The Honjin Murders
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- Create Date：2021-12-08 11:22:16
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Seishi Yokomizo
- ISBN：1867552558
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Summary
One of Japan's greatest classic murder mysteries， introducing their best loved detective， translated into English for the first time
In the winter of 1937， the village of Okamura is abuzz with excitement over the forthcoming wedding of a son of the grand Ichiyanagi family。 But amid the gossip over the approaching festivities， there is also a worrying rumour - it seems a sinister masked man has been asking questions around the village。
Then， on the night of the wedding， the Ichiyanagi household are woken by a terrible scream， followed by the sound of eerie music。 Death has come to Okamura， leaving no trace but a bloody samurai sword， thrust into the pristine snow outside the house。 Soon， amateur detective Kosuke Kindaichi is on the scene to investigate what will become a legendary murder case， but can this scruffy sleuth solve a seemingly impossible crime？
In the winter of 1937， the village of Okamura is abuzz with excitement over the forthcoming wedding of a son of the grand Ichiyanagi family。 But amid the gossip over the approaching festivities， there is also a worrying rumour - it seems a sinister masked man has been asking questions around the village。
Then， on the night of the wedding， the Ichiyanagi household are woken by a terrible scream， followed by the sound of eerie music。 Death has come to Okamura， leaving no trace but a bloody samurai sword， thrust into the pristine snow outside the house。 Soon， amateur detective Kosuke Kindaichi is on the scene to investigate what will become a legendary murder case， but can this scruffy sleuth solve a seemingly impossible crime？
Reviews
Chelsea
，
I love Japanese mystery novels。 I can't quite put my finger on it but they offer something that just appeals to me。 That being said， of course， I had to read the first Kindaichi mystery！I have read the manga adaptation about his grandson called 'Kindaichi Case Files' （there are actually a few different series and even an anime） and that sort of spurred my interest in them but when I saw that it was being republished I had to read it。Because I am used to Kindaichi being referred to as a grandfath I love Japanese mystery novels。 I can't quite put my finger on it but they offer something that just appeals to me。 That being said， of course， I had to read the first Kindaichi mystery！I have read the manga adaptation about his grandson called 'Kindaichi Case Files' （there are actually a few different series and even an anime） and that sort of spurred my interest in them but when I saw that it was being republished I had to read it。Because I am used to Kindaichi being referred to as a grandfather， I was pleasantly shocked to see him presented as a younger man with unkempt hair and semi disheveled clothes。 I was amused at his habits of scratching at his head and his hair becoming even more unruly。 His stutter that would become more prominent the more excited he got。 It was fun。 That's the best word for it。As for the story itself， I was hooked。 I have always appreciated Japanese culture and history so the little details and explanations for what everything was very satisfying。For the murder， I wasn't sure who it was and there was no way I would have ever guessed as to why it happened。 There were moments when it did feel obvious as to who committed the crime。 But there was no way I would have ever figured out why it happened。 That was the most surprising aspect of this story as a whole。A solid locked room murder for fans of a classic mystery。 。。。more
Chris Bookley
，
Forensic。
Gautam Prasad
，
The best part of this for me was learning about Japanese society including how large formal families operated and how people communicated in general。 The mystery wasn’t suspenseful for me， and I didn’t quite understand the underlying motivations of the perpetrator at the end。 It might have been because they felt a lot of pressure from Japanese society。
Pam Tickner
，
I loved the opportunity to read an English version of a Japanese murder mystery。 A very clever locked room mystery for Detective Kindaichi to investigate。 He is a bit of mix of Colombo with his untidy appearance and Poirot， using his "superior brain cells" to solve the seemingly random murder of a bride and groom on their wedding night。 I'm looking forward to the next in the series。 I loved the opportunity to read an English version of a Japanese murder mystery。 A very clever locked room mystery for Detective Kindaichi to investigate。 He is a bit of mix of Colombo with his untidy appearance and Poirot， using his "superior brain cells" to solve the seemingly random murder of a bride and groom on their wedding night。 I'm looking forward to the next in the series。 。。。more
