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The Red Locked Room
Few writers of detective fiction can match both John Dickson Carr and Freeman Wills Crofts at their own game. Included in this superb collection by Tetsuya Ayukawa, recognized as the doyen of the honkaku mystery, are four impossible crime stories and three unbreakable alibi tales. The final story “The Red Locked Room” can lay claim to be one of the finest ever written in the genre. Judge for yourself.
217 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2020
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About the author
Tetsuya Ayukawa
97 books12 followersTetsuya Ayukawa (鮎川 哲也 Ayukawa Tetsuya) was the pen name of a Japanese literary critic and novelist. His real name was Toru Nakagawa. He is noted for his Detective Onitsura Series of mystery stories.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
May 15, 2020
This is a collection of 7 stories involving impossible crimes and unbreakable alibis. These were first published in Japanese magazines between 1954 and 1961. These have now been translated into English by Ho-Ling Wong and published by Locked Room International owned by John Pugmire.
I give below a synopsis of each story:
1. The White Locked Room: A girl student visits the house of a professor who lives alone. But another man opens the door and claims that he had come a few minutes earlier and found the professor murdered by stabbing. The knife is missing. Medical examination shows that the professor was murdered after the snow had stopped falling. But there are no footprints of the culprit on the snow. There are only 2 sets of footprints, those of the girl and the man, approaching the house.
2. Whose Body ? : Three artists receive parcels by registered post on the same day, each containing a strange item. The 3 items are an empty bottle of sulphuric acid, a revolver unloaded but from which shots have been fired and a vinyl rope .The sender is mentioned as one Atsushi Akutagawa, an art merchant. But he denies having sent the parcels and it all seems a prank. Seven days later, a decapitated corpse is found in a burnt -down building. Examination shows that the man has been strangled, shot on the back and his fingers burnt by sulphuric acid. It seems that the man was murdered prior to the sending of the parcels and the items of the parcels were the crime weapons used.
3. The Blue Locked Room: The director of a theatre troupe who is disliked by all the actors of the troupe is found murdered in his locked room. The only exit is an open window and it seems that the murderer escaped through the window, but it is discovered that the flower bed underneath the window is completely undisturbed. Then how did the murderer escape ?
4. Death In Early Spring: The dead body of a young man is found at a construction site, murdered by strangling with a muffler. The chief suspect is his rival in love, whose lighter is found at the scene. But he is able to prove conclusively that he was on a train at he time of the murder.
5. The Clown In The Tunnel: The vocalist of a musical band is found murdered by stabbing in the bathroom of the band’s office cum accommodation, Before the murder, a person dressed as a clown is seen entering the building. Afterwards, the cook sees him escaping through a tunnel which connects the back alley of the building to the street. However, at the same time, there are persons at the other end of the tunnel and they don’t see him emerge. How did the clown vanish ?
6. The Five Clocks: A young employee in the accounting division of a govt. office is suspected of gross embezzlement of funds. After severe interrogation, he breaks down and agrees to give a written statement on the details of the crime within a week. But after 4 days, he is found murdered by strangling with a towel in a room of his apartment. Now the assistant division chief is also suspected to be involved in the embezzlement and hence he is the chief suspect for the murder. But he has a strong alibi, where the timings are confirmed by 5 diffent clocks. It is possible to tamper one or two clocks but can 5 clocks at different places be tampered with ?
7. The Red Locked Room: The body of a medical student is found dismembered into many pieces in the dissection room of the autopsy section of a medical college. A blood stained surgical saw and scalpels are also found. The doors were locked and the dismembered body was discovered on opening them. The windows are all shut and barred. How did the murderer enter the room and leave after committing the ghastly crime?
Th main detective in stories 1,3,5 and 7 is Hoshikage, a specialist in impossible crimes. The main detective in stories 2,4 and 6 is Onitsura, a specialist in cracking unbreakable alibis.
All the stories in this collection are outstanding, ingenious and highly enjoyable. Also very suspenseful; one is compelled to finish the story to know the solution. They are also well-clued making them fair play mysteries.
