quite impressive!!!
if we ignore all the unnecessary details and them wiping their sweat again and again and again, this was a really good book!
plot shifting from whodunit to howdunit and the way they broke the alibi was what impressed me! 👏🏼 the howdunit part was my favourite! the murder was so cleverly planned that if it were not for a sharp-minded detective, it would have been impossible to solve and that is what i love in mysteries – a cleverly planned murder! 🙂‍↕️

thanks to the publisher and the netgalley for the copy!

Read it in one sitting! Like a lot of Japanese mysteries, the going is a bit slow initially, but the payoff is quite good. It's always fun to try and figure out whodunnit though I can never seem to get it right in an Ayukawa mystery. :D

At first I thought the translation was clumsy but as I went on, the commentary and awkward phrasing began to make sense among the two close friends who kick off this story of murders ..a brutal CEO negotiated hard with a union whose members were forced to join a dangerouscreligious sect .. the complicati9ns add up, and by the time who the murderer is worked out by a poplar detective (who appears in the series) a picture of their works has been effectively worked up. Unusual and almost persuasive motivation is worked out in landscape and tactics .
. But I can imagine it's popularity. And japanese habits of wiring and contexts are very enjoyable

Cults! Trains! Trade Unions! Murder! What more could you need?

I’ve been loving Pushkin Vertigo’s translated Japanese crime fiction. The Black Swan Mystery is one of their newest offerings - published in English in fall 2024 - and while it wasn’t my favourite book the imprint has published, it’s a fun addition to their list.

The premise is great and promised a really fun read (please see the opening line of this review).It’s a complicated tale of twisty murder, false starts and failed investigations, and the efforts to break the alibi of the prime suspect. I loved a number of the side characters (no spoilers as to who) and really enjoyed the sprawling investigation that takes place all over Japan. The reveal of the crime, how it happened, and the resolution are all quite complex and maybe a little overly complicated, but I certainly didn’t mind!

This book does have some quirks though. The main detective is quite forgettable - I don’t even remember his name. In fact, he doesn’t even show up until halfway through the book. A strange choice to be sure! However, the number of side characters, including other investigators, kept my interest in the story. I’m curious to find out of this is the first in a series - I’d definitely pick up the next one if it is.

The Black Swan Mystery is a fun, complex mystery and a cracking read. I found myself curled up with my Kindle long after I should have been asleep. And isn’t that the best endorsement of all?

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

An intriguing mystery murder set in 1960s Japan, for a lot of the book you are misled by various red herring characters and plots. It feels very in vein with other Japanese crime novels like Six Four by Hideo Yokoyama and the Inspector Imanishi novels in terms of approach to the plot format, however for me at least this particular novel feels somewhat akin to an Agatha Christie novel in it's many twists and turns and the way Chief Inspector Onitsura comes to his conclusion as to who committed the crime, how and why, what first seems to be the case is not at all...

Many thanks to netgalley & Pushkin for the e-arc.

There is a lot of characters in this book which I found hard to keep up with and remember who was who. I did enjoy this book once I got into it.

First I'd like to say that I really enjoy Japanese mystery and crime books. They are usually very advanced to creative plots and storylines. That being said, one thing that also comes with that is, that it is probably harder to translate, thus harder to follow at times. Still these kind of crime and murder mystery books remain my favourite.

With 'The Black Swan Mystery' we have the first book of a series, a part that probably is most confusing is that the main Protagonist won't be appear till halfway through the book and even after that he doesn't play much of a role. Generally I think there was a lot going on that doesn't appear to play a big role to the actual crime and storyline, but maybe some parts will become relevant later on again. I'm definitely looking forward to the next part of the series, but would still be cautious recommending the book because it does get a bit hard to read sometimes especially with all the seemingly unnecessary mentioning of place names and the language used by one of the officers.

I love a good murder mystery and the past couple of years I've really got into the niche that is Japanese murder mysteries. So I was excited to read this one, especially as it's the first in a series. Additionally I used to live in Tokyo, so I got a little hit of nostalgia from all the place names and travelling around on the trains.

Unfortunately though, I just found it a bit confusing. I didn't initially realise that this story was to introduce Inspector Onitsura as he doesn't even appear in the story until about halfway through. Even then, the original set of detectives continue investigating the crimes and they very much share the deductions. I enjoy an intricately woven story but I just felt like the strands were a bit too tangled.

I'd probably read more in this series though now that I've been introduced to the characters. But I don't think I'd recommend this as an entry point into Japanese murder mysteries for people new to them.

Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Pushkin Vertigo for an ARC.

