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emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Terminal illness, Grief
Moderate: Dementia, Death of parent
Minor: Alcohol
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This was a bit boring, mostly in a good way. Perfect for what it is: a gentle 200-page description of yummy food and father-daughter banter. The detective work is done entirely off-page, so definitely not a mystery. The chapters are formulaic enough to be cozy and relaxing, but I did find myself getting bored. It was good! A little underwhelming.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Alcohol
Minor: Chronic illness, Dementia, Death of parent
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This is what Jack Edwards calls a “no plot, just vibes” book, and I realized it quickly, which is why I was worried I wasnt gonna connect with it, since I felt the writing was kind of flat on the first story/dish, and sometimes the characters would appear out of nowhere (one moment Koishi was in the kitchen and in the next line she was at the table with some dish and started talking, but there was no almowledgement of her moving from one place to another), which was a little confusing, but I did end up connecting with the rest of the stories, and I feel the writing got better re: the moving of the characters.
It was a light, kind of pensive book. I liked the Kamogawas and Drowsy, and I even teared up at some of the stories. On one hand I feel it was kind of short and could have benefited from more stories, but on the other hand, each one had some repetitive elements (besides the structure of each visit itself) that I think could have gotten tiresome quickly if the book had had more stories. Idk, I’m no book critic. I’m open to reading the next one tho, since I ended up enjoying the concept.
It was a light, kind of pensive book. I liked the Kamogawas and Drowsy, and I even teared up at some of the stories. On one hand I feel it was kind of short and could have benefited from more stories, but on the other hand, each one had some repetitive elements (besides the structure of each visit itself) that I think could have gotten tiresome quickly if the book had had more stories. Idk, I’m no book critic. I’m open to reading the next one tho, since I ended up enjoying the concept.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Terminal illness, Dementia, Death of parent, Alcohol
A rather simple and thoughtful cozy Japanese cafe collection! Food detectives who go on searches to find ingredients for and recreate old nostalgic meals from your past?? Hello sign me up. I am becoming a fan of these translated cozy works, and I liked this one more than Before the Coffee Gets Cold. Maybe because it is a touch less trauma-heavy. Still touches on some difficult themes but I feel one step removed, since we are only in the point of view of the cafe/detectives themselves, not the people working through loss or change. I will be reading the next.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Dementia
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, Alcohol
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Terminal illness, Dementia
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
The Kamogawa Food Detectives certainly falls under the “cozy mystery” category, though I personally think calling this novel a mystery is somewhat of a stretch (at least in the traditional sense), though it has the gentle rhythms of a cozy novel. In essence, each chapter focused on a mystery (of sorts), which was to recreate a dish that a customer once had in the past that they wanted to taste again. The father–daughter duo, Nagare and Koishi Kamogawa, would work together to solve the case, with each chapter ending with a brief reflection. Initially, I found the concept charming, especially with how it reflected the powerful relationship memory has with food. However, the appeal wore off rather quickly, especially when you realize there was virtually no character development of any kind, which I want to say is a result of the chapters being episodic as opposed to being interconnected in some shape or fashion. As a result, I felt that the potential for the novel to have an emotional punch was somewhat lost, as there was never a chance to really connect with the characters and really get that profound association that people make between food and memory.
What I did really appreciate about this novel was the incredible attention-to-detail to how dishes were made, making me wonder if Kashiwai is a foodie or even a good cook himself. I enjoyed how Kashiwai put so much thought into the ingredients themselves, whether it be describing their taste or even where they were sourced. Particularly when it came to finding the source for certain ingredients, I honestly would have loved it if Kashiwai had given the reader more insight into this instead of giving them a peek.
Ultimately, this was a bit of a disappointing read for me, but I can see it appealing to some readers who want something gentle to read.
Note: I received a finished copy through a giveaway.
Note: I received a finished copy through a giveaway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Terminal illness, Dementia, Death of parent
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Dementia, Death of parent
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Content Warnings
Moderate: Dementia
Minor: Death of parent
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Terminal illness, Dementia, Grief, Death of parent