明智小五郎事件簿 5 「魔術師」

明智小五郎事件簿 #5

by Edogawa Rampo, 江戸川 乱歩

湖畔のホテルで明智小五郎が出会ったのは、東京の大宝石商の令嬢・玉村妙子。この出会いをきっかけに怪事件へ巻き込まれる。悪魔に捕らえられた明智は……。探偵小説の一大金字塔!

Genres: Japanese Literature

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1931

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

[Zr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many revenge stories are really exciting. But it's more compelling when the avenger is the protagonist and not the villain, as in The Count of Monte Cristo. Because Edogawa's villains are so superficial, the villain is the villain, and while there are plausible character motivations, the writer and reader fail to develop sympathy for the villains.
The villain like Javert in Les Misérables impressed me more because the reader also understands the villain who is a flesh and blood human being while nobody is an unforgivable villain. (But yeah it’s not comparable I mean this one is only a crime fiction xx

Edogawa's narrative strategy probably won't be accepted by everyone, I found it ok, certainly not as brilliantly entertaining as Nabokov's sometimes slightly prophetic narration in Lolita.

“I don't know anything, and my children have even less to do with it. There is no reason to pass on the hatred of fathers to future generations.” Somehow relatable

[I Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

The descriptions were such that I felt like I was there and I looked forward to what was going to happen next.

[Angel 一匹狼 · Rating 2 out of 5]

5.5/10

(Original Japanese)