I highly recommend this book not only to impossible crime fans, but also to general mystery fans. They will be delighted.
I give below a synopsis of each story:
1. The White Locked Room: A girl student visits the house of a professor who lives alone. But another man opens the door and claims that he had come a few minutes earlier and found the professor murdered by stabbing. The knife is missing. Medical examination shows that the professor was murdered after the snow had stopped falling. But there are no footprints of the culprit on the snow. There are only 2 sets of footprints, those of the girl and the man, approaching the house.
2. Whose Body ? : Three artists receive parcels by registered post on the same day, each containing a strange item. The 3 items are an empty bottle of sulphuric acid, a revolver unloaded but from which shots have been fired and a vinyl rope .The sender is mentioned as one Atsushi Akutagawa, an art merchant. But he denies having sent the parcels and it all seems a prank. Seven days later, a decapitated corpse is found in a burnt -down building. Examination shows that the man has been strangled, shot on the back and his fingers burnt by sulphuric acid. It seems that the man was murdered prior to the sending of the parcels and the items of the parcels were the crime weapons used.
3. The Blue Locked Room: The director of a theatre troupe who is disliked by all the actors of the troupe is found murdered in his locked room. The only exit is an open window and it seems that the murderer escaped through the window, but it is discovered that the flower bed underneath the window is completely undisturbed. Then how did the murderer escape ?
4. Death In Early Spring: The dead body of a young man is found at a construction site, murdered by strangling with a muffler. The chief suspect is his rival in love, whose lighter is found at the scene. But he is able to prove conclusively that he was on a train at he time of the murder.
5. The Clown In The Tunnel: The vocalist of a musical band is found murdered by stabbing in the bathroom of the band’s office cum accommodation, Before the murder, a person dressed as a clown is seen entering the building. Afterwards, the cook sees him escaping through a tunnel which connects the back alley of the building to the street. However, at the same time, there are persons at the other end of the tunnel and they don’t see him emerge. How did the clown vanish ?
6. The Five Clocks: A young employee in the accounting division of a govt. office is suspected of gross embezzlement of funds. After severe interrogation, he breaks down and agrees to give a written statement on the details of the crime within a week. But after 4 days, he is found murdered by strangling with a towel in a room of his apartment. Now the assistant division chief is also suspected to be involved in the embezzlement and hence he is the chief suspect for the murder. But he has a strong alibi, where the timings are confirmed by 5 diffent clocks. It is possible to tamper one or two clocks but can 5 clocks at different places be tampered with ?
7. The Red Locked Room: The body of a medical student is found dismembered into many pieces in the dissection room of the autopsy section of a medical college. A blood stained surgical saw and scalpels are also found. The doors were locked and the dismembered body was discovered on opening them. The windows are all shut and barred. How did the murderer enter the room and leave after committing the ghastly crime?
Th main detective in stories 1,3,5 and 7 is Hoshikage, a specialist in impossible crimes. The main detective in stories 2,4 and 6 is Onitsura, a specialist in cracking unbreakable alibis.
All the stories in this collection are outstanding, ingenious and highly enjoyable. Also very suspenseful; one is compelled to finish the story to know the solution. They are also well-clued making them fair play mysteries.
I highly recommend this book not only to impossible crime fans, but also to general mystery fans. They will be delighted.
June 25, 2020
The four locked room stories were really excellent. The ingenuity of the author is simply amazing. But I didn’t like the three unbreakable alibi stories. It’s not that they weren’t well written, it’s just that they are not my kind of a story. But the four locked room stories are so excellent that they deserve more than five stars. That is why the whole collection gets a five star rating.
June 30, 2020
"The Red Locked Room" è una gradevolissima raccolta di racconti di uno dei più grandi nomi del giallo classico nipponico ("honkaku" in giapponese). Essendo incentrato su camere chiuse/ delitti impossibili non potevo lasciarmelo scappare, tanto più per il fatto che adoro le atmosfere orientali ed i cruenti crimini che spesso escono dalle penne giapponesi!
