This book felt like reading a Hallmark Movie! It was the perfect read to get myself into the holiday spirit.

I officially want to visit Silver Bells, Wyoming after reading this book. If you are looking for a cozy, Gilmore Girls-esque, rom com, look no further than The Christmas Cafe. As you follow along with Sylvie's journey to save her beloved Christmas Cafe, it is easy to fall in love with all of the characters in this story. As she decides between the famous, handsome actor Royce, and the rugged, boy next door, Abe, the reader truly gets enveloped into this story. Bonus points for a lovable chihuahua-pug named Crumpet as one of my favorite parts of this story. This book truly feels like a warm hug, and I would recommend it to anyone this holiday season!

The book is a heartwarming holiday rom-com that’s perfect for the holiday season. Sylvie West is a clumsy baker who has worked at the Christmas Café in Silver Bells, Wyoming, ever since her boozy eggnog fruitcake won the town’s annual holiday bake-off. The café is her forever happy place, and it complements her sweet, well-ordered life with her roommates: recently widowed Gramps and her yappy chihuahua-pug, Crumpet.

When Sylvie learns that the café might be sold, she’s determined to save it the only way she can: by getting the Holiday Channel crew to set a scene at the café. She’s even met the film’s charming lead actor, Royce, thanks to Crumpet’s meddling. Between an unexpected acting gig, a booth at the Christmas festival, an appearance at the Christmas parade, and a budding romance with Royce, Sylvie has a lot on her plate. Good thing her old friend, gruff yet reliable Abe, has just come home to manage his parents’ goat farm—until she catches herself feeling a little too merry and bright in his presence.

The book is a delightful read that’s filled with nostalgia, Christmas cheer, obsessive baking, small-town life, and cute, cuddly farm animals. It’s a saccharine-sweet Hallmark-esque holiday romance that’s equal parts predictable and cozy.

Thank you so much to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my review!

This book reads like a Hallmark movie. We have side characters that are funny and cause mischief for our main character Sylvie. I wish this book was dual POV. I loathed the actor and I kind of wish he would’ve been a side point. I’m giving this book 3.5 ⭐️

Okay, this book was all kinds of adorable. I am always down for a romantic read that centers around food or takes place in a bakery. And this was no exception! I absolutely loved Sylvie and found her whole character to be a breath of fresh air. She was chaotic, and bubbly, and just trying to find a way to do what she loved for the rest of her life!

And Abe - I mean...come on. He was giving me Luka in Lovelight Farms vibes and I am HERE FOR IT.

rating: 3.5 STARS
genre: romance, holiday romance
release date: 10.03.2023 (OUT. NOW)

Now, I went into this one blind, so I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I'm pretty sure I requested it based on the cover, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed the novel.

Things I liked:
Grumpy grandparents
Meddling pets
Christmas baked goods
Small town romance

I absolutely loved the characters in this book and was so happy to get another small-town romance book in. I love the idea of a small-town, but know deep down I am not meant for one so instead I read about them to get my fill lol!

Sylvie West teams up with the new celebrity in town Royce, as he begins the shoot of a new holiday romance movie in her town. With her beloved cafe on the brink of being sold, Sylvie does the unthinkable and asks Royce for help promoting it. Not only does he say yes, but he also asks her out..

And while Royce is charmingly handsome, Sylvie can’t manage to take her eyes off longtime friend and business vendor, Abe. Does handsome but reserved Abe have more to him than meets the eye? And can Sylvie save her work by the end of December?! With a little help from her family, friends, and sassy pug rescue Crumpet, Sylvie just might pull off the most magical Christmas miracle yet.

I really loved Sylvie and Abe's quiet relationship. It was so sweet to see them come together and find their relationship together. Sylvie can be so damn hard on herself and Abe was perfect at lifting her up and helping her find that confidence. It was such a pleasure to read!

I am the first to admit that I judge a book by its cover, and this one absolutely got me. How adorable is the scene portrayed on the front of Eliza Evans' debut novel, The Christmas Café? A cover with key characters and places depicted as Christmas cookies can only mean one thing ... this story is sweet to the point of being saccharine, which is exactly what I want and need in a Christmas tale. If you too are ready to make your holiday reading merry and bright, pick up a copy of this novel!

