The Honjin Murders Book Review

Today, we will be reviewing The Honjin Murders by Seishi Yokomizo and translated by Louise Heal Kawai. This is a classic Japanese murder mystery and finally translated to English for the first time. Keep reading to find out what we thought of this classic Japanese novel!

The Honjin Murders Summary

On a winter next in 1937, a masked man has been seen around in the village of Okamura. Excitement is in the air as the son of the grand Ichiyanagi family is getting married in a few days. What was supposed to be a normal wedding night turns into a murder mystery.

A scream in the night wakes everyone up, followed by the sound of someone playing an instrument. The married couple is found dead inside a locked room and with a samurai sword covered in blood found outside the room, thrust in the snow. Who killed the newly married couple and how did the murderer escape the room?

History of The Honjin Murders Book

The novel was first serialized in the magazine Houseki in December 1946 and went on to win the first Mystery Writers of Japan Award in 1948. Unfortunately, many of the books that won that award have yet to be translated. With the recent increase in translations of Japanese books, I can’t wait to see what other classic Japanese books are translated.

The Guardian named The Honjin Murders as one of the best recent crime novels in 2019 and rightfully so. The mystery in the novel is unique and very creative and very different from your typical western mystery novel. I have been reading a bunch of Japanese mystery novels and they always have a plot twist that you almost can’t predict. It feels like Japanese authors are in a friendly game of outwitting each other with the most creative murders in their novels.

If you haven’t read a Japanese mystery novel before, then you are in for a treat. There is a cultural difference that does impact the direction of the novels but won’t be too much of a barrier when reading these books. And The Honjin Murders is a great place to start and experience the best of Japanese mystery books and what makes them special.

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