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  • Water Moon: A Novel
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Water Moon: A Novel Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Samantha Sotto Yambao (Author), Cindy Kay (Narrator), Random House Audio (Publisher)
4.2 out of 5 stars 1,740 ratings

鶹

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A woman inherits a pawnshop where you can sell your regrets, and then embarks on a magical quest when a charming young physicist wanders into the shop, in this dreamlike fantasy novel.

“Race through a lush world of pure wonder and romance—kites made of wishes that become stars, origami that holds time in its folds, and a night market in the clouds—in this lovely, cozy fantasy reminiscent of Erin Morgenstern's The Starless Sea.ŨĔBooklist (starred review)

On a backstreet in Tokyo lies a pawnshop, but not everyone can find it. Most will see a cozy ramen restaurant. And only the chosen ones—those who are lost—will find a place to pawn their life choices and deepest regrets.

Hana Ishikawa wakes on her first morning as the pawnshop’s new owner to find it ransacked, the shop’s most precious acquisition stolen, and her father missing. And then into the shop stumbles a charming stranger, quite unlike its other customers, for he offers help instead of seeking it.

Together, they must journey through a mystical world to find Hana’s father and the stolen choice—by way of rain puddles, rides on paper cranes, the bridge between midnight and morning, and a night market in the clouds.

But as they get closer to the truth, Hana must reveal a secret of her own—and risk making a choice that she will never be able to take back.

“Highly recommended . . . Readers who have been swept up in the cozy charm of Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi and The Dallergut Dream Department Store by Miye Lee will fall hard for the mix of magical realism, fantasy mystery, and star-crossed romance.ŨĔLibrary Journal (starred review)

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Previous slide of product details
  1. Listening Length
    9 hours and 41 minutes
  2. Author
    Samantha Sotto Yambao
  3. Narrator
    Cindy Kay
  4. Audible release date
    Jan. 14 2025
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B0D26JRXVB
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
Next slide of product details

Product details

Listening Length 9 hours and 41 minutes
Author Samantha Sotto Yambao
Narrator Cindy Kay
Audible.ca Release Date January 14 2025
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B0D26JRXVB
鶹 Rank

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
1,740 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the concept interesting, magical, and whimsical. They also appreciate the writing style, saying it's beautiful.

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ConceptWriting style
3 customers mention "Concept"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the concept interesting, magical, and whimsical. They also enjoy the writing and imagination.

"...writing was beautiful and the world was whimsical and mysterious and magical and limitless, without being hard to read...." Read more

"Grabbed this when it went on sale. Very interesting concept and the writing is actually pretty good, but the random sprinkling of romaji words kept..." Read more

"This book takes you on a great adventure. I was hooked! I enjoyed her writing and imagination. This is now one of my favourite books." Read more

3 customers mention "Writing style"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the writing beautiful. They say the world is whimsical, mysterious, and magical.

"...The writing was beautiful and the world was whimsical and mysterious and magical and limitless, without being hard to read...." Read more

"...Very interesting concept and the writing is actually pretty good, but the random sprinkling of romaji words kept giving me flashbacks to my 2000's..." Read more

"This book takes you on a great adventure. I was hooked! I enjoyed her writing and imagination. This is now one of my favourite books." Read more

Top reviews from Canada

  • MeganC
    5.0 out of 5 stars Whimsical and mysterious and magical
    Reviewed in Canada on June 18, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    I don’t think I’ve ever read anything that I can compare to Water Moon, and I don’t think it’s something everyone would love, but I did.

    The writing was beautiful and the world was whimsical and mysterious and magical and limitless, without being hard to read. You just kind of accept that you won’t fully understand what’s possible and go with the flow.

    I enjoyed everything about this book. The cover is what drew me in, but I stayed for the story - the mystery, the romance, the twists and turns and everything else.
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  • Peri
    3.0 out of 5 stars It was just one thing that turned me away
    Reviewed in Canada on June 19, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Grabbed this when it went on sale. Very interesting concept and the writing is actually pretty good, but the random sprinkling of romaji words kept giving me flashbacks to my 2000's anime fanfiction phase... i.e. otou-san instead of father or dad, Irasshaimase instead of welcome. Always in spoken lines so every other instance of those words were english so it just threw me off every time.

    Had to DNF for my own sanity but I can see that it could be a 5 star read for someone else. I might have been a bit more patient with it if it was a translated book cause sometimes weird decisions get made with those but its not.
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  • Kat
    5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommend
    Reviewed in Canada on April 3, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Wonderful book! Unpredictable and couldn’t put it down
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  • jdh_9121
    5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! This is amazing!!
    Reviewed in Canada on February 15, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    This book takes you on a great adventure. I was hooked! I enjoyed her writing and imagination. This is now one of my favourite books.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Amy Braun
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Beautiful Story
    Reviewed in Canada on February 11, 2025
    An absolutely beautiful story about choice, love, and the importance of spontaneity, WATER MOON is filled with stunning writing and characters you root for. Everything serves a purpose and any fans of Studio Ghibli will find a great deal to love here.

