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miafbatista's review
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? No
ksparks's review
2.0
This mystery was written in the early days of the internet, and unfortunately the subject matter--relationships in cyber space--is very outdated. It's a clever little police procedural, but it's not gripping like her later books.
themaddiehatter's review
4.0
“Shadow Family” (originally titled “RPG” ~ Role Playing Game in Japanese) is Miyuki Miyabe’s second novel to be translated into English. Her English debut, “All She Was Worth” was one of my favorite books back in 2017 when I read it, and I’ve been looking forward to reading another book from the same author for a while now. Unfortunately, a lot of her books seem to be out of print, and getting my hands on one involved a bit of book hunting. The hunt for “Shadow Family” definitely did not disappoint.
“Shadow Family” is centered around the murder of Ryosuke Tokoroda, at first glance, an average Japanese man. As the investigation progresses, the detectives discover the victim had a frigid family relationship with his wife and teenage daughter, a “soft spot” for young women, and a “made-up” family on the Internet. The book kicks off with an operation underway that is meant to reveal how all these discoveries came together, and to reveal Ryosuke Tokoroda’s murderer.
I really enjoyed this detective mystery. The pacing was effective, and the mystery kept me hooked until the end, even though I partly suspected the reveal around the middle of the book. I also really enjoyed the back and forth discussions about the nature of Internet relationships. While that is something very common nowadays, at the time of this novel’s publication, in the early 2000s, this was an emerging social issue. In addition, the book also explores the issue of broken families and the disconnect that often exists between spouses, as well as parents and children. If you are a fan of Japanese crime and mystery novels, I definitely recommend giving this one a try.
“Shadow Family” is centered around the murder of Ryosuke Tokoroda, at first glance, an average Japanese man. As the investigation progresses, the detectives discover the victim had a frigid family relationship with his wife and teenage daughter, a “soft spot” for young women, and a “made-up” family on the Internet. The book kicks off with an operation underway that is meant to reveal how all these discoveries came together, and to reveal Ryosuke Tokoroda’s murderer.
I really enjoyed this detective mystery. The pacing was effective, and the mystery kept me hooked until the end, even though I partly suspected the reveal around the middle of the book. I also really enjoyed the back and forth discussions about the nature of Internet relationships. While that is something very common nowadays, at the time of this novel’s publication, in the early 2000s, this was an emerging social issue. In addition, the book also explores the issue of broken families and the disconnect that often exists between spouses, as well as parents and children. If you are a fan of Japanese crime and mystery novels, I definitely recommend giving this one a try.
sarah42783's review
3.0
I have to say that this was quite a disappointment to me. I enjoyed reading All She Was Worth (also by Miyabe) very much and expected a book of the same quality but Shadow Family just didn't do it for me. I didn't like the characterization much and found the plot slow and quite uninteresting really.
akagingerk's review
4.0
It's hard to talk about a mystery, especially one as short as Shadow Family, without giving too much away. What I am comfortable saying is that the story is not exactly what I'd expected from the summary, but not in the way which makes me cringe and wonder if the blurb writer even read the same book. Rather, to have said too much would have dampened my enjoyment of the revelations made throughout the novel. The author slowly pulls back layer after layer of stories and role-play, to expose the truth of the murder. I could almost say that the entire novel is one long Parlor Scene during which the detective stands up and announces that the murderer is here in this very room and explains how he solved the mystery.
But even that would be inaccurate, as our detective, Desk Sergeant Takegami, is far too self-effacing to command the attention of a roomful of interested parties. He would, by his own account, feel much more comfortable pursuing paperwork than conducting interviews. The language itself is far more beautiful than I expect from literature of this genre, though I'm sure that's an unfair generalization. I loved the way characters' appearances were sketched in with a few clever turns of phrase and the beautiful use of metaphor and analogy, especially towards the very end.
Shadow Family is a good, fast read. My only trouble with it arose from the high number of unfamiliar family names which were introduced too quickly in the opening chapters for me for me to get a good handle on which name belonged to which character. A reader more versed in Japanese names would probably not have the same problem, and I could have made my own life easier by cribbing a character sheet to refer to until I had the names down.
But even that would be inaccurate, as our detective, Desk Sergeant Takegami, is far too self-effacing to command the attention of a roomful of interested parties. He would, by his own account, feel much more comfortable pursuing paperwork than conducting interviews. The language itself is far more beautiful than I expect from literature of this genre, though I'm sure that's an unfair generalization. I loved the way characters' appearances were sketched in with a few clever turns of phrase and the beautiful use of metaphor and analogy, especially towards the very end.
Shadow Family is a good, fast read. My only trouble with it arose from the high number of unfamiliar family names which were introduced too quickly in the opening chapters for me for me to get a good handle on which name belonged to which character. A reader more versed in Japanese names would probably not have the same problem, and I could have made my own life easier by cribbing a character sheet to refer to until I had the names down.
jameseckman's review
2.0
This book lacks the interesting protagonists and sympathetic villains of her other works, I recommend [b:All She Was Worth|123555|All She Was Worth|Miyuki Miyabe|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1395770298s/123555.jpg|1080207] as a straight up mystery or one of of her mixed mystery/fantasy works like [b:The Devil's Whisper|884902|The Devil's Whisper|Miyuki Miyabe|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1347361793s/884902.jpg|870167].
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