So, if you've read some of my other blog posts then you would have figured out that while I read almost any genre, I have a soft spot for two in particular: fantasy and mysteries. This novel is a murder mystery and it is exactly the kind of murder mysteries I enjoy reading.
So, here's my review:
There is an old saying to the effect that when an elderly person dies a library disappears
The Aosawa Murders
In 1960, a prominent family of doctors, who run the local clinic, hosted a party to celebrate a birthday (and another occasion). At the party, 17 people died of cyanide poisoning after drinking sake. A few people survived but after messing up the case the first time, police investigators failed to get any useful clues, eventually, many of the survivors died as well, some naturally and some under suspicious circumstances.
The one certain thing is that the sole survivor of this tragedy, the family's blind daughter, Hisako, could be the key to solving this mystery once and for all. But, during the first investigation, the possible suspect killed himself and investigators assumed he was guilty because of it. Now, with new evidence coming to light, police are reopening the investigation and are focusing on Hisako, suspecting that she could be the true suspect all along.
This was a both fun and confusing novel. It was confusing because the story is told through various perspectives, so we get bits and pieces of interviews, narration by different characters, witness statements and police evidence reports etc. This is confusing because who the narrator is for each chapter is not always labelled, so it did put me off a few times since I briefly had to figure out who the narrator was. However, in saying so, I also think that this narration method made the story much more interesting. It felt like I was solving the mystery along with the investigators and that extra bit of excitement made my reading experience so much more enjoyable.
The plot is brilliant as well. While the ending is vague and ambiguous, I strongly suspected that the murderer was Hisako from the beginning. There were a lot of casual clues embedded within the story that made Hisako seem like the natural culprit. I also loved how even though a lot of the witness statements varied, all the witnesses somewhat had consistent statements about their impression of Hisako. Making Hisako look even more mysterious and suspicious. So, the plot and characterisation were amazing.
Overall, I think that while the chapters were a bit confusing, I loved the way the story was told. All these varying accounts and perspectives on the murder were so interesting and it was a great mystery novel. So, that's it for my review, thank you so much for reading and I hope you have a lovely day.
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