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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
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
I'm only rating this so low is because the culprit is obvious by the time the main group arrives. I was hoping I was wrong till the very end and honestly, I find the solution to be absolutely ridiculous.
mysterious
slow-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
I feel like if I'd thought about it a little bit longer, I probably could have figured it out, but the twist did take me by surprise. The beginning of this felt very slow to me, however, and I almost gave up on reading it. The story switches between the group that goes to the island, and a smaller group on the mainland that is trying to figure out what actually happened on the island six months ago. Both parts had interesting moments, and I ultimately did enjoy the story overall, but I don't think it's one that will stick with me.
Despite the fact that we spend around 25% just following these different characters around and watching their interactions, I feel like we're kept at a distance from really getting to know them, which means I also didn't feel much when they started dropping dead. This might just be because of how it's written, and it's something I often notice when it comes to Japanese fiction. If you tend to enjoy Japanese fiction, then it probably won't bother you.
Despite the fact that we spend around 25% just following these different characters around and watching their interactions, I feel like we're kept at a distance from really getting to know them, which means I also didn't feel much when they started dropping dead. This might just be because of how it's written, and it's something I often notice when it comes to Japanese fiction. If you tend to enjoy Japanese fiction, then it probably won't bother you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Rape, Suicide
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
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
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
you better find the guilty party before the guilty party finds YOU🫵🏼
second read:
i don't have as much to say about this. i still like it as much as i did initially, though the exhilaration and excitement of trying to solve the crime was gone since i could still remember all of the details about the book. i wanted to re-read it as the timing, with everything currently going on in my life, is just too suitable to not do so, and i also wanted to see a certain detail within the writing, especially that of the characters. my opinion on the character writing fluctuated a lot; i initially really liked it, but, when i re-read the manga, i thought it wasn't the best, and now i can say that it's good, but it's not necessarily brilliant, however it's still not as bad as i thought. the characters are well-written at the start, but towards the end, they sort of start to frazzle out, they start to lose their definition, start to become a little mad, which is sensible, considering their circumstances. otherwise, i still love this book a lot. it's definitely one of my favourite mysteries and i believe that it will always be. it was the reason why i read other japanese mysteries, and for that, i am incredibly thankful, since they were brilliant.
first read:
it is currently past midnight, so i don't know how well articulated will this be. however, i am too excited to wait until morning to write this.
quite simply, i adored every second of this book. i know that it seems, from my reviews, that it doesn't take much for a book for me to like it. however, if you knew how i deal with anime, since it's the media that i consume the most, alongside books, you will know that i am very picky with what i like and what i don't, especially with mysteries. yukito ayatsuji has impressed me though. there is a lot that i love about this book, and i can go into spoilery detail for each section, but as to not spoil this brilliant mystery, i shall simply talk about them as mere points.
something that i believe makes or breaks a book, or any piece of media for that matter, to me is character writing. it's also quite common in mysteries to not have the best character writing, as the story is more plot-driven than character-driven, so characterization would be considered useless (even though it is actually not). this had brilliant character writing, as it showed all of the characters in different scenarios and it gives you a better understanding of who these characters are as people. it makes them quite realistic. another thing i really liked about the characters were their relatable personalities. i probably say this only because i, too, am a huge mystery fan, yet i found the characters' personalities to be quite diverse, in terms of mystery lovers and people, and quite intriguing as well.
another thing that i really liked were the descriptions. ayatsuji's descriptions were not the most vivid, yet they were quite remarkable. i could easily imagine all of the characters, the places, everything he described. he, or should i say the translator in this case since this is a translated work after all, owns such a beautiful collection of words that paint the images he wants you to visualize so beautifully and incredibly well.
last but definitely not least is the mystery itself. i had two guesses for this, and one of them was right. i was so confused throughout the entire thing, and i think that that's not an easy task to do, considering the fact that i enjoy solving a lot of (fictional) mysteries and am quite good at them, if i say so myself. i really liked the motive used, and the personality and characterization of the murder were simply brilliant.
overall, i would definitely recommend this book to anyone. it was amazing and i enjoyed it beyond words can describe.
i don't have as much to say about this. i still like it as much as i did initially, though the exhilaration and excitement of trying to solve the crime was gone since i could still remember all of the details about the book. i wanted to re-read it as the timing, with everything currently going on in my life, is just too suitable to not do so, and i also wanted to see a certain detail within the writing, especially that of the characters. my opinion on the character writing fluctuated a lot; i initially really liked it, but, when i re-read the manga, i thought it wasn't the best, and now i can say that it's good, but it's not necessarily brilliant, however it's still not as bad as i thought. the characters are well-written at the start, but towards the end, they sort of start to frazzle out, they start to lose their definition, start to become a little mad, which is sensible, considering their circumstances. otherwise, i still love this book a lot. it's definitely one of my favourite mysteries and i believe that it will always be. it was the reason why i read other japanese mysteries, and for that, i am incredibly thankful, since they were brilliant.
first read:
it is currently past midnight, so i don't know how well articulated will this be. however, i am too excited to wait until morning to write this.
quite simply, i adored every second of this book. i know that it seems, from my reviews, that it doesn't take much for a book for me to like it. however, if you knew how i deal with anime, since it's the media that i consume the most, alongside books, you will know that i am very picky with what i like and what i don't, especially with mysteries. yukito ayatsuji has impressed me though. there is a lot that i love about this book, and i can go into spoilery detail for each section, but as to not spoil this brilliant mystery, i shall simply talk about them as mere points.
something that i believe makes or breaks a book, or any piece of media for that matter, to me is character writing. it's also quite common in mysteries to not have the best character writing, as the story is more plot-driven than character-driven, so characterization would be considered useless (even though it is actually not). this had brilliant character writing, as it showed all of the characters in different scenarios and it gives you a better understanding of who these characters are as people. it makes them quite realistic. another thing i really liked about the characters were their relatable personalities. i probably say this only because i, too, am a huge mystery fan, yet i found the characters' personalities to be quite diverse, in terms of mystery lovers and people, and quite intriguing as well.
another thing that i really liked were the descriptions. ayatsuji's descriptions were not the most vivid, yet they were quite remarkable. i could easily imagine all of the characters, the places, everything he described. he, or should i say the translator in this case since this is a translated work after all, owns such a beautiful collection of words that paint the images he wants you to visualize so beautifully and incredibly well.
last but definitely not least is the mystery itself. i had two guesses for this, and one of them was right. i was so confused throughout the entire thing, and i think that that's not an easy task to do, considering the fact that i enjoy solving a lot of (fictional) mysteries and am quite good at them, if i say so myself. i really liked the motive used, and the personality and characterization of the murder were simply brilliant.
overall, i would definitely recommend this book to anyone. it was amazing and i enjoyed it beyond words can describe.