Dreamers of the Full Moon Coffee Shop: A Novel($24.00Value)

Description

From the bestselling author of the Japanese sensation The Full Moon Coffee Shop, this charming and heartfelt standalone novel brings more lost souls to the enchanted café—where they might find some help from the cats who run it. Under the energetic star of Neptune the doors to people’s hearts are opening... In Japan, cats are a symbol of good luck. As the myth goes, if you are kind to them, they'll one day return the favor. And if you are kind to the right cat, you might just find yourself invited to a mysterious coffee shop under a bright moon. Under one such moon in August, Neptune pays the Full Moon Coffee Shop a visit, taking the form of a beautiful human called Sala. Sala’s special talent is giving people dreams and helping them to open their hearts. As the cats work with Sala, they find new ways to guide people as their customers face personal conflict. When Satsuki, returning home after she spent three years away with minimal contact, decides to introduce her new boyfriend to her mother Fujiko, she learns an unexpected truth about her family’s past. Meanwhile, Fujiko is struggling to come to terms with her true feelings about her place in life and author Wataru is facing writer’s block after years of success. Can Sala and the cats help Fujiko and Wataru open their hearts? Beautifully weaving together three people in a story about love in all forms, this heartwarming novel in the USA Today bestselling series highlights the importance of being true to oneself and recognizing one’s innermost feelings. “Enchanting . . . The same air of tender melancholy and hope that pervades Mochizuki’s other works is on full display here. This is healing fiction done right.” — Publishers Weekly Mai Mochizuki is the author of The Full Moon Coffee Shop and Best Wishes from the Full Moon Coffee Shop . She is a member of Mystery Writers of Japan. 1. Satsuki Ayukawa and Affogato Memories When people say, “There wasn’t a cloud in the sky,” they’re talking about days like today. Beneath the perfectly clear, blue sky was the blue ocean and the white line of the Akashi Kaiko suspension bridge, which links Kobe with Awaji Island. Lately my days had been filled only with views of buildings, but now I was sitting in the passenger seat of the car looking out at a scene that belonged in a painting. For Mum, though, things were the same as always. She was still leading a modest life in that little house by the sea. The thought pained me. It had been three years since I’d been back home to visit. I kept making excuses about being busy with work, and she let me get away with a lot. She never criticized me, just watched over me with warmth and said it was a sign I was living a full life. Still, I stared out of the passenger side window feeling awful about having stayed away for three whole years. She was right about my life being full, though. A quiet sigh next to me brought me back to the present. I turned to look at the driver. His expression was tense. Maybe he was nervous. “Don’t look so scared,” I said with a little laugh. “It’s just . . .” he said, scratching his head. He did that when he was feeling vulnerable. “I’m nervous about meeting your mum for the first time. What do I do? Go up to her and say, ‘I’d like to ask for your daughter’s hand in marriage,’ like in the movies? Why would she ever think someone like me is worthy of her precious girl?” His face was so pale it made me want to laugh again. I couldn’t help thinking how helpless he could be at times, despite being older than me; that was one of the things that had made me fall in love with him. He was always honest and not ashamed to let me see when he was struggling. I liked that. Actually, my mum once said she liked people who could be open about their weaknesses like that too. “It’ll be fine,” I said. “Mum’s pretty understanding.” “You sure?” he asked, as if seeking reassurance. “What have I always told you? She respects me.” He nodded uncomfortably. We finished crossing the bridge and arrived on Awaji Island. “I forgot you have to cross Awaji Island when you’re going to Shikoku via the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge,” I said. “I’ve never gone home by car, so this is new for me.” “It’s a long drive. Maybe it would’ve been better to fly.” I shook my head. “I’m the one who said I wanted to drive here.” He was right though. It was a long drive from Tokyo to Shikoku, where my mum lived. We’d made overnight stops in Shizuoka and Kobe on the way. “We never went on long trips when I was a kid because my mum was on her own. But I always wanted to,” I said. “You moved to Shikoku from Kyoto after your parents got divorced?” My actor bio said I was from Kyoto. It wasn’t a lie, despite the fact that my so-called childhood home was in Shikoku—I was born in Kyoto and lived there for a while. “My dad was already gone by the time I was born,” I said. “I went to elementary school in Kyoto. Shikoku is where my mum’s from. When Grandpa died, we moved