I enjoyed listening to this audiobook, and found the narration easy to listen to as the narrator was obviously familiar with Japanese pronunciation. The book was written not long after it was set (1947), and it was very interesting to read about life in Japan immediately post-war, especially how society was fundamentally changing.
The plot itself is complex, and the characters not especially likeable, but I was quickly hooked. I shall look out for more from this author.

The Devil’s Flute Murders is set in 1947, as Japan continues its slow recovery from WWII. A young woman, Mineko, asks Kindaichi for help. Mineko’s father, Viscount Tsubaki, was found dead, apparently of suicide, but it seems that his ghost is haunting their family, especially her mother Akiko. It turns into a complex case with multiple murders, questions of ghostly visitation, a family history that must be explored, and many family members, friends, and servants living on the estate grounds.

It’s an atmospheric mystery, with the potential ghost, spooky music, even bad weather all playing into the feeling. The book is also full of period detail. Following the war, Japan is dealing with a lot, including planned blackouts, crowded trains with hard to obtain tickets, food shortages, and bombed and lost homes, some of which contribute to the plot.

I listened to the audio. The narrator did a good job with the pronunciations and accents, as far as I could tell, and with distinguishing the many characters.

Kindaichi is one of those detectives that notices things that others don’t, but always looks a bit disheveled, making him seem less competent than he is. I loved one specific clue that if he had noticed earlier probably would have solved the mystery in two chapters. The solution is a bit shocking and sad.

Overall, this a good, complicated mystery. There are not a lot of characters to actually like though, if that’s important to you. I didn’t really care about any of them, except maybe Mineko.

I have to be honest and say that I'm not entirely convinced by this book. The problem is probably, admittedly, my expectations, as it has been touted everywhere as a "Japanese Agatha Christie". I'm a big Christie fan and unfortunately I have to say that it didn't live up to the hype for me personally.
It wasn't bad, but just not for me and especially not a Christie. The many characters confused me and the behaviour of many of the characters didn't make sense to me. It was exciting, but somehow too complex, especially for what I was hoping for.
The narrator had a soothing voice but was able to create suspense, I'd definetly listen to them again.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this audio.

Oh wow!!! I could not stop listening to this one. Such a great book. It had me googled from page one. The story was great the writing was great and the narrator was great!!

This book was not my jam and I can tell you it was a me problem and not a book/author problem. This was my 1st book by Seishi Yokomizo but I will certainly give them another read!

I really enjoyed the mystery of this one. I think it's clear that I'm really enjoying a book when I continue to listen to the audio of it, even though I don't like the narrator. They didn't do a bad job, they were just excessively enthusiastic which made the story feel less realistic? Still, despite that, I loved this mystery.

This was the 4th book in the Detective Kindaichi series (English translation order) and it was the darkest one yet. The themes in this are dark and might be triggering to people to I would suggest to look up warnings. The mystery had great build up in the first half but it kind of dragged the story in the second half. I will continue this series for how ever meny translations they put out because the writing is great and the audiobook narration of this edition was enjoyable.

I had a hard time at points of this book because it felt a little slow. That said, it was overall a good book. The mystery was interesting and had a lot of twists in it. The characters make you want to know more about them, and the setting is very fun. The maybe a ghost/maybe not actually dead person plot was very interesting to follow, and I enjoyed learning motivations of the characters as things unfolded.

As a relatively new fan of Japanese murder mysteries, I was definitely looking forward to listening to this book. The novel was not bad, but it did not reach my expectations. Definitely not my top choice when it comes to this genre.

On one hand, the honkaku books always have amazingly built plot twists, in my opinion. They are logical and bring value to the story, and this book was no exception. The plot was also interesting as it included many unique details, drawing me in and keeping me hooked on the story. I really had to keep listening to know what's next! The narrator did quite a good job, making the story clear and catchy (even though I was not such a big fan of all the different character voices).

On the other hand, there were plenty of repetitive scenes and trigger warnings that were extremely disturbing, so that did not really contribute to a good plot. The number of characters and details was insane, it was too much to keep track of (especially for an audiobook version, so I'd say that this novel might be more approachable in a written format). This took away from the story, as I could not make my own guesses due to getting lost. The way in which some story aspects were built was also not to the level of other books in the same style (for example, the locked room murder explanation or even the plot twists).

