 |
Shizuko Natsuki
235pp
Wonderful is the time when a new mystery writer in translation lands in one's lap.
Murder at Mt. Fuji by Shizuko Natsuki was the first of Natsuki's works to be published in English, being a huge hit in Japanese and having been made into a film.
The setup is quite unique. Basically we have a closed door mystery, with various holes in the walls appearing from time to time.
To avoid spoilers I'll keep things vague, but someone is dead, a dozen people were nearby, it seems to have been self defence and instead of the usual search for a killer Natsuki takes a big turn and gets all the players to scheme together to save everyone and put the blame on an outside stranger.
This is quite interesting and not the usual fare and along with Natsuki's style it makes for a fresh feeling to begin our mystery. This last for a reasonably good while, dries up a bit in the middle, then comes back around to end with some surprises and a nice tightly wrapped up ending.
Overall this book works, with the slow down in the middle forgivable and the book ends quite enjoyable. It never rises up to be anything more than a cheap pulp mystery, but for what it is it will satisfy fans.
Recommended mildly, but good enough to check on another Natsuki mystery same day when I need something fun and simple.
Comments
Post a Comment