Such great writing in this book! I loved the characters and the mystery! I was in the story and felt really invested pretty much straight away! Will definitely order myself a copy!

I was loving the story, I like this kind of mysteries, but as a woman, that ending... it shows - in a bad way - that the writer is a man. Did nobody told him that what he wrote was absurd?? It spoiled all of the good parts of the book, I was even ignoring how all the women of the story did nothing, but that was the last straw.

The ‘murderer’ was very obvious in my opinion I didn’t even need the fake clues left behind. I didn’t like the writing style.

This novel was such a treat to experience!
I highly recommend going into it armed with your note taking tools of choice and try to figure out for yourself the solution of the murders as you read along.
The story was incredibly well paced and, even if this wasn't my first one with a similar concept, the structure of a novel within a novel to recount the events occurred at the Labyrinth House worked great for me in this case.
The Labyrinth House Murders was my first one of the Bizarre House Mysteries series and I had no trouble with jumping straight into it with no context from the previous instalments, but I'm definitely going to pick them up in the future since this one left me so pleasantly surprised for how much I enjoyed the time spent between its pages.
I would love to get into more details of the reason why I liked this book so much but I feel like any information further than the one given by the blurb would reveal any of the many clever wits of the author.

The Labyrinth House Murders is an ingeniously plotted locked room mystery from Japanese author Yukito Ayatsuji and is now available for the first time in an English translation from Pushkin Vertigo. 

Miyagaki Yotaro is considered a master of the Japanese detective novel but for the last several years has lived a life of solitude in his secluded mansion known as The Labyrinth House. To celebrate his sixtieth birthday, he invites four young writers to his home for a unique celebration. But things quickly become bizarre as they are drawn into a deadly competition for the right to inherit Yotaro's fortune.

Yokito Ayatsuji is known as one of the founders of the Honkaku Mystery Writers Club of Japan (Honkaku means "fair play"). He has constructed an extremely clever novel that will keep the reader guessing until the very end. He also makes frequent references to the Golden Age of Detective Fiction where is obvious he has drawn his inspiration. 

Mystery lovers (particularly fans of the Golden Age) would be well served to pick up Ayatsuji's books as he has a knack for constructing very clever mysteries. The Labyrinth House Mysteries continues to cement Ayatsuji's legacy as one of the most important mystery writers from Japan. It's great to know that Pushkin Vertigo is making these novels available in English so that they may find a wider audience. 

Thanks to Pushkin Vertigo and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book. No other consideration was received in exchange for this review.

I really enjoyed this title. A little different to my usual read as I’m not familiar with much Japanese fiction, but this was very rewarding. It’s a clever blend of cosy murder mystery, like Christie, but with suspense. It’s a clever construction, both literally and figuratively as a group of authors are locked in to Labyrinth House and tasked with writing a novel to a very tight deadline. Then they start dying. Typical locked room stuff, but this is different and I was drawn in to their strange circumstance and task right from the first page. I’ll be looking for more like this. It’s different.

Welcome to Labyrinth House, the home of famed detective novel Miyagaki Yotaro. For his 60th birthday the famed author has invited a close group of friends to his home to celebrate on April 1st at precisely 4:00pm.

All of the 8 guests but one, have a literary connection and are known to our narrator. The last is met while on the way to the party, and offers that the house they heading to was designed by Nakamura Seiji. The group has a shared sense of foreboding as they recall the events that have transpired in other homes designed by the late architect.

Upon arrival the guests are shocked to learn that their host passed away that morning but has left them with a request- the writers that compose half of the guest list will stay for a week to compete for half of the late author’s fortune by writing a novel worthy of such a prize. The half of the guest list comprised of literary critics will determine the winner.

There are some conditions to these rules- the story must be set within Labyrinth House and can only include those present (including the late host) as characters, and every author must be the victim of their own murder mystery.

But as the authors begin to pass one by one, those remaining begin to question if all is as it seems in this house of mazes. Did their host really die in the manner by which they were told? Why are they truly at Labyrinth House? Who amongst them has taken murder from the pages and into their midst?

A love letter to the traditional locked room mystery ala Poe or Christie, this one was a fun and suspenseful read (even if the reader was not given all the traditional means by which to solve the case on their own).

Thank you to NetGallery and the Publisher for this ARC!

This book was quite a wild ride. It took a little time to get into it because of the complicated nature of the Labyrinth House itself and the number of characters you're introduced to, but I enjoyed the mystery once things really got going. Once the setting and characters are fully laid out, the story moves swiftly. I appreciated the inclusion of the maps both at the beginning and in the middle of the book, which helped a lot with being able to picture the complex setting.

This book will be great for fans of locked room mysteries, and those who like any novel in which books and stories are a key component of the plot.

