Before Your Memory Fades: A Poignant Novel Exploring Grief, Healing and Second Chances from a Magical Café―Book Three of the Before the Coffee Gets Cold Series

I bought all the books in the series and they do not disappoint. Get ready to cry.

Full disclosure. This fell just shy of a 5 star read for me. But this series is still a keeper. Absolutely highly recommend. Again, individual stories are told but are masterfully woven together. I felt some of the characters were a bit more difficult for me to connect with than the previous two books, but overall the stories and how they connected was good as usual. Wicked twist at the end that made me cry. And I was kind of mad. But life is life and it often plays out different than you want. This series definitely reminds us of that but also offers slivers of hope. So the ending made sense in that vein. Still mad though LOL

Yet another set a nice stories relating to the theme of returning to the past or visiting someone in the future.

I made the mistake of buying all of the books after reading the first one. By the third book, it's getting repetitive. Another person wants to go back to the past ... yawn. I will admit that the orphan story was very good. Of course, you have to suspend disbelief with these books and not ask questions about the ridiculous premise. Like what if there is someone in the restroom when the guy gets up to use it? What does he do in there? What happens to him when there is new ghost? Why doesn't someone just travel to the future and read the stock prices? Why doesn't Yukika have a smart phone? Can you meet yourself in the past? Why does everyone who goes to the past waste so much time mumbling and then lie to the person they went back to see? Anyone who has read one of these books knows about the author's annoying need to constantly repeat the rules. But the author actually BREAKS the rule at the very end. I couldn't believe it. The main rule is that you can't change the present no matter what. Reiji travels to the past and tells Nanako that she becomes his wife. Several months later (post present), Nanako dies, and it's revealed that she held on so long because of those words "You become my wife". Present day Nanako should have no knowledge of those words. Reiji changed her present reality. That shouldn't have been possible.

This whole series so fat is an amazing read. Really puts things to the test to see if you would go back in time or future to see someone. Love the books and look forward to the next one.

Before your memory fades is, like the first 2 books of this series, a balance between happy and sad moments. We see some familiar characters along with some new ones, and jump a couple years in the future as well. We also learn there’s another magic cafe with some lovely customers~ from reading this, I got reminded that while no life is forever, we should also strive to not be sad when someone passes forever, we should try to be happy again at some point~

There is no book like this one in this series that pulls you into the immediacy of what truly matters and forces you to reconcile the crutches upon which you rely to suffer through a day when instead you can live it fully

I find this series to be so endearing and heartwarming. Even though the time travel premise is the same in every “chapter”, each story feels fresh and unique while still moving the overall storyline of the main characters forward. Before Your Memory Fades caught me by surprise as it takes place in a different city and cafe, but when explained it absolutely made sense. Absolutely loved the new characters and location. I found the story about a daughter traveling back to confront her parents both heartbreaking and moving. The story of Todoroki and Hayashida of the comedy duo PORON DORON was one of my favorites and I especially liked how it connected to one of the cafe workers. The story about two sisters impacted me the most. Having lost my aunt, I saw the grief of losing a sister through my mother’s and her surviving sister’s eyes. The author does a beautiful job capturing the bond of sisters and the grief of losing one. There is a lighter, but somewhat serious, note woven throughout all of the stories which was young Sachi posing questions to costumers from her book “What If the World Were Ending Tomorrow? One Hundred Questions.” It was entertaining throughout the novel, but most moving in the last story. There is SO much I love about this installment. If you don’t want to go back to the start of the series, Before Your Memory Fades would be a good place to start.

‘Before Your Memory Fades’ by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, translated from the Japanese by Geoffrey Trousselot, is the third in his ‘Before the Coffee Gets Cold’ series. The first two books were set in Funiculi Funicula, a Tokyo café that offers their customers the unique experience of travelling back in time in order to connect with someone important to them. In ‘Before Your Memory Fades’ the setting shifts to another café, Donna Donna, in Hakodate. It is also owned by the Tokita family and has a seat that allows its customers to slip back in time. The same strict rules must be followed including that the traveler must return before their coffee gets cold. I was pleased that the book opened with a relationship map of characters as it proved a handy reference especially given the introduction of new characters working at Donna Donna. As with the other books there are four chapters, each focusing upon a customer and their journey. I was a little perplexed by the move from the original Tokyo café though I felt that more was revealed about the process behind the time travel and the Tokita family’s involvement. Will more be revealed in the fourth book when it is translated? I shall have to wait to see. Overall, a whimsical story that sensitively explores grief and loss, yet remains full of hope. Highly recommended book and series. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

a great and intriguing book

Good one

In my opinion this is the best one in the series. The quirky characters, the wholesome stories make up for a great winter/autumnal reading. The setting has changed from Funicili Funicula in Tokyo to Donna Donna cafe in a port city called Hakodate in Hokkaido. This was perfect for me because the setting changes to a sea-side town and the lovely descriptions of the foliage and the changing seasons. I loved it ! An absolute ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 ! Highly recommend :)

Molto bello, segue la linea dei libri precedenti.