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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
I love his cool and collected narration in the first story, but the second is definitely the most impactful to me.
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A Japanese horror with three stories in it.
Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse
I really liked this one. A story about murder narrated by the dead child herself, the horror was very subtle with hints of black humor. This story made me realize how jealousy can lead even children to commit such crimes. The ending was predictable and creepy but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Yuko
This is the shortest story in the book with a lot of creepy dolls. Just as you think you've figured the story out, it throws another twist at you. Not my favorite one, still a good story.
Black Fairy Tale
This story stole the show, I loved it! This one is primarily about a teenage girl who gets an eye transplant and starts seeing the memories of the previous owner captured in that eye. Losing all her memory after the accident, the girl enjoys the short episodes of the memories captured in the eye, but she gets more than she bargained for... This is my favorite among all three stories in the books. It was absolutely gripping, loved the sinister vibes we get throughout the story, very twisted, and will definitely make you cringe.
Summer, Fireworks and My Corpse
I really liked this one. A story about murder narrated by the dead child herself, the horror was very subtle with hints of black humor. This story made me realize how jealousy can lead even children to commit such crimes. The ending was predictable and creepy but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
Yuko
This is the shortest story in the book with a lot of creepy dolls. Just as you think you've figured the story out, it throws another twist at you. Not my favorite one, still a good story.
Black Fairy Tale
This story stole the show, I loved it! This one is primarily about a teenage girl who gets an eye transplant and starts seeing the memories of the previous owner captured in that eye. Losing all her memory after the accident, the girl enjoys the short episodes of the memories captured in the eye, but she gets more than she bargained for... This is my favorite among all three stories in the books. It was absolutely gripping, loved the sinister vibes we get throughout the story, very twisted, and will definitely make you cringe.
This book contains three stories of differing lengths. The title story concerns the killing of a nine year-old girl and subsequent cover-up by the boy and girl she thought were her friends. The added twist is that the story is told by the victim all the way through, even after her death. I found it a little implausible that two kids could outwit the police (and others, though this is partly explained in the end) for so long, but the suspense is genuine as they come close to getting caught again and again.
"Yuko" is the shortest story and is about a housekeeper who works for a kind but eccentric man who won't let her go into one of the rooms, where his ill wife resides. After a while, she begins to suspect that there is no wife, but the truth about the events that unfold are not what she (or the reader) will expect.
"Black Fairy Tale" is a short novel (a little over 200 pages) about a teen-aged girl who receives an eye transplant, and starts to see visions. She soon realizes that she is experiencing the memories of the eye's previous owner, and finds herself immersed in a mystery involving a missing girl and a writer with a disturbing power. This story is not for the faint-hearted. A black fairy tale, indeed.
"Yuko" is the shortest story and is about a housekeeper who works for a kind but eccentric man who won't let her go into one of the rooms, where his ill wife resides. After a while, she begins to suspect that there is no wife, but the truth about the events that unfold are not what she (or the reader) will expect.
"Black Fairy Tale" is a short novel (a little over 200 pages) about a teen-aged girl who receives an eye transplant, and starts to see visions. She soon realizes that she is experiencing the memories of the eye's previous owner, and finds herself immersed in a mystery involving a missing girl and a writer with a disturbing power. This story is not for the faint-hearted. A black fairy tale, indeed.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
two tense and creepy little stories - they feel a little formulaic, but the twists keep them interesting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Incest, Pedophilia, Blood
Minor: Self harm
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Otsuichi używa dość popularnych motywów, by pokazać je na swój własny sposób. Podobała mi się zarówno narracja dziecięcych zwłok w "Lecie...", jak i nawiązująca do tradycyjnych japońskich historii "Yuko".
I feel so bad giving this a 3 star rating but I can't lie, it wasn't such a great reading experience for me.
The first one, which shares it's title with the book, was OK. Weird but OK, although the mentality of the murdered child narrating the plot is beyond bamboozling. In fact, all the children were weird and off-putting. But it was a unique idea and therefor gripping. 3 stars.
Story number 2 was creepy! Dolls freak me the fuck out and this tale was short and clever. Loved it. 4 stars because I felt the idea wasn't fully developed.
Final story was not for me. Interesting, with an utterly unusual concept but boy was it unpleasant to read. And a little repetitive. The way the protagonist lost her eye in the first place was just ridiculous. The way her friends and family reacted to her memory loss awful. The concept of the transplanted eye playing out memories was super cool. The villain and their unique ability was distinctive and special but what he choose to do with, man, I felt ill reading those descriptions. Also animal cruelty is just not my bag. I get it, want to show someone's a psychopath, have them torture animals but it's so distasteful I can't bear it anymore. 2 stars.
So that averaged out at a 3. You need a strong stomach for the last tale which is also the longest.
The first one, which shares it's title with the book, was OK. Weird but OK, although the mentality of the murdered child narrating the plot is beyond bamboozling. In fact, all the children were weird and off-putting. But it was a unique idea and therefor gripping. 3 stars.
Story number 2 was creepy! Dolls freak me the fuck out and this tale was short and clever. Loved it. 4 stars because I felt the idea wasn't fully developed.
Final story was not for me. Interesting, with an utterly unusual concept but boy was it unpleasant to read. And a little repetitive. The way the protagonist lost her eye in the first place was just ridiculous. The way her friends and family reacted to her memory loss awful. The concept of the transplanted eye playing out memories was super cool. The villain and their unique ability was distinctive and special but what he choose to do with, man, I felt ill reading those descriptions. Also animal cruelty is just not my bag. I get it, want to show someone's a psychopath, have them torture animals but it's so distasteful I can't bear it anymore. 2 stars.
So that averaged out at a 3. You need a strong stomach for the last tale which is also the longest.
dark
mysterious
The first story was disappointing. I liked the premise, but it was incredibly frustrating and a prime of example of stupid, unbelievable coincidences happening just to try to create a bit of tension in an unbelievable way. I definitely enjoyed the second story though, original and occasionally disturbing.