Mysterious Setting

I think this book was good. Kazushige Abe is starting to become one of my favorites with the books I've read from them recently. This book was one of my favorite and I can't wait to see more

What a strange little book! Mysterious Setting read a bit like a fever dream and not for a minute did I know what was coming next. Darkly funny at times, and deeply sad the next, Kazushige Abe takes the reader on a surreal and thoroughly enjoyable journey.

Everything I wanted and expected from this book and more was contained inside. Shiori had, overall, a miserable life. But it was never because of her lack of trying for better, or for hoping for the best at all times. Even in the face of everything bad happening to her she remained optimistic, or found the best out of a situation. It was the outside world that couldn't handle her and made her life a misery. Other people taking advantage of her goodness, her naivety. I found this to be so tender, heartbreaking, sometimes funny but overall deeply deeply sad. I loved it.

Regular readers of contemporary Japanese fiction will know that it needs to be approached with an open mind and a readiness for the inevitable "differentness" in store.
Mysterious Setting by Kazushige Abe is certainly no different.

Shiori is an outcast,she loves to sing but she's tone deaf and others hate her singing,this makes her cry,and those same "others" find her cries soothing and pleasurable. Tormented by her sociopathic sister ,Nozomi ,and with nothing in her life going right she reaches 18 and moves to Tokyo with dreams of becoming a lyricist. Once in the big city nothing changes ,the easy-going and placid Shiori is exploited and taken advantage of.

The book is frequently surreal,and sometimes quite disturbing, much of it is a litany of misery as once again the lost and lonely Shiori trusts the wrong person and mutely almost blames herself. When things do change for her it's in a totally unexpected way and the book takes on a totally new direction.

This book is often surreal,sometimes horrifying,frequently sad but ultimately will make readers rethink everything they thought they knew about its troubled heroine.

This book is definitely up there as one of my new favourites! I loved the twists and turns and once I started reading it was hard to put down. Shiori doesn't have the best start to life with constantly being put down by the people around her. Still wanting to pursue her dreams she moves to Tokyo with the hope of a new start and to make new friends however her good nature and somewhat naivety leaves her in a similar position. Her positive outlook keeps her continually seeing the good in people which ultimately leaves her in an unexpected situation. Overall, I think Mysterious Setting is a great read and I will certainly be checking out more of Kazushige Abe's work in the future.

Fast-paced, surrealist and cruel at times, "Mysterious Setting" was a good start of Kazushige Abe's works for me.

I rooted for Shiori so much along the story. The characters were amazing and the story had the sort of irony I love.

Recommended.

This book was like a fever dream and I loved it! Abe is becoming an author to watch and I can't wait to see what they write next.

Kazushige Abe does a great writing style and had that comic element perfectly. I enjoyed the overall feel of this story and that the characters were everything that I was looking for. It was well written and glad I was able to read this.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for access to this novel.

Kazushige Abe is an incredible writer and has such a good grasp on the human condition. I loved this book so much, and I cannot wait to read more from this author.

The translation is amazing and the main character has so much depth, I was gripped from start to finish.

Also the cover is absolutely stunning!

I started it, but took a long break. I think I appreciated it more coming back to it.

This was a fun read. I appreciated the visual and engaging language. It felt like an A24 movie in the form of a book.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

A strange Japanese translated fiction by award winning author Kazushige Abe (who is apparently the husband of Mieko Kawakami). Starts off like literary fiction and turns suddenly into suspense.

It’s difficult to describe this story, as it started out quite slow about the life of a bullied and abused girl who struggled to fit in socially. The first half was difficult for me to get through, but when the mysterious suitcase showed up in her life halfway through the book I read the rest of the book straight through. It was a strange plot, but I would recommend it as a quick and weird story for people who like authors like Sayaka Murata.

An old man's tale

An old man, alone in a park and combine them with a bunch of kids. Yes, things are bound to go wrong.

Well, first the kids wanted to tease the man and I have to admit, I almost went ballistic reading then. Before they knew it, the old man started telling them a story. It was a story of resilience and determination usually told by in Japanese tales. Shiori was dead set at becoming a troubadour. This timid, too trusting girl had a suspicion that something was wrong in her singing but she was so determined, to a point that she almost wanted to quit school.

But Shiori made a pledge to no longer sing when she was shamed by her ex-boyfriend. The good-for-nothing who was just after her money, made her realise that she was tone-deaf, so tone-deaf that her dominant sister Nozomi convinced her that she caused parakeets in a store to go crazy by her horrendous singing.

Despite this, Shiori left for Tokyo to pursue her dreams. Howevers, her pledge to not sing made things worse. Her determination to not sing made her an outcast and caused her to look for connections online. And this has led to another case of people taking advantage of her money since well, they believed that her family is the rich, rural type of people.

Until a mysterious looking bag was left by one of her online connections. This was followed up by three emails with instructions to now cause damage to the city. It then led to a field becoming so barren that the government left it alone.

