The Noh Mask Murder

The Noh Mask Murder
Author: Akimitsu Takagi
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2024-06-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1782279660

A bewildering locked-room murder occurs as an amateur crime writer investigates strange events in the Chizurui mansion in this prizewinning classic Japanese mystery The 1st book in English from Akimitsu Takagi since his “Clever, kinky, and highly entertaining” The Tattoo Murder Case (Washington Post) This ingeniously constructed masterpiece, written by one of Japan's most celebrated crime writers and translated into English for the first time, is perfect for locked-room mystery fans who can’t resist a breathtaking conclusion. In the Chizurui family mansion, a haunting presence casts a shadow over its residents. By night, an eerie figure, clad in a sinister Hannya mask is seen roaming around the house. An amateur murder mystery writer, Akimitsu Takagi, is sent to investigate — but his investigation takes a harrowing turn as tragedy strikes the Chizurui family. Within the confines of a locked study, the head of the family is found dead, with only an ominous Hannya mask lying on the floor by his side and the lingering scent of jasmine in the air as clues to his mysterious murder. As Takagi delves deeper into the perplexing case, he discovers a tangled web of secrets and grudges. Can he discover the link between the family and the curse of the Hannya mask? Who was the person who called the undertaker and asked for three coffins on the night of the murder? And do those three coffins mean the curse of the Hannya mask is about to strike again? The Noh Mask Murder’s legendary ending offers locked-room mystery fans the perfect coda to an ingenously constructed mystery.

The Noh Mask Murder

The Noh Mask Murder
Author: Akimitsu Takagi
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2024-06-04
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1782279652

A bewildering locked-room murder occurs as an amateur crime writer investigates strange events in the Chizurui mansion in this prizewinning classic Japanese mystery The 1st book in English from Akimitsu Takagi since his “Clever, kinky, and highly entertaining” The Tattoo Murder Case (Washington Post) This ingeniously constructed masterpiece, written by one of Japan's most celebrated crime writers and translated into English for the first time, is perfect for locked-room mystery fans who can’t resist a breathtaking conclusion. In the Chizurui family mansion, a haunting presence casts a shadow over its residents. By night, an eerie figure, clad in a sinister Hannya mask is seen roaming around the house. An amateur murder mystery writer, Akimitsu Takagi, is sent to investigate — but his investigation takes a harrowing turn as tragedy strikes the Chizurui family. Within the confines of a locked study, the head of the family is found dead, with only an ominous Hannya mask lying on the floor by his side and the lingering scent of jasmine in the air as clues to his mysterious murder. As Takagi delves deeper into the perplexing case, he discovers a tangled web of secrets and grudges. Can he discover the link between the family and the curse of the Hannya mask? Who was the person who called the undertaker and asked for three coffins on the night of the murder? And do those three coffins mean the curse of the Hannya mask is about to strike again? The Noh Mask Murder’s legendary ending offers locked-room mystery fans the perfect coda to an ingenously constructed mystery.

The Tattoo Murder Case

The Tattoo Murder Case
Author: Akimitsu Takagi
Publisher: Soho Press
Total Pages: 353
Release: 2003-07-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1569471568

Kinue Nomura survived World War II only to be murdered in Tokyo, her severed limbs discovered in a room locked from the inside. Gone is the part of her that bore one of the most beautiful full-body tattoos ever rendered. Kenzo Matsushita, a young doctor who was first to discover the crime scene, feels compelled to assist his detective brother, who is in charge of the case. But Kenzo has a secret: he was Kinue’s lover, and soon his involvement in the investigation becomes as twisted and complex as the writhing snakes that once adorned Kinue’s torso. The Tattoo Murder Case was originally published in 1948; this is the first English translation.

Honeymoon to Nowhere

Honeymoon to Nowhere
Author: Akimitsu Takagi
Publisher: Soho Press
Total Pages: 273
Release: 1999-06-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1616950269

Etsuko has fallen in love with the shy young university lecturer who clumsily courts her. But her family objects to his past: his father was a war criminal; his deceased younger brother, a murderer. When Etsuko lies to force the marriage through, she thinks their troubles are over, but on their wedding night, the groom leaves in response to an urgent phone call. In the morning, he is still missing.

The Informer

The Informer
Author: Akimitsu Takagi
Publisher: Soho Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2003-07-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1569472432

When he loses his job as a trader after the stock market crashes, Shigeo Segawa is offered lucrative work as an industrial spy. How could he say no? He is soon assigned to seduce an ex-girlfriend and steal an important formula from her husband, who runs a large chemical company. But when the husband is found murdered, Segawa becomes the prime suspect.

The Lady Killer

The Lady Killer
Author: Masako Togawa
Publisher: Pushkin Vertigo
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2018-10-30
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1782274103

A dizzying tale of lust, mystery, and murder—from a beloved Japanese crime fiction author and LGBT icon The Lady Killer leads a double life in Tokyo's shadowy underworld. By day, he is a devoted husband and hard worker; by night, he cruises cabaret bars and nightclubs in search of lonely single women to seduce. But now the hunter is being hunted, and in his wake lies a trail of gruesome murders. Who is the culprit? The answer lies tangled in a web of clues—and to find it, he must accept that nothing is what it seems. The Lady Killer pulls from author Masako Togawa’s vibrant personal life as a cabaret performer for Tokyo’s gay nightclub scene during the ‘50s and ‘60s. Throughout her writing career, Togawa continued to champion the LGBT community as a queer woman—sealing her reputation as one of Japan’s most prominent crime fiction authors and LGBT heroines.

