Cozy with all typical ingredients for a cozy crime read perfect for the autumn months.

Expect:
masked man
mysterious vibe
atmospheric mood and weather
intelligent investigator
slow and cozy pace

Review: The Mill House Murders by Yukiyo Ayatsuji

I was really craving a short read that was also kind of a cozy mystery (and I’m a lover of translated Japanese fiction) so this seemed like the ideal choice for me.
The Mill House Muders follows the classic locked room situation, so you meet a load of characters and have to work out whilst reading who you think was the person who committed the murder.
Every year, a small group of acquaintances pay a visit to the remote, castle-like Mill House, home to the reclusive Fujinuma Kiichi, son of a famous artist, who has lived his life behind a rubber mask ever since a disfiguring car accident. This year, however, the visit is disrupted by an impossible disappearance, the theft of a painting and a series of baffling murders. The brilliant Kiyoshi Shimada arrives to investigate. But will he uncover the truth, and will you be able to solve the mystery of the Mill House Murders before he does? (I did not lol)
It took me a while to learn who everyone was, alongside their past and their interconnecting relationships with one another, but once you’ve got that down you get thinking about who you think did it. I really enjoyed this mystery style and loved every new bit of information that the reader is fed as you go along to help you try and work it out.
The characters were eccentric which made it a fun read and had interesting dynamics with one another making you accuse every single one of them at points. I will say the two timelines did throw me, and I think if I had a physical copy where I could flick back to remember which time I was in it would have been a better reading experience.
This is definitely more of a cozy slow paced mystery as opposed to a fast paced thriller so keep that in mind before picking it up! It was a fun and easy read, and perfect to read over a rainy weekend.

I wish I loved this more as i really enjoyed the other crime book he wrote. It's not that it was a bad book by any means but i just didn't love it or feel gripped by it. The writing was fine but it wasn't a good as translation as the previous book. I would retry this in the future but at the moment i didn't love it that much.

This book was excellent and gripping from the very beginning of the book right to the very end. As with all of Yukito Ayatsuji's translated works they're wonderfully written and have a classic murder mystery atmosphere that would intrigue and excite any mystery fan, whether they prefer the classics like Agatha Christie or newer mystery and crime novels. As someone who more often than not is able to guess the culprit before the final reveal, I'm always surprised by the twists and turns in Ayatsuji's novels.

I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to all thriller lovers. I enjoyed how unique it is and the storyline captivated me.

Another phenomenal translated locked room mystery from the Japanese Pushkin Vertigo series. I can’t praise this series enough especially if you like a good mystery to solve. Complete with a very useful and much referred to cast list and layout maps, the novel takes place in the same location on the same days of the year over two time periods. The mysterious and illusive curator of his artist father’s visionary work permits a select few visitors over one weekend a year to view the art. The distinctive gallery also happens to be an off-the-grid architecturally unique home which holds mysteries of its own and a deadly past.
Brilliant stuff.
Many thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley.

The title and the blurb really encouraged me to request this book. i saw somewhere that this book is part of a series and while i think this could be read as a standalone, some context may be helpful for this book.

the characters and plot was very interesting but it did seem a little predictable at times. there is such a creepy and eerie setting here and i loved the alternate past and present timelines - it is such a great way to keep a reader hooked to the story,

while this book was enjoyable to read, it wasn't the best for me as i kinda guessed everything after the start. this will be great for those who are big fans of mystery!! i am definitely going to read prior works by this author though and do not think that this is going to be the last thing i will read by them.

A year ago, horrible things happened in the Mill House. Two people murdered, one person and a precious painting missing - and no one can explain how all of it must have happened. Now, Fujinuma Kiichi has once again invited people to his home to look at his father's art, more out of habit and tradition than anything else. But when strange things start happening again, everyone falls under suspicion ...
The Mill House Murders was a very entertaining, suspenseful book. I read the majority in one sitting and even though it's only about 250 pages, none of the story felt rushed or not thought through. I really enjoyed the way hints were dropped throughout the book and that the reader could guess along what actually happened. Lovely read, can't wait to get my hands on more of Yukito Ayatsuji's books!

A satisfying read.

This is a hard review to write if I want to keep it spoiler free.

