The audiobook for 告白 came out this month. 
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I’ve heard this is good! But I also feel like everything that takes place in the Sengoku period assumes a lot of background cultural info that I definitely do not have 
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Could lead to some real in-depth discussion threads on our part? 
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Nomination added. Only one spot left before nominations are full. I remember this one being praised by a lot of book tubers end of last year I think?
@pm215 I can’t guarantee it will win, but voting starts April 3 and I know you love historical books
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If there’s still an open slot before nominations close I have another one in mind, but it’s another higher-level book, so I’d rather give the chance to something lower-leveled.
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Thanks for the heads-up. (I note it’s not out in 文庫本 yet, though, so it’s still fairly expensive.)
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It’s time to vote!
As a reminder, 
NOMINATIONS ARE HERE 
ebooks typically have previews (立ち読み) so if the book is unrated and you’re unsure, or you just want to scope out the writing style, please make use of it! Keep in mind that a good deal of books are entered at 30 by default and some of the books with only one or two ratings can have pretty unstable ratings.
As with last time, you will have 5 votes in this poll, and any books to receive no votes will go in the Nomination Graveyard 
They can be renominated, but please wait at least two voting cycles before reintroducing them.
As a quick reminder, the schedule is as follows:
- April 3rd - voting opens (technically April 2nd in America but most of the voters are ahead of me in timezones)
- April 10th - voting closes and winner announced (I’ve set the poll to auto close on the 10th, 0:00 UTC)
- April 24th - first weekly thread for the chosen book is opened!
Without further ado - the vote!
- 黒い森の記憶 | L30??
- グラスホッパー | L35
- 柔らかな頬 上 | L30??
- 赤ずきん、旅の途中で死体と出会う。 | L30??
- アンデッドガール・マーダーファルス 1 | L30??
- ノッキンオン・ロックドドア | L28??
- 砂の家 | L30??
- 変な家 | L27
- 木洩れ日に泳ぐ魚 | L33??
- 白光 | L30??
- 名探偵は嘘をつかない | L38
- 透明人間は密室に潜む | L30??
- 私が大好きな小説家を殺すまで | L25??
- 時空旅行者の砂時計 | 30??
- そして五人がいなくなる | L25
- 眼球堂の殺人 ~The Book~ | L30??
- 告白 | L30??
- 『クロック城』殺人事件 | L30??
- 黒牢城 | L43
0 voters
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I’m always going to vote for any book about books or reading, so 私が大好きな小説家を殺すまで it is! 
Tbh if it doesn’t win I may just buy it anyway…
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You might enjoy この本を盗む者は | L36 or 本を守ろうとする猫の話 | L31 - I thought both were a lot of fun and are books about books 
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Ooh thank you for the recommendations! 
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Looks like I won’t be reading with the club this time either, since I already read 告白. I’ll be watching your discussions with interest though 
Have fun!
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Yes, I’m excited to read it! 
I remember reading your commentary on it (sans spoilers) when you read it and it sounded quite interesting. I’ll make a home thread for it shortly, I was a bit wiped out last night after traveling so forgot to do it then 
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Also 3 books were cut 
in this round, グラスホッパー, 柔らかな頬, and 黒牢城. They can of course be renominated after 2 cycles have passed. While I am sad to see them go, I look forward to seeing what nominations take their place 
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I’m surprised 黒牢城 got cut, seemed like it was getting hyped up :o
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Probably the difficulty and the price (maybe I’m thinking of the wrong book but isn’t it still pricey?).
I personally voted only for books I already own as my backlog is pretty big
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Picked up a copy couple days ago, so would have voted for that next time 
but it’s long. 
anytime a book is split into multiple parts it makes me hesitate 
Will be back home when the club starts. Looking forward to this round. But then I always do and get disappointed.
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Book: https://learnnatively.com/book/e26091ccc4/
Is there an ebook available?: yes
Summary - Japanese
左腕に黒蜥蜴の刺青をした美貌の黒衣婦人。社交界の花形にして暗黒街の女王は、大阪の富豪岩瀬家の秘宝「エジプトの星」とその愛娘を狙って、大胆にも明智小五郎に挑戦状を叩きつけてきた! 三島由紀夫の脚色による映画・演劇によって、さらにその名を天下に知らしめた、妖しい女賊と名探偵との宿命的な恋を描く長編推理。
Summary - English
A beautiful lady in black with a tattoo of a black lizard on her left arm. The socialite and queen of the underworld boldly challenges Kogoro Akechi for the “Star of Egypt,” a hidden treasure of the wealthy Iwase family in Osaka, and their beloved daughter! This full-length mystery depicts the fatal love affair between a mysterious female bandit and a famous detective, whose fame was further made known to the world through films and plays adapted by Yukio Mishima.
Content warnings if known
None I know of, although the author can straddle the line between mystery and horror at times. That being said, this doesn’t look like one of his more gruesome works.
Why are you nominating this book: 江戸川乱歩’s writing style is a joy to read. So far he is my favourite Japanese author and the main reason I’m into mystery novels right now. I’d love to read one of his works with the club
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love 乱歩 
I read 怪人二十面相 as one of my first Japanese books and I was amazed that somehow a book an author wrote in a completely different language and culture could feel nostalgic
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I know what you mean. It probably helps that it’s a classic of the genre that gets referenced a lot, but still.
And I just love his writing style, it’s so distinct. After 怪人二十面相 I just had to read more of his stories. Out of curiosity I checked my library, turns out I ended up reading 6 of his stories in under 2 weeks. I think it’s save to say that I’m a fan. 乱歩 gets me more emotionally engaged within a few pages than a lot of authors manage with full-length novels. Looking at you 人間椅子. God, the sheer relief I felt at the end…
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I was chatting with ChatGPT and it gave me recs for mystery books N3 or lower and I don’t think I have heard of any of them. But apparently “The books have been popular with Japanese language learners, and have received positive reviews from readers who are studying Japanese at the N3 level or lower.” 探偵倶楽部 and トリック sound particularly interesting to me, personally.
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「探偵倶楽部」(Tantei Kurabu) by Kyotaro Nishimura - A collection of short stories featuring a detective club that solves various mysteries.
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「名探偵の掟」(Meitantei no Okite) by Keigo Higashino - A novel about a detective who gets involved in a murder case and must solve it before the killer strikes again.
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「猟奇的な彼女」(Ryōkiteki na Kanojo) by Shuichi Yoshida - A thriller about a group of friends who become entangled in a mysterious disappearance.
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「百合と薔薇」(Yuri to Bara) by Fuminori Nakamura - A suspenseful novel about a man who becomes involved in a dangerous plot to steal a valuable diamond.
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「トリック」(Trick) by Mitsuharu Yanamoto - A series of short stories about a magician who uses his skills to help the police solve crimes.
