The Passengers on the Hankyu Line by Hiro Arikawa

Publisher: Berkley Books

On Sale Date: June 3, 2025

Pages: 256

I reviewed a digital review copy from the publisher

The Hankyu Line is a train line in Japan that really exists, and that connects the cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe. In this novel, the author takes the reader on her on the train, and we meet a cast of characters that step on and off the train.

We meet a young man, who sees a woman with a Mickey Mouse tote bag, who visits the same library as him frequently and who always seem to borrow the books he want to read so he always misses out on them. In this book, the woman and he start talking and dating.

Then there is the woman who just returned of a wedding from a coworker friend. Not knowing that where a white bridal dress is not good etiquette at the wedding. She boards the train in a sad mood, and we read about her background and why she is so sad.

Then there is the girl who boards the train with her abusive boyfriend. During the ride she is more and more convinced she can't tolerate his behavior anymore, and leaves without him.

And then there is the young girl who boards the train with her grandmother. The granddaughter truly wants a dog, and discusses this with her grandmother.

During the story, the characters see each other on the train, or notice each other, or start talking with one another.

The Passengers on the Hankyu Line is a very charming and cute  new novel by the the author of the Traveling Cat Chronicles. You truly can imagine the train, the surroundings and cities in Japan where the train passes through in the story. But the focus of this novel are the characters. Some of the characters are more developed than the others. The characters of the young man and the woman who love going to the library, and the young girl and her grandmother where the characters that had the most depth and development and who where the most interesting. The characters of the university student who leaves home for the first time and the woman in the bridal dress, and the girl who leaves her abusive boyfriend felt more like side characters. I really liked that the characters noticed each other on the train.

Overall I truly liked this new novel by Hiro Arikawa that truly takes you abourd a train ride in Japan!