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The Honjin Murders

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The Honjin Murders

By: Seishi Yokomizo, Louise Kawai
Narrated by: Akira Matsumoto
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About this listen

In the winter of 1937, the village of Okamura is abuzz with excitement over the forthcoming wedding of a son of the grand Ichiyanagi family. But amid the gossip over the approaching festivities, there is also a worrying rumour – it seems a sinister masked man has been asking questions about the Ichiyanagis around the village.

Then, on the night of the wedding, the Ichiyanagi family are woken by a terrible scream, followed by the sound of eerie music – death has come to Okamura, leaving no trace but a bloody samurai sword, thrust into the pristine snow outside the house. The murder seems impossible, but amateur detective Kosuke Kindaichi is determined to get to the bottom of it.

©1973 Seishi Yokomizo. Translation Louise Heal Kawai 2019. (P)2021 Bolinda Publishing Amateur Sleuths Crime Thrillers Detective Fiction International Mystery & Crime Mystery Thriller & Suspense Thriller Village Japanese Detective

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Critic reviews

"A classic locked-room murder mystery, the first in the Detective Kindaichi series.... The solution to this mystery came as a complete surprise - exactly what I asked for." (New York Times Book Review)

"The perfect read for this time of year. Short and compelling, it will appeal to fans of Agatha Christie looking for a new case to break." (Irish Times)

"Japan's Agatha Christie.... It's an absolute pleasure to see his work translated at last in these beautifully produced English editions." (Sunday Times)
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Really enjoyable listen. I love how the novel references other famous detective stories and then offers its our particular take on the genre. Would recommend.

A homage to the detective story!

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Great story but my god the narrator ruins everything. His Kiwi accent grates throughout the story

Awful narrator

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The story is a fairly straight forward, trope filled detective story. A little too short to really get you invested, and the main character lacks the Holmes charisma or mystique to really pull you in. But it’s fine. Fun enough.

The real problem is the narrator. It’s not just that the accent is jarring, it’s that the voices he uses for dialogue are some of the most irritating, screechy voices I’ve ever heard. Very poor decision on that front. Furthermore, the narrator seems to be fluent in Japanese and thus when pronouncing Japanese names or words he does so in a native Japanese accent, which means the syllables are very short and hard to pick up - even for me, who knows some Japanese. So you end up with this mix of a New Zealand accent that occasionally falls into Japanese that then tonally oscillates from whisper to screech.

Unfortunately it’s the same narrator for the whole series.

The narrator killed it for me

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wears it's influences on its sleeve but this is up there with Agatha Christie and Conan Doyle's best.

Excellent locked room mystery

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Many of the subsequent tropes of Japanese crime fiction can be tracked back to this seminal text: the odd, dishevelled, youthful detective, the atmosphere etc. Well read by Akira Matsumoto and yes the Kiwi accent is noticeable but doesn’t detract from the experience.

Crime fiction by and for connoisseurs of the genre

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This was a real experience - a classic from the Golden Age of detective fiction, the twist being that it’s from a different culture. I feel like I have learned more about Japanese culture from reading Yokomizo’s works than I would from a dozen documentaries. At first the Japanese names are a challenge, but the narrator does a good job of differentiating them. He has a kiwi accent but unlike some reviewers I don’t see that as an issue.

I think with all the Honkaku mysteries you need to be prepared for some jarring notes where there are cultural differences, particularly relating to the treatment of women or people with personality or mental disorders, but they’re central to the plot line.

Then there are twists - not necessarily in the plot, but in the way that it plays out, with characters not being as stereotypical and ‘black or white’ as in many more formulaic mysteries. This held my attention to the end, even when the mechanics of the murder(s) were explained.

A classic read

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this is a truly excellent book, I have a brand new detective series to fall in love with.

Excellent

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This is an incredible locked room murder case. One of the best I’ve ever listened to/read. However, it is letdown somewhat by the rather poor performance from the reader. He does his very best, but his performance is stilted and the reader makes a few mistakes in their reading of the book. Apart from that, I can highly recommend this audiobook because of the story and the incredible writing.

Brilliant story, poor performance

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Japanese- New Zealand accent was unusual and fun.

Story is beautifully twisty.

Short but sweet.

Masterful story

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I tried to listen to this title but found the narrator irritating. It was hard to concentrate on the story. I will buy the book instead rather than listen on Audible.

Poor performancd by narrator

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