Lara Jeremy
，
The Honjin Murders is self-aware in its near-exact reproduction of other classic mystery novels， but Kindaichi and Saburo's immense intelligence in solving and orchestrating the murder respectively despite being uneducated teenagers is unrealistic。 Kindaichi triumphantly uncovers that the motive for the murder was that Kenzo was disgusted with his seemingly "pure" wife revealing herself as not a virgin， making her "dirty"。 Kenzo can't bear to have this ruin his reputation and believes her "dirti The Honjin Murders is self-aware in its near-exact reproduction of other classic mystery novels， but Kindaichi and Saburo's immense intelligence in solving and orchestrating the murder respectively despite being uneducated teenagers is unrealistic。 Kindaichi triumphantly uncovers that the motive for the murder was that Kenzo was disgusted with his seemingly "pure" wife revealing herself as not a virgin， making her "dirty"。 Kenzo can't bear to have this ruin his reputation and believes her "dirtiness" to be too much to live with， so he kills her and himself。 Such misogynistic thinking is truly indicative of the decade in which it was written。 However， Kindaichi's character does not recognise this misogyny and rather blames the pride that came with Kenzo being part of the royal lineage for his murder。 This， and the reality of persisting violence against women， rendered it far too infuriating for me to appreciate 。。。more
Fraser Simons
，
This requires a lot of suspension of disbelief—too much for me， personally。 The resolution is so contrived there’s no way to guess the particulars， and I’m not convinced it’s even possible in the time frame given。 But if you can get over that， there’s some things about this that are enjoyable。For one， it’s an interesting mystery。 It’s the first appearance of this particular character， and they’re both a private investigator and amateur detective in a similar vein to Sherlock in methodology。 If y This requires a lot of suspension of disbelief—too much for me， personally。 The resolution is so contrived there’s no way to guess the particulars， and I’m not convinced it’s even possible in the time frame given。 But if you can get over that， there’s some things about this that are enjoyable。For one， it’s an interesting mystery。 It’s the first appearance of this particular character， and they’re both a private investigator and amateur detective in a similar vein to Sherlock in methodology。 If you like not being able to figure out every detail， you’ll also like this。 I was able to guess a few things， but like I said， the actual conclusion feels so out there I’ve no idea who could guess it。 And that did make it seem more contrived as the story progressed。 It also has a bit of an interesting， but also odd point of view。 It’s a Watson type character who is a mystery writer and travels around looking for good ones， apparently。 And so the narrative shifts around， attempting to lend credence to particular sections via fictional eye-witness testimony of the villagers。 And it begins not with the inciting incident， but a survey of the grounds at a much later date。 Which was an odd choice。 But different。Had it actually been written well apart from the construction of the mystery， I’d have like this much better。 I have no idea if some of it is translation issues or if additional information was added by the publisher or translator， but it goes out of its way to use terms and then explain them for a western audience sometimes。 Which is odd because it makes a point of saying it was only recently translated， and sometimes these points are helpful and other times pure common sense。 Then， the actual prose are just not that well written。 It’s Hemingway-esk， but done poorly。 Weasel words， stale diction choices， very inactive sentences。 Dialogue escalates into melodrama which is a trope， but feels more hammy due to the sentence construction choices。 Also feels like it’s trying to make people sound really “natural” and the expense of actual good dialogue。 And just some bad similes， which is kind of a staple of sophomoric writing， to me。 There was a loud thump like a sliding door fell。 First of all， I don’t want to find the sentence again but they didn’t have a comma in there， and then the use of “like” for things the characters and reader definitely already know the sounds of， really bugged me。 Because it is a sliding door falling。 It is the sound of Koto strings， you said so already so it isn’t _like_ that， it _is_ exactly that thing。 Anyway， if you can go with the flow and want an unexpected and fairly fun， but contrived mystery， check this out。 You’ll probably like it more than me。 I have the second book in the translated series; here’s hoping it improves。 。。。more
