This book has such a cozy, atmospheric, and immersive world with tons of layers to the world building for such a quick read! It has all the elements of a cozy mystery and a cozy fantasy, and they are executed well. The twists and turns were surprising and satisfying, and the setting of the book is just perfection. I will definitely be purchasing a copy of this for my bookshelf!

dnf at 50%

i think this might not have been my genre of fantasy. it’s very vibey and dreamlike and i prefer my fantasy more grounded cause i just felt really lost. i’ also wasnt feeling the connection between the characters. it’s a lil too instaattraction for me. i think there are readers w ho will enjoy this one but thats just not me unfortunately.

Studio. Ghibli. Vibes. But more Spirited Away, this world is beautiful but also and really creepy, than Totoro.

This was a beautiful book and I felt utterly transported. I loved seeing the world through Keishin’s eyes and the juxtaposition of him as a scientist with this world that completely defied all logic. And I loved Hana and her growth throughout the book.

Ultimately, it’s a story about how our choices and our regrets are a part of us and help to shape who we become. 4.5 stars.

Would you sell your regret? This novel is an amazing fantasy, from the world building to the magical system. The author has created this fantastic tale that is a complete emotional experience. To some, they come to get a bowl of ramen from a restaurant. To others, with a burden of regret, they find the pawnshop. We first meet Toshio who is retiring from the pawn shop, passing it down to his daughter Hana. Calamity ensues as the pawnshop is burglarized and Hana is left to unravel the mysteries. I definitely recommend this book, pub date is January 14, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing-Ballantine and Samantha Sotto Yambao for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was an absolutely beautiful and well worth every second. I wish I could read it again for the first time. This was a great amount of fantasy, magic, family and love. I think that everyone needs to read this. I went in mostly blind and I am happy I did so that is where I will leave it. But trust all of the amazing reviews that you will hold this book close to your heart forever.

Ok I’ve had a few days to process this and still don’t even know what to say.

Water Moon was beautiful and magical and heartbreaking and I loved every second of it.

I LOVE magical door books and as soon as it started, I was hooked.

We follow the main character Hana on her first day of work since taking over the magical pawn shop her father runs tucked inside a little pocket dimension masquerading as a ramen shop. Only those who need to trade in choices find the shop, if its services are not needed you do in fact get to eat at the most popular ramen restaurant in Tokyo.

Hana wakes up for her first day and things go quite opposite of how they should, leading her on an expedition through her magical world with a stranger from our world. Chaos follows them through and both Hana and Keishin (the stranger who insists upon helping her) keep their own painful secrets while learning to trust each other.

My favorite part of this was seeing Hana’s world. It was so unique and wholly original that I was fascinated every time they moved on to a new place. I almost wish we had more time to explore all the parts of her universe.

I never could have guessed the ending and all the little twists and turns broke my heart. I was crying so hard while reading it my kids came to check on me and make sure I was ok lol

I never imagined a pawnshop could lead to such a magical place.
This book brings you love, heartbreak, understanding and just the right amount of fantasy.
Go on the adventure with Hana and Kei as they search for her father and discover so many secrets and truths along the way.

There were so many twists that kept me on the edge of my seat and I truly didn't see the end in any way. This book is a page turner; you won't want to stop once you get started.

This said “Studio Ghibli” vibes and that was 100% accurate. What a lot of people forget about Studio Ghibli is that it’s not all whimsical, magical worlds; there’s always a sense of danger, even horror elements mixed in to give the stories stakes. This is no different. The enforcers of this world are terrifying, the manner in which they are formed even more so, and the entire underlying premise of a lot of the whimsical elements is beautiful and also somewhere between wistfully sad and horrific. The imagery was outstanding and there was clearly so much love put into so many of the fantasy elements.

As much as I loved the world, and really enjoyed the story arc of following Hana on her mission, I was much less enamored with the romance element. I wish it had been left out altogether instead of having an instalove story and reason for Kei to tag along. I feel like he could have just wanted answers to the magic of the world and become friends with Hana instead of, less than three days after meeting her, being willing to throw away his entire life multiple times for her. I generally found the chemistry lacking, which makes sense on some level from Hana but also made that storyline less satisfying.

This grabbed my attention from the start and held on tight. The magical realism and world building was spectacular and I read each page with enjoyment.


Recommended!


Thank you to Del Rey and NetGalley for the DRC

A elegant and lyrical fantasy about love, what it means to have choices, and fate. In Hana's world, fates are tattooed into your skin and souls depend on the choices and regrets from the human real world given up to the magical pawnshop. When disaster befalls Hana's ordered world - and when the handsome physicist Keishin falls into the pawnshop from real-world Tokyo -- she must embark on a journey by puddles and origami cranes and make world-altering choices.

4.5 stars

This was amazing!! All the comparisons to this feeling like a Studio Ghibli film are SO accurate so if you love those movies you are pretty much guaranteed to be obsessed with this! The only reason this isn’t 5 stars for me is because of the pacing. There were times when it felt way too slow but then the ending was almost rushed. Some of the dialogue also felt almost out of place but at the same time the prose is beautiful with countless quotable lines.

