The Inugami Curse

Paperback, 320 pages

English language

Published Feb. 6, 2020 by Pushkin Vertigo.

ISBN:
978-1-78227-503-9
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4 stars (4 reviews)

In 1940s Japan, the wealthy head of the Inugami Clan dies, and his family eagerly await the reading of the will. But no sooner are its strange details revealed than a series of bizarre, gruesome murders begins. Detective Kindaichi must unravel the clan's terrible secrets of forbidden liaisons, monstrous cruelty, and hidden identities to find the murderer, and lift the curse wreaking its bloody revenge on the Inugamis.

The Inugami Curse is a fiendish, intricately plotted classic mystery from a giant of Japanese crime writing, starring the legendary detective Kosuke Kindaichi.

2 editions

reviewed The Inugami Curse by Seishi Yokomizo (Kindaichi Kosuke)

Quite Enjoyable

4 stars

The thing I have to focus on is that I very much liked the character of Kindaichi Kosuke, and it's particularly because he reminded me of Columbo (so it's also quite adorable to me that both characters have existing statues in the world). I know that Columbo came after him, but they both have the kind of unique charm of an incredibly observant person who appears a little haphazardly bumbling at times. I don't know why, but this kind of detective is far more engaging to me. Perhaps because it makes the detective feel more relatable and like it's just that they happen to see the world through a different lens which helps them make connections that others can't.

I really enjoy the mystery and the structure. While there are a couple red herrings, the primary thing that seems to be utilised are a lot of well-placed Chekhov's guns... Except …

Good detective fiction

4 stars

Having not previously heard of Seishi Yokomizo, I relied on my faith in the quality of work published by Pushkin Vertigo when choosing to download a review copy of The Inugami Curse from NetGalley and I am glad to say that I wasn't at all disappointed! The character of independent sleuth Kosuke Kindaichi was great fun to read about and made a refreshing change from the norm. He's not a divorced alcoholic, but does have suitably quirky personal habits a traits that make him come across as less of a threat to the criminally inclined than he really is.

Kindaichi has his work cut out to unravel the convoluted trail of murders surrounding the Inugami family as its members start to be picked off one after the other and I imagine Yokomizo must have spent hours painstakingly plotting this novel in order to keep everything plausible. There is a surprisingly …

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rated it

3 stars