What a wonderful whimsical story. A cafe that appears when people are struggling or on the wrong path, so when they need it the most and they receive guidance and support. But wait for it, the cafe has cats as the servers, talking ones. I mean it sounds like a brilliant idea to me! A talking cat cafe would definitely make me feel better if I was struggling. It covers a lot of real life problem woven in and finding solutions. Just a lovely thought provoking listen.

An inspiring story with a soothing voice of the narrator. I always love to read Japanese fiction, because they always have a deep and meaningful story plot. This cafe is such a magical cafe. If there is a cafe like this in real life, please let me know! I am impressed by the imagination of the author and thank you to the narrator who makes the story even more enjoyable!

Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for my copy.

Pub date: Aug 29, 2024

"The stars don't decide your future, all they do is to help you choose one for yourself."

I absolutely love the reference of cafe, cats and stars used in this book to guide the different protagonists find back their spark or the path to find success and hope.
The cafe appears only to selected people and once you enter you cannot order a food/drink for yourself. Only the hosts, three talking cats can offer you an item to eat. The item are suitable and matches your need meanwhile the hosts go through your history and star chart to help you understand your issue of life and guide you to tackle with it.
I absolutely love the execution of all the elements in this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book!

What an enjoyable listen this was. From the word go I was hooked into the story, both the narrator and author did such a good job sinking us into the lives of each of the protagonists which is even more impressive given how short this novel is!

Overall, a very light hearted story, fluffy, and highly enjoyable. I finished it in one day.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing me with a free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed The Full Moon Coffee Shop, it felt like such a refreshing little pallet cleanser, not too heavy and fully lush.

The Full Moon Coffee Shop had just the right amount of magic, I think my favourite bits were the cats.

I definitely will be revisiting The Full Moon Coffee Shop when I need something light and fluffy to cleanse my soul.

Mai Mochizuki's The Full Moon Coffee Shop is one of those soothing stories that will warm your heart when you need it the most.
Unfolding around different characters, the Full Moon Coffee shop tells the story of those souls that get lost at some point in their lives. A writer who's lost her fame because of the new generation's interests; a renowned actress who becomes the victim of the backlash of the press after discovering that the man she is having a relationship with is married; a young woman who does not thrive in her career anymore, etc. All of them are connected, without knowing, and they will encounter the full moon coffee shop and their talking cats: Venus, Chronos, and the Master. If only they are willing to listen to the stars, maybe, only maybe, will they find the missing piece to complete their happiness puzzles.

I was offered the opportunity to listen to the audiobook of this novel, published by Brazen, Octopus Audio—thank you and Netgalley for that opportunity!

First, I have to say that it was my first story by Mai Mochizuki. I thought the translation by Jesse Kirkwood read really well, and I absolutely loved the fact that the narrators were all Japanese! It was a delight listening to the Japanese sentences being narrated in proper Japanese, even though I couldn't get what was being said, and I even thought that their little accents gave this je-ne-sais-quoi that made the audiobook very special. Also, I greatly appreciated the fact that the publishing house hired both female and male narrators to adapt to the characters. Amazing job on this work!

When it comes to the story itself, having read another novel with similar themes and a very close concept not long ago, I enjoyed my reading but was not blown away (note: it was not my attention in the first place anyway, since I knew what I was getting myself into). What grabbed my attention was the fact that (1) the café was held by cats and (2) the cats were talking. It made me vaguely think about Studio Ghibli's The Cat Returns, which contributed to making me create a sort of vibe around the story. And frankly speaking, I liked it! In addition to that, there is astrology!!! The cats have the planets's names and can read the astrological chart of each visitor, something which helps them re-orientate their lives depending on their birth chart. Considering that cats are very important in Japan (they bring luck!), I thought that associating them with stars was nice and cute, in some ways.

Again in this novel, all the tales are like threads woven together into a beautiful tapestry. Their point of convergence, which I will not reveal to avoid spoilers, was really heart-warming and beautiful! So generally, it's a very good audio for a nice little story that won't require too much concentration; if you've read Aoyama Michiko's "What You Are Looking for is in The Library," Tawagushi Toshikazu's "Before the Coffee gets Cold" series, or any Japanese novels that enter the genre, you will appreciate your reading! I will recommend this story to my readers who are fans of books, cats, and astrology.

Beautifully magical. I loved this book, so easy to melt into and relax. If you love cats, you’ll adore The full moon coffee shop by Mai Mochizuki. 4/5

I received the audio to listen along to as I read. The narration was excellent, and added authenticity.