Well, allegedly because the only witness to this story was the old man.

I have very strong feelings for Shiori-Nozomi dynamic. Sometimes I think Nozomi was right for being domineering as Shiori was too trusting but sometimes I feel like Nozomi was too much. Ouh yes, and Shiori was too trusting. This actually set the tone for the story. You have no idea how many times I want to scream to Shiori for yearning too much for connection.

The story took me on a lot of turns starting from the park to the old man and of course, conspiracy theory. I like how the story was focused on Shiori and her family background and wealth were just in the background. It was there but it was not glaring and it was pulled out at convenient times.

I was not a big fan of conspiracy theories so this arrangement kind of suited me well. Shiori's yearning for connection, just like those felt by those on Netflix Swindler, made me realise it can never be a good thing. Things will never go well if we try to hard.

If there is one thing I want to highlight, the inflexibility of certain people in a certain culture. The policeman was just one of the examples of how people can be inflexibile. Sure, the bag was not a stolen item or sort but isn't it just good sense for the police to help the citizen check if everything is fine with the bag?

The train conductor was not flexible too but well, people have to work I guess.

I know some stories can get lost in translation but Mysterious Setting was translated just right for Kazushige Abe. I can feel Shiori's timidness, Nozomi's harshness and all through the journey of hiding the bag? I felt all of that.

Not going to lie, I actually want to know more of what Shiori talked with the bag. It felt as if the bag can influence Shiori. I know I would hate that since it will make Shiori's character weaker but well, the heart wants what the heart wants.

Suffice to say, I cannot wait for this book to come out.

Synopsis: Shiori is a young woman who has always known she wanted to be a troubadour, a musician who sings about the beauty of the world. However there is one problem, Shiori is completely tone-deaf and her singing causes pain to everyone who hears it. When she turns 18 Shiori moves to Tokyo to pursue a degree in songwriting and accidentally falls in with a bad crowd. It is one of these new friends who leaves Shiori a unique gift that could lead to explosive results.

My Thoughts: Mysterious Setting is possibly the most shocking introduction I have had to an author. I am using the word shocking here positively and negatively. The first two-thirds of this book are difficult to read. Not because of the writing, or the excellent translation. Instead, it is difficult because the character of Shiori is consistently abused and taken advantage of on every page. At times I felt guilty for continuing to read about her misfortune and doing nothing to stop it. I wanted to reach through the page and stop the people who hurt Shiori, and try to warn her before she gets into another bad situation. These visceral emotions only speak to the excellent characters that Kazushige Abe has written. At the 65% mark, this book takes an explosive turn that I would have never expected. I won’t talk too much about it, but it turned this into a fantastic story that made Shiori’s pain mean something.

Overall, reading Mysterious Setting was emotionally impactful and exhilarating. I highly recommend this book.

Mysterious Setting is a dark comedy recounted by a person who heard a story from a stranger in a park. This unnamed narrative follows Shiori, a young girl who dreams of becoming a troubadour but discovers she's tone-deaf and shifts her focus to becoming a lyricist. Her journey takes a mysterious turn when she acquires a strange suitcase.

Shiori is portrayed as sweet, empathetic, and gullible. Her passion for singing about the world remains strong despite her obstacles, particularly her strained relationship with her sister, Nozomi. Nozomi's harsh treatment of Shiori borders on cruelty, yet their connection is complex, resembling the dynamics of an evil soap opera mother-in-law. They have a complex dynamic that is puzzling in real life.

Throughout the novella, Shiori faces emotional abuse and social isolation but maintains an unwaveringly positive outlook on life that's both inspiring and perplexing. The ending was quite emotional and dramatic, leaving you questioning Shiori's mental well-being long after you've turned the last page.

Despite its shortness, the novella captivates you from the start, seamlessly transitioning from literary fiction to suspenseful storytelling as Shiori encounters the enigmatic suitcase. The narrative's unexpected twists, well-paced plot, and skilful translation add to its poetic flow, making it a super engaging read. While I enjoyed the novella's immersion into Kuzushige Abe's storytelling, I found certain elements unsettling, particularly Shiori's continuous victimization and the ambiguity surrounding her character's mental state. However, these aspects also added depth to the narrative.

Overall, 'Mysterious Setting' serves as a wonderful introduction to Kuzushige Abe's work. I recommend it to readers looking for an exhilerating and bizaare read. Also, finding out he's married to Mieko Kawamaki was a shock to me. I've been wanting to read her books for a while now, this has motivated me to dive into both their books sooner.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC and for giving me a chance to review this book.

If you are looking for a weird girl book, then this is for you. The story follows Shiori as she navigates her early adult life. We see the relationship she has with her sister and how they have a peculiar codependency. I found their relationship particularly interesting and slightly unsettling. Shiori isn’t aware of how others perceive her and we follow her through her first relationship and her starting college with this lack of awareness. I won’t spoil the twist but the last third of the book had me on the edge of my seat compelled to know more.