Note: I haven't read the first two books in this series, but got the sense that this novel works fine as a standalone.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Vertigo for the chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely adored my time reading The Labyrinth House Murders. Thank you to Net Galley for the opportunity to sit down with a copy of this book.

The famed mystery writer Miyagaki Yotaro lives a life of seclusion in the remote Labyrinth House. When Yotaro invites four young crime authors to his home for a birthday party, they are honoured to accept. But no sooner have they arrived than they are confronted with a shocking death, then lured into a bizarre, deadly competition. As the twisted contest gathers pace, murder follows murder. The ingenious sleuth Shimada Kiyoshi investigates, but can he solve the mystery of the house before all those trapped in its labyrinth are dead? And can you guess the solution before he does?

After reading and loving The Decagon House Murders, I knew I was in for a treat with this locked room mystery. I'm a huge detective novel fan and devour Agatha Christie and other classic detective reads, there's just something about a house full of potential suspects/victims that is so readable - you never know what's going to happen next and to who its going to happen! I always enjoy playing detective alongside the main protagonist, desperately trying to beat them to the murderer, but often falling just short - haha

This book had everything for me, twists, tension and a brilliantly spooky setting. It was a timeless classic and the translation was perfect. I initially panicked a bit as the characters were introduced, but I always find that with murder mystery books - it takes a little time for me to flesh out each person and find their memorable their traits/quirks, However, the way in which Yukito Ayatsuji introduced each character really helped me to quickly establish who everyone was and their role within the story.

I have since realised that there is another "House Murders" book by Yukito Ayatsuji that I haven't read yet - The Mill House Murders, now I know this exists, I'll certainly be adding it to my TBR!

Oh, I absolutely loved The Labyrinth Murders!!! This book had me hooked from the very first page, and by the time I reached the ending, I was completely blown away.

The story follows Shimada Kiyoshi as he tries to unravel a series of bizarre murders that took place at the infamous Labyrinth House - a twisted, maze-like mansion belonging to renowned mystery writer Miyagaki Yotaro. Yotaro had invited a group of crime writers, an editor, and some key figures in the literary world to celebrate his 60th birthday. But instead of a celebration, the night turned into something much more sinister.

Yotaro is soon found dead, seemingly by his own hand, leaving behind one final challenge: each guest must write their own murder mystery, where they themselves are the victim. The best story will win a share of his fortune. But then, one by one, the writers begin to die - each in the exact manner described in their unfinished stories. Trapped in the house with no way out, the survivors must race against time to unmask the killer before it’s too late.

I love a classic-style murder mystery, and Yukito Ayatsuji delivered a brilliantly crafted, multilayered puzzle full of clever misdirection. Every time I thought I had figured it out, I was proven wrong! The eerie, locked-room setting and the psychological tension made it even more gripping.

While the translation had a few challenging moments, it didn’t take away from the thrill of the story. If anything, it added to the charm of reading a mystery from a different cultural perspective. I’ll definitely be looking for more of this author’s work!

Big thanks to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the opportunity to read and review this book! Much appreciated!!

#TheLabyrinthHouseMurders #NetGalley

The Labyrinth House Murders. is a fine homage to the golden age of detective stories, both British and American. In the best tradition of such stories, the small cast is locked into an extremely strange house for a birthday party. There is a reminder that it is April Fool's Day and the host is oddly missing. It is soon announced that the host is dead and the body count begins to climb. The house, designed by the same eccentric architect who designed the earlier houses in the series, is ultimately a gimmick to obfuscate the action but the clues are plentiful and the misdirection carefully hidden so this is a fun house trip through murder to a conclusion you probably won't see coming. I truly love the old golden age mystery novels and found The Labyrinth House Murders to be very satisfying read. The pacing was good and the translation was smooth, and the characters close to their prototypes.

'The Labyrinth House Murders' is a clever murder mystery that uses metafictional elements and brilliant sleight-of-hand techniques to tell an entertaining story set in an ominous atmosphere. The background of Greek mythology, the story-within-a-story setup, and the intricacy of its plot make it highly recommended.

The third entry in the House Murder series by Yukito Ayatsuji. Very entertaining puzzle mystery. What I really enjoyed were the refrences to writers of the Golden Age of western mystery fiction and other Japanese writers as well. Add a dash of Greek mythology and you have the perfect mystery.

I had yet to read any of Ayatsuji's novels in this series but had had them on my wish list, so was excited to see if the Labyrinth House Murders would resonate with me and was pleasantly surprised to find that like other Japanese mystery novels I greatly enjoyed the plot momentum and various red herrings as well as mystery as to how the crimes were committed in the format of a book within a book with most of the murder mystery taking place through the lens perspective of the author - one of the one's present at the crime scene at the time.