Set in Silver Bells, Wyoming, The Christmas Café follows local baker Sylvie as she attempts to save her place of employment - the Christmas Café - from eternal doom. See, the Christmas Café is set to close unless Sylvie can pull of a magical feat of epic proportions to save it. Luckily for Sylvie, the Holiday Channel is in town filming a Christmas movie and wants to feature the Café! The only problem? Sylvie is not quite sure how she feels about the movie's leading man Royce, who seems to have a thing for her. Meanwhile, her old friend Abe, a veteran turned goat farmer, has caught her eye in a good way. Just who will Sylvie choose this Christmas?

If you love your Christmas stories cute and cozy, check out The Christmas Café! This charming, nostalgia-laden tale is filled with holly jolly hijinks, adorable puppies and goats, and plenty of holiday feasting. And what's a Hallmark Christmas movie-inspired story without its very own version of the beloved channel, plus a love triangle to boot?! Put on your coziest holiday PJs, mix up some hot cocoa, and curl up with The Christmas Café!

This was basically a hallmark holiday movie in a book. Which is a great thing! A cute holiday romance that was an easy and enjoyable read. 3 stars!

The Christmas Cafe is the perfect cozy, Christmas read!

After losing her beloved grandmother, Sylvie, took over as resident cook at, The Christmas Cafe. Serving up delicious treats and holiday cheer year round has helped her work through her loss. But when Sylvia learns that her place of business is on the verge of being sold and turned into a burger joint, she can’t accept parting with the place her grandmother held so dear.

When a movie unexpectedly brings an entire cast and crew to film in her small town of Silver Bells, Wyoming, Sylvie believes all hope isn’t lost. After all, she only needs one person from the movie set to take notice of the restaurant. Will she be able to drum up enough publicity to save The Christmas Cafe? Or will this be the final holiday it has its doors open?

The entire time I read The Christmas Cafe I felt like I was engulfed in a warm embrace. It was the perfect mix of humor, romance, and holiday charm. I simply loved every single aspect of it!

Read this book for:
-small town romance (Silver Bells serves as the perfect destination)
-clean/ closed door
-pets up to no good
- family centered celebrations
-festive town traditions
-yummy food

Special thanks to Penguin Group Putnam (G. P. Putnam’s Sons), Eliza Evans, and Netgalley for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback. I will purchasing a physical copy so I can reread this each December (it is seriously that good).

3 stars!
A sweet cozy Christmas romance! If you are looking for Hallmark Christmas vibes, this is a good one to check out.

"You know what they say - true love is forged in the taste buds."

This book was genuinely a hallmark Christmas movie in book form, and it was everything I wanted from this time of the year. The main character is awkward in an over the top way. The storyline isn't anything too complex, and follows the same format you would expect from a Christmas novel, without falling too heavily on the tropes.

I do want to say that the main thing that I loved about this book, however, is the fact that the relationship between the family members seems to be the more important storyline. The romance, as interesting as it is, takes a backseat to the relationship that Sylvie has with her siblings, and her grandfather. And the focus that it has on dealing with the loss of a family member around the holidays.

The Christmas Cafe by Eliza Evans is such a perfect, sweet holiday read. Sylvie’s world is turned upside down when a big hallmark style holiday movie comes to film in her festive small town. Can she save her beloved cafe and find true love? I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Thanks NetGalley! A great book to kickoff my season of holiday romance!

If you like feed good, Christmas Hallmark like books, then this is the book for you! Sylvie is the baker at The Christmas Cafe. While she is excellent at backing, she can be awkward in other situations and she is a bit of a klutz. When she learns that the owner of the cafe is considering selling, she tries to save it. Royce is an actor whose Hallmark Christmas movie is being filmed in town. Sylvie asks for Royce’s help to feature the cafe so they can bring in more people to increase profits. Her and Royce being to hang out together and they even plan to film a scene in the movie in the cafe! But life doesn’t always go according to plan; her childhood friend always seems to come to rescue.

While the main characters are Sylvie, Royce, and Abe, I have to say that my most favorite characters is Gramps – Sylvie’s grandfather. He is the SWEETEST man alive and he literally brought me to tears.

