A review by jrice92
In the Miso Soup by Ryū Murakami

3.0

3.5 Stars for In the Miso Soup.

I really enjoyed this read so dont let the 3.5 stars put you off, this is a short punchy read in a horror/thriller genre mix, I've been really into Japanese horror recently and I wanted to try some slightly different reads.

Minor spoilers/plot points below (you've been warned)



In the Miso Soup follows a tout/tour guide called Kenji.
Kenji shows tourists (mainly Americans) around Japans version of the Red Light District showing the best clubs and pubs along with the more X rated stuff that i'm sure I dont need to spell out.

Kenji is hired by an American tourist called Frank (instantly seems odd) for three days, Frank wants to see all the spots, his story doesn't add up and he keeps tripping up on small white lies, making Kenji doubt how much Frank is saying is true. Then the bodies start piling up in all the spots Kenji and Frank visit.

I wont say much more other than this is an enjoyable read, I wouldn't say its a classic but I would recommend it to people who want to try something different especially people like me who are fascinated by Japan.

FYI
There is one very VERY graphic killing scene that I found difficult to read through, if your triggered by heavy violence this might not be for you.