There are two short stories in this book.

The first one is Murder at the Black Café. It tells the story of a faceless corpse discovered at an inn, where the identity of the murderer remains unclear until the private detective reveals the mystery in the final pages. I really enjoyed the pacing of this story and was hooked from start to finish!

The second story is Why Did the Well Wheel Creek? It centers on the Honiden family, who grew rich through moneylending. Daizaburo has two sons—Daisuke, his official heir, and Goichi, born out of wedlock. They look almost identical but lead very different lives. Goichi has a half-sister, O’Rin, while Daisuke has a younger brother, Shinchi, and sister, Tsuriyo, who narrates part of the story through letters to Shinchi at a sanatorium. When the war starts, both Daisuke and Goichi go off to fight, but things get complicated when Daisuke returns injured. Old tensions resurface, and trouble brews in the village and at home—leading to a death. Detective Kindaichi solves the case, but the truth is already beginning to come to light. This story had a slower pace, and it took me more time to get into it.

Overall, I enjoyed the first story more, but they were both enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review!