Pour yourself a cup of hot chocolate and settle into the holiday spirit with this sweet and cozy winter romance by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc, author of the hit Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice! Perfect for fans of holiday rom-coms and Gilmore Girls.
It’s been eight months since seventeen-year-old Emma left the quaint town of Briar Glen to attend boarding school in New York City. Now, she’s back—and she’s not Her new boyfriend, Sam, has come to visit the most picturesque village in New England during the most magical time of the year.
But there’s a chill in the air, and not just because it’s winter. Emma’s best friend, Aiden, isn’t all too happy to see her after she left without so much as a goodbye. He and Emma have known each other since elementary school, and they used to do everything together. They even share a favorite a peppermint hot chocolate from their favorite coffee shop, Cup o’ Jo. This was where Emma first told Aiden she was thinking of leaving Briar Glen. It was also where Aiden had planned to confess his growing feelings for Emma -- before she showed him her acceptance letter and everything changed.
With Emma back in the picture -- and with a new boyfriend in tow -- will she and Aiden be able to break the ice?
I love Christmas books, but there is a shortage of YA Christmas books out there, so I am always excited for a new one to come out. It’s been a few years now so we were long overdue for some YA Christmas vibes.
And this book delivered!!! It was so cute and Christmassy!!!
This is definitely a book that will leave you craving the mint hot chocolate that Emma and Aiden always ordered together. I also loved the Christmas vibes of the small town.
The story wasn’t just about coming home for Christmas though. It was a nice story about growing up and the worries about growing apart from friends.
The relationship is friends to more which was really sweet, especially since it was told in the present and the past so you could really see a connection between them over the years. It was more focused on the relationship than Christmas overall, but the Christmas season was a perfect backdrop to the story and there was still plenty of festive fun.
This book was basically a YA version of a Hallmark Christmas movie and I loved every second of it! This author is a talented seasonal reader. I would love a new Christmas book by her every year!!!
ᴺᵒʷ ᵖˡᵃʸᶦⁿᵍ; [ 𝙈𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝘽𝙚 ] [ 𝗞𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗲 𝗖𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶-𝗞𝘂𝗰 ] 1:07 ——◦———— -4:05 ↠ⁿᵉˣᵗ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ↺ ʳᵉᵖᵉᵃᵗ ⊜ ᵖᵃᵘˢᵉ » 。° .•☕ ༄ When I first received the arc, I was really excited about the premise. Tension between best friends and then a boyfriend as well? And also set during Christmas? I thought that I would really enjoy Mint to Be, but it's not the book for me.
༄ ⭐ .• ° 。« Everything in this novel to me fell flat. The plot pacing was way off, and the romance isn't believable. The romance between Emma and Aiden doesn't actually start developing until 70% of the way through the story, and that's when it's first stated that Emma has feelings for Aiden. Aiden, we find out early on. I also can't see how Aiden would like Emma because she was pretty rude to him when she told him she was leaving for New York. Of course, he's going to be sad that's his best friend is leaving!
» 。° .• ☕ ༄ The writing was the biggest deal breaker for me, and it's really one thing that did it. I kid you not, there were more than one exclamation point on every page. Every page in places they weren't supposed to be. I saw so many exclamation points that I started focusing on that and not the story.
.。༅:*゚𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 ꒱
🎁 ·˚ 𝗘𝗺𝗺𝗮 ˊˎ ༻————↠ Emma is one of those characters that only thinks positively. She also always plans her future and desires to get out of her town to explore the world. She is always late to meetings, and I noticed that she spews fun facts when she's nervous or excited. All of this is sweet, but Emma doesn't act like a 17-year-old girl to me. She acted more like she was in middle school, which we get povs from, and I don't see her shift in personality at all, even when she was in elementary school.
🎁 ·˚ 𝗔𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻 ˊˎ ༺————↞ If I see Aiden mention one more time about how "it's how my family is" I will go crazy. He repeated three lines without fail that I was beginning to think he was a robot. I wish that Aiden had more character to him than just liking Emma and being involved in the family business. There was so much potential with him that was just lost. He also forgave Emma WAY too quickly in my opinion and doesn't have that slow to trust arc that typically happens in these types of situations.
↠━ ☕ 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬 ━↞ Overall, I am disappointed with this story. I wish the romance had more development and that Aiden was slower to forgive Emma. Emma not acting her age also threw me off and Aiden not really having a purpose in the story. I just wish there was more to the story that I could connect with but this story wasn't for me.
🎄 ––––———–––––———–┊༄
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc copy! » 。° .• 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 ༄ ༻————↠ I received the arc a month ago but life has been busy, so I'm just now getting to it!
