They have traits that I think many readers can identify with and they also find themselves in situations that many readers can empathise with. The characters we meet are flawed and at times unlikeable and frustrating, but they’re also very human. I wouldn’t say that anything particularly new was brought to the discussion, and yes, some might say the messaging was clichéd and perhaps a little old-fashioned, but I still found the story to be equally heartwarming and heartbreaking. I was delighted by how the author brought the narratives together to create one big moving story about life, death, loss and hope. We follow four main stories, The Lovers, Husband and Wife, The Sisters, and Mother and Child.

That said, while I tend to speed through most of my reads, something about this compelled me to slow down and to let it properly sink in, and I’m very glad I took my time with it! I’m going to start off by saying that I don’t usually get on with magical realism because I find myself getting stuck on the ‘weirdness’ of it all, but there was something about this that I felt I would enjoy and I wasn’t wrong! The magic in the mundane really fit the setting and it didn’t feel outlandish or unbelievable, which made this that much more enjoyable for me.īefore the Coffee Gets Cold has a wonderful premise and asks us questions like would you travel to the past even knowing that nothing in the present would change? And if you could go back, who would you want to meet, maybe even for one last time? This was a quiet character-driven story that packs such an emotional punch! At just over 200 pages it’s not overly long but it’s exquisitely written and well-paced which made it so easy to read. This was a short and quick read that packed quite an emotional punch and unsurprisingly, as a mood reader, made me teary eyed! It was equally heartbreaking and heartwarming and I would definitely recommend it. TL DR: A well-paced character driven story where the magical fits the mundane to perfection! Before the Coffee Gets Cold asks us if you would travel to the past knowing nothing would change in the present and if you could, who would you choose to meet, maybe for one last time? The four stories we follow wonderfully intertwine to create one moving story about love, loss, grief and hope.

Before the coffee gets cold