I was really drawn in by the setup of this one - give me a locked-room mystery with a remote house, a group of crime authors, and a creepy host with a hidden agenda, and I’m in. And to be fair, The Labyrinth House Murders absolutely kept my attention. I was constantly guessing who would be next and trying to figure out the killer's game before the characters did.

There’s something very satisfying about watching fictional detectives (or in this case, authors) use pure logic to piece things together, and I did enjoy that part a lot. Shimada Kiyoshi was a fun addition too. Cool-headed, sharp, and exactly the kind of character you want to see walk into chaos and slowly untangle it.

But I have to say, some things just didn’t land for me. The female characters were especially disappointing. They felt flat and barely contributed to the story, which was frustrating in a cast that had potential to be a lot more engaging. And while the mystery itself was clever, the writing style didn’t quite work for me. I don’t know if it was a translation issue or just the tone, but something felt off, like it was too stiff or disconnected emotionally.

So, yeah, I liked it enough to finish and I enjoyed the mental puzzle of it all, but I wouldn’t say I loved it. It’s a good one if you're into classic, logic-driven mysteries, but it didn’t completely blow me away.

My copy of this book was provided by NetGalley and Pushkin Vertigo for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley, Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo and Yukito Ayastsuji for the eArc of The Labyrinth House Murders.

This is a clever quick read not far removed from the Queen of Murder Mysteries, Agatha Christie. We have characters that have secrets, morally grey or downright horrid. One or two that are alright. Or are they? Locked into a house that has halls, rooms, corridors in which they have to get to a central room to win. A lot of the clues and movements are based around Theseus /Minotaur mythology and the house acted like a Labyrinth.

Having reads a fair few Japanese books that have been translated, this has been done very well indeed.( Thank you Ho-Ling Wong ) The main plot line flowed and easy enough to flow but complex enough to keep your mind busy with theories. Coupled with a variety of well built characters makes this book very engaging. I loved the authors notes, which interestingly at the beginning book leaves another layer of mystery.

I also listened to the audio version while reading ( Its nice to swap between mediums ).Yukito Ayatsuji and Kaipo Schwab who narrated this book did an upstanding job with their well paced, storytelling voices .

4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC for this book!

This story is about a wealthy writer, Miyagaki, who invites several people, including writers, an editor, a critic, and a priest’s son, to his strange home. After they arrive, they find themselves locked in the house and thrown into a competition to win Miyagaki’s fortune. Everything is going okay until they discover a body…

I absolutely loved this book and look forward to reading the others in this series (I didn’t realize this was the third one, but it still read fine as a standalone). The plot twists were done very well and weren’t predictable. I liked the cast of characters and the setting had an eerie feeling which I love. At first it was a bit hard to me to remember who was who since I’m not super familiar with Japanese names, but I got adjusted pretty quickly.

I have genuinely no idea what I thought of this book! . It was clever but also weird and kept me guessing but I don’t know whether the characters were well set out so all in all this was a bit meh

The Labyrinth House Murders is a smart, twisty mystery that pulls you in with its creepy atmosphere and clever plotting. Yukito Ayatsuji knows how to build tension, and the bizarre, maze-like house at the center of the story adds a haunting, almost surreal vibe that keeps you on edge. It’s got all the fun of a classic whodunit—locked rooms, red herrings, and a big reveal—but with a fresh, modern feel. If you like mysteries that make you think and keep you guessing, this one’s a total page-turner.

This latest instalment of the bizarre house mysteries is an absolute corker. Following on from the previous titles, this novel is a locked-room whodunit set in a Labyrinth House. When a famed murder mystery writer invites four of his proteges to a party, along with his editor, a critic, and a crime genre fan, no one expects tragedies to start befalling the guests. However, as the bodies start piling up, the remaining guests must quickly work out who is behind the killings and why.

This was one of those books where one sentence can spin everything you thought you knew on its head, and I loved it. The characters were fascinating, the plot was dastardly, and the conclusion was unexpected. While one small detail continues to throw me, it was so cleverly done overall that I can overlook it and give this one five stars for being so blooming entertaining. I look forward to the next!

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

Thank you NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, this book just didn’t work for me. The writing style felt dense and slow, and the pacing made it hard to stay engaged. The premise had potential, but the twist at the end felt more confusing than clever, and ultimately unnecessary. I wanted to enjoy the eerie setting and mystery, but I never felt fully invested in the characters or the outcome.

I'm sorry, but this didn't work for me. I am fond of Japanese literature, but this one was painfully slow, considering the genre, like nothing significant happening for a long time and I began to lose interest. But then I must admit that I am an impatient reader, especially if it's a thriller.

Not really a review as I couldn't finish. Not posting it anywhere else.

Thank you for the ARC.

Well, I definitely was entertained. And I was SO sure about the plot twist and hence was shocked when you author went, "You thought THAT was the plot twist hahahaha, here are two more." But that doesn't mean the twist was good, or necessary. Then again, a male author in the 80s wrote this so I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. (Those who have read the book, you KNOW what twist I am referring to.)

This book was extremely clever. The way that the story was crafted around previous incidents made this more compelling to read.

This one just ended up not working for me mostly for the narration/writing style. I like to feel connected to the story and characters and that's what tends to draw me into a story, but I always felt so far away from the characters in this one. I felt like an outside observer just trying to follow along as best as I could.

Also what was that ending? Period blood? I feel like this author doesn't understand basic biology at all and sets back women's rights decades. Take a basic anatomy class please.

An older, very successful and influential mystery writer invites four protegees and three critics to his house in order to celebrate his sixtieth birthday. But as the guests wait, it becomes apparent something is wrong - only to be informed their host committed suicide.

