The Amberglow Candy Store
by Hiyoko KurisuSetting: Japan
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Contemporary
Published on November 11, 2025
Pages: 208
Format: eBook Source: Library
In this charming, fable-like book from Japan, a fox spirit sells magical confections to troubled humans, only for them to get a little more than they bargained for...
In a cozy night-alley lies a very special store. It's only open between the full moon and the new moon, and it's full of wagashi, Japanese sweets. Each candy claims to cure some ailment of the heart or the head. But who is the mysterious proprietor, and why does he study his customers so closely?
From the girl who craves more time with her boyfriend to the friends with some buried resentments, each customer learns a valuable lesson from these sugary treats. The candies can give you what you most desire, but not always in the way you expect...
Back to the shop owner—did that shadow just make it look like he has a pair of ears? Surely, not a tail? If he is a half-fox spirit, so be it. But why is he so keen to study human emotions, and why does he say each candy has a "dosage"? Patience. Like the center of a gooey caramel, the best things take time to reveal themselves.
“Welcome. We don’t get many humans here.”
This book is actually a series of short stories connected by a character’s unexpected visit to a candy store tucked into a very unexpected shopping street. The street appears through an opening in the back of a small shrine. All the rest of the shops are closed.
Most of the time the street caters to the needs of spirits but occasionally a human needs help and finds their way there. When they do, the owner of the candy shop sells them magical candy that leads them to fixing their problem in unexpected ways.
“There was no mystery. The bad luck was my fault. I was careless, inattentive and easily distracted. End of story.
Kogetsu’s words came back to me.
You seem to be struggling with certain…personal qualities.“
- at 56%
If you like gentle Japanese fantasy books, you will probably like this one. The problems that the people are facing are fairly low stakes. They are mostly about communicating with people. They solve them smartly. You do get the back story of how the candy store came to be but I’d like to know more about the rest of the stores on the street.
Book Beginnings is hosted by Rose City Reader. Friday 56 is hosted at Head Full of Books. Also linking up with Foodies Read
