A review by bookish_jess_
Tales from the Café by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

While I loved the first book in this series, I felt like this one fell a bit flat. I'm not sure if it was written this way, or if it was just something that happened in translation, but there was just so much repetition regarding not only the rules, but with stories as well. I would find myself getting lost in some of the mundane details in certain stories that just didn't seem to fit. It would also jump timelines suddenly - I guess what I'm trying to say is there were many times where there didn't seem to be a cohesive flow to the story. Maybe this was a hindrance of the audio as I couldn't see the shift nor did the narrator indicate a shift in times. 

Overall, I do love the moments when the loved ones meet in the café to either say their goodbyes, their 'I'm sorries', or even just see them. My heart breaks and swells for each one, but unfortunately it just wasn't enough to really carry the stories. 
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