The old author has left an odd will: he will split his immense fortune between setting up a literary prize and the one writer who can come up with the best 50-page mystery story in the next few days, and the judges will be the three critics. But as the days go by, murders start happening in the labyrinthine underground home and none of the guests can get out.

"The Labyrinth House Murders" is quite enjoyable, despite being a bit too dry for my tastes. But while the characters and setting aren't all that fleshed out, the mystery itself is exciting. It has twists and turns (like a labyrinth, lol) and stories within stories leading to false turns. And while I was quite sure I had the murderer right early on, I was still surprised to see how everything panned out at the end. Fun!

"𝐀𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥. 𝐀𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐫 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐥𝐞... 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲."

The Labyrinth House Murders is the third instalment of loosely connected books, each featuring a unique house designed by architect Nakamuri Seiji where impossible crimes occur and amateur detective Shimada tries to solve the case.

Four mystery authors, a critic, an editor and his wife, and a mystery novel aficionado have been invited to the infamous Labyrinth House for famed mystery writer Miyagaki Yotaro's birthday, but soon all are drawn into a bizarre deadly competition that sees them locked in with no escape. Can the aficionado, Shimada, and the editor, Utayma, solve the crimes before all are dead?!

This story-within-a-story is quite addicting. It takes a second to understand the set-up: the beginning and end of the book are 'real life people' while the rest is the published story of what happened at Labyrinth House. Once I understood this, I was fully invested in this Japanese murder mystery classic. Translations can be tricky, as they don't always flow the way they do in their native language, but Ho-Ling Wong does a great job at balancing tone and flow. I listened to a portion of the story at the beginning, which I found very useful. Kaipo Schwab reads with a lot of expression, bringing the story to life; hearing character names pronounced correctly helped me keep track of them and allowed me to read their names properly. The plot is a bit convoluted, but once the murders start, they come fast and furious, heightening the sense of claustrophobia and danger. I adored the two amateur detectives, Shimada (who reminds me of a Japanese Poirot) and Utayma (who is the Hastings to Shimada). Just when the story seems like it came to a logical ending, Yukito Ayatsuji adds an epilogue that blows things out of the water! I appreciated the explanation Ayatsuji gave in breaking down the twisty plot.

The Labryinth House Murders is prime example of Japanese murder mysteries, with atmosphere and satisfying twists. Thank you to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

Not difficult to follow at all. Fun to read and try and figure it out as you go. Interesting cast of characters that aren't confusing or difficult to tell apart. Really enjoy this author's work.

Thank you to Libro.fm for the audio also! This one felt layered and like YOU ARE FATALLY INVITED. While the basis of a literal locked room (or house in the case) wasn't new, I enjoyed all the different layers that felt original.

Another banger from Yukkito Ayatsuji.
I do worry sometimes about how far it can go but this slapped again! Such clever clever writing once angain! Actually obsessed with the ending, by far one of the best thriller books i've read to date!

The Labyrinth house murder had the stilted, cold narration that I find to be pretty typical in translated Japanese fiction, however I don’t mind it terribly in a murder mystery story. The puzzle itself was intriguing and I had quite a good time taking notes, making diagrams, and trying to solve the mystery with all the little clues, though the on page rehashing of clues was pretty repetitive. I also enjoyed the allusions to Greek mythology. Unfortunately, none of the things I liked could make up for the horrendous, misogynistic, medically inaccurate reveal. I am genuinely shocked that this ended up with a translation/republish in 2025. It seems as though the author has never before encountered a woman.

Pushkin Press is reissuing Yukito Ayatsuji's House /Shimadamurder series bringing more recognition to this master craftsman. The Labyrinth House Murders is by far my favorite of the three, although I really enjoy them all.

A group of young mystery writers comes to the house at the bequest of an esteemed older writer who lives in an underground house that is literally a Labyrinth, with all rooms decorated and named after the Minotaur myth. When on of the party does, and a strange competition ensues, it's a good thing detective Shimada Kiyoshi was in the party.

As the death toll rises, and there's no way out, we, the reader, are tricked and turned every which way.
Let me tell you: the ending is stunning, and you will not have come to the conclusion yourself, although the Fair Play ethos lays it out for you.

A famed murder mystery writer is celebrating his 60th birthday with a party for a select few. Invitees include four up and coming writers of the same genre, critics, and his editor. The guest of honor never showed, and it's revealed he committed suicide and has left a will with a competition for the writers to inherit. The writer's death is only the beginning of death as murders keep occurring and it's up to those left to work out whodunnit.

I've read several Japanese murder mysteries, and they are generally quite enjoyable. This one was surprising for how modern it was and that put me off track a bit. This one also was a book within a book which was a good premise, and it definitely kept me off balance some of the way through. I had figured out part of the mystery but the revelations at the end took me by surprise. And yet they really weren't so surprising as they sort of fit the book better than earlier reveals. I must admit that part of the revelation didn't quite sit right with me and perhaps this is a sign of the times when it was written.

Overall, it was an enjoyable book that is sure to appeal to those who enjoy a good murder mystery. Thank you to Pushkin Vertigo and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. My review has been completely voluntary.

Having enjoyed previous books from this author I was hopeful that I’d feel similarly about this but I’m afraid what let it down was the lack of character development. I didn’t care for any of the characters and it’s such a pity because the story itself would have been so much more engaging had they been fleshed out more.

The period explanation really took me out of it too and I felt the author really doesn’t understand women’s bodies and how they work. It just felt a bit all over the place. The concept was interesting but the execution of it let it down.