Member Review

The Meiji Guillotine Murders by the much-loved Japanese author Futaro Yamada is unlike any murder mystery I have read. Published originally in 1979, this historical crime novel set in the 1860s Tokyo offers an illuminating commentary on the fast-changing socio-political landscape of Japan during the Meiji Restoration era through a series of complex mysteries.

The entire nation is in turmoil following the defeat of the centuries-long shogunate rule, with several factions vying to strengthen their hold over the government and a few individuals wielding their power to oppress those who oppose them. Chief Inspectors Toshiyoshi Kawaji and Keishiro Kazuki, the brightest and the most upright members of the Imperial Prosecuting Office – an agency tasked to fight crime as well as official corruption – are friends with a healthy rivalry. Together, they investigate a series of crimes, each seemingly impossible and unsolvable, with the help of five corrupt sergeants of the city police – known as ‘rasotsu’ – who have been given a last chance to mend their ways and a mysterious French woman living with Kazuki who is well-versed in the Shinto ritual of summoning spirits. Tightly interwoven with each crime is the escalating conflict between the old and the new – tradition and modernisation – which makes things uncomfortable, deadly even, for the investigators and people connected to them.

The Meiji Guillotine Murders is extremely difficult to get into, with the short but heavy history lesson at the beginning, the introduction of too many characters – fictional and historical – with similar-sounding names, and the esoteric seeming solutions to the mysteries. But rewarded is the reader who persists, as I did, until the end, where all the bizarre elements come together coherently towards the compelling climax. The author’s depiction of Tokyo’s landscape, political and otherwise, seems authentic, based on what my internet searches revealed about the era, particularly about Kawaji being a historical figure credited with establishing the modern Japanese police force. All the lead characters are neatly carved, and the graphic descriptions of the violent crimes are not for the squeamish. Bryan Karetnyk’s English translation is excellent, and Pushkin Press deserves a lot of appreciation and gratitude for bringing such wonderful literature to the world audience.

I greatly enjoyed reading The Meiji Guillotine Murders and am thankful to Pushkin Vertigo for the digital review copy through NetGalley.