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3.5 

The Kamogawa Food Detectives

By Hisashi Kashiwai & Jesse Kirkwood
The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai & Jesse Kirkwood digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

The Kamogawa Food Detectives is the first book in the bestselling, mouth-watering Japanese series, for fans of Before the Coffee Gets Cold.

What’s the one dish you’d do anything to taste just one more time?


Down a quiet backstreet in Kyoto exists a very special restaurant. Run by Koishi Kamogawa and her father Nagare, the Kamogawa Diner serves up deliciously extravagant meals. But that's not the main reason customers stop by . . .


The father-daughter duo are 'food detectives'. Through ingenious investigations, they are able to recreate dishes from a person’s treasured memories – dishes that may well hold the keys to their forgotten past and future happiness. The restaurant of lost recipes provides a link to vanished moments, creating a present full of possibility.


A bestseller in Japan, The Kamogawa Food Detectives is a celebration of good company and the power of a delicious meal.

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The Kamogawa Food Detectives Reviews

3.5
“Oh no! I wanted to like this one, but I think the detective parts were the most interesting and they always happened off-page. I really didn't care for the episodic nature of the chapters. It felt repetitive without allowing for any deeper feelings about the recurring characters. I think if you enjoy casual reading, like one chapter at a time with your morning coffee, this book would work for you. But for someone that likes a little more detail and time with the characters or plot, you'll be left wanting more, and not in a good way.”

About Hisashi Kashiwai

Hisashi Kashiwai was born in 1952 and was raised in Kyoto. He graduated from Osaka Dental University. After graduating, he returned to Kyoto and worked as a dentist. He has written extensively about his native city and has collaborated in TV programs and magazines.

Jesse Kirkwood is a literary translator working from Japanese into English. The recipient of the 2020 Harvill Secker Young Translators’ Prize, his translations include The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai, Tokyo Express by Seicho Matsumoto and A Perfect Day to Be Alone by Nanae Aoyama.

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