I really enjoyed the small town feel of this book – I wish it were real! I’d love to visit and get some goodies from The Christmas Cafe.

The best part of this book? The message that Gramps kept trying to instill in Sylvie. That she is perfect the way she is, that she didn’t need to change, and to stop putting herself down.

Oh yea, there was romance too – who Sylvie will choose? She goes on some fantastic dates with Royce, but Abe always seems to know when Sylvie needs someone.

The book was written to be made into a movie. I could see each scene in my mind vividly.

This was a sweet, nostalgic, small town holiday romance that sees baker, Sylvie trying to save the year round "Christmas Café" where she works when the owner wants to sell. Determined that going viral on social media is the way to increase traffic both to her town and the cafe, she jumps at the chance to date a charming movie star when he starts filming nearby. Little does Sylvie know the local goat farmer has secretly been harboring a crush on her for years.

Throw in lots of feel-good grandparent moments, delicious Christmas treats, a pet pug, baby goats, some super swoony moments and this was a solid holiday read that was also good on audio narrated by Eileen Stevens. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

Steam level: kissing only

I’m moving to Silver Bells, Wyoming! I love cute small towns at Christmas time, especially one with a year around Christmas themed cafe. The setting of this book was really sweet and I enjoyed all of the side characters including a feisty pup and Sylvie’s cute gramps.

This was such a feel good read. I did a lot of smiling while I read this book. I want to find my own roguish lumberjack now. Abe was a total cinnamon roll MMC and I loved it. He was so steadfast throughout the book.

My one issue- Sylvie’s clumsiness was a bit over the top, I mean the girl is falling down constantly. It was cute at first, but got repetitive fast.

Overall, this was a sweet small town holiday romance. If you love holiday romances then I highly recommend you check this one out.

The Christmas Cafe by Eliza Evans is exactly what I'm looking for in my holiday romance reads. It was quirky, it was earnest, and it was not bogged down by any tremendously contrived issue that the FMC must get past to find love.

There's not a lot of plot here, in terms of non-formulaic story, but what there is goes down smooth like a cup of cocoa (seriously, get some and plunk down to read this in one go). Reminiscent of Hallmark holiday movies, The Christmas Cafe drops us in a small Wyoming town, where our FMC, Sylvie, lives with her gramps and her mischievous mutt Crumpet, bakes in a cafe called The Christmas Cafe. Looking to save the cafe from closing down, Sylvie contrives to bring a Hallmark movie to her town to film and gets caught up in quite the love story herself.

I know I have said this about books before, but never has it been more apt here. The Christmas Cafe is a Hallmark Christmas movie in book form. Is it formulaic and predictable? Is it set in a small town? Is there a love triangle? Is there a wise older character who helps along the way? Is there a cafe, cooking, or baking? Is there an unruly pet? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes, and yes. I know it may seem like it, but I don't say these things to disparage the book. The Hallmark Channel exists for a reason. Romances, especially Christmas romances, are meant to fit a mold. They are cozy and atmospheric and provide the serotonin boost of a happily ever after.

The Christmas Cafe was cute and exactly what I look for in a Christmas romance. I want sweet and over-the-top Christmas-ness. I want a hunky hometown hero and a klutzy heroine. This is the perfect book to escape into while drinking hot chocolate under a cozy blanket with Christmas lights twinkling on the tree.

If you love Hallmark movies at Christmas time, pick this book up!

Thank you to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and G.P. Putnam's Sons

a sweet book if you're looking for a Hallmark movie in book form. not a ton of character development, and not a lot of depth, but a good fluffy holiday christmas read if that's what you're in the mood for!

The Christmas Cafe was a quirky, cheesy read that reminded me of a Christmas Hallmark movie.
I enjoyed the heartwarming, sweet holiday vibe throughout the story,
I loved Crumpet, the dog.
Overall, I enjoyed reading The Christmas Cafe. It was a feel good, cozy read Christmas read.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I love a good Christmas book but I don’t love super cheesy cliche hallmark books. Idk it was just so obvious and predictable there was no sense of wow. I mean even down to the female leads name. If your into cheesy holiday this is for you!!!