🕵️‍♀️ 推理小説読書会 📚 Mystery Novel Book Club 👮‍♂️ Preparing to read 赤ずきん、旅の途中で死体と出会う!

Ah, I see it now! That one was confusing me as well.

|ωΦ;))))ドキドキ… → |ωΦ;)))) The eye is Φ, the ω is a mouth!

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| ← wall
ω <-mouth
Φ ← eye
:rofl:

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Aaaah, right! Thanks, both of you. I feel like I’m learning a new language right now :joy:

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Sorry for being pedantic, but I was looking at the nominations a little more carefully in order to vote, and was surprised that a genre novel won the Akutagawa prize. It turns out it didn’t. It won the Ayukawa Tetsuya Award instead, which is awarded to unpublished mystery novels. :slight_smile:

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Whoops, apparently I’ve had those mixed up for a while b/c in my head I thought 体育館の殺人 and 屍人荘の殺人 had also won the ‘Akutagawa’ prize :joy: Apologies if I falsely enticed anyone

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Voting has closed!

Congrats to 七回死んだ男 | L35

And RIP to 吹雪の山荘 リレーミステリ , テロリストのパラソル, and 模倣の殺意 :hocho:
I actually waffled hard on voting for two of those so bit of a bummer…but I’ll just read them on my own time :smile:

As a reminder the first week for this book is January 30th to give people time to purchase physical copies if they’d like.

New home thread for 七回死んだ男

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Oops, not as many voters in this poll as the last one…

Oh well, I’m glad the winner is a book I already own ^_~

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I actually removed my vote for two of those at the last minute, because it was the only one, and it felt wrong to save my own nominations when no one else was interested. :sweat_smile: If I start reading any of them I’ll let you know.

Meanwhile, I’ll probably sit the current pick out, so have fun everyone! :books:

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Nominations can come at any time, right?

Book: 眼球堂の殺人 ~The Book~ | L30??
Is there an ebook available?: yes

Summary - Japanese

新たな理系&館ミステリ。シリーズ第一作神の書、"The Book"を探し求める者、放浪の数学者・十和田只人(とわだただひと)がジャーナリスト・陸奥藍子と訪れたのは、狂気の天才建築学者・驫木煬(とどろきよう)の巨大にして奇怪な邸宅"眼球堂"だった。二人と共に招かれた各界の天才たちを次々と事件と謎が見舞う。密室、館、メフィスト賞受賞作にして「堂」シリーズ第一作となった傑作本格ミステリ!

Summary - English

A new science & museum mystery. In the first book in the series, wandering mathematician Towada Tadahito and journalist Aiko Mutsu visit the huge and bizarre mansion of mad genius architect Todoroki Yoh, who is in search of The Book of God. The geniuses invited with the two, from all walks of life, are visited by incident and mystery one after another. A masterpiece of authentic mystery, the first novel in the “Do” series, winner of the Mephistopheles Prize for The Secret Room, The House, and The Mephistopheles Award!
(Deepl)

Content warnings if known

None that I know of.

I’d seen some favourable reviews of it here and there and had vaguely had it in my wish list for ages. The idea of blending science, architecture and mystery is attractive, if implemented well. Strange buildings in Japanese mystery fiction are abundant for some reason but here we also get physics and mathematics to play with. (The book is currently on sale on Bookwalker at the very attractive price of 99 yen till February 9 if anyone’s interested.)

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Kindle as well, though I don’t know when the sale ends. It’s such a steep discount that I’m tempted to buy it, though I can’t tell if I’d be interested in the book or not yet, haha.

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Yep!

Sadly I bought it months ago :slightly_frowning_face: I love weird building mysteries. Although I can’t say I enjoy reading about math in Japanese.

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Oh I literally just reviewed this.

(Also the heroine’s name is Mutu, not Riku)

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Tell that to Deepl :joy:
I edited it though.

Thanks for the review!

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Book: 告白 | L35
Is there an ebook available?: yes

Summary - Japanese

「愛美は死にました。しかし事故ではありません。このクラスの生徒に殺されたのです」我が子を校内で亡くした中学校の女性教師によるホームルームでの告白から、この物語は始まる。語り手が「級友」「犯人」「犯人の家族」と次々と変わり、次第に事件の全体像が浮き彫りにされていく。衝撃的なラストを巡り物議を醸した、デビュー作にして、第6回本屋大賞受賞のベストセラー。

Summary - English

After calling off her engagement in the wake of a tragic revelation, Yuko Moriguchi had nothing to live for except her only child, four-year-old child, Manami. Now, following an accident on the grounds of the middle school where she teaches, Yuko has given up and tendered her resignation.

But first she has one last lecture to deliver. She tells a story that upends everything her students ever thought they knew about two of their peers, and sets in motion a diabolical plot for revenge.

Narrated in alternating voices, with twists you’ll never see coming, Confessions probes the limits of punishment, despair, and tragic love, culminating in a harrowing confrontation between teacher and student that will place the occupants of an entire school in danger. You’ll never look at a classroom the same way again.

Content warnings if known

death/murder of a child? bad LGBTQIA+ rep?

Why are you nominating this book: This has been on my TBR for a while now, since people seem to love it. I recently heard that the book has some issues with LGBTQIA+ rep (though apparently the details are a massive spoiler, so…). I will definitely read it soon, but would be nice to have the club to read along with :slight_smile:

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Where did you read this? (I don’t mind massive spoilers as I’ve already read the book.) I only remember a brief mention actually, not even especially relevant to the plot. I don’t remember all details very clearly though.

I heard it in her review: https://youtu.be/U8AE0tIMCNo?t=803 and since her and her partner are part of the LGBTQIA+ community, I think she might pick up on things that the majority of readers do not notice. :thinking: Anyways, she calls something in the book “deeply homophobic”. No sure what follows in the spoilers part.

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Thanks. Watched it, and while I agree with her criticism about it potentially spreading misinformation (although it is actually addressed in the book itself), it’s very indirectly linked to the LGBTQIA+ community. (And the link, such as it is, is only based on misinformation itself.) Too bad I can’t be more specific, but anyway, long story short, there is a sensitive subject that may be (or at least appear to be) mishandled, but it’s not actually a LGBTQIA+ specific matter.

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Might also be the case that there are translation issues on top of it? :thinking:

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I don’t think that’s the case here. Okay, I’ll try to not spoil much. I’ll mention what the offensive topic is and how it is mishandled, but won’t reference anything in the book itself. It is revealed at the end of the first chapter anyway.
So: There is the -apparent- misinformation that HIV can be spread through consuming something infected with it. Further than that, some people appear to react very badly to the possibility that someone is infected, as if you can catch it by just being close to someone. But that’s presented as human nature, not scientific fact. As I said, sensitive subject. It might need to go in the content warnings, but it is a spoiler.

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Related to spoilers.

I often wonder that HIV is still viewed as LGBTQIA+ adjacent at all… I don’t believe there was any sort of connection made in the book itself iirc? I wouldn’t have been very sure on the specifics if you hadn’t detailed it, so thanks. ^^ I… Spent a couple minutes trying to remember what might have been LGBTQIA+ related before reading your comment. :sweat_smile:

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