Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Hardback, 224 pages

Before the Coffee Gets Cold is Toshikazu Kawaguchi’s translated novel set in a Tokyo café where customers can travel back in time, subject to strict conditions. This English-language hardback presents four linked stories about people hoping to revisit someone from their past.

At a glance

Set in a Tokyo café that has served coffee for more than a century and offers a chance to travel back in time.
Four visitors seek different meetings, including with an ex-partner, a husband, a sister and a daughter.
The time-travel premise has firm limits: visitors must use a particular seat, stay in the café and return before their coffee gets cold.

Price

£10.31Save 31%

Reference price: ~~£14.99~~

Price checked: 12 Nov 2026

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Often bought together

Tales from the Cafe: The cosy, heartfelt sequel to Before the Coffee Gets Cold

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£12.15

Pros and cons

Pros

Four interconnected stories give the time-travel premise several personal and emotional angles.
The supplied customer feedback describes the stories as warm, heartfelt and thought-provoking.

Technical specifications

11 specifications

Book details
Format	hardback
Publisher	Picador
Publication date	3 Oct. 2023
Edition	Main Market
Language	English
Print length	224 pages
Reading age	18 years and up
ISBN-10	1035032287
ISBN-13	978-1035032280

Dimensions and installation
Dimensions	13.8 x 2.6 x 20.6 cm
Weight listed	1.05 kg

What to know before buying

The time-travel journeys are constrained by the café’s rules. Visitors must sit in a particular seat, remain in the café and return before the coffee gets cold.

Who is it for?

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy linked stories with an emotional, thought-provoking premise.
Those interested in translated Japanese fiction and a café-centred story about revisiting the past.

Less suited to

Readers who want an unconstrained time-travel adventure or a consistently uniform writing style, as customer reactions to the prose, readability and character development are mixed.

Before the Coffee Gets Cold: Hardback, 224 pages · photo 2 — Additional product photo 2

Customer reviews on Amazon

4 / 5 · 38,244 ratings

5 stars41%41%
4 stars33%33%
3 stars19%19%
2 stars5%5%
1 star2%2%

Customer feedback highlights the distinctive premise and four linked, warm-hearted narratives, with readers also describing the story as reflective. Reactions to the writing style, ease of reading and character development are mixed, so the book’s appeal may depend on whether its episodic storytelling and prose suit your taste. The aggregate ratings lean positive overall but include a meaningful middle-rated share, which does not explain individual readers’ reasons.

Positive themes

Customers praise the distinctive storyline and interconnected narratives.
Feedback describes the stories as heartfelt and thought-provoking.

Mixed feedback

Readers disagree about the writing style and readability.
Character development is received differently, with some finding characters relatable and others finding them hard to keep track of.

Frequently asked questions

What is Before the Coffee Gets Cold about?

Four visitors to a Tokyo café use its time-travel offer to seek meetings with people from their past. Each journey follows strict rules, including returning before the coffee gets cold.

Is this the first book in the series?

The listing describes it as the first book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series.

What format and language is listed?

The description presents a hardback edition. The product details list English as the language and 224 pages.

What do customers say about the writing?

Customer feedback highlights the linked stories and their warm, reflective tone, while reactions to the writing style, readability and character development are mixed.