For a book first out in the 1980s, this seems really plummy. The narrator and several of the characters begin proceedings with an edge to them that doesn't ring true as how people actually speak – a flaw in translation, I have to guess. That said, the stilted fashion ends up being there for a realistic reason after a particular event – for this concerns the reaction a rich Japanese family has to the murder of one of them – by one of them.

Yes, there's a man big in big pharma, and his family are spending a few days sans servants in a lakeside villa of theirs; the main, and much beloved, daughter figure has her American friend too, as there's important English revision and tuition to be done. When one of them doesn't survive the night the family close in around the killer, and make sure they have a united alibi. Nothing must get out. But this raises huge issues for the book that it just can't get over – they know the killer, and we know the killer – so when the thing turns into a police procedural, and they go through so many typical lines of enquiry that are wrong for this atypical crime – well, we know everyone's time is being wasted, including ours. Either that or <spoiler> we really don't know the killer…</spoiler>

That procedural proves to be quite the plod, as police ring themselves up with what seem irrelevancies (and all the time <spoiler> not a single one of them seems to query how the flour got outside in the snow, nor the vital bit about how the girl returned without any book after all </spoiler>). The whole novel could have been any proportion shorter and not suffered, with the front-loading triggers (of <spoiler>incest, suicide attempts and forced feeding </spoiler>) going against the strong lack of grit elsewhere.

All told, there were far too many reasons on display here as to why it was 'lost' for so long. OK, I read a reason as to why the first chapter was so bad – the American lass's character was pasted on for the translated market, so could have come from anywhere – but not why the rest was so mediocre and uneventful, nor why the view from Jane's bedroom changes midway. A slightly generous two stars for a thriller where you probably don't see the full truth until the end – but you can't see the wood for the trees when it comes to flaws.

Unexpected Twists..
When Jane is invited to spend holidays with classmate Chiyo she couldn’t refuse - spending New Year at a luxurious mansion at the foothills of Mount Fuji is a dream come true. As all gather at the mansion, a snowstorm starting, something wholly unexpected and heinous occurs. A reissue of a classic Japanese crime mystery with a well drawn cast, an atmospheric setting and a dark plot bubbling with suspense and often unexpected twists.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone for the ARC

A wonderful murder mystery! Murder at Mount Fuji was full of unexpected twists and had me totally enthralled. The pacing was a but slow at start but it built up to a great momentum. I really enjoyed my time reading!

This book had such great twists, it kept my attention all the way through and showed me exactly why I love mysteries.

It's great that publishers look to the past to bring to our attention novels that have been 'rediscovered'. Shizuko Natsuki's Murder at Mount Fuji is one such novel, published in the 1980's this murder mystery is a a great read for those who enjoy their crime with lots of twists as the family pull together to hide the perpetrator of the murder in their midst.

This was a wonderful mystery, full of unexpected twists. I loved the setting and felt that it was evoked really well. Although perhaps a little slow to start the pace picked up very nicely and I found myself hooked after the first quarter of the book. I enjoyed the writing style and felt like the translation was well done. A perfect mystery for a chilly night.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review

This 'rediscovered classic novel' (originally published in 1982 titled 'The Tragedy of W' in tribute to Ellery Queen's Tragedy of...novels, and adapted several times for screen) is a deceptive thing.
Japanese fiction (and I'm a big fan of a number of Japanese writers) can sometimes appear to go against the 'show don't tell' principles: emotions/ reactions and character details are writ bold with little or no room for ambiguity. This can be a little disorientating for western readers at first and occasionally seem 'simplistic' or 'dry'. This novel may come across that way at first: there's a touch of the Columbo here in that we know what the crime is very early on and who did it. The ensuing story shows how the extended family and friends present at the New Year's celebration do their best to cover up the actions in order to divert focus on the culprit as the local police begin to investigate. Further, as the police do start looking into the case it may seem the elaborate plan is picked apart and flaws found all to easily by the investigating officers...
All I'll say is, don't take things at face value: either in the writing stye nor the plot. Not everything is as it seems.
If you're new to Japanese crime fiction this is a relatively gentle start in comparison to a lot of western fiction: the term cozy is thrown around: while it's true there's no graphic detail of violence or language there are some serious cultural ramifications and observations at play here that perhaps fly under the radar for non Japanese readers a little.
Don't be put off by the apparent simplicity of the story...keep reading and you may find you get much more out of the novel than you first suspect.

I enjoyed the writing style in this book. It was slightly formal in the writing but made for addictive reading. I am happy to award 4 stars to Murder at Mount Fuji. A good whodunnit but a slow burner, have patience. Thanks go to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC.

I am not sure why we keep describing detective stories as cozy when they always start with a murder - and the police getting involved, but we do and this book falls into cozy territory very neatly.

The book is marketed as a "rediscovered classic"; it was published in Japan in 1982 and its English translation in 1984. The translation is, I understand, adapted for a Western audience, and the main witness, American student Jane Prescott, does not appear in the original version.

We start just after the New Year, with the whole family gathered in the luxurious Wada family villa, surrounded by snow, when Jane's friend and student Chiyo announces she has just stabbed their grandfather. The whole family decides they must cover for her, and we then follow as the detectives try to uncover what exactly happened.

There are several clever twists, and the translation read very smoothly - it had all the ingredients I normally expect from the classics of the genre. I am not sure what the original version is like as this one has been adapted, but it was a quick and fast-paced read that I'd recommend to anyone who enjoys a classic whodunnit.

An isolated house in the hills surrounding Mt Fuji, 9 house guests, and, inevitably, a murder. A coverup ensues, and the plot goes through twists and turns, until the murder is uncovered.

I was impressed by my own reaction to the book. During the first part (roughly third) I was underimpressed. The writing and plot development felt shallow and predictable, and the characters were, at best, uninteresting. The police procedural developing in parallel to the plot was lethargic and bureaucratic, and despite glimpses of brilliance, lacked engagement.

However, the author in fact reeled you into a false sense of boredom, and, through twists and turns, turned everything upside down. This was the most impressive part of the book, which, otherwise, continued to lack any notable character development, or exciting police work.

Overall, an interesting read that is underpinned by a good set of ideas, but nothing particularly remarkable. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book in return for an honest review.