The whirr of the coffee machine. The hum of conversation. A wisp of steam rising gently from the cup in your hand. Is there anything cosier than a café in the autumn?
Sprinkle in some charming characters, a dash of intrigue, and a generous spoonful of drama, and you've got the perfect recipe for a great story.
If you're looking for a book that's as comforting as a hot chocolate on a chilly day, here are 9 irresistible novels set in cafés and coffee shops - perfect reads for this time of year.
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1. The 24-Hour Café – Libby Page (book)
Day and night, Stella's Cafe opens its doors to the lonely and the lost, the morning people and the night owls. It's a place where everyone is always welcome, where life can wait at the door.
Meet Hannah and Mona: best friends, waitresses, dreamers. They love working at Stella's - the different people they meet, the small kindnesses exchanged. But is it time to step outside and make their own way in life?
Come inside and spend twenty-four hours at Stella's Cafe, where one day might just be enough to change your life…
2. The Little Coffee Shop of Kabul – Deborah Rodriguez (book)
In a little coffee shop in one of the most dangerous places on earth, five very different women come together…
SUNNY, the proud proprietor, who needs an ingenious plan - and fast - to keep her café and customers safe.
YAZMINA, a young pregnant woman stolen from her remote village and now abandoned on Kabul's violent streets.
CANDACE, a wealthy American who has finally left her husband for her Afghan lover, the enigmatic Wakil.
ISABEL, a determined journalist with a secret that might keep her from the biggest story of her life.
And HALAJAN, the sixty-year-old den mother, whose long-hidden love affair breaks all the rules.
As these five women discover there is more to each other than meets the eye, they form a unique bond that will change their lives forever. Because even in a place rife with conflict, love, friendship and hope will always survive...
3. Meet Me at the Cupcake Café – Jenny Colgan (book)
Issy Randall can bake. No, more than that - Issy can create stunning, mouth-wateringly divine cakes. After a childhood spent in her beloved Grampa Joe's bakery, she has undoubtedly inherited his talent.
When she's made redundant from her safe but dull City job, Issy decides to seize the moment. Armed with recipes from Grampa, and with her best friends and local bank manager fighting her corner, The Cupcake Café opens its doors. But Issy has absolutely no idea what she's let herself in for. It will take all her courage - and confectionery - to avert disaster…
4. The Full Moon Coffee Shop – Mai Mochizuki (book)
'Under a glittering full moon, a Kyoto coffee shop with no fixed location or hours appears only where and when it's needed. It's run by talking cats serving the finest teas and coffees, delicious desserts and age-old astrological wisdom.'
The Full Moon Coffee Shop attracts customers who have lost their way in their life, from a down-on-her-luck screenwriter to a failed video game developer. In the middle of the night, the feline guides will set them on their destined paths...
Heartwarming and magical, The Full Moon Coffee Shop will remind you that it's never too late to discover your purpose.
5. Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café – Fannie Flagg (book)
The day Idgie Threadgoode and Ruth Jamison opened the Whistle Stop Cafe, the town took a turn for the better. It was the Depression and that cafe was a home from home for many of us. You could get eggs, grits, bacon, ham, coffee and a smile for 25 cents. Ruth was just the sweetest girl you ever met. And Idgie? She was a character, all right. You never saw anyone so headstrong. But how anybody could have thought she murdered that man is beyond me.
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe is a mouth-watering tale of love, laughter and mystery. It will lift your spirits and above all it'll remind you of the secret to life: friends.
6. The Little Breton Bistro – Nina George (book)
Marianne Messmann longs to escape her loveless marriage. On a trip to Paris, she throws herself into the Seine, but is rescued by a passer-by.
While recovering in hospital, Marianne sees a painting of a beautiful port town and decides to embark on a final adventure.
Once in Brittany, she befriends a host of colourful characters who gather in a seaside bistro called Ar Mor.
Among food, music and laughter, Marianne discovers a new version of herself - passionate, carefree and powerful. That is until her past comes calling…
7. The Little Café in Copenhagen – Julie Caplin (book)
Publicist Kate Sinclair’s life in London is everything she thought she wanted: success, glamour and a charming boyfriend. Until that boyfriend goes behind her back and snatches a much sought-after promotion from her. Heartbroken and questioning everything, Kate needs to escape.
Leaving behind rush hour and late nights in the office for a city break in beautiful Copenhagen, Kate discovers how to live life ‘the Danish way’. From candles and cosy nights in to the easy smiles of tall, gorgeous Vikings and eating your body weight in pastries (ok, that’s just her), the city offers her a new perspective.
Can the secrets of hygge and happiness lead her to her own happily-ever-after?
8. Before the Coffee Gets Cold – Toshikazu Kawaguchi (book)
In a small back alley in Tokyo, there is a cafe which has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. But this coffee shop offers its customers a unique experience: the chance to travel back in time.
In Before the Coffee Gets Cold, we meet four visitors, each of whom is hoping to make use of the cafe's time-travelling offer, in order to: confront the man who left them, receive a letter from their husband whose memory has been taken by early onset Alzheimer's, to see their sister one last time, and to meet the daughter they never got the chance to know.
But the journey into the past does not come without risks: customers must sit in a particular seat, they cannot leave the cafe, and finally, they must return to the present before the coffee gets cold…
9. Second Chances at the Board Game Café – Jennifer Page (book)
In the cosy Yorkshire village of Hebbleswick, single mum Taylor dreams of a fashion design career, but she spends her days fixing zips, hemming skirts and worrying about her son, Max.
At the local board game cafe, railway enthusiast Harry, still recovering from a painful breakup, dreams of fatherhood. When Taylor and Harry cross paths, sparks fly, but Harry's confidence issues and Taylor's concerns for Max threaten their budding romance.
Can they find a second chance at love where they least expect it?
Need more reading inspiration? Read more book list blogs here.
