I spotted this at a local bookstore, and was lured in by the concept. It was an entertaining read. The style is very similar to various Japanese light novels I have read, which I was a little surprised by, since most of those have been genre fiction. I typically expect a translator for this sort of title to aim for a more classic lit fic tone. I’m assuming this translation is fairly literal as a result. It took me a little while to get used to the style. Once I got into the particular rhythm and pattern, I stopped noticing the writing as much and was better able to focus on the story. Structurally, it’s more like a short story collection than a novel. Each case involving a human and cat is its own story, and they are all connected by the clinic prescribing the cats to their patients. I also wasn’t expecting the magical realism components! There were some unexpected twists and character reveals that I hadn’t anticipated. I’ve seen some reviewers say that they went back to the beginning with the new info, to try and see if events looked different with that knowledge. I didn’t re-read, but it did make me reconsider a few of my initial opinions.

Left with the hot chocolate. Hopefully someone will find this a cozy winter read!