Redwan Orittro
，
I have started to become a fan of Yokomizo。 This is my second book of the Detective Kosuke Kindaichi series （I have read The Inugami Curse previously）。 It is safe to say that I will be reading the rest of the books of the series as soon as I get my hands on them。
saïd
，
First of all， I absolutely love the cover of the English translation。 And I liked the story fine， but anyone could tell you about that; I want to talk about the translation。 The English translation was done by Louise Heal Kawai， who seems to be a very experienced translator。 I don't know anything about her， so I couldn't tell you if she has a particular style in her translations。 The original title has been translated pretty literally: [本陣殺人事件] means， more or less， the Honjin murder incident。Thi First of all， I absolutely love the cover of the English translation。 And I liked the story fine， but anyone could tell you about that; I want to talk about the translation。 The English translation was done by Louise Heal Kawai， who seems to be a very experienced translator。 I don't know anything about her， so I couldn't tell you if she has a particular style in her translations。 The original title has been translated pretty literally: [本陣殺人事件] means， more or less， the Honjin murder incident。This is the opening two paragraphs of the first chapter， in the English translation （三本指の男， "The Three-Fingered Man"）:Before recording the strange history that follows， I felt I ought to take a look at the house where such a gruesome murder was committed。 Accordingly， one afternoon in early spring， I set off， walking stick in hand， for a stroll around that infamous residence。 I was evacuated to this rural farming village in Okayama Prefecture in May of last year， at the height of the bombing raids。 And since that day， everyone I’ve met has talked to me at least once of what some call “the Koto Murder Case” and others “the Honjin Murder Case” at the home of the Ichiyanagi family。Here is the equivalent Japanese text， first published in 1946:この稿を起こすにあたって、私は一度あの恐ろしい事件のあった家を見ておきたいと思ったので、早春のある午後、散歩かたがたステッキ片手に、ぶらりと家を出かけていった。 私が岡山県のこの農村へ疎開して来たのは、去年の五月のことだが、それ以来、村のいろんな人たちから、きっと一度は、聴かされるのが、一柳いちやなぎ家のこの妖琴殺人事件である。 いったい人は私が探偵小説家であることを知ると、きっと自分の見聞した殺人事件などを話してくれる。この村の人たちもご多分に洩れずそれだったが、その人たちの誰でもが、きっと一度は持ち出すのが、この話であった。それほどこの事件は、土地の人々にとって印象的だったと見えるのだが、それでいてその人たちの多くは、まだこの事件のほんとうの恐ろしさは知っていなかったのである。Something that immediately stood out to me was the order of the paragraphs。 The English translation is two paragraphs， while the Japanese is three。 Okay， that's pretty normal; different languages arrange things differently。 But then the order of the sentences is also different。 In order to demonstrate I'll have to translate the Japanese part， and I'm not fluent in Japanese， so please excuse any amateur mistakes， okay？ Here's the （VERY ROUGH） literal translation of the Japanese paragraphs:At the time of writing this manuscript， I wanted to see the house in which that terrible incident once happened， so one early spring afternoon， I left the house to go for a stroll with a stick in one hand。 I have been evacuated to this rural area in Okayama prefecture， in last May， and since then， from the various people in the village I've surely heard it once， the murder of the Ichiyanagi family， called [rumoured] the koto murder case。 When someone learns that I am a detective novelist， they'll certainly tell me about the information [observations] they had of the murder case。 With the people in this village it's probably the same， but any of these people will bring it up at least once， with this story。 So much about this case seems to have been impressive to the local people， yet many of them didn't know the true horror of this case yet。My translation is not very good， but you should still be able to see how the sentences and parts of speech were rearranged—even beyond the usual syntactical adjustments made when moving a text from Japanese to English （there's typically quite a few）。 What confuses me the most—even more so than the inexplicable addition of the line about "bombing raids，" or the not-very-subtle shoehorning in of the "Honjin murder case" name even though it wasn't in the original， or the added adjectives for "strange story，" "gruesome murder，" and "infamous incident"—is the fact that the text is so rearranged。 I really don't see what's gained from doing so， and I can think of a lot that's lost。 。。。more
Ann
，
Ngl the setting of the story bores me a little bit at the start （rural Japan） but the more I read， the more intriguing it turned out。 This novel is a beautiful debut for detective Kindaichi and the explanation at the end turned out to be both extraordinary and sad at the same time。
Noah Hare
，
