Super cute novella! I loved the idea of a cat playing matchmaker. Although it was short, I still feel like I got to know the characters and get invested in their relationship.

Thanks to NetGalley UK and Ylva Publishing for the press service.

A Purrfect Gift is a cute and funny novella about two neighbors, Lena and Caroline, getting in touch thanks to Lena’s cat named Scully during the Christmas era.
It’s a quick read and just in time for the season !

I'm a lesbian who owns a cat rescue... this book was made for me.

Fans of cozy sapphic romances and cat lovers will appreciate this delicious novella! From beginning to end, I couldn't help but smile at Lena and Caroline's meet-cute, which was facilitated by the naughty cat Scully. The narrative, which is set over a joyous German Christmas, combines endearing customs, cute cat antics, and the beginning of a neighborly relationship.

Scully's mischievous matchmaking is hilarious, and I thought it was great how the "cat burglar" kept pairing Lena and Caroline. Despite its short length, the novella is plenty of heartwarming moments, making it the ideal Christmas read. It's also perfect for when you want a short, fun, sweet read that you can read in a day or two.

A Purrfect Gift is the ideal choice if you're looking for a sweet romance with festive overtones and a cute furry miscreant!

This short story is a fun read! Perfect for those who love Christmas tales, cat stories, and sweet romances. Imagine your dream girl moving in next door and knocking your socks off every time you see her. And what if your cat was the reason you two kept bumping into each other? A matchmaker cat is every lesbian's dream, right? The only complaint I have is that it's too short, but this story is the perfect length for a cozy afternoon during the holiday break.

This novella was a quick and cute read. My favorite part was the cat Scully, because I love cats! I could tell that Lena (the main character) adores her cat, too.

The book is set in Germany. There were references to German Christmas traditions and foods that I wasn’t familiar with, so it was a good opportunity for me to learn something new.

Generally, I prefer full length novels since I often feel more connected to characters after learning more about them. This novella didn’t have the most complicated or nuanced characters, perhaps because of its short length. Parts of the story felt predictable as me as well.

If you love cats and are looking for a quick and non-strenuous read, this book might be for you!

Highlights:
- sapphic romance
- falling for the girl next door
- cozy novella
- Christmas in Germany
- cute cat!

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book!

Lena has just moved to a new city with her cat, Scully, so when she finds little gifts on her doorstep every day, she thinks they’re from her neighbors. Caroline, who lives next door, can’t figure out how her stuff keeps disappearing until she catches a cat in the act of stealing from her. She follows the feline felon home—and meets its cute owner. Despite Lena’s best efforts, Scully doesn’t seem inclined to give up her life of crime, so she keeps having to go over to Caroline’s to return the loot.

Okay, this was just super adorable. 'Nuff said. 🙂 Seriously, if you are looking for the most feel-good holiday lesbian romance, put this at the top of your list! Lena, Caroline, and Scully are now my favorite trio of all time. 5⭐

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. This is my honest opinion of the book.

This was a short cute christmas novella. I love the cat playing matchmaker and the christmas magic. I would have liked more of a story and a bigger build. For a short story it was cute.

Cute story. I enjoyed Scully stealing things from the neighbor. I’ve read some of the author’s books, and they were quite spicy. Not with this story, however. Still an enjoyable read.

This is the cutest cat novella, um, lesbian romance story that I've read in a long time.

It's about Caroline and Lena. Lena has just moved in with her cat Scully next door to Caroline. Scully starts leaving presents for Lena, come to find out, they're actually things of Caroline's. That's definitely an awkward meet cute of sorts. They go back and forth and slowly find their way towards love, and, trying to cure Scully of this thing she has with stealing other peoples' things

I really liked all of this novella, but, one of my favorite parts was the two main characters from Paper Love making an appearance in it. Mostly because, unless there are a lot of different sort of origami Christmas trees that you can fold, uh, yeah, I've actually made about 10 or 12 of them in the last two years, and I plan to make many many more this Christmas season too (I also made one that is 8.5 inches tall, and am considering making one that is 16.5 inches tall).

This was just the perfect Christmas Novella.

I got this as an arc on Netgalley and it has already come out. This is beautiful light sapphic novella with a cat as its main star. What is not to love?

Lena has just moved to Freiburg, and is delighted when she keeps finding little Secret Santa-esque gifts at her door. It turns out her cat Scully is responsible for this mischief though, because all the "gifts" belong to her neighbor Caroline. But maybe Scully has matchmaking in mind....

The premise is a little silly, but the tone is light rather than funny overall. A sweet closed door sapphic romance. There isn't much here to analyze, as the story is charmingly short. It has just a touch of holiday cheer, friendship, and romance.

Caroline has had strange things disappear from her house and yard. She discovers that her neighbor's cat, Scully is the culprit. Almost everyday Lena finds new "gifts" from her cat. Soon, both women discover that they are connected by the cat and her shenanigans.

This is an adorable a Christmas novella. Scully really is a matchmaker and should be proud of herself!

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

I jumped at the change to read a novella from Ylva Publishing written by Jae. I didn’t realize I actually already own the book as the cover is slightly different. Since it is a short, I read it again, and stand by my original review below.

Adorable Christmas novella (77 pages). Lena moves to Freiburg with her cat Scully. At first she thinks that someone is leaving her daily presents but instead finds that Scully is stealing from Caroline who lives next door. It is a perfect way to meet a new friend. There is humor, kindness and Christmas warmth. I love Jae discussing the differences and traditions between different parts of Germany. Sometimes reading is so American-centric I forget other countries have area and cultural differences. This can be read as a stand alone. I have read the author’s Paper Love and enjoyed that the MCs live in the same apartment complex and make brief appearances.