Thank you to the author, narrator and publisher for providing an e-audio version of this title in exchange for my review.

I love Golden Age Detective novels, and had heard of this author a few years ago, excited for a 'new' author. This was my first book by the author, and I enjoyed this book, but it was difficult to keep details and characters straight. Maybe if I were reading the book, or following the text while listening, I would have enjoyed the story even more.

I will look for other books by this author, and will give another try for sure.

I'm rating this one 3 stars for 'I liked it'

I really enjoy discovering these classic Japanese mystery novels! Think Agatha Christie but with the tradition and beauty of Japan.
I have read several of Yukito Ayatsuji’s novels however this was the first one by Seishi Yokomizo I have listened to. The narrator does a wonderful job of keeping the characters distinctive enough you can tell who is who simply by the “voice”. I really enjoy these novels as a step away from what is currently on the bestsellers list.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to enjoy this audiobook in advance of rerelease.

This was a NetGalley Arc Audiobook by @Bolindaaudio.
This was not my first Seishi Yokomizo mystery but it was my first audiobook and while at first I was a little put off by the readers accent this was by far the most atmospheric audiobook I have ever listened to! I got more goosebumps in one sitting than ever before and this is not even a horror novel!
The mystery itself is what I would call haphazard and I've seen others call it convoluted and I would not disagree but that was definitely a plus with this narrator.
I did feel the gap in time with my favorite detective here with these translated works as they are not in order. He felt different in some ways than I remembered him but I'm sure the war just depicted as just ending may have had something to do with that and we won't get more details till those in between are translated.
I can't wait till the next books, and I will be on the lookout for the other series audiobooks if this narrator has a hand in it for sure.

This book introduced me to Kosuke Kindaichi, a detective as popular as Hercule Poirot in Japan with close to 60 mysteries. This particular book is hugely atmospheric with huge weightage to community feelings like shame and honour and cultural motifs.

The author first paints the post war Japan before describing in passing a gruesome robber and mass murder. The face of the suspect resembles Viscount Tsubaki and later cleared with an Alibi. The brooding composer, he wanders off from his large family house and is found dead after months by suicide. His daughter approaches Kindaichi to invite him for a divination after the dead man is spotted by the family members and investigate the disappearance.

However, on the night of the divination, there is an eerie flute composition that plays after the darkout and devil's symbol shows up. The same night one of the household members is murdered in a closed room murder and we get to know things are not what they appear. Kindaichi and the detective start their investigation and try to figure out a family secret bad enough for someone to go on a murder spree and a murderer just ahead of the police.

An atmospheric mystery with an investigation genius on the how but not so convincing of the why. The audiobook by Bolinda books has fantastic narration with the narrator giving distinctive voices for each character.

A good mystery and probably a series I will watch out for.

PS:Thank you netgalley and Bolinda foods for the ARC copy of the audiobook.

Narrated by Akira Matsumoto
Presented by Bolinda Audio

This was so good I now want to read the whole series. Minus a star for over-enthusiastic narrator.

Murder and intrigue in post-war Japan sees detective Kindaichi interviewing the noble Tsubaki family after the death of one of their own. Things become complicated when the dead man seems to reappear to cause all kinds of drama for the family.

So many murders, so much drama! God, it was so addictive!

There were so many elements to the mystery and I just could not figure any of it out. I knew things would be connected but I couldn't figure out HOW and I LOVED that!! It just kept twisting and getting stranger and stranger and WOW. Did not see any of it coming.

Narration was okay but just ... too much. It didn't seem to fit what the author was describing and he had a habit of making the female characters sound ridiculously emotional. I didn't like it. Flawless Japanese pronunciations, which was appreciated, but over the top performance.

I enjoyed listening, but I think I would have got more out of this if I'd read it. I'm keen to go back to book 1 and see how it compares.
With thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC

It was a well paced and quick read for me as I got it in Audiobook arc format. I absolutely love it and had a great time listening to it. The pace was well maintained throughout the whole book and the book had held in my attention till the end of the book. Thus, I will definitely recommend it to my friends.

