally harasses Ben to keep a helpless little kitten even though he’s living in a home under construction, and has never owned a pet before. That behavior was…really off-putting. Not everyone wants to own an animal - it doesn’t make them a monster. As someone who has owned many pets and fostered plenty more, owning animals and taking care of them is a HUGE RESPONSIBILITY and you should never judge someone for not wanting to take care of them. Ben brought the kitten to a shelter to get care, not to get shamed and ridiculed for doing the responsible thing.

Kara also makes a point to say that audiobooks are not actual reading, which is extremely ableist and frustrating. As a personal gripe, I just can’t get behind a character who believes that! And Ben doesn’t have any concept of boundaries. He snoops through her past, makes a marketing plan without consulting her or Charity, etc. He also complains about his family with no boundaries yet completely oversteps all boundaries with Kara???

Also, this didn’t really have a big Christmas vibe. The holiday season was definitely in the background, and this felt like a story more about saving a cat café and helping these two main characters heal from their past than anything else.

However, I did love that there was a little “Tinder” blurb for a different adoptable cat before each chapter! So freaking cute. I also think that if you stick it out, you end up liking the characters a bit more than in the beginning, and they call each other out on the unfavorable behavior. Plus it’s super cute to see the cats getting adopted, but it made me think about all of the pets who don’t get loving homes or have a happily-ever-after…

**Thanks to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and Netgalley for an eARC copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review**

Such a cute book! This was my first holiday book ever and it was adorable! Very much hallmark/lifetime movie vibes which normally aren’t my thing. I’ve always loved the idea of Cat Cafes but never really went to one before but this story may have changed my mind.

The hardships that Ben and Kara overcame was inspiring. I don’t think I could do what they did. And they worked so hard to help all the precious kitties.

I also ADORED the chapter headings! The doodle kitties where a lovely touch and it was fun reading a small snippet to get know the cats they were talking about.