THE WHITE LOCKED ROOM
Il professor Zama, insegnante di medicina, viene trovato accoltellato nella sua casa completamente circondata da neve intatta. Pare che poco tempo prima il professore avesse avuto una lite con una medium ed un esperto in fenomeni paranormali e che quest'ultimo lo avesse avvertito che con tali poteri avrebbe potuto ucciderlo. Che egli abbia davvero compiuto la vendetta pronosticata attraverso un'entità paranormale tale da non lasciare impronte?
Sarà l'arrogante ma brillante detective Ryuzo Hoshikage a scoprire la verità dietro questo delitto impossibile, indicando come in realtà le impronte del colpevole siano in realtà evidenti.
Buona soluzione che riutilizza un vecchio trucco per situazioni analoghe. Tutto s'impernia su una distorta percezione attraverso cui si vede il caso. Ma Hoshikage più che dedurre la soluzione, l'azzecca ex nihilo. Dunque 4 stelle.
WHOSE BODY?
Vengono inviati tre pacchi contenenti oggetti bizzarri (un revolver, una bottiglietta contenente acido solforico e una corda) a tre diversi artisti. Il mittente però nega di averlo fatto. A dieci giorni dal fatto, viene rinvenuto in un abitato quasi abbandonato il corpo di un uomo decapitato, a cui hanno sparato con quello stesso revolver che è stato "regalato" e con le impronte cancellate dall'acido suddetto. Cosa c'è dietro questo bizzarro enigma. Il racconto è un gioiello di deduzione e false piste, nella migliore tradizione del giallo classico. Il detective Onitsura riuscirà con l'aiuto della logica a sventare un piano machiavellico, che era quasi riuscito ad ingannare la polizia. Un meccanismo sofisticato ed elaborato. Un misto tra il Queen deduttivo ed il Carr del filone bizzarro. Fantastico. 5 stelle.
THE BLUE LOCKED ROOM
Il corpo di un noto direttore teatrale viene rinvenuto strangolato nel suo appartamento chiuso a chiave dall'interno. L'unica finestra aperta dà su un'aiuola la cui terra pare però indisturbata. Come ha fatto l'assassino a fuggire?
La soluzione è una delle più semplici ed il colpevole è un vecchio cliché del genere. Nulla di eccezionale ma piacevole. 3 stelle.
DEATH IN EARLY SPRING
Il cadavere di un giovane viene rinvenuto soffocato in un edificio in costruzione vicino ad una stazione di Tokyo. A quanto pare il colpevole sembra essere il signor Fuda, suo rivale in amore. Peccato che egli abbia un alibi di ferro. Onitsura, attraverso molti indizi e basandosi sugli orari dei treni(cosa che mi ha ricordato molto Crofts) riuscirà a svelare un piano particolarmente ingegnoso, frutto di una mente metodica e scaltra. La soluzione è davvero geniale, così come le deduzioni che portano l'ispettore al disvelamento della faccenda. 5 stelle.
THE CLOWN IN THE TUNNEL
Durante un'intervista ad una band musicale avviene un omicidio: una dei componenti del gruppo viene trovata assassinata nellasua vasca da bagno e l'assassino pare essere un clown che è stato visto entrare nella casa e, dopo il delitto, in una sorta di tunnel sul retro. La cosa diventa grottesca quando si scopre che dall'altra parte del tunnel nessuno è uscito. Entrambe le parti erano sorvegliate eppure nel tunnel non si trova nessuno, né vi è qualche passaggio segreto. Come ha fatto a svanire nell'aria? Sarà l'antipatico detective Ryuzo Hoshikage a risolvere questo delitto, spiegando come l'impossibile sia stato possibile. Soluzione geniale, che prevede una messinscena alla base di tutto. Mi ha ricordato un trucco usato più volte da Halter, solo che mentre l'alsaziano lo usa "spazialmente", Ayukawa lo utilizza "temporalmente". 5 stelle.
