Welcome to Litsy!

This award winning mystery from Japan has far less to with the crime that is the catalyst for the story than it does with the politics of policing. Interdepartmental rivalries take center stage leading policemen to spend most of the book undermining each other. The pace is slow & much of the focus is on the police relationship with reporters. If you want an exciting murder mystery, this isn‘t it but it is a fascinating look at policing in Japan.

Today‘s book haul features mysteries from Japan, (tagged book which people seem to really like or really not), South Korea, US, and Sweden plus a book about navigating the world of competitive gymnastics. (I recently met the author of the last book and was told by the friend who introduced us that this was the one to read).

It has a lot of potential. There is the escape of the daughter and the mystery of the kidnapping and murder of a little girl. Too bad that the story revolves purely around the working world of the protagonist. I read 136 pages and it was like I stayed on page 1. It's one of the few I couldn't finish it.

If the torment that consumed Ayumi's soul had grown the longer she'd been in there, wouldn't the same have happened to Minako? Outside there are stimuli. There is light, there are seasons, and the activities of the people. There are discoveries that, even for a single moment, make one forget the most excruciating restlessness and pain.

#TemptingTitles #April2023 Day 9: #WithANumber

#Japan #mystery #photochallenges
@Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @Eggs

Finished!
Not what I expected and a couple of times I almost gave up reading this one because its primary focus is the political machinations of the Japanese police force at the center of the fourteen year old kidnapping and murder of a child, rather than the disturbing case itself. However, I‘m glad I stuck with it so I could enjoy the unexpected revelations and excellent conclusion that I never saw coming!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you don‘t hear from me for awhile, don‘t be alarmed...I‘m reading this brick!!! 🙀

Finally finished my #doublespin book that I won a couple years ago from @Liberty

The setup took quite a while, but I could not put it down once I got to about halfway, and it was a wild ride after that. @TheAromaofBooks

I wanted to love this as read some excellent reviews. However, it marginally gets above a pan rating. So much time on internal politics that became so tedious and felt like a broken record at times. I gave up twice but did finish and it is saved by a good ending but was a chore to read overall

Starting this bad boy tonight. Wish me luck☘️!

I raced through this one. Press Director Mikami suddenly finds himself in the middle of a power struggle between two departments at D police station, and this struggle affects the information he‘s given to pass on to the press. So Mikami has to manage the demands of the press of full disclosure and at the same time not having that information. I‘m not familiar with Japanese culture and hierarchy, but after this I feel like I‘ve learned something.

Next up.

I know that this has mixed reviews in here, but it was well received by Norwegian press. And the book is just too pretty.

This #japanesethriller did not do it for me. I just couldn‘t get into the police HQ drama!! Way too much information and too little interest 😴 Perhaps thrillers in general just aren‘t for me, Japanese or not.
#booked2018

This book took me out of my comfort zone, and I‘m pretty sure I liked it. I‘m not saying this is my new fave, it was a solid 3,5⭐️, but it did surprise me with how readable it is, and it felt like a window into a setting I know nothing about. All the drama between the different police departments were super interesting, and for such a slow book it is a real page turner!

#JapaneseThriller #Booked2018 #RecommendationsChallenge2018

#TheDayAfterTomorrow I hope to have made some progress on these two. I‘m hoping to finish this week‘s volume of Les Mis, and get closer to the halfway mark of the tagged book. But both of them are grapping my attention, and when I‘m reading one, I would rather be reading the other 🤷‍♀️ #thestruggleisreal

#SeptemberDanes

I had to go out in the rain today, so I rewarded myself for my bravery with a pastry, a cup of tea (with book infuser!!!) and my current read. Good job me 👏👏👏

#currentlyreading

Apparantly, Les Mis isn‘t enough chunkster action for me, so I started this today. It is my #JapaneseThriller pick for #Booked2018, and I‘m hoping for an engaging read 🤞

#currentlyreading

This book keeps screaming #TakeAChanceOnMe, but I keep picking up other books instead. However, I WILL read this before September is over, because this will be my #JapaneseThriller for #Booked2018. I‘m just not a big thriller/crime reader, so this is really outside my comfort zone.

If you can, please convince me to pick this up!

#ABBAinAugust

I love reading translated mysteries! This one was really interesting but it was my need to know what happened, more than any feelings about the characters or emotional investment, that kept me reading.
3.5 🌟/ 5

Finally finished this one. It's excellent. And the cover photo on the e-book sucks.

A new bubble for my #tbrbingo 😄

Only so-so. It isa politic-thriller about the differences between the administration, the police and press in japan. The thrill isn't that what I have expevct for. The language is wonderful.

