half_notes's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
The Aosawa murders was a dark and gruesome read. The ending is very ambiguous, adding to the feel of the book. The pacing felt very slow in the middle and could get confusing at times. The culprit is pretty obvious.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, and Suicide
Minor: Child abuse
lilifane's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
There seem to be two kinds of Japanese novels for me. Either I love them from the first to the last page... or I love them until about 85% of the book and then the endings disappoints me. This one falls under the second category, I fear.
I really enjoyed it for the most part. Spent the whole day reading and couldn't put it down because I was so intrigued by the story and the way it was told. Loved the atmosphere. The characters and plot were fascinating. I enjoyed the writing style and the themes. But then the ending... ah, I felt let down. Or maybe I just didn't understand it. Which would also be disappointing.
I really enjoyed it for the most part. Spent the whole day reading and couldn't put it down because I was so intrigued by the story and the way it was told. Loved the atmosphere. The characters and plot were fascinating. I enjoyed the writing style and the themes. But then the ending... ah, I felt let down. Or maybe I just didn't understand it. Which would also be disappointing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Suicide, Animal death, Murder, Child death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, and Toxic friendship
berodatheelf's review
mysterious
slow-paced
3.0
It took a little bit of time to get into the style but once cracked I was intrigued by the plot . I enjoyed the multiple POVs and it was interesting to see how they were all somehow connected. I did get a little confused by the ending.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Animal death, Suicide, and Murder
j_squaredd's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Vomit, Child death, Death of parent, Murder, and Suicide
tiemzahra's review
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
In 1960s, 17 people died of cyanide poisoning in Aosawa house party, leaving the blind daughter, Hisako as the only survivor. The police was convinced that Hisako was the culprit, despite her very young age when the tragedy happened, even by the author of the bestselling book of the murder who was Hisako’s childhood friend. The mystery was narrated through testimonies of different people; family members, witnesses, neighbours, investigators, and Hisako herself.
This book is cryptic, and the mystery is fascinating, but I think this book is strictly not for me due to the ambiguous ending. I also needed an exceptional focus to read this book, and by the end of reading this, I was exhausted. It’s another thing that this book has a confusing ending, it’s another when the whole process left me baffling. As I own a physical copy, I feel obligated to finish reading, but any other situation, I probably have DNF-ed it.
This book suits readers who love mysterious and dark fiction with different approach in thriller.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Child death and Mental illness
Minor: Child abuse and Suicide
sp0ka's review
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I don’t think this is a particularly good translation and I bet it reads better in the original language.
The book needing a significant amount of magically acquired knowledge to conclude was kind of disappointing. It felt like the author had a lot of good ideas that just weren’t fully developed.
The writing does read well for the most part despite translation nitpicks, and I enjoyed it up until the last 20 pages or so.
The book needing a significant amount of magically acquired knowledge to conclude was kind of disappointing. It felt like the author had a lot of good ideas that just weren’t fully developed.
The writing does read well for the most part despite translation nitpicks, and I enjoyed it up until the last 20 pages or so.
Content Warnings
Minor: Murder
nish_'s review
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
Very VERY slow read. Not super interesting in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
fionac326's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Suicide
nisha_nee's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This is a Japanese murder mystery that takes the unconventional route from formulaic mysteries as the writing style that greatly contributed to the poetic style of the story was told in a way the reader is aware of another person in the room. There were still some unexplained events happening and the ending is open-ended, vague, and is up to the reader's interpretation. If you like a solid murder mystery with a murderer, motive, and explanation how they did it, then this book is not for you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Suicide and Mental illness
georgiarose710's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, and Murder