February 1, 2022

A page turner

Thematic warnings will also spoil a bit of the plot development. If you don't like dark themes this book isn't for you, but specifics behind spoiler tag. I highly recommend checking these if you have specific squicks and icks: dodgy sexual relationships (consensual), sexual assault, pedophilia, incest, murder, suicide

Pretty much the same level as 夜警 I'd guess (same author).

I found myself going, "Do I watch a show tonight...or do I read more?" and wanting to keep reading. The chapters are short and pull you along at a quick pace. Lots of mini-cliffhangers, complicated relationships, and hinted at secrets to keep your interest piqued.

Basic plot: A woman doesn't remember any of the dreams she had as a child, nor anything that happened the day her friend disappeared. 28 years later, she meets a woman who also can't remember her childhood dreams. Then the bones of her friend who went missing turn up in the wall of an old house...

Vocabulary wise there wasn't much for me to look up - if you have a solid base of crime vocab (basic legal words, weapons, body parts, etc) and minor medical vocab you won't either. There isn't any deviation into other subjects with specialized vocabulary. The way characters talk is generally pretty standard with no dialects or other special ways of speaking aside from a tiny bit of yakuza-esque dialogue. Women in 赤川's books seem to end every sentence with わ though which does feel a bit jarring at times (at least for me).

Gradings:26
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on March 12, 2025
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on December 22, 2024
easier thanレゾンデートルL32
cat graded
on December 14, 2024
cat graded
on November 14, 2024
similar in difficulty toマスクL31
cat graded
on July 27, 2024
easier thanシャドウL31
cat graded
on March 11, 2024
easier than正体L30
cat graded
on October 1, 2023
cat graded
on June 24, 2023
similar in difficulty toレベル7 (セブン)L29
cat graded
on February 16, 2023
similar in difficulty toホテル・ピーベリーL29
cat graded
on December 26, 2022
cat graded
on November 24, 2022
easier than教場L34
cat graded
on October 16, 2022
easier than天使の傷痕L33
cat graded
on September 16, 2022
easier than十角館の殺人 1L30
cat graded
on July 25, 2022
easier than仮面病棟L32
cat graded
on June 19, 2022
cat graded
on May 20, 2022
easier thanモテ薬L32
cat graded
on March 2, 2022
cat graded
on February 27, 2022
easier than64L39
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
similar in difficulty to世界から猫が消えたならL28
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
easier than君の名はL30
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
similar in difficulty toおしい刑事L30
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
easier thanよるのばけものL27
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
cat graded
on February 1, 2022
similar in difficulty to夜警L27
cat graded
on February 1, 2022