A fascinating book that can only be published in paper form. In this e-reader era, this book is a perfect rebel, or say…an absolute love-letter to printed books.
Having previously only read Seitokai Tantei Kirika vol. 1 from him until now: excuse my Hikaru Sugii, I was not familiar with your game.
My philosophy is typically that a mystery should be gripping both throughout the investigation as well as mindblowing in the denouement to really count as a truly great one. This book I would never call boring, but I was also not particularly on the edge of my seat throughout the narrative, and I could see myself easily getting tired of it if it were any longer than it is. Even if this characterization serves a purpose, I found the main character's narration dry in a way that is hard to stomach without being carried by a strong supporting cast, which this book also doesn't have. But it's also a great mystery. The way the pieces fall together is just that good. I don't think I've experienced an "oh fuck" moment quite like this since maybe The ○○○○○○○○ Murder Case (though in quite a different sense lol). I'll have to read more of Sugii clearly. And also the sequel to this, which exists for some reason even though this is a perfectly complete book already. Check it out!
Great trick. Can’t imagine how difficult it must be. Very interesting about the trick and the story was enjoyable. Very easy to read and kept me interested to keep reading to find out what the title means.
Layout, typesetting, design elements, yes, this is an excellently thought-out book. In terms of the writing, I think much has been compromised because of its intent (won’t spoilt it here). I was struck by how much of a YA text this seems, initially, nothing against YA but for what this has been advertised, I was expecting something more. In addition, the characters absolutely were dry, and the whole plot contraption was more of a gimmick to me than literary merit. Can’t say more lest I give away the plot. Most of what makes this book great comes at the end of the novel, and the climax wasn’t that worth the buildup.
it is quite disappointing because i have high expectations… i haven’t got a physical book for 3 years but i got one because of the premise that this book cannot exist in digital format. this book is romantic (regarding the publishing industry) but plot wise? it’s very lacking.
I came across this book on 小红书 and proceeded to download the epub version online (someone uploaded mass chinese light novels on Github), only to find out that the epub version was Book 2... and upon further research I found out that this book absolutely has no epub version available, and only has printed book format due to the hidden trick that it has, which can only be revealed through a physical format. So I proceeded to buy this book on Taobao (I later actually came across this book in SG's Kinokuniya and there was a Spring edition too which was 简体字. This original cover is 繁体字 btw).
Tbh I think I finished the book faster than I expected (can finish within 1-2 days). It was quite an easy read and I flowed through chapters pretty fast (it was also mostly dialogue instead of descriptions so its pretty understandable). Though I've to say that I was only actually hooked at the last 90% of the book when the mystery was finally unravelled, and I found that the content of the book itself was just okay, so I am slightly disappointed. Learnt more about the publishing and proofreading industry through this book too.
I kinda understand how the mystery could be pulled off from reading the 繁体字 version but I am now wondering how the 简体字 one would look like.
Since I already have the Book 2 on my Kobo I will probably still read it one day
If I had to describe this book in a sentence, it would be like the sweetest candy hidden in the most sour lemon. You can never appreciate this book until you dutifully get through all the boring stuff to the end. Also, this is a book, which as per advertised, cannot be read: 1) In a digital format 2) In a language other than Japanese (maybe Chinese).
I won't go into details of this book or provide spoilers in any form. However, I must say this is one book I shall never forget in my life, and I will always wish I could reread it, but I know I can't.
This book is an absolute 5 stars (and I doubt there will be any other book like this in the future as it's too hard to write). Kudos to Sugii Hikaru sensei.
The story itself might not be particularly all that interesting or exciting, and the mystery is just so-so and gets solved in a very anticlimactic manner, BUT... But what saves this novel and makes it stand out, lies in the requirements that it must be enjoyed only in its original Japanese, in soft cover size (and how that relates to the meaning behind the title), Also I liked the story's natural transition in the end into meta territory. I appreciate literature where the writer plays a part as one of the characters. As I said the story might be mediocre, but this was an easy and quick read, and above all the "moment" everything gets explained was really something.