

Even one of the café employees goes back in time to tell his childhood friend something very important. There is the young woman who is angry at her parents for leaving her an orphan, the famous comedian in hiding wanting to speak to his dead wife to tell her of his achievement and the sister consumed by grief at her sibling’s death. Still, the premise is the same – the stories of various customers who come to the café with the aim of going back to the past. The rules of going back to the past are explained more succinctly, almost mockingly of their rigidity which is different to the previous books, where they were explored more thoroughly. We catch with the regular characters some time after the last book, so it’s nice to find out what’s been happening. You could start reading this series with this book, although I would recommend reading in order. I don’t think this is the last we’ve seen of this sweet, uplifting yet at times very sad series! But fear not, the staff are the same (with one new addition) and the café has the ability to send customers back to the past for a short period. In the latest book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, the action moves from the small, hidden café in Tokyo to a café in northern Japan with a beautiful view of the harbour. Why I chose it: Love the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series!

The not-so-good: Some of the stories were quite sad. The good: Lovely to see the same café staff again. Here, four customers want to return to the past for different reasons. But the journey into the past does not come without risks: customers must sit in a particular seat, they cannot leave the café, and finally, they must return to the present before the coffee gets cold …įrom the author of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and Tales from the Cafe comes another story of four new customers, each of whom is hoping to take advantage of the cafe’s time-travelling offer.In brief: Café Donna Donna in Hakodate also has the ability to transport customers to the past – as long as they return before the coffee gets cold. Like the charming Tokyo cafe Funiculi Funicula, Cafe Donna Donna offers its customers the extraordinary experience of travelling through time.

On the hillside of Mount Hakodate in northern Japan, Cafe Donna Donna is fabled for its dazzling views of Hakodate port.