The Black Swan Mystery is your classic murder mystery novel, but it unfortunately didn't hit many high notes for me. To start with, the Black Swan has very little to do with the murder, and, with the amount of times this novel refers to trains, would've been better named after one of the poignant stations.

It seems this is the start of an 'Inspector Onitsura' series, yet this character doesn't actually come into play until half way through the book. When it comes to the characters, not one of them stood out to me as particularly entertaining or memorable. It seemed the author wanted Onitsura and Tanna to be a renewed version of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson, yet there were very few personable moments between them that built up the idea of a good friendship/partnership. I don't understand why the book started with two different detectives instead of spending time on building the foundation blocks of their partnership.

I found the story hard to follow at times, particularly because of the sheer amount of place names mentioned which felt unnecessary to the storyline. It felt like the characters went all over Japan and giving me the place names in a country I've never been to added absolutely nothing but confusion and boredom to me.

There is also a worrying amount of derogatory remarks made about almost all of the female characters. One detective would either be distracted by a woman's beauty, or, mostly, making negative remarks, such as one character being referred to as ugly because she wasn't wearing make up, and a couple of female maids were referred to as stupid and/or fat, with food joked as being her main priority.

The ending was anti-climatic, not that the book really built up to anything, with the murderer basically telling you everything that happened anyway, so it felt like it was all a waste of time.

Overall, this felt like an average read - nothing truly ground-breaking or exciting, but nothing horrendously bad either. Some people who enjoy all murder mysteries might enjoy this read, but personally, I'll go back to Sherlock Holmes!

Chief Inspector Onitsura and his assistant Tanna are called in to investigate a murder when a body is found near the railway tracks.

I loved this book. Originally written in 1960s, the atmosphere is really great. There are lots of twists and turns, and the detectives don't come to answers too quickly. As a reader, you are convinced of a few different outcomes as it goes through the novel, and there is a satisfying conclusion.

Timetables are quite important in the book, and the PDF version that I had wasn't formatted in a table like it would be in the print version. This took me out of the book a little, as they feature a bit within the text, however it didn't take from the overall enjoyment.

Thanks to the publishers for an advanced ecopy for review.

Review:
✨I shall say this book is a technical murder mystery because it played with various railway schedules. There are several maps and schedules in the book, which makes me think this book is better read in a physical format, because it is easier to flip the pages.
✨The plot and the writing are engaging enough for me. Plus, I’m interested in how the chapters are written by numbering the sections. This is because some of these sections actually can be combined together, in my opinion.
✨The interesting part of this story is that the police had known the murderer quite early, but they had a tough time cracking the alibi.
✨In terms of death, there are deaths that I remorse, and also there are deaths that made me think, the victims kind of deserved it.
✨For the murderer, I do not agree with some of their actions, but I understand their desperation.
✨Thank you to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for this ARC! This review is voluntarily written by me.

I've read a couple of the Japanese crime translations from Pushkin Vertigo and The Black Swan Mystery was definitely my favourite so far! The whole mystery is tied up with the mobility that trains offered Japan at the time and this meant the characters travel to a range of locations. I particularly enjoyed the postwar setting as it included so many small details about how society was shifting and the reality of the country rebuilding itself. I was a little confused by the quick switch in investigating police half way through but it didn't detract from the plot as the pace started to really pick up as new approaches were taken.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, both for the murder mystery and for the insights into Japan, and it's one I'm looking forward to rereading in the future!

I’m a fan of Japanese detective books and was so excited to be given the opportunity to read The Black Swan Mystery by Tetsuya Ayukawa.

The body of a prominent textile owner is found by the side of railway tracks one morning. The business has been in the press recently as his company has been in dispute with Unions.

Chief Inspector Onitsura and his assistant Tanna and a team of detectives investigate and find themselves criss-crossing across Japan trying to unearth what happened.

Having once lived in Japan myself, I really enjoyed reading the book and the detectives travelling by train across Japan.

Suspects abound and alibis investigated. There are so many twists and turns, red herrings and blind alleys that it’ll keep you hooked.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Pushkin Press, for making this e-ARC available to me in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Black Swan Mystery the first translated edition of the Inspector Onitsura stories. It's a locked room mystery set in the 1960s Japan and has a varied cast of characters including, of course, the intrepid Detective charged with unravelling the mystery. Despite all of these elements (that I typically love), this one didn't really click for me. I think the intricacy of the plotting and the need to introduce multiple key characters meant that the pace was generally slow and I found it a clunky read.

