Christmas at the Cat Café – Jessica Redland

Published By: Boldwood
Pages: 393
Released On: 15/09/2023

It had always been Tabby’s dream to work with cats and an inheritance from her beloved nanna has finally made that a reality. Idyllic Castle Street in Whitsborough Bay couldn’t be a better place for pastry chef Tabby to open a cat café with her boyfriend, Leon.

But when Leon leaves her in the lurch, the pressure mounts for Tabby. With Christmas fast approaching, she has to open the café on her own – a daunting prospect, especially when she’s been hiding her health issues from the ones she loves.

Faced with local resistance to the café – and somebody seemingly determined that she won’t succeed – Tabby will need her friends, family and cats more than ever to recover her broken Christmas spirit and pull together for a Christmas miracle.

Will the cat café bring the festive joy to Castle Street as Tabby had hoped or will it be a cat-astrophe? And can the magic of Christmas on Castle Street mend Tabby’s broken heart as well as her business?

*****

Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.

A new Jessica Redland book?
A new Christmas book?
A new Jessica Redland Christmas book?

Yes. Yes. And Yes.

This is my 7th festive book of 2023 and it’s only the beginning of August (at time of writing).

I’ve read a few books recently when someone has had a chronic illness and I’m glad it’s being featured. I’ve been unwell for several years now and it has taken its toll. But chronic illnesses don’t have to be the end of everything. To have protagonists living their life, having friends, being in relationships, owning a house, holding down a job, opening a business…it really makes readers feel that they can live with a chronic illness.

As well as other conditions, I suffer from the same illness that the main character of Tabby has, and so I felt a kind of kinship and support and empathy for her right from the off.

I am definitely more of a dog person than a cat person, and I have friends who have been to cat cafes before. It sounds like such a bizarre idea but I see that it has really caught on. I can see Tabby’s love – and I assume Jessica’s – for cats in the book.

I am impressed by the detail of each cat. I know she has said some of them are based on real cats, and some are made up, but apart from maybe a Siamese cat or a Maine Coon, my knowledge of cat breeds is not impressive. But Jessica has given each cat their individual markings and personalities and characteristics that I am really impressed with.

I like how it links to other books Jessica has written, such as Christmas Wishes at the Chocolate Shop. You don’t have to have read the others for this one to make sense, but having done so, it was fun to pick out familiar characters. It shows that Jessica has created this beautiful community for everyone to co-exist, including her readers.

It also shows that we shouldn’t be afraid of failure, and success is not everything. That admitting you cannot do something for the benefit of your health, isn’t failure, it’s bravery, and we shouldn’t be ashamed of it.

I didn’t like Leon right from the off, for reasons I won’t say but will be clear when you read it. On the other end of the spectrum, I adored Tom. He was the perfect gentleman, the perfect friend when Tabby needed him most, and I would like a copy of him please. There are many other characters of course, but for me, Tom and Tabby…this is their story. Oh and of course the dozen plus cats.

I generally have two rules when it comes to reading in bed. 1) I only read happy, uplifting books – tick. And 2) I don’t read my Kindle in bed, only physical books. But I broke rule two with this book. It was so warming and comforting that I had to finish it.

I assume it is a standalone novel as there’s nothing to say it will carry on, but I’d be just as happy to read a continuation of the story and with these characters.

It is really moving and emotional. There are positives – it is generally a positive book – but there are hardships, guilt, hate, love, worry, anger – there’s a bit of everything. It was so layered it really caught me out at times how moving I found it. Overall it is a good, enjoyable, hopeful and fun read, sad but joyful, and exactly what I’ve come to expect from Jessica Redland.