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A masterful and haunting achievement by one of Japan's most powerful writers

About the Author

Natsuo Kirino, born in 1951, is the author of sixteen novels, four short-story collections, and an essay collection. She is the recipient of six of Japan's premier literary awards, including the Mystery Writers of Japan Award for Out, and the Izumi Kyoka Prize for Literature for Grotesque. Her work has been translated into nineteen languages, and several of her books have been turned into movies. Out was the first of her novels to appear in English and was nominated for an Edgar Award. She lives in Tokyo.

Reviews

Delves so deep beyond its own shock horror premise that much contemporary crime fiction looks like cheap, exploitative rubbish by comparison ....an utterly absorbing novel that gives as vivid - and disturbing - a picture of contemporary Japan as you could imagine
*Metro*

Suicide, paedophilia, incest and murder combine with subtle touches of humour to form a story that will leave you questioning your own morality
*Dazed and Confused*

This is a rich, complex read. Be prepared for a book utterly unlike anything we are used to in crime fiction
*Independent*

It is one of the most unexpected and playful novels to emerge from Japan in recent years...a triumph. In its boldness and originality, it broadens our sense of what modern Japanese fiction can be
*Telegraph*

Unclichéd contemporary noir at its most absorbing and relevant...a masterful and haunting achievement
*Tangledweb.co.uk*

Readers with a taste for ambiguity and oddball characters will enjoy this twisted novel of suspense from Japanese author Kirino (Out). The Apartment Serial Murders case, which involved the brutal killings of two Tokyo prostitutes, has gripped the country, leading to the arrest of a Chinese immigrant, Zhang Zhe-zhong, for the crimes. Strangely, Zhang freely admits to murdering the first victim, Yuriko Hirata, but denies the near-identical slaying 10 months later of Kazue Sato. The events leading to the killings are related from a variety of perspectives-that of Yuriko's unnamed older sister, bitterly jealous of her sibling's good looks; of each victim; and of the accused. Unusual connections-for example, Kazue was a classmate of the older sister-cast doubt on the veracity of individual narrators. This mesmerizing tale of betrayal reveals some sobering truths about Japan's social hierarchy. 4-city author tour. (Mar.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

Delves so deep beyond its own shock horror premise that much contemporary crime fiction looks like cheap, exploitative rubbish by comparison ....an utterly absorbing novel that gives as vivid - and disturbing - a picture of contemporary Japan as you could imagine * Metro *
Suicide, paedophilia, incest and murder combine with subtle touches of humour to form a story that will leave you questioning your own morality * Dazed and Confused *
This is a rich, complex read. Be prepared for a book utterly unlike anything we are used to in crime fiction * Independent *
It is one of the most unexpected and playful novels to emerge from Japan in recent years...a triumph. In its boldness and originality, it broadens our sense of what modern Japanese fiction can be * Telegraph *
Uncliched contemporary noir at its most absorbing and relevant...a masterful and haunting achievement * Tangledweb.co.uk *