Reading now last 100 pages

Reading with the cat. He's fine, only a little lesion he must not lick. #catcontent

Only 210 pages left. It isn't my favorite book. I'm glad to finished it. #reading #currentread

#bookhaul at a local bookstore that I came upon today! All of this for $12 and the purchase price is donated to charities specified by the donor of each book. How insanely awesome 📚

Is someone reading now? I need a little motivation. It isn't the most exciting book, I read. #wirlesen64 #iamreading #thriller #japan

My Saturday afternoon read.Lot of good press on this one.Thought i‘d check it out.

Book and selfmade #icetea #iamreading

Bed and Book right now 🛏 #iamreading #bedandbook #thriller #japan

There it is! 😍Bei Schokobrownie und Latte Macciato wird jetzt gelesen. #wirlesen64

Ankündigung: Es wird ab dem 13. April eine Leserunde zum Buch "64" von Hideo Yokoyama geben. Betreut wird sie vom Buechermonster-Blog und Kaisu von Life4Books.

Vielleicht mache ich auch mit. Alle Kommentare und Infos findet ihr unter dem Hastag #WirLesen64 und auf: http://buecher-monster.de/2018/04/06/ankuendigung-wirlesen64-leserunde-zu-64-von... #leserunde #buddyread

I have maxed out the renews on this library book so this weekend I need to either bail or reach my target of 330 pages... A long session in the hairdressers should help! #bookandblowdry

Okay I am going to mark this as a pick even though it could have easily been a so-so. Our hero is a detective who has been moved into press relations in a district precinct in Japan, a district whose police are haunted by an unsolved kidnaping and who is personally haunted by a daughter who has fled his house. The story unfolds as a police procedural combined with a story of internal department politics, centred on the reopening of the kidnap case

I spent a lovely Sunday morning in one of my favorite independent bookstores!

#LibraryHaul

I‘m not gonna lie ... I was not expecting Six Four to be such a chunkster 😬

Last night watched the last 3 episodes of Six Four and the reason for all the character names beginning with M was illuminated. Amemiya, the father of the girl kidnapped and killed in 1964 spent years going through the phone book crossing out each name because he was convinced he could recognize the killer‘s voice. The cold case restarts again because he did, right at the M‘s; explaining the silent calls to the detective‘s wife! Have to re-read.

20 chapters of internal police politics so far. Something better happen soon!!!
It's no wonder it has such a poor rating on #Litsy

#tournamentofbooks #tob2018 #TheRooster
#ReadingOnRoam

This is the #longestbookIread this year. It clocked in at 25 hours on audio (577 pages in print.) I did enjoy it but it did not need to be this long. Serious dragging near the end.
#allthebooksof2017

Pages and pages of endless exposition with very little actual plot in between. This was barely a crime novel choosing instead to focus on the workplace politics of the press liaison team. I'm not sure how I got through this. Leaving aside the fact that the protagonist detective solves nothing and contributes little to the movement of whatever plot there is, this was very hard to take seriously. Silly fluff that took up too much of my time.

Look at me, I'm just zipping through this tome. 🙂
I do like it. I think the last crime novel I read was The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Also around the holiday season.(The story of this one is different but similar mood and expansive collection of characters.) Maybe a crime thriller is exactly what I need this time of year, to balance out all the Christmas music.
#29 #novemberbythenumbers @JoeStalksBeck @Tiffy_Reads

Next up...this behemoth. 25 hours on audio. 😨 We'll see. I don't often read crime fiction.
#ToB18 #ToBlonglist

Still #TBR

#six #novemberbythenumbers

I bailed on this one but some in my book club loved it. #novemberbythenumbers day 6

It's very nice of Goodreads to cheer me on. Although I find the 'what are you reading next?' Question funny when I have about 15 books on my 'currently reading' shelf. 😂

#RiotGrams, Day 5: Today's prompt is "big books." These were all in my office. ❤️???

Hideo Yokoyama is a genius. Yes, this is a 600-page translation, yes it dwells on the inner workings of the Japanese police-press relationship as well as on the protagonist's inner thoughts, but IT'S ALL RELEVANT. This is one of the most clever, layered reveals I have ever read.

"Mikami gave him a deep nod, maintaining eye contact. He'd meant it as a handshake. Akikawa didn't return the gesture, but a subtle motion of his eye told Mikami he hadn't brushed it off either."

I'm learning so much about the subtleties of non-verbal communication in Japanese culture. I thought, from what I'd heard about this book, that it would be a struggle to read, but I'm completely enthralled.