This book was unfortunately a miss for me. I listened to the audiobook and the man’s Boston accent made him SO unattractive to me I couldn’t get past it. I also thought it just overall was kinda a lame story and dragged on (and on and on and on)…

I have mixed feelings on this story. I enjoy the premise, the characters, and naturally, the cats. I love the cat cafe and all of the marketing stuff - that’s all really great!

The writing is…okay. Some of it is pretty good, but some of it is not good at all. Some of the dialogue was stilted and did not feel natural to me. And, while I realize that the author is not a veterinarian, the blocked cat scene left me feeling some things because I DO work in a vet clinic and *face palm.* I was very happy that there was finally a story where the main character is a vet and they use their skills in the story, I just wish a veterinary professional had maybe read over that part? Some people may say that’s being nit-picky and it’s “just a fiction book”, but that is my field of profession and it matters to me!

Overall it’s a cute story (it’s not a Christmas story, just set at Christmas time!) that has some enjoyable stuff in it! If you like cats, underdog characters, and fun romance, give it a shot!

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing), Codi Gary, and NetGalley for a gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

A Christmas romance that involves cats... does it get any sweeter? I absolutely adored this story of Kara, the veterinarian who is co-owner of a cat café who has had a recent tumultuous relationship, and the new boy in town who is running from his own relationship problems, Ben. Their story is one that many people can relate to; a story of people who have been hurt in their past relationships but who learn to heal together. It was a feel good Christmas book that kept me entertained and I truly enjoyed it. The only note that I would have is that the steam level is very low, but that makes it fantastic for readers of all ages. I also have to say that I enjoyed reading the little blurbs regarding the cats at the beginning of each chapter as well. It was adorable, and the names of the cats in the café were so cute, inventive and unique! Again, truly enjoyed this Christmas romance, and look to buy it for gifts for my family.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing this advanced reader copy. The opinions in this review are all my own.

I actually pre-ordered this book with a local bookseller because I thought it was going to be great. This book was awful. The writing was meh. The story was meh. Overall a huge flop.

This is a wonderful holiday book about overcoming loss and betrayal and finding the courage to try again. Kara is working on finding her footing again when her last relationship ends up with both her and her ex in cuffs and on the news. Kara was cleared of all wrongdoing but is now media shy and just wants to keep her head down and take care of the cats in her care at the local cat café which she runs with her friend. Ben is decidedly NOT a cat lover. He recently moved into town after his brother ends up marrying Ben's ex-fiancé. Working in publicity, Ben runs into Kara and even though the two get off on the wrong foot, he ends up writing up a business proposal for the café to get in the black and realize their plan to run a full veterinary practice in the back.

Ben and Kara are great together and really made me laugh out loud. I appreciated that their relationship gradually changed instead of doing so overnight. It takes a long time for them to trust one another after their past experiences and hurts which feels very real. Their friends offer both genuine care and support along with some great comedic relief. There is somehow a small-town feel that works. The holiday setting to the book puts you in the right mood and the beginning of each chapter opens with a delightful recommendation for adoption of a cat or kitten with a witty name. The two characters show growth and it makes you so happy for their win in the end. I had not read anything by Codi Gary but will be looking for more in the future. If you want a funny, light, holiday read this one is great...even if you are not a cat lover yourself.

𝘼 𝘾𝙖𝙩 𝘾𝙖𝙛é 𝘾𝙝𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙢𝙖𝙨 by Codi Gary

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre/tropes: fiction, romance, opposites attract
CW: cheating exes

Gotta love when two people don’t hit it off immediately, but circumstances bring them back together later. Such is the case with marketing expert Ben and veterinarian Kara who first meet outside her cat café during a promotion campaign created by him and his agency. Kara’s terrified of the spotlight because she’s been traumatized by negative publicity that continues to harm her reputation. Ben’s unaware of her past so doesn’t get her attitude. He hopes to never see her again, but when he discovers an abandoned kitten in his home that he’s rehabbing, he brings it to the café to be checked. He’s not a pet person, but reluctantly fosters the kitten due to shortage of foster homes during the holiday. Because of this Kara and Ben have to stay in contact. And then stuff happens between them…

I was smitten by this story! All the characters are charming, the storyline compelling - both Kara and Ben have been burned by their exes and so are extremely slow to trust. Their friendship evolves naturally into something deeper which is scary territory for both of them. All of their hesitancy is valid, and I just quietly rooted for them to work through it to find their happiness.

You can add this to the list of sweet, uplifting holiday reads that’s loaded with humor. I liked Codi Gary’s writing so I’ll be checking out more from her. You’ll be amused by the brief description of each cat up for adoption at the beginning of each chapter. Spoiler alert: everyone and the cats get their happily ever after!

Thanks to @netgalley & @readforeverpub for my ARC. This is my honest review.

I was really hoping this would be a cute, light, fun read, but it was a bit of a letdown. There was so much dialogue and it felt very stilted. I can't imagine friends talking to each other in that way (e.g. avoiding cursing for example). I also thought it was very strange for a character in a book to be dismissive and ableist about audiobooks, when a reader might literally be listening to the book! The character's thoughts on audiobooks were never called out or critiqued as ableist by the other main character.

One thing I did like about this book were the descriptions of cats at the beginning of each chapter! I wish the cats had played a bigger role in the book.

A cate cafe Christmas had everything I thought I wanted in a romcom. A fun merry cute, a strong heroine, and cats!