I did not realize this was YA, which doesn’t make a huge difference to me, I don’t mind reading YA but my god this was so boring, I could not get into the story
4⭐️ This book was SO much better than “Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice” A few of the reasons were…
1. The couple ACTUALLY got together, they didn’t flirt one day and act like they DIDN’T like each other the next day!!🙄😒
2. The Christmas vibes were amazing!!💚❤️ This one actually gave more Gilmore Girls vibes than the first one. Which is pretty surprising because the first book was a fall themed book and Gilmore Girls is more fall-ish.
3. I surprisingly wasn’t annoyed with the Emma(FMC). She was actually a really good, sweet and smart character and I loved her WAY more than Lucy from the first book Lucy was just………annoying🫣
4. I know I made it sound like I hated the characters from the first book, but I when it said showed Lucy and Jack officially together…I squealed 😆
5. I LOVED Mackerel, he was so cute! I just wanted to squeeze him!!🥹💗*also for context Mackerel is a dog😂*
So this was a very cute read for Christmas and I definitely recommend if you need a good, clean and short Christmas read!!😊💗🎄
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
A cute, YA second chance, holiday small town romance that has a college freshman coming home for Christmas with her big city boyfriend only to have to confront her feelings for her childhood sweetheart and the one she left behind. This was charming but nothing super standout for me. A lighthearted read that was low on angst and high on drama and perfect for fans of authors like Lynn Painter.
How cute is this cover?! Also, scratch and sniff, tehe, brings me back to the 90s. Katie Cicatelli-Kuc’s Mint to Be, is a cozy, heart-warming read and that I had the honor to read for an honest review. Set in the picture-perfect Briar Glen during good ol’ Christmas time (I’m a sucker for a Christmas romance read), we’re introduced to 17-year-old Emma and Aiden. Emma is returning home from her boarding school in NYC and she decided to bring her boyfriend Sam with her. Maybe not the best time to bring the new boy home, especially when your best friend who you definitely have feelings for but left behind without a goodbye is going to be around.
The book transitions from past to present, allowing us to see Emma and Aiden’s beginning stages of friendship, eventually leading to them slowing developing feelings for one another. Most of their interactions are tied to their love of peppermint hot chocolate and their favorite place, Cup o’ Jo. Which reads like it’s such a charming place. This book is full of holiday festivities, Christmas magic and small-town charm with a smidgen of teenage drama and angst. This book also falls into the second chance romance meets best friends to lovers trope (but make it PG-13, this is YA after all, hahaha).
Biggest issue with this book was Emma, haha, that sounds terrible but girlie was just too much. She’s barely old enough to vote and she’s like I want out of this adorable little town and dips the minute she gets the chance. But throughout all of the flashback chapters, she doesn’t stop. It’s constantly…this New York…that New York, all right we get it, you want out. But it’s sad because the town is so perfect, her family is sweet as heck and she has this perfect guy who practically fawns over her. But I guess, to each their own, haha. Overall, it was a sweet and easy read, one I hope that everyone enjoys once it’s released.
Thank you, NetGalley and Publisher. 4 stars!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Book Review 📖🎄❤️❄️ thank you so much partner @ireadya @storygramtours for the gifted copy!
Mint to Be by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc out now!
Emma Sherman left without saying goodbye -- and her best friend, Aiden, is furious. He knew Emma was thinking of leaving their quaint New England town of Briar Glen for boarding school in New York City. She had shown him her acceptance letter at Cup o' Jo, their go-to coffee shop, over a mug of their favorite peppermint hot chocolate ... before he got the chance to confess his true feelings for her.
Emma knows she shouldn't have left without saying goodbye, not matter how frosty things got between them. Especially now that Emma is back in town, and she's brought her new boyfriend, Sam, to visit for the holidays. Talk about icy conditions.
As things grow colder between them, Emma and Aiden must find a way to repair their friendship -- but this time, even a peppermint hot chocolate may not be enough to break the ice.
