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3.41 AVERAGE
3.41 AVERAGE
dark
slow-paced
Those crazy Japanese...! I almost gave up reading this as it's very dry to start with, but about half way through it gets more interesting & I really liked the idea of what makes someone a villain that's running through the story.
Read & reviewed for The Bookbag.
http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/index.php?title=Villain_by_Shuichi_Yoshida
Read & reviewed for The Bookbag.
http://www.thebookbag.co.uk/reviews/index.php?title=Villain_by_Shuichi_Yoshida
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Japanese Literature. The stories are always more gritty and realistic to a point where you can relate to almost everything.
Straight away your drawn into having to know more.
Some points the book did go a little slow but it was only because I was on edge of wanting to know what would happen next to these characters. Some seedy, some normal, a mix of everyone that adds a great difference.
Please dont read this next bit if you haaaaaate spoilers. I reveal a little bit.
Great story and a great plot. The danger of online dating with a pinch of everyday life, the friends who worry, the family who are hidden away from the truth and the seedy sex along with it.
A great read for anyone who loves Japanese literature, culture difference books, gritty realistic novels that show the true side of life rather then the disney side of it like some books.
Straight away your drawn into having to know more.
Some points the book did go a little slow but it was only because I was on edge of wanting to know what would happen next to these characters. Some seedy, some normal, a mix of everyone that adds a great difference.
Please dont read this next bit if you haaaaaate spoilers. I reveal a little bit.
Spoiler
to me this book did have some sort of twist only due to believing it was a one off. When Yuichi says that one line I straight away went 'Shit...'Great story and a great plot. The danger of online dating with a pinch of everyday life, the friends who worry, the family who are hidden away from the truth and the seedy sex along with it.
A great read for anyone who loves Japanese literature, culture difference books, gritty realistic novels that show the true side of life rather then the disney side of it like some books.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
[b:Villain|7516027|Villain|Shūichi Yoshida|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1320511025s/7516027.jpg|9724573] is not a high action, fast paced story, but it had my attention especially at the end. It has nice twists throughout, and kept me second guessing myself. I like to predict the endings of mysteries/thrillers before the reveal, and I was wrong with this book every single time I had a guess. It shows sides of people that really make you wonder who the true villain is.
At first I was a little nervous because I really have no clue on Japan's geography, but I didn't get confused at all. The book does a good job of describing the setting and also putting in distinct breaks where it's a new place/person. I like the break up of the views of the characters, it gives an in depth look into the story through their perspectives. I loved how the chapters were broken up, it put me in the mindset of what I should be looking for within the chapter; they were also questions that I had when reading the story as well.
I was confused in some parts of the book though...these aren't big spoilers but I don't want to ruin some parts of the story if you don't want to see.
*Why the story of Yuichi's Grandma being threatened and intimidated by those men into buying the medicine subscription? It had nothing to do with the main story; it neither subtracted or added anything significant.
All in all I enjoyed reading the book, it had an interesting story, and I liked most of the characters.
At first I was a little nervous because I really have no clue on Japan's geography, but I didn't get confused at all. The book does a good job of describing the setting and also putting in distinct breaks where it's a new place/person. I like the break up of the views of the characters, it gives an in depth look into the story through their perspectives. I loved how the chapters were broken up, it put me in the mindset of what I should be looking for within the chapter; they were also questions that I had when reading the story as well.
I was confused in some parts of the book though...these aren't big spoilers but I don't want to ruin some parts of the story if you don't want to see.
Spoiler
*Why the random little instances of trying to weave all of the character's stories together? (Pg.262 the crow; pg.266 the snowy ruts in the road) I had to go back and read because I thought the different characters were in the same area, but there was no way they could be. If it wasn't done throughout the whole book, don't do it at all.*Why the story of Yuichi's Grandma being threatened and intimidated by those men into buying the medicine subscription? It had nothing to do with the main story; it neither subtracted or added anything significant.
All in all I enjoyed reading the book, it had an interesting story, and I liked most of the characters.
Too much unnecessary detail to wade through, which clutters and stops the flow of the story.
Unbelievable, inconsistent, too long, poorly written, poorly translated, not even factually accurate. I hated every character except the murderer, who I don't even think was the actual murderer (by the way, way to give the ending away, back cover blurb). I especially disliked the victim. Or at least the lazy, stereotyped way she was represented. Give me Martin Beck's Roseanna any day. Now there's a dead slapper with Character. Maybe I like that one because the victim is dead before the book starts.
Just generally not a very good book.
Just generally not a very good book.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book isn’t what I initially expected it to be but it was so much better. The way that it thinks about and presents loneliness in society is so interesting and how it uses it’s characters to examine the complicated nature of people was so intriguing. I think around the middle I was getting a little skeptical of the direction the book was going and wasn’t sure I was going to end up liking it but the ending was so strong and so well done. Not only was it unexpected, while still being telegraphed, but it was that kind of ending that makes you question it and want to reread it immediately…