Japanese Gothic: Four twisted tales from Japan's master of the macabre

by Edogawa Rampo, Alexis Brown (Translator)

Born as Hirai Tarō, Edogawa Ranpo (1894-1965) was an influential author and critic known for his tales of the mysterious and macabre. His pseudonym is a rendering of Edgar Allen Poe using Japanese characters. Ranpo often dealt with themes of sexual perversion and the grotesque, as well as writing more conventional crime fiction.
This is a collection of four of his darkest and most deviant short ‘The Idol’ (人でなしの恋 , 1926); ‘Pomegranate’ (石榴 , 1934); ‘The Hand’ (指 , 1960); and ‘The Devouring Insects’ (虫 , 1929).
‘Pomegranate’ and ‘The Devouring Insects’ have previously been published under the title ‘Pomegranate and The Devouring Insects’. 'The Idol' and 'The Hand' are published here in English for the first time.
Alexis J Brown is a translator living in London.
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Genres: Horror

117 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 25, 2023

About the author

Hirai Tarō (平井 太郎), better known by the pseudonym Rampo Edogawa ( 江戸川 乱歩), sometimes romanized as "Ranpo Edogawa", was a Japanese author and critic who played a major role in the development of Japanese mystery fiction.

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I completely enjoyed this collection, almost as much as Japanese Tales of Mystery and Imagination. The stories weren’t quite as good, but the translation was solid. It’s a shame how stories are so hard to find translated. They are clever and reminiscent of Tales from the Crypt mixed with detective stories. Highly recommended.

[Fionnuala · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid collection. The style of writing isn't my favourite; I'm not sure if this is a translation thing, as I've read other Japanese translations that don't have this problem. It could also be that this is just how things were written during this time period, and the translation reflects that. It came across sometimes as a little clunky, and one of the stories had the monologue as narrative thing that I hate -- thankfully it was a decent story, and I know this technique was typical of the time, but I still dislike it and would have probably been rolling my eyes even if I'd been a contemporary reader.

There's a variety of styles in here, which is impressive as there are only four stories. Two of them are straightfoward Gothic, with deranged characters and forbidden love and murder and suicide and secrets and all that fun stuff. Another is a detective fiction, which is a lot of fun and a brilliant homage to the style. It has all the classic tropes while still remaining interesting and not entirely predictable; the things I did predict were fun to see come to light, and the crime itself is wonderfully convoluted and deranged. The final one is a very short ghost story that isn't that great -- it's barely a page long, written choppily, and gives the story no room to settle or grow. Personally if I were Ranpo I would not have wanted it included; it seems like a very, very rough draft.

Overall, though, an enjoyable collection. There's definitely a lot of dark content in here and it's written as actually disturbing, rather than simple shock value. The stories (with the exception of the short one previously mentioned) all take time time to get into the minds (or try to) of those concerned, and it's genuinely deranged in parts. Overall it's a lot of fun, shocking and uncomfortable in the good way, and definitely with a distinct Gothic flavour.

[Hanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Japanese Gothic by Edogawa Ranpo is a collection of four short stories, and it was absolutely amazing. I loved every single story. If I had to recommend a reading order, I would start with “Pomegranate,” then read “The Doll,” then move on to the third story (I unfortunately forgot the title), and finish with the Hand. In that order, the whole collection felt even more enjoyable and well-paced.

The writing is outstanding, beautiful, intense, and memorable. Each story pulled me in completely, and by the end I felt like I had read something truly special. It’s an amazing book with amazing writing. I love it,
😍

[John Marr · Rating 4 out of 5]

While certainly not top notch Rampo, this oddly assembled collection of four stories more than lives up to the title as well as Rampo's legendary perversity. The story where the killer forces his victim to drink sulfuric acid isn't even the sickest thing here! Not recommended for the cozy crowd.

[Author Mike Froom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gave me nightmares. This made me feel uncomfortable in my own home. I can't wait to see what else is written by Rampo.