Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

184 reviews

bookishevy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

If you could time travel, who would you meet? This is a question that I think all of us have thought of at least once, but four characters in this book actually get the opportunity to make this journey.

More than coffee is being served at an old back alley café in Tokyo. Local legend says customers get a chance to travel through time, but many of them don't go through with it after learning all of the rules, the most important one being they have to return to the present before their coffee gets cold. 

I timed my coffee yesterday to see how long it would take to get to room temperature and it took around 25 minutes, which isn't a lot of time to make amends. But these four characters are up to the challenge, and I was very stressed over them making it back in time. 

This quirky read warmed my heart as it explores missed opportunities and regret. My biggest takeaway is to live in the moment and let the people you love know how you feel while they're still here.

There are four long chapters, each focusing on a different character. The writing is a bit melancholy, but the stories move quickly despite dealing with heavy themes. 

This is book one of a series. There are currently four books, and I think a fifth is on the way. I'm a sucka for anything dealing with time travel, so I'll be collecting them all.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Chronic illness, and Death

avisreadsandreads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Terminal illness, Death, Dementia, Grief, Pregnancy, and Emotional abuse

Minor: Injury/Injury detail and Death of parent

mmarquis1158's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This book felt like a warm hug. It was a perfect rainy day read. There was just something so cozy about it that made it feel ok to be sad and empathize with the characters. I love how the 4 stories all tied together at the end

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Grief, Death, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Abandonment, Chronic illness, and Car accident

Minor: Pregnancy

xoemax's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Pregnancy, Death, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Grief, and Death of parent

Moderate: Car accident, Abortion, and Abandonment

Minor: Alcohol, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Medical trauma, Medical content, Fatphobia, and Misogyny

sarah_tani's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective relaxing medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Death, Grief, Terminal illness, Dementia, and Car accident

julieyael's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Delicate and full of melancholy. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Chronic illness, Dementia, and Grief

Minor: Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

sring42's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

The premise seemed interesting and like it would be a heartwarming read but it just couldn’t keep my attention. It also felt needlessly sad

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Car accident, Grief, Death of parent, and Death

Minor: Abortion, Pregnancy, and Terminal illness

drybay's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Car accident, Grief, Terminal illness, and Dementia

Moderate: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, and Death

Minor: Medical content and Abortion

serena_hien's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Pregnancy, Death, and Terminal illness

Minor: Car accident

bxnny's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness and Death

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Pregnancy