Tsubaki house is morning the loss of old viscount. When the family decides to hold a séance, another death occurs and that triggers an irreversible impact of mysterious murders. The detective is called, but so little truth in the light, makes his work ever more difficult.

The goofy setting and the angle of a spirit being involved are what lured me in. The solving part, that followed later felt a bit too stretched to me. On the scale of predictability, the book did have a high score, but connecting the dots felt a little difficult with so much information. I wish a bit more concise since we did not have that many plot twists. The narrators did catch the accent really well, particularly the detective who had a deep course voice. His voice was so distinguishable from the rest that one could easily comprehend when the narrative style changed.

Thank you @netgalley @bolindaaudio @pushkin_press for the Audiobook ARC.
Genre: #mysterythriller
Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐️

Classic Japanese whodunits set in a specific historical time is becoming a personal comfort genre! I've been eyeing the Honjin Murders for awhile now (I love the covers of this series) but this book turns out to be my first foray into Yokomizo's Detective Kosuke Kindaichi stories when I received an ARC for it.

Oh what a cozy yet compelling read, very reminiscent of the vibes from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's and Agatha Christie's works, clear inspirations of the genre. I adored diving into not only the intriguing and all-consuming mystery, but also post WWII Japanese society. Murder mysteries such as this are surprisingly handy in exploring specific nuances in society during its time period setting, and seems to be a particular strong point for classic Japanese murder mysteries as authors use their art to express commentaries otherwise oppressed.

I am a fan of Kindaichi himself as he does not come off too cocky, just someone with a quick, curious mind who has a high tolerance for brutal drama and crime scenes. While you will have to stomach the occasional unnecessary remark on women like "she is not considered a beauty" or "she placed her heavy hips on the stool...", the overall characterisations of the female characters have surprising depth and are varied. I also forgive the author on account of calling one of the annoying male characters a toad.

I binged this as an audiobook and I loved that experience, the narrator Akira Matsumoto went all out! Each character has a distinct voice and feel, and he went above and beyond voice acting emotional scenes. The narrator has an Australian accent and while that is an absolute win for me, listeners not used to the accent might find the narration of this story quite surprising.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bolinda Audio and the author for this advance reader copy. I leave this review voluntarily.

Thank You, NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review The Devil's Flute Murder by Seishi Yokomizo.

The story reminded me of Agatha Christie's mysteries. It was atmospheric and engaging.

The only thing which kept me from enjoying the book as much as I would have loved to is the narration.

I was not too fond of the hysterical voice modulation of some characters. It made the listening experience very unpleasant.

Otherwise, it was a good mystery. I think this needs to be read rather than listened to.

Originally written in 1973 and now released by Bolinda Publishing with translation from the Japanese by Jim Rion and narrated by Akira Matsumoto. The story is set in post WW2 Japan and was reflective of the times post war which was contemporary for the author. The Detective Kindaichi Mysteries first came out as serials and later as books which were popular in Japan. The series is finding new readers among those whose families originated there and seems to be quite popular with those who have a greater understanding of the background. Which is my roundabout way of saying that while the deductions were exemplary, I found it slow and difficult for me to relate. But it is interesting and I do favor books set in places I can never afford to visit. And I geek history. Glad that I read it.
I requested and received a free temporary audio copy from Bolinda Audio via NetGalley. Thank you!
#AussieNarrator

This is the fifth one in the series that I’ve listened to. I think that’s all that’s been translated so far out of almost EIGHTY books. I absolutely love Japanese writers and especially mysteries. Detective Kindaichi is such a real character to me, much more so than my beloved Poirot.

In this locked room mystery he is trying to figure out who is brutally murdering members of a household after the war. It’s a very moody story that involves a seance and a record player that keeps playing a composition of the recently deceased patriarch.

The audiobook is very atmospheric with bits of music throughout since the patriarch was a composer. Akira Matsumoto is a very good narrator.

I see that another one will be published soon. Can’t wait to see what Detective Kindaichi gets up to next.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Bolinda Audio for the advance copy of the audio book in exchange for my honest opinion.