However, I found myself not liking our FMC. The one part that really turned me off from her was when her friend (who is black) was talking about her problems and the FMC (who is white) says she wished her problems were like hers. Implying her problems aren’t important. But also completely inconsiderate for a white woman to say that to a person of color.

I just could not get invested in the story but I thought the cat bits at the front of each chapters was cute.

Cats, Christmas, and cozy vibes. A Cat Cafe Christmas offers a Hallmark vibes premise of a heroine trying to start over and run a beloved cat cafe.

By far my favorite part of the book were the cat intros and descriptions that mark the beginning of a new chapter. Our main characters are flawed and stand on the trope of enemies to lovers. I didn't feel particularly connected to any of the characters other than Matilda, the cat. It felt the characters leaned too far into their flaws and insecurities from past trauma. For example, Kara is just always jumping to conclusions and standing firmly rooted in her point of view. While I understand and can empathize to a point of why she does, she consistently pushed others a way over it and it toed the miscommunication/no communication line. The setting is fun, fresh, and unique. The vibes are cozy and a perfect read to snuggle up with your own furry friend by the Christmas tree.

This was such a cozy Christmas book that felt like a Hallmark cozy movie. Codi Gary/Hall is one of my favorite authors who brings places and people to life with her writing. I own all of her cozy Christmas books and can't wait to read more from this author. Excited for more!

This book gave me all the warm, fuzzy feelings that a Christmas story should give. There was romance, humor, characters with interesting backstories, and cats. I genuinely enjoyed reading this story and always find Codi Gary books worth the read. This is a quick story that still had heart put into the characters. I loved the different friendships and the family dynamics. The way the relationships were portrayed seemed realistic. A good book for the holidays.

This is definitely a book for cat lovers as every chapter stars with mini cat intros. I adored reading about the cats, especially Chaos and Matilda, and seeing them find their forever homes.
I found some of the dialogue cringey but the characters were still likable. It took a while for the story to get interesting but there were enough conflicts to liven up the plot. The second half was significantly better than the beginning as the starting storyline didn’t flow naturally and seemed rushed.
There is some diversity to the characters with the leading lady having ADHD and both main characters’ descriptions leaning towards plus-size. I absolutely loved that Kara’s nose was brought into her characterization since most romcoms’ women have little button noses. There’s also a lot of diverse secondary and background characters as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and Forever/Grand Central Publishing for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I adopted my own cat from a cat cafe, so I was really excited for this. And I did really love the fun cat names and descriptions that started each chapter, and the general love for cats throughout the book. Unfortunately I found the heroine pretty insufferable. She was so incredibly judgmental and quick to come to the wrong conclusion. Unpleasant!

IM SOLD!!! I love them so much!
Was actually funny and the tropes were to die for!! The twists on popular tropes such as opposites attract and second chance were very well thought out.
I really do wish this wasn't closed door but at the same time I am glad it is just for the sake of the cats so they did not have to witness it.
My cat sensed that I was cheating on him and decided to paw my kindle for most of the book but I think he was a fan of his brethren.
Was a solid quick holiday read just in time for the New Year!

This was such a cute little story with the cutest couple. I loved the concept and thoroughly enjoyed it. I do wish it had been a little more Christmas-y.

Welcome to my new favorite Christmas read! A Cat Café Christmas is everything I ever wanted in a Christmas book.

🎄Christmas season
☕️Peppermint mocha
😻Cats!
😂Humor/rom com
💘Second chances
💞Opposites attract
🫶Enemies to lovers
💝Closed door romance
😽All the cats!
🙀So many cute and adorable cats!

Also found in these pages are characters facing very realistic anxiety, fears and struggles. I love the perseverance and courage written into these characters and the way the author wove the feline friends so flawlessly into the storyline.

This book has so much heart! You absolutely must read it – and buy your own copy so you can re-read it year after year. It’s that good!

My only regret is that there is no cat café for me to visit nearby. Why?

Also give me the @hallmarkchannel movie version of this book immediately!

My thanks to @readforeverpub and @netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. And thank you to @amy_alwaysreading for gifting me my very own copy!

After getting off on the wrong foot, a marketing professional offers to help a struggling cat cafe owner save her business during the holiday season.

This has a cute Hallmark movie premise and we start off with a bit of enemies to lovers as our leads make bad first impressions. I didn't love the characters... I didn't mind that they were both dealing with conflicts from their pasts but they weren't very likeable overall. The cats were the highlight - I loved hearing about their different personalities or the mini adoption profiles that read more like dating profiles.

If you want a lighthearted read and are a cat lover, pick this up this holiday season.

I will say skip the audiobook and go for a physical copy -- the narrator did terrible accents that took me out of the story a bit.

christmas romance + cats + cute cafe SIGN ME UP. I have never been so excited to read a Christmas book and I spent the day after thanksgiving reading my first one of the season. The atmosphere of this book was just perfect and made me so excited for Christmas. The character development was incredible, I loved seeing how much kara and ben grew as characters. Although Ben and Kara didn't have perfect chemistry I they was still adorable together and I think it added another element to their growth and development.

A Cat Cafe Christmas is the perfect novel for the middle of the venn diagram of Christmas and cat lovers. Ben is a sweet man who has some baggage and Kira is a sweet woman with a lot of baggage as well, and together they can learn to love again. I loved the little twist at the end and the way everything is tied up nicely. Recommended.

This book is a super cute holiday romance. It is perfect for cat lovers as well! I thought the beginning was slow and dragged on, but the second half definitely grabbed my attention more.