A review by bookswithlydscl
The Black Swan Mystery by Tetsuya Ayukawa

adventurous challenging mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

The Black Swan Mystery the first translated edition of the Inspector Onitsura stories. It's a locked room mystery set in the 1960s Japan and has a varied cast of characters including, of course, the intrepid Detective charged with unravelling the mystery. Despite all of these elements (that I typically love), this one didn't really click for me. I think the intricacy of the plotting and the need to introduce multiple key characters meant that the pace was generally slow and I found it a clunky read.

Despite those issues this is very Agatha Christie alike and ultimately I didn't guess the culprit or they why which is why I set it as a solid 3 star mystery and I'm sure it will hit the spot for other mystery fans, especially those who enjoy Japanese mysteries.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo for this digital review copy of "The Black Swan Mystery" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.