Cat Dragon is a sweet cozy fantasy that reads like a warm cup of tea on a rainy day. The story weaves adorable enchantment into everyday life, creating a world that feels comforting and just whimsical enough to spark joy.

The pacing stays steady throughout, never dragging too hard, though the book does feel a bit long in places. Still, the easy prose and charming characters make it worth sticking with. The storyline is simple but surprisingly sweet, with enough heart to carry you all the way through. If you’re in the mood for something magical, low-stakes, and full of charm, Cat Dragon delivers the perfect “curl up and read”experience. I especially think this would be cute for fall.

Thank you to Harper 360 and One More Chapter for sending me an advance copy in exchange for my unbiased review. As always, it’s been a pleasure.

Thanks to One More Chapter and NetGalley for the preview. All opinions are my own.

3.5 stars

For being billed as a cozy fantasy, this had so much high stakes action! The town of Tangleroot and the setting seemed cozy enough: all the witches with their cat dragons, cute festivals, magic and more. But then! Aloysia and Hollis must go on a magical quest to save The Guardian!

What follows is a quest with high stakes, dangerous interludes, some found family, romantic tension, and most importantly, a cute baby cat dragon I’d defend with my life. The end was super climactic, dangerous, and emotional. I absolutely cried.

I just have a bit of confusion at the end. Some ends definitely seem to be left open and unresolved. And the last 2 lines had me scratching my head going wait, what? Maybe we’ll get another book in this world?
I definitely had an enjoyable time reading this, but I also feel a tad unsatisfied.

Thank you Harper 360 for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The plot of this book seems so good. I love cozy fantasies and the low stakes they bring, and the books always are a breath of fresh air. Unfortunately for me, I just struggled to connect and fully immerse myself into the novel. The writing was luscious, which isn't always bad, but at times a bit hard to follow. Aloyisa was a fun character to read, but Hollis had me a bit confused at times. I had to dnf at 33% because as much as I wanted to love this one, I really couldn't find motivation to continue. I feel this book gears more towards a YA audience and if it meets the hands of those readers it will be cherished and loved in the way that it deserves.

In the beginning I thought I wasn't going to like this book because it was slow moving but then it started to pick up when we learned the Guardians were "sick," Aloysia was trying to help and found her cat dragon. I liked that the book focused on the adventure more than the romance, it was a nice refresher compared to other books where romance becomes the main subject quickly on an adventure. After the first few chapters I liked it. I would read a second book.

Unfortunately, after reading over half of this book, I’ve decided not to finish Cat Dragon. The concept had so much potential, and I really wanted to love it—but the execution just didn’t work for me. That said, I can definitely see it being a good fit for readers who enjoy cozy fantasy with a more whimsical, YA-adjacent feel.

What made it hard to stay engaged, personally, was the main character’s voice—it felt a bit too young and impulsive for me, which made it tough to connect with her. The side characters also didn’t feel fully developed, and I kept hoping for more personality or depth from them to help carry the story.

The writing style itself was another hurdle. It leaned really heavily into flowery, descriptive language—even in places where a more straightforward approach might’ve worked better. The pacing dragged for me because of it, and instead of being drawn in, I found myself drifting.

It’s always a bummer when a book doesn’t land, especially one that should’ve been right up my alley. But I know this will absolutely work for the right reader—it just wasn’t the one for me.

A whimsical story that was delightful and cozy. I enjoyed this book and found the plot to be great. It reminded me a bit of "The Baby Dragon Cafe" but I think I honestly enjoyed this book more! 3.5/5

DNF 47%.

As much as I wanted to love Cat Dragon, the writing style just is not for me and unfortunately, I cannot finish it. I think that younger readers of adult fiction, those looking to transition from YA to adult fantasy, or just those who aren't as horrendously picky as I am will enjoy the cozy atmosphere and twee details of Birch's book. Unfortunately, while the premise should be an absolute win for me, several things held it back. Most prominently were the characters: the main character is so immature that I did not enjoy being in her head, and the rest of the cast of characters is oddly flat and two-dimensional, with little of the personalities or charms that make cozy fantasy stick out. Additionally, the action scenes are so confusingly written, I found myself skipping whole paragraphs because I literally could not grasp what the author was trying to convey. Lastly, (and this is a stylistic detail others may not mind, BUT) Birch's quirk of constantly italicizing words throughout the book for emphasis--rather than just writing compelling, emphatic descriptions or using evocative language--took its toll much sooner than my other frustrations.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper 360 | One More Chapter for the opportunity to read and review this ebook ARC. All opinions are mine alone.

Perfect for curl-up-and-read days—welcoming, whimsical, and comforting. Light adventure, quirky magical companions, and a heroine who blossoms into unexpected strength. Cat‑dragon familiar LittleWick is irresistibly adorable. Other side characters help to add charm and humor. Aloysia and her best friend’s brother, Hollis, share a tender, authentic bond that brings a touch of romance without taking the spotlight from the main story. Pacing was a little slow in some early/middle parts but it never derails the warm-hearted adventure.

Aloysia Papplewick is a witch. Her specialty is plants. She knows everything about them. She has her plants and her farm, pretty much everything she needs. Except a familiar.

Most witches bond with their cat dragon as children, but not her. She wishes it would happen. It's her dream.

She also doesn't have time to worry about it right now. The Harvest Festival is almost here, and she has Prattling pumpkins and so much more to deal with.

To make matters worse, her best friend Ivy's obnoxious brother will be coming back to town. Ugh!