I think if you're a fan of locked room mysteries or for that matter whodunnits of the western variety e.g. Christie then this novel should be a thrilling and intriguing read.

Thank you netgalley and Pushkin Press for the ARC.

The Labyrinth House is a brilliantly constructed and twisty murder mystery that cements Yukito Ayatsuji’s reputation as a master of Japanese crime fiction. Following his earlier successes with The Decagon House Murders and Mill House Murders, Ayatsuji delivers another stand-alone classic that is sure to captivate fans of intricate, puzzle-like mysteries.

Set in the eerie and remote Labyrinth House, designed by the notorious architect Nakamura Seiji, the story revolves around Miyagaki Yōtarō, a retired mystery writer who has secluded himself in his peculiar home. When four young, promising crime writers are invited to Yōtarō’s birthday party, they quickly realize they’re stepping into a deadly game. What begins as an intellectual celebration turns into a high-stakes competition, where shocking deaths unfold and tension rises as they are trapped within the house’s convoluted design.

Enter Kiyoshi Shimada, a brilliant investigator who must navigate the deadly maze to solve the murders before all those trapped within are killed. The plot is thick with suspense as Ayatsuji masterfully builds a series of shocking twists and reveals, keeping readers on edge and questioning everything they think they know about the mystery. The author’s trademark cleverness and ingenuity are on full display as the story unfolds, drawing readers into a labyrinth of misdirection and tension.

Fans of classic Japanese crime and puzzle mysteries—like Magpie Murders, Eight Detectives, and The Appeal—will feel right at home with The Labyrinth House. The book is a beautifully crafted homage to the genre, blending complex character dynamics, a confounding setting, and a brilliant detective at the center of it all. Ayatsuji’s skill at creating suspense is unmatched, and the payoff is nothing short of a breathtaking reveal that will leave readers stunned.

In short, The Labyrinth House is a must-read for mystery lovers. With its intricate plotting, atmospheric setting, and thrilling twists, it’s a classic in the making that will satisfy anyone looking for a sophisticated, mind-bending mystery.

I read an ARC on Netgalley, thanks Pushkin press and Netgalley for the arc.

This book is a great twisty book about a muder mystery where four people have died under mysterious circumstances. Any additional information will ruin the book.

The only hard thing is reading Japanese names!

This is the third in a series of locked room mysteries set in a house designed by a fictional famous architect, Nakamura Seiji. All the books in the series can be read as stand-alone. All the books are based around the architect Nakamura’s houses, built like puzzles. The storylines always remind me of Agatha Christie novels with a bit more gore in the method of killing as an avid reader of this genre I did predict the story but it is still a fun read and very tongue and cheek. The epilogue through me for a loop though.

Thanks to Netgalley and Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo for this ARC. This is my honest review.

Interesting read! It's been ages since I read a mystery and this was a nice reintroduction to the genre, and definitely had me captivated and wondering who the killer was 👀 Reminded me of being in an Agatha Christie play when I was at school! This is book 3 in a series but worked well as a standalone. But I didn't find the twist at the end particularly surprising - that said, I did enjoy reading the characters using their logic & deduction skills to conclude who the killer was and how they did it. Personally I also wasn't a big fan of the story within a story within a story - the additional story which book ended the main plot felt a bit superfluous to me.

Locked room murder mysteries might be my all time favourite style of murder mystery and this is an exceptional example of the genre.

The premise of four aspiring authors and 3 “judges” locked in a house with a maze at its centre for five days while competing to win a huge cash inheritance sets the scene for a story packed with twists and turns.

Its main narrative device is that of a novel within a novel which it then compounds by having excerpts from each of the aforementioned novelists. It’s truly inspired and keeps you guessing right until the end. I regularly thought I had it solved only to find myself on completely the wrong track.

The writing is descriptive where it needs to be in order to keep the reader well informed yet moving the story along at a pace to keep you engaged.

I have a few issues with the epilogue and honestly would have been happy had it ended without it however it wasn’t enough of an issue to impact my overall opinion of the book.

I've always heard such amazing things about Japanese horror, so I was so excited to see this on NetGalley and just had to give it a go.

This has almost a Knives Out vibe to it that I thought was really fun. This is a locked door mystery following a group of young authors who have been invited to a special meal at a famous crime/mystery author's house. But once they're there, they realize they have been brought here not for a meal, but for a deadly game.

This was fun and short, but I wasn't as invested in the writing as I would like to be for this kind of story. I wish the writing had a little more personality and character to it. I wonder if that's a translation thing? I'm not sure, I don't think I've read many translated books at all.

Thanks to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.