The cover is beautiful. The book had an original idea and had very magical writing. I just think it went in the wrong direction. I would have probably been happier if the entire book just stayed in the pawn shop and each chapter was a different character coming to trade than what the story turned into.

Completely and utterly obsessed with this. Such a beautiful and whimsical story with amazing characters and lovely writing. Love!!

Thank you Del Rey and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Water Moon was a lovely read with strong Studio Ghibli vibes and a fascinating world that was both dream-like, whimsical, and terrifying. I liked Yambao’s writing and the way she rendered the other world is stunning. I will admit the premise made me a little nervous; I am a hater when it comes to The Midnight Library, so seeing people compare the two wasn’t ideal. I don’t personally agree with that comp, and while there were times this story veered into twee territory and there were definitely parts I could have done without, they didn’t really take away from my enjoyment and I’d probably re-read this.

Ishikawa Hana was raised to take over her father’s magical pawn shop in Tokyo, where people trade away their regrets. Their regrets are turned into birds, and the Ishikawas keep the birds until they are picked up by the shiikuin, who are surprisingly terrifying and sinister for what I had been expecting. On the day after her father’s retirement, Hana wakes up with a hangover and to find the store ransacked, and a charming stranger has entered at the worst possible moment. I don’t know if I’d personally call this cozy—it’s not not cozy, either, but there was a slightly unsettling undercurrent that I don’t particularly associate with the subgenre. I thought this was fun, but you’re also held at a certain distance, so people who really want that sort of connection might struggle with this. I liked Hana as a character a lot and felt that I understood her point of view, and while I also liked Keishin, I didn’t particularly care for their relationship. I don’t typically read for romance, though, and there was other stuff for me to consider that made it easier for me to go “yeah, sure, what the hell” about it. I imagine if I did read for romance it would chafe a lot more because it does tend to lean towards insta-lust, but I came here for vibes and whimsy and I do think I got that. It’s sweet and easy to read (sure, at times it veers on too sweet for me, but you win some, you lose some). I think most people will probably like this well enough, and I think it’d make a neat animated limited series.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Water Moon by Samantha Sotto Yambao is a third person dual-POV contemporary portal fantasy with the portal being a ramen restaurant in Japan. Hana is the daughter of a magical pawnshop owner who trades tea for choices, aka possibilities. Keishin is a physicist who has lived outside of Japan for so long that he doesn’t really remember it and returns due to an academic opportunity as well as the chance to return to his home country. When the two meet, they go on a journey through Hana’s world as they try to find an escaped choice.

What really shines here is the worldbuilding. I rarely discuss covers, but that cover is so gorgeous and it really shows you exactly what kind of worldbuilding you're going to get. There’s an almost painterly feel to how ponds that also act as portals and pearls that contain oceans and sunsets are described. The cover reminded me of Aria, which is a manga that is basically Atmosphere: The Manga and the worldbuilding gave me that same feeling, which is a compliment because I love the atmosphere and setting in Aria. I would have loved this as a graphic novel.

Keishin and Hana have a romantic relationship that almost puts this into romantic fantasy, but it doesn’t quite hit my personal threshold for how prominent the romance needs to be to mark this a romantic fantasy. It doesn’t hit the beats of a romance genre novel and the way their romance is threaded feels more reflective and mysterious and tied to a deeper mystery instead of a strong romance-romance. I think that this is a great choice for someone who does want a well-threaded romance but isn’t looking for a romantic fantasy or a fantasy romance.

One of the most interesting details was the Hiroshi tattooing the destinies of the residents of the magical world onto their skin. I love magical tattoos, I love themes of fate and destiny, and I love mixing tropes together for something different. The way it’s tied to people’s future romantic partners is probably the most fascinating part because it does really highlight how our world is full of choices and possibilities while the magical world is one where the beings are going through the motions and following the paths set before them with little room to make changes if they are unhappy.

Content warning for mentions of child death

I would recommend this to fans of contemporary portal fantasies with more personal stakes and readers looking for a book full of painterly atmosphere

Watermoon was a book that reminded me of another one of my favorite stories, The Kamogawa Food Detectives, in that it has a store where mystical elements come to life in order to fulfill a person's wishes. The characters work well in this unique magical setting where the story is very beautifully phrased and detailed.

I recommend this for people who want a simple, cozy book where there's just the right balance of whimsy and practicality.

Thank you Net Galley and Random House publishing for the eARC of this title!

Giving this book a four and a half out of five stars. Thank you netgalley for the arc.

This is one of those stories that kind of surprised me and I didn't expect to like it nearly as much as I did. The two main characters are essentially opposites of each other. One is practical living in a whimsical world, the other is very whimsical living in a practical one. If you were looking for a complex mystery, this isn't for you and I would categorize this as a nice, easy, cozy mystery with a lot of fantasy elements.