This was such a fun little Christmassy read!

I think it's a perfect short book for the festive season. I loved both MCs a lot, they were really cute and adorable. Being a cat person, the little cat burglar Scully was my absolute favourite! I really loved how she brought her mama and the neighbor together, it was just so sweet.

The side characters are also really enjoyable additions along with their cute little kitty!

The only thing I would have loved was a tiny bit more backstory for the Mcs. I think that would have helped me get even more invested in the story.

Lena and her female ginger cat, Scully have moved to Freiburg in the south of Germany a few weeks before Christmas to put some distance between them and her ex. Almost immediately Lena starts to find little gifts on her doorstep. At first, Lena believes this is the work of a Secret Santa only to soon discover that Scully has been stealing from her new next door neighbor.

Caroline lost custody of her cat when she broke up with her ex so she keeps her apartment cat friendly and accessible. When she realizes her new neighbor’s cat is behind her missing items, she can’t be mad about it - especially with how cute this new neighbor is.

Soon both women are looking forward to their nightly chats around the return of the stolen goods.

A Purrfect Gift is a sweet, easy-read lesbian romance novella with relatable main characters. The side characters are surprisingly effective given the length of this story - with Scully nearly stealing the spotlight. It’s a perfect stocking stuffer!

Thank you to NetGalley, Ylva Publishing, and Jae for the opportunity to read this ARC.

A year after getting her heart broken, Lena decides it's finally time to start fresh; a new town, new job, and new apartment sounds exactly like what she needs. That is, until her usually calm kitty decides to descend into a life of crime—and chooses her cute new neighbor as her exclusive target. What, exactly, could this meddling little fiend be up to?

As a lesbian and a self-proclaimed cat lady, I couldn't resist applying for this one. You can tell the author has a cat/cats because it was simply too accurate, and Scully was the sweetest little matchmaker I've ever seen! Her sassy yet sweet personality was perfect and so very orange. And when Caro gave Lena her gift inside a bigger box for Scully to use? Most lesbian thing I've ever read—and I've read a LOT of lesbian books.

Caro and Lena's chemistry built up so naturally, and the progression of their relationship felt real. I absolutely adored the presents they gave each other, especially the present Caro got for Lena—no spoilers 😌. The characters are genuinely likable, and the dual POV was certainly the best choice. The lack of any true conflict made a bit unserious, but sometimes it's good to just read a wholesome, gay little happily-ever-after. It was easy and adorable, a perfect little feel-good holiday romance that'll have you kicking your feet and giggling alongside them. Will definitely be picking up Paper Love as well!

I requested this because I lived in Germany and I loved Christmas time there. No Weihnachtsmark in this book (unfortunately) but I loved the idea of two lesbian neighbors and a matchmaking thieving cat. This was very festive and anxiety-free. And quick! Closed door.

I received an ARC from NetGalley

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this short novella

lena had just moved to a new city for a fresh start with her cat scully.....

then not long after she moved in to her new apartment she was finding little gifts left for her, they were cute gifts and as it was nearing christmas she thought they were gifts from a secret santa wishing her well

caroline who lived next door to lena couldnt understand why her some of her stuff was missing each day until she saw a cat running off with another item of hers....

so a bit of detective work and she finds the culprit and her owner......

its a fun quick read for christmas... with all the quirky bits that cat owners will love

Purrfect read
In the Author's Note to A Purrfect Gift, author Jae describes setting out to write a short story and ending up instead with full length novels. Those novels are frequently much longer than the typical lesfic novel (hers tend to run 300 to 500 pages in length compared to the more standard 240 pages); 'Purrfect' qualifies as a novella which is a boon to readers since it means more story to read and more bang for your buck.
A Purrfect Gift will appeal to those who love cats (and even those who don't), who want something funny and romantic to read in an evening or spread over a few days. I read it in one sitting unable and unwilling to put it down until I was finished even though I've read it before. It's a good sample of Jae's writing style and humor, with shenanigans open to misunderstanding and dialogue ripe with double meaning. Scully the cat is written with all the quirks and cat-itude of her species, and provides plenty of snicker worthy moments while playing matchmaking in part thru her thieving ways. She nearly steals the spotlight from maincharacters Caroline and Lena. Secondary characters Susanne and Anja will be familiar to those who have read Jae's romance novel Paper Love (where they are main characters) but you can go into Purrfect without having read any other story by Jae. The story is amusing, endearing and a light, fun page turner.
I recommend all of Jae's stories (of all lengths) for great storytelling and fantastic characters. Take a break from TV and movies and sink into a Jae story for an abundance of fun and feel good content; she is a master at her craft and hopefully will never run out of stories to tell.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ylva Publishing for this ARC.

Lena and her ginger cat Scully move to Freiburg from Hannover within Germany shortly before Christmas and soon Lena finds little gifts in front of the door. She thinks she has very welcoming neighbours but then she discovers that her cat has stolen them all from her neighbour Caro.

I'm German and to find a festive romance set not only in my home country but also my exact federal state was an amazing surprise, especially with all the talk about regional food. I got a real hankering for meat fondue again. And pancakes with (obviously white) asparagus is a dish I have mastered too and is typical for the region.

I found a small reading companion article online which really helps to visualise the story:
https://jae-fiction.com/a-purrfect-gift-reading-companion/

The one thing I didn't like was the American English but unfortunately German schools teach it more than British English.

This is a 77 pages short novella and I wish it had been longer. I loved the main characters and the matchmaking cat so much! I'm usually reluctant to use words like "sweet" or "cute" but this really was sweet without being saccharine.

It is the purrfect fluffy, feel-good and festive romance, especially if you're queer and you like klepto kitties. Recommended as a tasty Christmas appetizer.