The Mill House Murders is locked-room mystery that redefines the meaning of slow burn, which is equally satisfying and frustrating. The pacing doesn’t take away from the story at all. If anything, it builds up the tension and the sense of danger. I did not expect the ending at all. In fact, I figured out only half of it. I also love how the author added a self plug within the story for another of his novels, the Decagon House Murders.

This novel is profoundly atmospheric and detailed. The setting (the house itself) is not left to the imagination. I believe this novel to be a perfect candidate for a movie or a TV mini-series.

Despite being supposedly character driven, the characters themselves could have used a little more depth. Other than their common obsession with the paintings displayed in the house, they are not particularly distinguishable from one another other than a few basic traits.

I have enjoyed reading this locked-room mystery and I highly recommend reading it especially when it is raining outside or with rain sounds in the background. The experience is more immersive.

This gave me all the vibes of Decagon House Murders that I loved but with a whole new mystery. A joy for all mystery readers and one I will tell many people to pick up!
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Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my early copy!!

This novel was an absolute joy to read from start to finish. I was hooked from the first chapter, drawn in by the time-jumping style of storytelling, and truly gobsmacked by the twists and turns. The translation is intelligent and captures the eeriness of the story without losing any of the shock value.

I have not read the Decagon House Murders but this did not detract from this novel in any way, which I enjoy. This novel had just the right balance of gore, humour and a satisfying resolution. Though I felt that there could have been a more conclusive ending to the book, I think that the conclusion was coherent with the rest of the novel and very well thought out. The mystery was complex and cleverly framed, it was possible to figure out what was going on but not so obvious as to ruin the twist in the storyline.

Overall, I loved this novel and I am intrigued by this author's style, and I will definitely be looking out for more of their books!

I read and enjoyed The Decagon House Murders by the same author, so I thought I'd try the second book in the collection.

However, I found The Mill House Murders annoyingly unbelievable with unconvincing plot and character motivations. I also found the treatment of the three women featured in the book to be really unpleasant: two women are killed after only a brief introduction whereas the third woman is a submissive, groomed ex-child-captive half the age of the male characters but continually drooled over by all. Ick.

There is also a split time narrative - half the novel taking place in 1985 and the other half in 1986, with the story hopping between the two times. Unfortunately, the cast, the occurrences and even the weather are very similar for both years, so it's difficult to keep track of which year you're reading about if you put the book down.

Unfortunately, this one wasn't for me.

I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Pushkin Press in exchange for an honest review.

I am loving this recent boost in translating Japanese murder mysteries, and The Mill House Murders is no exception. I read and loved The Decagon House Murders last year, and this book had a similar setup but with a completely different mystery and feel, which I really appreciated.

The Mill House Murders is the story of a strange group of people who gather every year in the same house to view a collection of prestigious paintings. One year though, a horrible string of events results in two people dead. The following year, people gather as usual but are joined by a detective who wants to solve the mystery of what really happened a year ago.

This book is told across two time points, the past and the present. The main character linking these together is Fujinuma Kiichi, a man who hides his face behind a rubber mask due to an accident which left him disfigured long ago. This style of narration/structure works quite well. I found I didn't often get confused about what time period it was, something which the distinct characters also helped a lot with. It was interesting seeing the mystery unfold in 'real time' whilst also getting the investigation of the present day.

In terms of tone, this book excellently captures that kind of Christie-esque vibe. I was surprised (perhaps naively so) how culturally accessible it was from that standpoint. I thoroughly enjoyed the creepiness of the mystery, the intrigue of the characters and the overall premise and solution.

Overall, I strongly recommend this book if you enjoy traditional murder mysteries. The plot is captivating, the characters intriguing and the writing/translation is very entertaining. An enjoyable read all round!

Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

This was the first of Yukito Ayatsuji's murder mystery books that I tried - I don't usually read murder mysteries, but have always enjoyed things like Poirot on TV, and have read other examples of Japanese fantasy and contemporary literature, so thought I'd give it a go.

Overall, it was good, though I struggle to say I fully enjoyed it - I'm not sure if I'm just not much of a mystery reader and would have enjoyed it more as a TV production, or if it just didn't hit the mark for me. From reading other translated Japanese fiction, I understand that culturally, stories do tend to have a different way of forming and a different way for the language to be used, and I think that comes across well in the translation. However, I did struggle with some of the paragraphs of lengthy detail about the setting itself or the layout of the buildings etc, and the way it jumped back and forth in time, often with very similar actions or dialogue happening (intentionally, but sometimes just a bit confusing).