This is a cute cozy fantasy. I loved the friendships and of course the cat dragons! The quest was fun too.

A charming, cozy fantasy perfect for autumn. There were so many elements to this book I enjoyed. This is a world with talking pumpkins and cat dragons. How could one not be enchanted? I really loved Tangleroot Valley and all the other places we visited on our journey. The world building and magic system were simple but incredibly immersive. I would love to read more from this world the author created. There are so many fun magical creatures and plants that I adored. I definitely could see the world being expanded upon even more. My favorite part of the story was the world and its inhabitants. It was so whimsical and imaginative. There is a slight romance in this that I could have done without. I felt like the characters didn’t get enough actual bonding time together for me to truly believe their relationship. They also felt a little immature to me. The characters are supposed to be in their 30s but they acted more like shy teenagers. If you like childhood friends to lovers you might enjoy it. I also didn’t believe the bad boy image portrayed of the love interest at the beginning. The FMC seemed to be annoyed and disliked him for a good amount of the book but there wasn’t much evidence as to why. I think it was supposed to create tension between the two, but it felt irrational and was very short lived. The story dragged in some parts for me. Though it was only 430 pages, I felt like it could’ve been shorter. The ending was a little confusing and rushed, but ended up making sense in the end. I do think this book could use a better title. Cat dragons are a huge part of this story but I think as a title it’s a bit too simplistic and limiting to what the story is really about. Overall, I enjoyed this. It was a sweet, cozy time that would be perfect for the autumn season.

Cat Dragon takes you on a serious journey. The first third of the book is the set of, the second third is the journey, and the last part is the epic battle. I liked all the interesting creatures, cat dragons, talking crows, ancestor pumpkins, magical plants, plant and animal Guardians, and many, many more. The creatures helped add a bit of whimsy, and fun, some of the times when the book got a little slow they were the saving by grace. I loved that at the beginning there was a pronunciation of Aloysia’s name, it made the story more seamless, instead of me saying the FMC name different each time, I only wish there was a pronunciation guide for all the interesting names and creatures, it would have been very helpful. While there were times the storytelling got a little slow, with the constant introductions to new characters and/creatures, and new places the slowness doesn’t last long. This was a cute little world to live in for a while, and I wish I could have my own cat dragon.

I’m a huge cozy fantasy lover and I was very excited for this book based on the premise and the adorable cover, but I ended up DNFing it which I try so hard not to do for arcs! Simply put, the writing is SO overly flowery and overdone and it was incredibly hard to read. I had to go back and reread sentences multiple times to even grasp a tiny bit of what she was trying to say. I just couldn’t continue. I think this story could be so good if it was simplified a ton.

This is a cute and whimsical cozy fantasy full of animals, which I loved. I felt the author should go back and flesh out a lot more as a lot of transitions were abrupt with gaps in the story. Her writing style also isn't my favorite. This story had a lot of potential though.

Such a fun cozy fantasy read it made me feel so many emotions you have world entering stakes and so many different connections to not use people, I definitely want my own cat dragon now after reading this it was a slower read and I took my time but I love the world it creates and invites you into!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was endlessly excited when I saw this book. The cover was adorable, the title contained my favorite animal in combination with the coolest fantasy animal, and it was a cozy genre. I sadly was slightly disappointed however, in the execution.

The good: it is adorable. The animals sound like the cutest things ever and the magical system sounded super interesting.

What I wish we would have seen is more fleshed out storylines and less prose. Some of the transitions felt abrupt and out of nowhere, and I had to stop and make sure I hadn't accidentally turned too many pages. The author's writing style is very flowery and made it hard to follow, sometimes I found myself having to reread pages because I didn't understand what she was trying to say.

The ending sets it up for a sequel but as much as I'd like to say I'd read a sequel I'm not entirely sure.

I really wanted to like this book, but right from the start I found it was hard to follow. In my opinion the writing style isn't for everyone. When I felt I got the hang of it I was struggling to keep reading because I felt it was slow pace. Too much for me. I also wasn't happy with character development. I did enjoy the cozy vibes here and there, but I wasn't very please with the book. I give it a 3/5 because I pushed through it.

A cozy cottagecore read. You get magical creatures, a little romance, an adventure, found family, some self acceptance and more.

This was more YA than I was expecting but still a decent read. It did drag a little bit but I pushed through.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC


review links will be added closer to release,

An interesting story of adventure.

Aloysia Papplewick is a witch with out a familiar. Hollis was born into a family of magic with no magic of his own, his claim was to be a shepherd for the Guardian. The Guardian falls gravely ill and it is up to Aloysia with her newly found familiar and Hollis, along with people they meet along the way to figure out what is wrong and fix it or their town will disappear forever.

The story had some slow spots and then would speed up. The story does move along and we learn a lot about the different types of magic and types of towns. I enjoyed the story and the new take on magic. I enjoyed the twists and turns it took at the end.

Well that was adorable! What a sweet, cozy story. I loved getting more and more attached to Aloysia and Hollis, as well as Littlewick and the rest of the crew. The world was great too, and I'd absolutely read more from it!

Cat Dragon sounds amazing on paper - witches, cute magical creatures, and a cozy village setting. The idea of a half-cat, half-dragon companion is adorable. The writing is way too complicated and hard to follow. I had to reread sections just to understand what was happening. The characters feel flat, and even the cat dragon doesn't get much personality despite being in the title. This book just wasn't for me.