    The story revolves around a young woman named Hana, who has inherited a pawnshop where choices can be bartered, only for an unexpected client named Kieshin to enter her life, and an even more exciting adventure to rescue a missing father.

    Hana and Kieshin are great characters. They are so earnest, humble, sweet, and filled with compassion. Kei’s curiosity and eagerness balances Hana’s practical, humble nature. Their romance is an endearing one that leaves a warm feeling in your chest.

    Equally as strong is the prose and settings. Everything is so elegantly described and imagined that it’s easy to be drawn in. I never knew what to expect, and it felt truly magical to read.

    WATER MOON is not a book I expected to land on my TBR but I am so glad it did and even more glad that I read it. A lovely story with a lovelier message, this one is not to be missed!
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Tay
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Whimsical and Dreamlike journey
    Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Reading this book felt like being wrapped in a warm blanket on a rainy day, with lo-fi music drifting through the air. The writing has such a poetic dreamlike atmosphere. The world building reminded me of Spirited Away at times, and I was completely swept up in the unique and whimsical world.

    “If you’re telling the truth, then I’ll be whisked away on the greatest adventure of my life”.

    It is indescribable how much joy this book brought me. Each realm feels like you’ve stepped into a waking dream. Yambao has masterfully weaved a rich, immersive, world that intertwines with our own. The book itself covers some heavy tropes - regret, sacrifice, loss of hope. But it also explores moments of resilience, redemption, and self discovery. Overall, I felt that this book erred on the cozy side.

    “Keishin shuffled through his mistakes, trying to find one that he wouldn’t miss. Though each had caused him varying degrees of embarrassment, disappointment, and pain, it was difficult to select one that he could live without. What he once thought he would have easily and gratefully forgotten felt like hard-fought treasure, each mistake a precious, priceless scar. The kitsune had asked for only one grain of his life, but Keishin found himself wondering if it was that one grain upon which everything else was built.”

    “Life is about finding joy in the space between where you came from and where you are going. I may never get to where I want to go, but I can look back on my life and say that I did not want to waste a second of it being bitter that I was not someplace else”.

    Two of my favorite passages that stayed with me throughout the book. It felt like a gentle reminder that life is shaped by the small moments. Even those filled with mistakes and regrets. It’s about finding peace with where we are and the choices we’ve made, even if they’ve caused us grief. Each misstep becomes part of the whole journey, encouraging us to move forward without resentment or regret for what could have been.

    I will forever look into puddles, hoping they’ll whisk me way to an enchanted world - one of endless pampas grass and a sea of clouds, of magical knight markets and libraries filled with lost memories.
    Report
  • elaine
    5.0 out of 5 stars Magical story..
    Reviewed in Germany on July 15, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    I loved the story and all the life lessons written with them. Reviews says that this book has a Ghibli Studio feels, indeed it has. If you’re into anime, fantasy, and day dreaming, you will love this!
    Customer image
    elaine
    5.0 out of 5 stars
    Magical story..

    Reviewed in Germany on July 15, 2025
    I loved the story and all the life lessons written with them. Reviews says that this book has a Ghibli Studio feels, indeed it has. If you’re into anime, fantasy, and day dreaming, you will love this!
    Images in this review
    Customer image
    Report
  • 鶹 Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars A magical mystery tour.
    Reviewed in Australia on June 1, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    A wonderful thought provoking story, full of mystical wonder & imagination. It takes you to an imaginary world which is strangely structured but flawed, where the impossible is possible, with complex characters & scenarios. Absolutely gripping.
    Report
  • TRINANJANA ROY MITTRA
    5.0 out of 5 stars magical, achingly beautiful
    Reviewed in India on March 17, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Water Moon is an exquisite dream—one that lingers long after you turn the pages, wrapping you in its quiet magic. Reading this book feels like stepping into an astral plane, where reality blurs into something more fluid, more wondrous. Samantha Sotto Yambao crafts a world that is both ethereal and deeply human, where regrets are tangible, choices are currency, and love—delicate yet unyielding—flows like water through the narrative.
    The storytelling is hypnotic, pulling me into its embrace like a half-remembered dream. Every sentence feels like a brushstroke on a watercolor canvas—soft, artistic, yet full of emotion. The tapestry of Japanese mythology and magical realism is woven so effortlessly that the boundaries between the extraordinary and the everyday dissolve, as if the universe itself always intended for magic to hum beneath the surface of our world.
    And then there’s the tender pull between the characters—the quiet, unspoken emotions, the longing that hums beneath their interactions. It’s not just romance; it’s something deeper, more fated, like the meeting of souls across lifetimes.
    I find myself completely consumed by this book, lost in its beauty and its aching depth. It seeps into the soul like moonlight on water, shifting something deep within—subtle yet profound. One of my best reads in a long time, and I’m savoring every moment.
    Report
  • J Tang
    5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious fantasy
    Reviewed in Singapore on June 1, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Loved it. Loved how the plot explained it all so well, loved the twists, loved the bittersweet parts, loved the ending. The quest storyline may be a traditional one, but the author has turned it into something completely new and gripping. I can totally see this as a Ghibli film.
    Report