Cat’s people is a book that made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. As the title suggests, a cat takes a focal point in the story. Cat, which is his name, is a stray black cat that trusted very few people not to hide from: “People with kind eyes, soft voices, and hearts that weren’t completely made of stone. Those people were his people.”
We get to follow the lives of different characters, with very different personalities, with their emotions, their peculiarities, their struggles and sometimes their grief. We also get to follow them through Cat’s eyes. Cat will bring them together in very meaningful ways.
Without sharing any actual spoilers, the found family trope is beautifully written and there’s the most adorable romance subplot.

To me it’s a must read, with an extra special meaning if you love cats!!

* I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. All thoughts are my own.

This book is very character driven, and though I liked the characters, this style book just doesn’t typically work for me and unfortunately didn’t here either. It doesn’t have much in the way of plot, so it was a very slow read right up until almost the end. It just really couldn’t keep my attention for long.

I do think some people will enjoy this book so I May recommend it to some but it’s not for everyone.

This is the best book I’ve read so far in 2025. It is a quiet, feel good story that packs a powerful punch about the importance of connecting with other people. There are five human main characters who are all at crossroads in their lives. There is also a wonderful black cat named Cat who is the catalyst for these five people coming together. I loved every character including Cat. I love cats, but you don’t have to love cats to enjoy this story!

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Cat's People by Tanya Guerrero is a third person multi-POV contemporary novel about a stray cat in New York City and his five humans. Cat runs about a small neighborhood and becomes friends with a small handful of people who treat him well. Those five become connected in a short span of time and open themselves to change.

My favorite POVs were Bong and Lily’s. Bong is from the Philippines and recently lost his wife quite suddenly, making him lonely in his old age. Lily is young and from Georgia state, having recently moved to NYC to find the half-sister she has never met or had contact with. While all of the characters have personalities and wants and needs, Bong and Lily felt the most human to me with an awful lot to lose if they don’t either achieve what they want (Lily having a relationship with her sister) or change something about their life (Bong being stuck in his grief). Cat’s chapters are delightful because it’s essentially these human relationships that are being created through a cat’s eyes.

Núria, Collin, and Omar are connected quite early with Collin a customer of Núria’s coffee shop and Omar is his mailman. Omar has the warmest personality of all the characters and the most at peace with himself in a way that is admirable. Núria is also very self-aware and prefers cats and coffee to most people, but she still has some struggles with her mother pressuring her to find a partner and settle down. Collin, at times, felt a bit old-fashioned and, at other points, was quite progressive. Of all the characters, he is the most contradictory but that does make him interesting.

The pacing is both fast and slow. It takes a while for their to be progress as the book is more slice-of-life and relationship-driven, but it’s a short book with chapters no longer than maybe five pages. As the chapters alternate between all six of the POVs, we do get forward momentum but it can take a bit to see it take effect.

Content warning for depictions of sexual assault and mentions of homophobia

I would recommend this to fans of books with animal character-POVs and readers who like faster-paced works that focus on relationships between characters

Collin has become somewhat of a hermit and has isolated himself. Bong, the owner of the bodega, who has recently lost his wife and is adrift in grief. Lily who has recently moved to NYC to find her half-sister who she just recently discovered. And last but not least, the neighborhood mailman, Omar, who is trying to figure out his life purpose.

I could not have loved this book more except for the fact that at time Cat does not know the words for certain things in the human world but knows other words. I just wish that Guerrero would have taken one path and stuck with it. But this is such a minor flaw that I am still giving this book 5 stars. I will be anxiously awaiting future books by Guerrero.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Cat's People is a hopeful, feel-good story about a black stray cat whose life is spent interacting with the same 5 individuals each day who each have a different name for him. The book beautifully illustrates the way communities form, and the importance of found family. I love the cheerful cover. This would be a great gift book for gifting. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.
Pub Date: April 1.

#Cat's People

Cat’s People: A Novel by Tanya Guerrero is the kind of book that makes you feel all the cozy, heartwarming feelings. As a self proclaimed crazy cat lady, it was pretty much tailor-made for me, and I absolutely adored it. I teared up and that's rare fired me when it comes to books.

