Ask HN: Company merging, what can I do with stock options?

My company is in the process of merging with another company and I received a letter urging me to sell the stock options. This is only my 2nd job out of college, I've never gone through anything like this.

The price they are offering is only a few cents higher than the original strike price, doesn't seem like it would even be worth it to exercise them.

That was the only option they offered me. Are there more? They've talked about IPO for quite some time now, but they went the merger route. Am I just out of luck now?

I realized that options aren't a guaranteed payday, but this has left a sour taste in my mouth after all the big talk from my original employer.