Despite those issues this is very Agatha Christie alike and ultimately I didn't guess the culprit or they why which is why I set it as a solid 3 star mystery and I'm sure it will hit the spot for other mystery fans, especially those who enjoy Japanese mysteries.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo for this digital review copy of "The Black Swan Mystery" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

I enjoyed this book a lot must say though, I think it could be a good it 100 pages shorter. I liked the writing style and it was easy to read and had the flow of a simple literary fiction. But in the end it got really repetitive. I am super happy that this was one of my favorite tropes and I did not expect that. I cannot tell you though, as it would be a spoiler.

Over all a 4/5 for me.

The Black Swan Mystery offers an intriguing premise, but overall, I found it less compelling than other Japanese detective novels I’ve read. The pacing felt slow, and the narrative lacked the straightforward clarity I typically enjoy in this genre. The story is intricately woven, but the unusual high number of characters investigating made it hard to keep track of who was who. I often found myself confused about the sequence of events as chapters shifted between different characters' perspectives. While individual chapters were enjoyable on their own, the transitions between them felt disjointed, making it difficult to fully immerse myself in the unfolding mystery. That said, the book does have its strengths. If you appreciate a more complex and layered approach to storytelling, this may be a good fit. For me, the slower pace and intricate structure left me feeling a bit lost at times, but it was still an enjoyable read.

This is the second classic Japanese mystery I’ve read where train tables are important to the story. It’s intricately plotted and the detail can be a bit overwhelming but I did enjoy the pace and characters.

This award winning Japanese crime classic, originally published in 1959 has been translated and released in English. It’s a complex puzzle of a murder mystery relying a lot on train timetables and some dogged sleuthing by the detectives. Set in post war Japan, it’s also interesting from a historical point of view and I enjoyed the insights into the culture and everyday lives and attitudes as well as a glance at fledgling workers unions and women’s rights.

It all starts with the body of a murdered man found near the railway lines. He was the Director of a textile company with a range of suspects who would benefit from his death and are all harbouring secrets and lies. It takes a lot of lengthy legwork (all by train) for the investigating detectives to follow up on clues and check out alibis. I didn't find the inclusion of the lengthy train timetables helpful, but perhaps they just didn't work in kindle format. Otherwise it was generally well written and translated with a touch of wry humour.

Secrets, lies and red herrings galore in Tetsuya Ayukawa’s award-winning, 1950s murder mystery. Ayukawa’s plot’s labyrinthine but deeply engaging, laced with unexpected twists and turns. Its plot hinges on trains and railway timetables building on Ayukawa’s background as the child of a railway surveyor and his love for the work of Golden Age crime writer Freeman Wills Crofts. Unsurprisingly aspects of the style and the setting for the central crime – the first of a succession of suspicious deaths – have drawn comparisons with Ayukawa’s contemporary Seichō Matsumoto’s Tokyo Express. But where Matsumoto’s story suggested brooding black-and-white, I imagined this playing out in vintage technicolour, mostly because of Ayukawa’s compelling imagery and meticulous scene-setting - fashion, buildings, immediate surroundings are all richly represented.

Like Matsumoto, Ayukawa combines a dense puzzle-style plot with a socially-conscious sensibility; gradually constructing a remarkably vivid portrait of Japan with an emphasis on the lingering aftereffects of post-war deprivation – his approach sometimes reminded me of Sjöwall and Wahlöö writing about Sweden. Ayukawa’s Japan is rife with social inequalities and contradictions: burgeoning consumerism exists alongside worker exploitation and a struggling trade union movement; shamanistic cults take advantage of a pervasive, existential unease; wealthy corporate executives pay lip service to social proprieties but frequent red-light districts in their spare time.

Although it’s billed as the first of a series featuring Inspector Onitsura, he doesn’t turn up until the halfway mark. The actual investigation’s unusually collaborative in nature involving an array of police officers and even amateur, civilian detectives. The first half has a slightly restless, fragmented feel, possibly rooted in its original serialization, but settles down as it progresses. Ayukawa inserts numerous dense, technical elements but these are carefully interwoven with flashes of wry humour, complex characterisations, and moving psychological insights. All of which made this an incredibly satisfying read, Onitsura is a sympathetic, intriguing creation, I’m looking forward to meeting him again. Translated by Bryan Karetnyk.

I’m a fan of Japanese writing - something just hits right with me with the style, but this one is a absolute corker of a book. The translator, Bryan Karetynk has done an incredible job - it can’t be easy translating and keeping the level of tension.

This is a twisty tale of two police trying to catch the killer of the mill owner…who did it and why?!

I loved every second of this book, and I just couldn’t put it down.

Absolutely brilliant!

My thanks to Netgalley and Pushkin Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.