The pros of the story is really simple and straightforward in a lot of ways, which is something that I feel like you don't see a lot. Fantastical whimsical settings. I do agree with some of the other reviewers that this can take away from the whimsy of Hana's world but at the same time this is a very character driven story.

The ending was definitely pulling at my heartstrings even though I knew it was coming. But it is still manage to give me a few pleasant surprises.

Overall a really nice read and perfect for a cozy evening by the fire.

4.25 stars

I really enjoyed this story. The writing style is unique, making it easier to get into the tone and style of the story. I loved how all the themes were presented, especially the idea of choices, and I highlighted so many beautifully worded passages.

The first half definitely has a more cosy fantasy vibe. While there are stakes, it’s much more character-focused. Though Hana is from this whimsical, fantasy world, her explanations felt so practical, which complemented Kei’s practical personality as he viewed these fantastical elements as a stranger of her world. It’s difficult, because while I did enjoy this practical, to-the-point style, I think at times it affected the awe and all-encompassing feeling I wanted to have when we were being introduced to all these new places in Hana's world.

While the two main characters are trying to find clues in the first 40%, none of the reveals felt like actual reveals. I think anyone reading this would be able to guess the mystery points in the beginning. This did lead to a little bit of a slump just over the 40% mark, where it felt like visiting different parts of Hana’s world without making any progress on one half of the story. However, at the 50% mark the mystery part of the story really started to progress and get much more interesting.

I absolutely loved where the story ended up, the overall plot extremely was well done and unique.

Posted a review on Instagram and GoodReads on 12/9/2024.

Water Moon is the story of a Hana, the owner of a magical pawnshop that can only be found by those who need it the most, and Keishin, a pragmatic scientist that finds himself stagnated in reality. My favorite part of this book is the whimsical fantasy and dream-like setting, liken to an Alice in Wonderland with flying paper cranes and puddles that will teleport you if you jump into them. It is beautifully unique, and the cover art captures the whimsy of the story well. I enjoyed the premise of pawnshop, and aspects like the caged birds that creatively articulate heavy themes in the story such as regret. I did feel that the story was more dialog-heavy than necessary at times, and I found my mind wandering during Keishin’s questioning of Hana that grew repetitive. Overall, I enjoyed this world and would visit others of the author’s creation.

. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC for early review.. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁ ⟡ ݁ . ⊹ ₊ ݁.

2.5 ⭐ rounded up to 3--- unfortunately this is a miss for me.

My main issue with Water Moon stems entirely from the dialogue. This is such a dialogue heavy story and writing style and sadly it does not work for me. With Keishin, it is understandable to use him as the "fish out of water" archetype who doesn't understand anything about the new magical world he enters, and thus is a vehicle for exposition and lore dumping. However, rarely have I ever seen this done so clumsily and hamfistedly as this. I began to count how many times scenes transitioned in the exact same way: Hana says something. Kei questions it. Hana gives a cryptid response. It was around forty times this exact scene transition was used, usually at the end of chapters, and it led to a dizzying feeling of déjà vu anytime you finished one. Here's a few examples.

“About what?” Keishin glanced from Haruto to Hana. “Everything.”

“Where to next?” Keishin asked. “The edge of the sea.”

“We should go inside.” “Are we catching a train?” “A part of us is.”

“How can you be so sure?” “Because we will be swimming into it.”

It gets old *really fast.* And, moving further beyond that, the dialogue is so clunky itself that nothing flows well. The choice to have so few contractions led to conversations between our two leads feeling stilted, blunt, and cold. And there's just *so much talking.* I explained to a friend that this felt like a script book or a play script where actors are given the bare bones words and turn it into something magical. Any scene descriptions and non-dialogue sentences feel dry and colourless, I couldn't picture any of the locations or people due to lack of detailed descriptions. It really felt like a script got published.

Mentioning with full chest the catbus and Studio Ghibli is such a choice in this, by the way, because while it's clear the author loves and appreciates those works, it's jarring and pulls you right out of the setting of the book. This wasn't especially cozy in my opinion, and I very much was not enjoying it like I've enjoyed other titles it was compared to like Dallergut Dream Department Store.

The characters themselves fall in love ridiculously quickly and Hana is pretty wishy-washy. She keeps trying to send Keishin away and apologise for being a monster and is filled with self-hate. When I got the "twist" at the climax where she makes a bad decision, I felt like it came off a bumpy and unearned road, without much buildup to support it. The two reveals as well weren't jaw-dropping--- I wasn't shocked by either but that's more because I was struggling to get through the book and less because I predicted them. I definitely didn't see the attraction between Hana and Kei and it was really heavy on the insta-lust. I also hated Hana's dad, he seemed abusive and controlling and I disliked almost every scene he was in with her.

Overall, Water Moon wasn't an enjoyable story for me and I'm sad to have to critique it so heavily. It is not the calibre of writing I would expect from a seasoned author and doesn't fit within the promotional phrases of "heart, humour, and magic," and a "heart-stopping love story."