Told from multiple perspective, the one that really stood out to me was Cat’s. He’s a stray cat in Brooklyn, and his observations about the world, the people around him, and his own emotions are so real. It’s the kind of thing that makes you pause and think, “Yeah, that’s exactly what my cat would think too.”

Cat’s life is wrapped up in the people around him, and I loved how each of them brought something special to the story. There’s Núria, the sweet “Rainbow Lady,” who takes the time to feed and care for him every day. Then there’s Collin, the author who’s a little lost in life, but whose days are brightened by watching Núria and Cat’s quiet connection. Omar, the mailman with a big smile, makes his rounds with Cat in tow, spreading some unexpected joy. Lily, the grocery store checkout girl, and Bong, the bodega owner, round out the group of people whose lives are all touched by Cat in different ways.

It’s really through Cat’s relationships with all of them that the story comes together. He’s this quiet spark, bringing people together in ways they didn’t expect. The book captures those little moments of connection that are so often overlooked, but that mean everything.

If you’re a cat person...or just love a good story that makes you feel something, Cat’s People is definitely worth the read. It’s a beautiful reminder of how much our furry friends can shape our lives and the lives of everyone around them.

In New York City, a streetwise stray cat simply called Cat keeps watch over a small group of people. Núria, a barista and volunteer stray cat caretaker feeds Cat every day. Reclusive author Collin observes Núria through his window and starts developing feelings for her, and starts to fall in love with Cat, too. Omar, the friendly mailman, Bong, the kind but grieving bodega owner, and Lily, a young girl from Georgia with a secret, also have soft spots for Cat. One day, Cat falls mysteriously ill, and all five strangers step up to care for him—and find the connections among themselves, too.

This is such a sweet story, and the magic lies in five seemingly random strangers finding solace in each other through one precious cat. Each character’s story is charming and heartwarming, and if you’re a cat person like me, Cat will have you hugging your own pets a little tighter.

The writing reminds me of many cat-centric books that I’ve read that have been translated from original Japanese. It’s simplistic and perhaps juvenile, and while it is very sweet, it lacks real emotional depth that I would expect for a book written for an adult audience. This author has previously published middle grade, so that might be where that comes from.

There were also a few times when I was confused with choices to include profanity. Curse words themselves don’t bother me (I talk like a sailor myself), but in a book written with simpler, “quaint” prose, the random f-bombs are totally out of place and unnecessary.

Overall, a sweet read for cat lovers and for readers who enjoy slice-of-life fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an e-ARC! Cat’s People publishes on April 1, 2025.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. The publisher offered this to Ms to review early based on my previous reviews. I love animals, but admittedly am a dog person (have never been around cats much). If anything, this book makes me want to be around cats/have one!
There are 5 strangers whose lives become intertwined. Nuria is a barista who feeds the neighborhood stray cats and takes this job very seriously. She starts receiving post it notes from a secret admirer left by the feeling spot of her favorite car, Cat. Collins is a best selling author who keeps to himself. Lily is a newbie to the neighborhood and trying to find her half sister. Omar is the sweet mail person, who looks out for everyone on his route. Bong owns the neighborhood store and feels lonely after the death of his wife. Cat somehow brings all of these strangers together in a really sweet story.

Cat's People
By Tanya Guerrero
Release Date 4.1.2025

Thank you @penguinrandomhouse for the e-ARC of Cat's People. When the publisher sent me this claiming that they recommended it based on other books I have recently enjoyed, I had my doubts. As a non cat person, I was worried that I was not the target audience. I also had concerns of the story turning out cheesy when I heard that Cat had their own POV. This was simply not the case. I enjoyed it very much and the POV worked!

A black stray cat who lives his life in a Brooklyn community spends his days interacting with the same five individuals. None of which seem to have anything in common or know one another. The one thing they do share is a love for Cat. They all refer to Cat by different names but are all positively affected by my home.

I'm a sucker for a found family story especially when it's multigenerational and multicultural. The true kindness of strangers is not a dead art form and makes you feel so good.

