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“Ever since she was a child, Junko knew she had the power to start fires at will. Now as an adult, she has to take the utmost precaution not to accidentally incinerate her surroundings. But by chance, she happens upon a violent kidnapping, and Junko unleashes a trail of burned bodies in the wake of her mission: save a victim, and cleanse the world of evil. Her actions spark the interest of a secret vigilante group, and the Metropolitan Police, who are puzzled over the murders, but as detective Ishizu Chikako investigates, she realizes what's happening around them is beyond the control of the police department.
Dazzling Mage wrote this review Friday, April 15, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I always have mixed reactions when I read Japanese literature. It can range from being too dry to being very well written, and then the stories are not the formula I'm used to. But I have to say that Miyabe's book was the second I've enjoyed in terms of plot and characters, despite my mixed feelings about it. The book is micro-descriptive. There are A LOT of small details, and it did feel like it bogged down the pace. I don't know how many of it was the writer and how many of it was the translator (I noticed there are some explanations sort of tacked in, I'm guessing that's for the international readers' sake).
The good things about detailed writings though is that it builds up towards the climax. The first half of this book was the build up, the second half had the ball rolling. There was more character engagement, and I loved that. In fact, this is the first time I've come across such normal character emotions in Japanese literature. As for the conclusion, well, I definitely didn't see it coming.
The only problem I had is the pacing. It didn't get fast or urgent towards the end. It was gripping, but.. I don't know. Maybe I'm influenced by Western thrillers. Still, this was a great read. ”
“This book was all right. I liked how they showed both sides of the story and both point of views. It was a nice even exchange between chapters and it went smooth for the most part. I have to admit though, although the beginning of the book really got me it just started to fall short and falls flat midway and I found myself wondering what's going to happen next and how soon because to be honest, I was starting to get a little bored of the book. Not to mention besides the main characters, there were so many other secondary characters mentioned I was left wondering who this person was again and I had to either read back a few pages or commit to memory who they were. It got a little frustrating as they appeared for one chapter and wouldn't come back until much much later. However, I found myself a little more intrigued bit by bit on how all these characters had to be connected somehow to each other and I was left guessing until the last moment. It was actually pretty well done despite these little flaws.
Caroline C wrote this review Thursday, October 29, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
I really did try to like Chikako but just couldn't do it. I was really trying to warm up to her but she was just flat. It just sort of seemed although she put the pieces together and helped solved the crime she really was just there for the ride. There wasn't much personality to her I thought. Unlike Junko. I think she was the main focus in the book hence why she seemed to be the only real character in the book that developed well throughout the book. Junko went from someone who was angry and out for justice to someone who finally found closure and absolute closure.
The plot moved fairly smoothly although there were a bit of bumps and blips here with background information which was useful in some parts but in some other areas of the book it wasn't really necessary. Then sometimes I felt the plot was just going in circles and very redundant. It was really starting to get old. At that point, I wished the plot would have moved more quickly instead of lingering and remaining stagnant. It also felt as if these moments were needed as a space filler. It nearly took the heart and the momentum of the plot because of these bumps.
Overall, it wasn't so bad but it wasn't so great either. It could have been better but the climactic ending did make up for it and as the story came to a close, it had a nice sense of completion. Would I recommend this? Well, that depends. Stick with Junko. She's the more exciting arc in the plot than Chikako. Try and read through the unnecessary stuff but the underlying layers of the plot actually also make up for its shortfalls.
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