April Fool

April Fool
Author: William Deverell
Publisher: ECW Press
Total Pages: 519
Release: 17-09-19
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1773051075

A new edition of the Arthur Ellis Award winning crime novel Arthur Beauchamp, the scholarly, self-doubting legend of the B.C. criminal bar, is enjoying his retirement on B.C.Õs Garibaldi Island when he is dragged back to court to defend an old client. Nick ÒThe OwlÓ Faloon, one of the worldÕs top jewel thieves, has been accused of raping and murdering a psychologist. Beauchamp has scarcely registered how unlikely it is that the rascally Faloon could commit a savage murder when his own personal life takes an abrupt turn. His new wife, Margaret Blake, organic farmer and environmental activist, has taken up residence 50 feet above ground in a tree of an old-growth forest that she is determined to save for the eagles and from the loggers. Beauchamp shuttles between Vancouver and the island, doing what he can to defend Faloon, save the forest, and rescue his wife. Part courtroom thriller, part classic whodunit, April Fool sees Deverell writing at the top of his form, with a big dollop of humour.

Inspector Imanishi Investigates

Inspector Imanishi Investigates
Author: Seicho Matsumoto
Publisher: Soho Press
Total Pages: 361
Release: 2003-07-01
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 1569479267

In the wee hours of a 1960s Tokyo morning, a dead body is found under the rails of a train, and the victim's face is so badly damaged that police have a hard time figuring out the victim’s identity. Only two clues surface: an old man, overheard talking in a distinctive accent to a young man, and the word “kameda.” Inspector Imanishi leaves his beloved bonsai and his haiku and goes off to investigate—and runs up against a blank wall. Months pass in fruitless questioning, in following up leads, until the case is closed, unsolved. But Imanishi is dissatisfied, and a series of coincidences lead him back to the case. Why did a young woman scatter pieces of white paper out of the window of a train? Why did a bar girl leave for home right after Imanishi spoke to her? Why did an actor, on the verge of telling Imanishi something important, drop dead of a heart attack? What can a group of nouveau young artists possibly have to do with the murder of a quiet and “saintly” provincial old ex-policemen? Inspector Imanishi investigates.

The Noh Family

The Noh Family
Author: Grace K. Shim
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 385
Release: 2024-02-13
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 0593462750

Now in paperback, this sparkling K-drama-inspired debut novel introduces irrepressibly charming teen Chloe Chang, who is reunited with her deceased father's estranged family via a DNA test, and is soon whisked off to Seoul to join them... When her friends gift her a 23andMe test as a gag, high school senior Chloe Chang doesn’t think much of trying it out. She doesn’t believe anything will come of it—she’s an only child, her mother is an orphan, and her father died in Seoul before she was even born, and before her mother moved to Oklahoma. It’s been just Chloe and her mom her whole life. But the DNA test reveals something Chloe never expected—she’s got a whole extended family from her father’s side half a world away in Korea. Turns out her father's family are amongst the richest families in Seoul and want to meet Chloe. So, despite her mother's reservations, Chloe travels to Seoul and is whisked into the lap of luxury . . . but something feels wrong. Soon Chloe will discover the reason why her mother never told her about her dad’s family, and why the Nohs wanted her in Seoul in the first place. Could joining the Noh family be worse than having no family at all?

The Violent Season

The Violent Season
Author: Sara Walters
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
Total Pages: 208
Release: 2021-10-05
Genre: Young Adult Fiction
ISBN: 1728234115

The unputdownable debut thriller you will never forget. There is something terribly wrong in Wolf Ridge. Every November, every teen is overwhelmed with a hunger for violence...at least, that's the urban legend. After Wyatt Green's mother was brutally murdered last Fall, she's convinced that the November sickness plaguing Wolf Ridge isn't just a town rumor that everyone ignores...it's a palpable force infecting her neighbors. Wyatt is going to prove it, and find her mother's murderer in the process. She digs up every past brutal act she can find from Wolf Ridge's past—from car wrecks, suicides, and unnamed victims turning up in rivers—and even reaches out to an out-of-state journalist that seems to believe her. But all of her digging leads to nowhere. Everyone in Wolf Ridge accepts that the November sickness is real, and absolutely no one will talk about it. As Wyatt's best friend Cash turns on her, and her friend is almost killed in a tragic accident, Wyatt panics—how can she keep her friends safe, and find her mother's murderer, when no one believes her? As the evidence stars to disappear, Wyatt wonders: is she just imagining everything? Is the sickness real, or are the people of Wolf Ridge just naturally prone to doing bad things? Can Wyatt and her friends come out of the Violent Season unscathed, or is one of them going to be the next victim? "Holy sh....... Can I just say that? Can that be the review? Technically yes, but I **NEED** to say that this is without a doubt and by far one of the best books I have read this year!"—Brittney Green, Netgalley Reviewer "A freaking INCREDIBLE debut for Sara Walters. I have not felt this pull to a book in a hot minute. PREORDER IT, ADD IT TO YOUR TBR, AND WAIT IMPATIENTLY FOR OCTOBER BECAUSE THIS BOOK WAS ?????"—Tiffany Clark, Netgalley Reviewer "Be prepared to be captivated after the first sentence."—Rachel Milburn, Netgalley Reviewer