This is more than just the story of a cat bringing people together. It's about seeing people as they are, not fitting them into a social norm. Finding oneself and it never being too late for your calling in life. There are also subtle stories of characters experiencing grief and loss. This was a short fast read that will leave you smiling.

Sometimes, you just need a really sweet book to read. My life has been wildly chaotic lately, and this book gave me everything I needed to just recharge and get away from that chaos. This is a lovely book about Cat, a stray black cat in Brooklyn, who manages to bring together a disparate group of people in his neighborhood: Nuria, the barista who feeds him, Collin, the best selling author who is really shy, Omar, the mailman who wants a change in his life, Mrs. Lewis, an eldery widow soon to move in with her daughter in Boston, Bong, the widowed owner of the local bodega, and Lily, who comes to NY to find her sister.

As Cat goes about his day, and comes across each of these people, he changes their lives and brings them together in a way that helps them create a sense of family.

I just loved this sweet book. It was so easy to read, and get into their lives and all because of a single animal. I loved the idea of Cat having his own chapters and being far smarter than anyone gives him credit for.

I feel like we could all use more books like this to bring us balance and a little bit of joy.

"Núria and the Meow-Yorkers" offers a sweet, feel-good story with a charming premise. The cat-centric community aspect is a definite highlight, and the mystery of the secret admirer keeps you turning pages. However, the multiple perspectives sometimes felt a bit rushed, preventing deeper connection with some characters. While the ending is heartwarming, it felt a little predictable. Overall, a pleasant, light read, but not particularly groundbreaking.

4.5 ⭐️

This was truly such a sweet story. I enjoyed this read so much I devoured it in a day! It was lighthearted and entertaining and cozy in all the right ways.

I think my favorite thing was that we got Cat’s perspective as well as all of his human friends. Parts of his story did make me sad (as his story is the reality for a lot of stray city cats) but he had his own reasons for staying outside and enjoying his freedom which did make my empath heart feel better. I loved that he would do things to nudge the characters in the right direction and that he found his way eventually. And his little nicknames for his humans were so stinking cute. I loved the underlying message of “sometimes our cats adopt us, not the other way around”(which I’ve found true with every cat that’s been part of my family).

There was a lot of heart and played on connection between humans and our lives. I loved that each of the characters was connected to each other and also connected to Cat. He brought everyone together and that was beyond sweet! We had a little found family, a little romance, a little friendship, a little career exploration. There truly was a lot in this novel but it never felt overwhelming!

This was easy to read and I really enjoyed the author’s writing style. The pacing was also great, I didn’t feel like it was too slow or too fast. It was the perfect pace for your latest cozy read.

The ending had me in tears (in a good way!) but I do feel it’s important to note Cat doesn’t die (I had a lot of anxiety about this and was thankful someone else posted it so I felt good about reading it).

This story was a feel good, heartwarming, positive ray of sunshine! Perfect for spring time! Even if you aren’t a cat person, any animal lover would adore this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House- Ballentine/Delacorte Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine for a complimentary early release copy of Cat’s People by Tanya Guerrero.

Cat’s People was a bit of a slow read for me but I still found the story to be heartfelt and interesting. I enjoyed reading from each of the perspectives in this story especially from cat’s perspective, it was such a unique aspect to read from the cat’s perspective. I liked that we got to see what cat thought about certain characters and how he behaves as a street cat, it was cute to see the little nicknames he has for each character and the little interactions he has with them are adorable.

I enjoyed the romance between Nuria and her mysterious post it note leaver! It was a cute slow burn romance and I was routing for them the entire time. I liked the side story elements it definitely kept the story interesting, I really enjoyed spending my time following these characters, all of their story lines were thought out well and I’m pleased with all of their endings. I’m glad that Cat brought all of these people together, these misfit strangers pair well with each other. Overall this was a wholesome heartfelt story about lonely people and how a stray cat brought them all together! As a side note I would really like to see a footnote or extra page that gives the translations for some of the conversations in here.

This review will be posted on BookwormishMe.com & goodreads.com today.

Call me a cat lady, or an animal lover, but I adored this novel. Told from multiple points of view, the best were the cat’s point of view. There were times Cat literally had me crying. So moving were this little stray’s words. Honestly I loved this one.