❄️ My thoughts :
So cute! The scratch and sniff sticker on the cover makes my heart happy and it smells delicious. This is the first book I read by this author BUT I do own and will definitely be reading Pumpkin Spice & Everything Nice… I just couldn’t wait to read this one! It’s a sweet YA romance where childhood friends become lovers (one of my faves). As with any YA it is a quick read and I had a good time the whole time. I was feeling all the nostalgia of young love and the importance of friendship first in relationships. If you’re looking for a cozy holiday romance that you can read in one sitting because of the holiday hustle and bustle… this is the one to pick up. Mint to be is out now and is the perfect book to add to a loved one’s gift this holiday season!
this was meh? it didn’t stand out and leave a mark on me but i didn’t hate it. with that being said, it felt a bit flat to me? it does have a dual timeline which gives you an insight into emma and aiden’s friendship prior to her moving to nyc. i ended up switching to audio because i was struggling with the physical book. if you’re looking for a quick festive read, i’d give it a chance. sometimes you just need a cheesy YA holiday romcom.
emma left without saying goodbye and her best friend, aiden, is furious. he knew emma was thinking of leaving their quaint new england town for boarding school in nyc. she had shown him her acceptance letter before he got the chance to confess his true feelings for her. emma knows she shouldn't have left without saying goodbye especially now that she is back in town, and she's brought her new boyfriend, sam, to visit for the holidays. as things grow colder between them, emma and aiden must find a way to repair their friendship but this time, even a peppermint hot chocolate may not be enough to break the ice.
tropes: small town festivities, young adult, friends to lovers/second chance, dual timeline
This was such an upgrade from book one, pumpkin spice & everything nice. Being put back to the small town and Cup O’ Joe shop was really nice. The story was much more elevated then the it’s predecessor. We did see some familiar faces from the previous book too. The YA-ness was still very present here but didn’t get in the way of the romance.
The angst and the want for the MMC is cute and very relatable to teenagers. The author really understands how to portray a teenagers mind set. The darkness of this novel was deeper than the previous couple as well. I do have a bit of PTSD from the phrase PSL and pumpkin spice latte. Our FMC was NOT triggered by a peppermint mocha, thank god! Haha
Short and sweet, easy to read. Finished this in one sitting. The duel narration was well executed too. There could have been more stakes for the FMC. Things seemed to resolve pretty quickly but it’s understandable that it’s supposed to be like that.
This will give you the warm feeling of when coffee shops switch from PSL to peppermint mocha.
This review is for Elisabeth (careful it may spoil a bit).
This was a little cringey at times, but overall, so adorable! Emma was naive, silly, and completely blind to the fact that she already had an amazing guy back home, she didn’t need to travel to another city to realize it. Sam, on the other hand, was insufferable. His holier-than-thou attitude was over the top, and I vehemently disliked his behavior.
I’m so glad Emma finally realized what her heart truly wanted in the end. Aiden was an absolutely adorable MMC; simple, kind, and genuinely loving. And we can’t forget Mackerel! That pup practically understood his humans.
For a YA romance, this was better than most I’ve read. It’s the perfect cozy read to enjoy with a cup of peppermint hot chocolate, a Christmas blanket, and the glow of a dazzling tree. 🎄
I love dual timelines. And the fact that it’s a second chance friends to lovers romance makes this even better. OH! And the fact that Christmas was thrown into here? I’m DONE! I love it. The story is where it’s at y’all.
I loved being able to see where everything started for Emma and Aiden, and how everything between them blossom. Of course there’s going to be drama, but it’s a small town Christmas story so of course magic is going to happen too. Plus, how can you hate a book with an amazing HEA?
Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this amazing ARC.
This book was a fun Christmas book but it wasn't anything special. All the characters in this book were frustrating me. I also didn't really feel that much chemistry between the mc's. I loved the setting of this book. The Christmas setting was described and portrayed very well and it felt super cozy. The writing felt a little young, and exclamation marks were very overused. Overall I think this was a cute ya Christmas book! If you're looking for a fast-paced, cute, cozy ya Christmas book I'd recommend this!
Thank you to NetGalley and Scholastic Inc. for the opportunity to read Mint To Be by Katie Cicatelli-Kuc.
I think this has cute winter vibes for the season. The angst between Emma, Aiden and Sam is the main focus of the story and the winter vibes is the back drop. The dual timelines doesn’t really add much to the story, I believe it would have been better as a novella. This is every bit of YA. If you’re looking for a Winter YA, this is the book for you.
This book was so cute and cozy. I went through it in three days. I felt so bad for Emma’s friend Aiden. He really likes her and she just has this no good boyfriend. I’m glad that Emma dumped her lame boyfriend Sam. When the book came to an end I was glad that Emma and Aidan got together. They are best friends. This book I definitely need some peppermint hot chocolate after reading this.
This book was so cute!! Such a fun, quick Christmassy read. The characters as so perfectly young and innocent and adorable—it’s the perfect small town hallmark movie vibes! And let’s not forget how adorable Mackerel is!
This wasn’t my fave, I did like the dual timelines to get background on Emma & Aiden. But it felt like that was all we got of them so it was very hard to buy into the relationship because we saw none of it..