I had a feeling about who did it from fairly early on, but there were still bits I didn't spot. Part of me wonders if it would benefit from a second read, to see if some of those clues were there from the start - some of it seemed to have come out of nowhere. I did find the relationship between Kiichi and Yurie uncomfortable, and I don't think the inappropriateness of it is addressed enough considering the way it was formed. I also found some of the characters a little two-dimensional, though it was a short novel and not really necessary for the tale to really understand all of them. I think the "snapshot" feeling is common in the Japanese lit I've read, and it's a feature I like.

I did like the solution and found some of the plot points creepy and intriguing. I also liked how it apparently linked into the other books in the series, and how there was an element of the unusual and macabre to the whole story. I do think I'd read other books by this author, and I did finish it, so it wasn't bad, I'm just not sure if it was right for me personally.

3.5 stars

I probably enjoyed this as much as Decagon House Murders. It is certainly very much in the same strain but then it is a locked room mystery so there have to be similarities.

The story is split into two timelines with a flashback to a previous accident. The owner of the Mill House has a tradition of inviting a select few friends to his home on the same day every year to look at the collection of his artist father's paintings. During the previous year there had been a storm during which the housekeeper had died followed by a painting going missing, a body being found and a man going missing.

The current timeline sees the same cast arrive at the house during a storm and they fear and joke about a repeat of the previous year's tragedies. However this time they are joined by the brilliant investigator, Kiyoshi Shimada, who has come to find out what really happened to the missing man who was his friend.

The two timelines, being quite similar did confuse me somewhat and you do have to pay attention to which year you are in. I did sort of figure some bits out but not the complete picture.

This is a cosy mystery in that there isn't huge amounts of gore and a lot if the action is cerebral. If you want blood, gore and sex then this is obviously not for you. However I love a mystery like this where your brain begins to hurt as you try to put the pieces together.

Yukito Ayatsuji was a prolific writer and I'm hoping for many more of his works to be translated.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This book was a lot of fun, I had a really great time reading it.

The story is set in an isolated house and is divided in two storylines: the first in the past, one year ago, when two mysterious deaths, a theft and a disappearance happened; the second is one year later, when strange things start happening again. I really liked how the two storylined alternated and even complimented each other, and I found both very interesting.

Apart from the enjoyable story, the setting was quite ominous, and the cast of characters was bizarre. They weren't particularly well developed, but they were easy to distinguish, and interesting to follow.

The mystery and the solution was intricate, a little improbable and far-fetched, so it won't work for some readers. Luckily, I tend to enjoy this type of plots, so I really liked it. I guessed part of the solution, but I was very surprised by other revelations, so it was overall satisfying for me. It was definitely reminiscent of Agatha Christie and of Sōji Shimada (who wrote The Tokyo Zodiac Murders), so if you enjoy their books, you should give this one a try.

My students are all obsessed over any style of murder mystery right now,with an emerging popularity of translated fiction. After reading this, I feel this could be a new smash hit for them.

The Mill House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji is a classic whodunit novel with a slow-burn plot and old-school vibes; however, I struggled to stay engaged, possibly due to the translation, as the writing felt stilted at times and the pacing seemed slow in certain parts though it may just be that I didn't have a great connection with any of the characters. The novel jumps back and forth from the present day to the past, adding complexity but also requiring careful attention to keep track of the timeline. Overall, The Mill House Murders is a decent whodunit with a nostalgic feel, but some readers may find it challenging to fully immerse themselves in the story.

I want to take a moment to thank Netgalley, Pushkin Press and Yukito Ayatsuji for the free copy I received in return for an honest review.

This took me much longer to read than I anticipated. I kept confusing the characters because they were not very developed and if you don't know Japanese, this makes remembering who is who extra difficult. The mystery in itself is clever but not overly so. About halfway through an experienced crime reader can guess where this will be going. It's interesting enough, but not the best Japanese mystery novel I have read.

The Mill House Murders is a locked room murder mystery with almost fairy tale like elements. I loved the setting, the mix of characters and the brilliant Kiyoshi Shimada. This was quite simply a 5 star read that I would recommend to all mystery crime lovers; especially those who like the locked room trope.