Seishi YokomizoThe Honjin MurdersSeishi Yokomizo's "The Honjin Murders" was a gripping murder mystery that I needed to read。 When going through reviews I saw a few people complain about the ending and the solution， however I loved the ending， it made sense。 The story follows the Ichiyanagi family and the death of the first born son and his bride。 It's a locked room murder mystery and a fine one at that。 Many characters are suspected to be the killer and it's Kosuke Kindaichi Jobs to figure out t Seishi YokomizoThe Honjin MurdersSeishi Yokomizo's "The Honjin Murders" was a gripping murder mystery that I needed to read。 When going through reviews I saw a few people complain about the ending and the solution， however I loved the ending， it made sense。 The story follows the Ichiyanagi family and the death of the first born son and his bride。 It's a locked room murder mystery and a fine one at that。 Many characters are suspected to be the killer and it's Kosuke Kindaichi Jobs to figure out the mystery。 "The Honjin Murders" is a fantastic book one well worth reading for anyone interested in mystery books。 。。。more
kim v
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Great book！ This is a classic locked room mystery set in Japan in 1937。 We follow Kosuke Kindaichi， an amateur detective and fan of mystery stories， as he tries to solve the case of a murdered newlywed couple。 With plenty of red herrings and a suspect who also love mystery stories， will Kindaichi be able to figure out who the murderer is？ This Japanese detective series was written almost 50 years ago and has now been translated into English。 Hoping the rest of the 76 Kosuke Kindaichi will also b Great book！ This is a classic locked room mystery set in Japan in 1937。 We follow Kosuke Kindaichi， an amateur detective and fan of mystery stories， as he tries to solve the case of a murdered newlywed couple。 With plenty of red herrings and a suspect who also love mystery stories， will Kindaichi be able to figure out who the murderer is？ This Japanese detective series was written almost 50 years ago and has now been translated into English。 Hoping the rest of the 76 Kosuke Kindaichi will also be made available！！ 。。。more
tartaruga fechada
，
Manufactured Trilogy #21: Pandemic traveling through crime fiction- Thirteen Hours （South Africa） （Meyer）- Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line （India） （Anaparra）- The Honjin Murders （Japan） （Yokomizo）
Đặng Nhật Vũ
，
* Tóm tắt nội dung:Đây là tập truyện đầu tiên trong loạt truyện về thám tử Kindaichi Kosuke của tác giả Yokomizo Seishi。 Kindaichi Kosuke là ông nội của thám tử học đường Kindaichi， nổi tiếng với độc giả 8x， 9x。 Ngoài “Cung đàn báo oán”， tập truyện còn bao gồm hai truyện ngắn “Tiếng động lạ trong giếng nước” và “Án mạng ở quán Mèo Mun”。- Cung đàn báo oán là câu chuyện về án mạng trong phòng kín。 Đôi tân lang và tân nương bị giết tàn nhẫn trong đêm tân hôn， chỉ có tiếng đàn tranh cùng tiếng hét q * Tóm tắt nội dung:Đây là tập truyện đầu tiên trong loạt truyện về thám tử Kindaichi Kosuke của tác giả Yokomizo Seishi。 Kindaichi Kosuke là ông nội của thám tử học đường Kindaichi， nổi tiếng với độc giả 8x， 9x。 Ngoài “Cung đàn báo oán”， tập truyện còn bao gồm hai truyện ngắn “Tiếng động lạ trong giếng nước” và “Án mạng ở quán Mèo Mun”。- Cung đàn báo oán là câu chuyện về án mạng trong phòng kín。 Đôi tân lang và tân nương bị giết tàn nhẫn trong đêm tân hôn， chỉ có tiếng đàn tranh cùng tiếng hét quái dị và dâu vân tay chỉ có 3 ngón。 - Tiếng động lạ trong giếng nước là câu chuyện trộm long tráo phụng， gia tộc nọ có người con đi lính trong chiến tranh thế giới thứ hai， khi trở về thì tính khí thay đổi như trở thành người khác。 Án mạng xảy ra， nạn nhân chính là hung thủ。- Án mạng ở quán Mèo Mun lại là vụ án nạn nhân không mặt và không còn đặc điểm nhận dạng nào khác。 Cau chuyển trở nên lắc léo khi có nhiều hơn 2 người mất tích。 *Điểm hay:- Cốt truyện cực kỳ đơn giản， gãy gọn， không có chi tiết thừa hay gây nhiễu。- Tác phẩm hoàn toàn là về trinh thám cổ điển， dựa vào suy luận là chính， các biện pháp trinh sát， pháp y đều không đóng vai trò quan trọng。- 3 câu chuyện mang màu sắc và cách thức gây án khác nhau。 Bài học nhân văn cũng trùng lặp。 Nếu động cơ trong Cung đàn báo oán là do nhu cầu tự khẳng định bản thân quá lớn， Tiếng động lạ trong giếng nước là do sự ghen tuông mù quáng và hậu quả chiến tranh tàn nhẫn， thì Án mạng ở quán Mèo Mun lại là lòng tham của con người， hậu quả dành cho những người không bao giờ thấy “đủ”。 *Điểm chưa hay: - Đúng kiểu là tác phẩm đầu tay， tác phẩm cố gắng nhồi nhét thật nhiều thứ vào tác phẩm của mình， cả 3 câu chuyện theo mình đều có thể được phát triển thêm thành 3 tiểu thuyết độc lập。 - Truyện hoàn toàn không có chi thiết thừa hay gây nhiễu， tác giả lại thể hiện mong muốn có cú lật khi công bố hung thủ。 Do đó， không khó để người đọc dự đoán hung thủ trong 3 câu chuyện này。 Tuy nhiên， với newbie trong thể loại trinh thám hoặc đọc để giải trí thì cũng ổn。 。。。more