This was an unusual story as I'd expect from a mystical Japanese translation. I enjoyed seeing how all of the characters were interconnected, although with so many of them, and a lot of them interacting separately, I found it a little hard at times to keep track of who was who - perhaps more so reading the audiobook rather than print book. I'm not so much into star signs and astrology but it was interesting to hear the coffee shop folks speak of different stages of life associated with different meanings and how this affected the characters. I was confused by the changing workers in the coffee shop and perhaps would have liked a smaller cast to keep up. The snippets into the characters' struggles really set out different problems we'd face in life and could offer some reassurance that they can be overcome.

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

This is Japanese fantasy fiction that reveres cats by Mai Mochizuki, translated by Jesse Kirkwood, primarily set in Tokyo. I listened to it on audio, approximately 5 hours and 20 minutes long, and narrated by Sadao Ueda,Tomoko Komura, and Yuriri Naka, which was mostly fine but there were occasions when it was hard to make out what was being said. A seemingly random set of characters, all with issues, feeling lost, find themselves at the magical The Full Moon Coffee Shop, which appears out of nowhere, run by talking cats. They dispense alternative perspectives, insights, wisdom and advice based on astrology and their customers specific birth charts and houses, helping to nudge each of the troubled souls in the right direction for them, whilst offering them particular drinks and other yummy delights.

However, these are characters, with a past history that slowly emerges which connects them all, none of this is coincidental, the fates are at work here. This was a okay and light listen, but I never felt fully immersed in either the characters or the storytelling. As this was not very long, I saw it through to the end, but feel it lacked the depth and complexity that I would have appreciated. I can recommend the audio. No doubt there will be other readers who will love this more, so please read other reviews. Many thanks to Octopus Audio for an ALC.

This was my only 2nd time listening to an audiobook, 1st on Netgalley though.

I enjoyed the story and the warmth at it's heart. The characters were all related to each other at some points in their lives and the way their paths cross was done beautifully. The cats were fascinating yet simply amusing too. I enjoyed the Full Moon Coffee Shop, the wonderful treats and clarity it gave it's visitors.

The audio narration I wish was more emotive and flowed better.

This was nothing like I expected and such a joy.

The tone, pacing and cadence of each of the stories was unique, yet they gentle wove together to create this gorgeous photo of an almost ethereal conclusion.

The narrators were lovely as well.

A beautiful magical realism story that blends what I personally see as self help ideas with the magic of kindness to animals specifically cats.

As a friend to cats I absolutely belive that if you are kind to them they bring you happiness after taking in 2 strays I don't think I need more evidence... the story takes place in a magical cafe where cats serve you drinks and snacks based on your needs... without giving away to much of the storyline I think fir myself it's pretty safe to say that enjoyed listening to the advice and ideas the cats had and some of it hit home quite hard to me. I like to think it might have changed me for the better 🧡🧡🧡🧡 I don't think I'll ever forget this story... I have 2 tuxedo cats myself and I will never look at them in the same way again 🧡🌟

Thankyou to netgalley for this arc I very much enjoyed it.

- all reviews posted on my Instagram account linked in my profile and my goodreads page under net -galley also linked in my main profile page 🧡

Really enjoyed this audio. Not my usual type of listen and very unexpected. Reminded me somewhat of The Midnight Library by Matt Haig, hoping this book has as much success. The premise of the book was so interesting and really drew me in, I finished it in 2 days. The plot and character development was also great and a welcome change in terms of being different to what I usually listen to. Look forward to more from the author

I loved this audiobook and it was a brilliant experience listening to it, plus the narrator was excellent. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for giving me a copy of the audiobook.

I was intrigued by the premise of this story. I don’t read much fantasy or Japanese literature and it’s often good to push the genre boundaries. Maybe I’m missing something, but this just didn’t work for me. It’s three interlinked stories tied by a pop up coffee shop run by cats. Add a large dollop of astrology to the mix and the whole became something of a jumble. Each person is somewhat lost and looking for new direction. The cats proffer wisdom and advice, but rathe than being depicted as the enigmatic and wise creatures they are, they came across as cartoon characters. I’m interested in Astrology, but this weighed too heavily and added little to exploration of the characters and their predicaments. Some of the writing was simplistic, but I don’t know if that’s down to style or translation.

I listened to the audio version in one sitting and found the narration acceptable but uninspired. I’m at a loss to understand why this title has achieved cult status. I listened to the end hoping it would improve, but I can’t say I enjoyed this book in any way,

I'm so glad I was granted a review copy of this lovely book from the publishers. The audiobook is narrated beautifully and it was quite relaxing to hear all the different stories.

My mind did start to wander during the third story, but I liked how it tied with the others and the epilogue was probably favourite part.

Overall, it was a cosy, heartwarming read and one that I'd definitely recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ALC

This was a very enjoyable collection of interconnected heartwarming stories with a very delightful twist a the end. I loved the magical realism and certain themes and messages really resonated with me.
Astrology plays a big part in this book, I'm not particularly into it and I didn't mind it for the most part, but I can see it being an annoyance.
Audiobook was really good, narrators were excellent.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.