Cat is a stray on the streets of Brooklyn. He lives near a hedge where a really nice lady, he calls Rainbow Lady, comes to feed him and talk to him daily. Rainbow Lady is Núria, who volunteers to take care of strays. She has three cats of her own, and her paying job is as a barista. She adores the cats though.

Next door to Cat’s hedge is Collin. Collin is a bestselling author with no ideas for his next book. He sees Núria visit Cat everyday and takes notice of her. She is the bright spot in his life these days even though they’ve never met. There’s also Omar, the mailman who has a smile for everyone, including Cat, who makes the delivery rounds with Omar.

Add in Lily, the checkout girl from the grocery store, and Bong, the owner of the nearby bodega, and you’ve got a group of people who all care about Cat. And vice versa. Cat is very intuitive and brings such a spark of life to these people’s daily lives. He is a very special cat. Somehow his relationships with all of these humans brings the entire story, and this group of random people, together. He gives a story to remember.

Yes, I cried. I cannot remember the last time a book made me actually cry, but this one sure did. Cat’s commentary was the key. His sadness, joy, exuberance, pain, and love were so real. Honestly, if you’re a cat person, or maybe if you even like stories that make you feel good, you will like this one.

Cat's People by Tanya Guerero

I’ll begin with the fact that I am more of a dog person than a cat person. With that said, I’ve been blessed, as an adult, with two dogs and three cats. If you think animals don’t have abundant personalities and individuality, you may as well stop reading here.
I assumed I would be writing a negative review about this book when I started to read it, and boy was I wrong. I loved the darn book. The main protagonist is a cat with many names. Many names for the impact he has on many people.
Cat, a stray, impacts those around her, including a bodega owner, a barista, an award-winning author, a mailman, and a precocious niece.
That is the gist of the book: relationships and how each person showed themselves to a shrewd judge of people, the cat!
If you like animals, not just cats, you really should read this book. It was delightful!
I strongly recommend it.

Cat is a black stray cat, and the story is centered around him. Before I started reading the book, I wasn't sure if I would like the book, but once I started reading it, I loved it. This isn't a spoiler but, the reason I loved it, is the people who became connected over taking care of this stray. I learned so much about each one, and each one had different personalities, problems, jobs, but their common ground was the cat. I saw them grow, learn, change, and how their connections got stronger.
Cat's People is a perfect name for this book, and I really enjoyed it. I received an ARC from Delacorte Press through NetGalley.

This cozy cat book made my heart happy! I am a huge cat lover and found this story to be heartwarming and captivating. It made me smile, laugh and cry tears of happiness. This is my first book where I am reading about the cat’s point of view. I loved every second of it!

Cat’s People is a beautifully written novel that is about a black stray cat that brings completely different strangers together. One person is a mailman, named Omar. The second person is a barista named Nuria. The third person is a grieving guy named Bong. The fourth person is Lily, who works at a grocery store. Lastly, the fifth person is a writer named Colin. The way that this stray cat brings all of them together is a truly beautiful story

I recommend this book to anyone that loves cats and reading a cozy and happy story. I give this novel a 4.75 out of 5 stars!

Thank you to NeGalley, author Tanya Guerrero, Random House Publishing Group, and Ballantine | Delacorte Press for this digital advance reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review of this book.

Cat’s People is set to come out on April 1, 2025! I have published this review on Goodreads, LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram and Fable on March 6, 2025 and I will be publishing my review on Amazon and Barnes and Noble when it is released. If you have any questions or comments about my review, please reach out to me via email at TheConnieFox@gmail.com. Thank you to everyone for reading my review!

I DNF this book, I just couldn’t get into the story. Too slow moving for me. I have tried to read it two different times. Therefore, I will let other reviewers who enjoy this book promote it, so I will not be posting on social media or reviews on retail sites. That way, this book gets much deserved attention from those reviewers who loved it!

A heartwarming, feel-good story about connection, helping others and love. Cat is a stray who brings together five people. I really liked that Cat’s POV is included too.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.