Sarah Mcgrath
，
A classic take on the locked room mystery。 I really enjoyed this Japanese detective story。
Jennie
，
I liked this but was disappointed in the lack of Detective Kindaichi。 He appeared， and he did his thing， but he never felt like a main character。 I probably wouldn’t have noticed as much if I hadn’t read The Inugami Curse first。 （view spoiler）[The resolution was too convoluted and took me out of the story rather than surprising me。 There’s an awful lot of telegraphing in this one。 （hide spoiler）] I liked this but was disappointed in the lack of Detective Kindaichi。 He appeared， and he did his thing， but he never felt like a main character。 I probably wouldn’t have noticed as much if I hadn’t read The Inugami Curse first。 （view spoiler）[The resolution was too convoluted and took me out of the story rather than surprising me。 There’s an awful lot of telegraphing in this one。 （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Pawan Dubey
，
4。5/5， but closer to 4 than a 5。 I enjoy a really interesting detective， and this series definitely is off to a promising start。 The writing is a bit dry but the structure reminded me heavily of Christie - an excellent thing for a crime fiction work。
Rage
，
I enjoy reading these classic Japanese mysteries。 they seem to often focus on how someone was murdered more than why （although that does figure into this story）。 the writing is a bit fussy， with layers of frames （the story is being told after the fact by a mystery writer who interviewed people later and presents some of their notes from the time of the crime） and proper names blocked out （"Dr。 F--"）。 we don't get a ton of insight into Kindaichi， but the doctor does notice that he clearly enjoys I enjoy reading these classic Japanese mysteries。 they seem to often focus on how someone was murdered more than why （although that does figure into this story）。 the writing is a bit fussy， with layers of frames （the story is being told after the fact by a mystery writer who interviewed people later and presents some of their notes from the time of the crime） and proper names blocked out （"Dr。 F--"）。 we don't get a ton of insight into Kindaichi， but the doctor does notice that he clearly enjoys explaining the murders in the most dramatic way possible。 it's a quick read and Kindaichi solves the crime almost immediately after he appears。 。。。more
Rachel
，
Very fun and very interesting to read in the context of where Western detective fiction was at that time！
Simms
，
Classic locked-room mystery， in the Japanese style。 Fascinating to read a Japanese detective story from the 40s that is clearly influenced by （and in more-or-less explicit conversation with） the work of British and American mystery writers but firmly set in its own cultural context。
Mike Scardigno
，
Not the worst idea in the world， but a little unbelievable。 And by a little I mean。。。。very。
Tom
，
This was a really weird book， from the confusing perspective， to the censoring of place names， it was difficult to read， despite being very short。 The conclusion and explanation was interesting， but then felt undone by the last few pages。
Rincey
，
A classic feeling locked room mystery that gets meta as the narrator realizes that they are dealing with a locked room mysteryWatch my thoughts in my October wrap up: https://youtu。be/lo1GTshjHYI A classic feeling locked room mystery that gets meta as the narrator realizes that they are dealing with a locked room mysteryWatch my thoughts in my October wrap up: https://youtu。be/lo1GTshjHYI 。。。more
Victor Brand
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Based I Japan a second rate locked room murder with the most unbelievable sleuth。 Luckily a short book
Lorena
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3。5 rounding up
Jahnavi Gopinath
，
An excellent mystery novel。 It was very interesting that I completed it in a day。 The story is set in Japan where gruesome fate befalls the Ichiyanagi family。 The eldest son Kenzo and his bride are found dead ， soaked in blood ， just the day they got married。 The detective Kosuke Kindaichi is called upon to unravel the mystery surrounding this locked room murder。 What I liked about this book :1。Minimal number of characters。2。 The book is written almost like a report with great importance attache An excellent mystery novel。 It was very interesting that I completed it in a day。 The story is set in Japan where gruesome fate befalls the Ichiyanagi family。 The eldest son Kenzo and his bride are found dead ， soaked in blood ， just the day they got married。 The detective Kosuke Kindaichi is called upon to unravel the mystery surrounding this locked room murder。 What I liked about this book :1。Minimal number of characters。2。 The book is written almost like a report with great importance attached to details of the crime scene and how it was committed3。 Characterization of the antagonists is excellent。 The author not explains the method of killing but also gives a picture of the villain's mind。4。 simple and lucid style of writing 。 No un necessary extension of the story but a short crisp read。5。 Author has given references to other crime novels 。 This acted like a book recommendations too ， giving me a few to read after finishing this book。 This is a must read book for all those who like a short whodunit type of story。 。。。more
SH
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 3。5 stars。*SPOILERS*A detective novel with a mechanism plot， and a cold but believable motivation。 I enjoyed the rural Japanese setting and the mood of the novel a lot， as well as how the meeting of the historical and the modern drive the narrative of the mystery。 The image of the blade in the pristine snow， and the wild plucking of koto strings also lends a theatrical and stylish air to the novel。 Whether this is a plus depends on the reader's tastes; for my part， I prefer my mysteries more moo 3。5 stars。*SPOILERS*A detective novel with a mechanism plot， and a cold but believable motivation。 I enjoyed the rural Japanese setting and the mood of the novel a lot， as well as how the meeting of the historical and the modern drive the narrative of the mystery。 The image of the blade in the pristine snow， and the wild plucking of koto strings also lends a theatrical and stylish air to the novel。 Whether this is a plus depends on the reader's tastes; for my part， I prefer my mysteries more moody， atmospheric and stylish， rather than dark and gritty in the Scandinavian style， so I enjoyed this novel greatly。 。。。more
Linda
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”The Honjin Murders” （Detective Kosuke Kindaichi #1） by Seishi Yokomizo。 Genre: Locked Room Murder Mystery。 Location: Okamura， a rural farming village in Japan。 Time: November 1937。--AUTHOR: The late Seishi Yokomizo is one of Japan’s most beloved authors。 Between 1947 and 1980， he wrote 77 books about beloved detective Kosuke Kindaichi。 However， English translation of the series did not begin until 2019。 This is book 1 in the series。--BOOK: A locked room double murder in a red-ochre painted room ”The Honjin Murders” （Detective Kosuke Kindaichi #1） by Seishi Yokomizo。 Genre: Locked Room Murder Mystery。 Location: Okamura， a rural farming village in Japan。 Time: November 1937。--AUTHOR: The late Seishi Yokomizo is one of Japan’s most beloved authors。 Between 1947 and 1980， he wrote 77 books about beloved detective Kosuke Kindaichi。 However， English translation of the series did not begin until 2019。 This is book 1 in the series。--BOOK: A locked room double murder in a red-ochre painted room， a 3-fingered man， and the sound of a koto （traditional Japanese stringed instrument）。 What really happened？--A writer of detective stories is relocated to a rural village to escape the bombings of cities during the early World War II years。 While there， he decides to investigate and write about the gruesome murder that happened several years before he arrived。 His notes form the narrative。--A Honjin is a traditional Inn reserved for royalty and aristocrats as they traveled during the Shogun era。 In this book， the Honjin’s owners now use it for their private residence。 Descriptions of rooms and items use Japanese names， but a map of the house is provided with rooms and items labeled。 The book is a glimpse into a way of life that no longer exists。 Family lineage and status still ruled in rural villages， but World War II was on the verge of changing life for all。--This is a quiet， serious mystery with plenty of twists and red herrings in its classic “locked room murder” plot。 It’s worth reading for the mystery， and it’s worth reading to learn a little about Japanese rural life in the 1930s， and it’s 4 stars from me。 🌵📚👩🏼🦳” 。。。more
Claire Iverson
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2。5/3。 Not all that deep but entertaining enough for a beach read。
Cat Tobin
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Interesting set-up， I liked Kindaichi as a character， and the story was well told， but I found the reveal was a bit stretched。
Stephanie Moore
，
This book was great！ I did not guess who done it and the twists at the end were so good！ It’s interesting that the book is narrated by someone writing a “try crime” book instead of someone within the story。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Honjin Murders
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Honjin Murders&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Honjin Murders&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0