THE FIVE CLOCKS
Mansaku Sasamoto, contabile con un lussuoso tenore di vita, viene trovato strangolato nel suo appartamento. Tutti gli indizi puntano su Nikaido, suo collega con problemi finanziari. Ma l'ispettore Onitsura riceve una soffiata da un suo collega che stava investigando sulle esagerate uscite della vittima: pare infatti che si fosse impossessata di un'enorme cifra illegalmente. Ovviamente non poteva farlo da solo, ma con la complicità del capo sezione Hirondo Sugita. La vittima aveva confessato e aveva richiesto 5 giorni per riunire le prove per incolpare il suo complice ma l'omicidio ha interrotto tale indagine. È chiaro quindi che forse Sugita aveva un motivo più forte per volerlo morto. Peccato che abbia un alibi di ferro, testimoniato da ben 5 orologi differenti in 5 luoghi diversi. Come è riuscito ad ingannare tutti?
Qui più che in altri racconti l'ispettore Onitsura dovrà mettere in moto le sue cellule grigie per destrutturare un alibi perfetto. Un racconto ingegnosissimo, che si avvicina moltissimo a Crots, tanto che Onitsura può essere qui considerato l'ispettore French n
ipponico. Grande meccanismo giallo che dimostra notevole abilità tecnica e creativa. 5 stelle.
THE RED LOCKED ROOM
Nell'obitorio universitario viene rinvenuto il corpo dissezionato di una delle allieve, Emiko Katsuki. Il problema è che il giorno precedente, prima che chiudessero la struttura, nella sala delle autopsie non c'era nulla di fuori posto. La sala era sigillata e l'unico a possedere le chiavi è il giovane Urakami, che si dichiara innocente pur negando che qualcuno possa aver preso la sua chiave portandola sempre con sé. Allora chi è stato? E se non è stato lui, come ha fatto?
Una grandissima camera chiusa costruita su più piani, degna di un Carr. Mi ha ricordato in un certo modo un racconto del Maestro. Grande chiusura di questa ottima raccolta. 5 stelle.
Nel complesso quindi una raccolta assieme gradevole nello stile ed originale nelle soluzioni gialle. Una gran bella scoperta! Spero che la LRI pubblichi altre meritevoli opere di autori giapponesi.
THE WHITE LOCKED ROOM
Il professor Zama, insegnante di medicina, viene trovato accoltellato nella sua casa completamente circondata da neve intatta. Pare che poco tempo prima il professore avesse avuto una lite con una medium ed un esperto in fenomeni paranormali e che quest'ultimo lo avesse avvertito che con tali poteri avrebbe potuto ucciderlo. Che egli abbia davvero compiuto la vendetta pronosticata attraverso un'entità paranormale tale da non lasciare impronte?
Sarà l'arrogante ma brillante detective Ryuzo Hoshikage a scoprire la verità dietro questo delitto impossibile, indicando come in realtà le impronte del colpevole siano in realtà evidenti.
Buona soluzione che riutilizza un vecchio trucco per situazioni analoghe. Tutto s'impernia su una distorta percezione attraverso cui si vede il caso. Ma Hoshikage più che dedurre la soluzione, l'azzecca ex nihilo. Dunque 4 stelle.
WHOSE BODY?
Vengono inviati tre pacchi contenenti oggetti bizzarri (un revolver, una bottiglietta contenente acido solforico e una corda) a tre diversi artisti. Il mittente però nega di averlo fatto. A dieci giorni dal fatto, viene rinvenuto in un abitato quasi abbandonato il corpo di un uomo decapitato, a cui hanno sparato con quello stesso revolver che è stato "regalato" e con le impronte cancellate dall'acido suddetto. Cosa c'è dietro questo bizzarro enigma. Il racconto è un gioiello di deduzione e false piste, nella migliore tradizione del giallo classico. Il detective Onitsura riuscirà con l'aiuto della logica a sventare un piano machiavellico, che era quasi riuscito ad ingannare la polizia. Un meccanismo sofisticato ed elaborato. Un misto tra il Queen deduttivo ed il Carr del filone bizzarro. Fantastico. 5 stelle.
THE BLUE LOCKED ROOM
Il corpo di un noto direttore teatrale viene rinvenuto strangolato nel suo appartamento chiuso a chiave dall'interno. L'unica finestra aperta dà su un'aiuola la cui terra pare però indisturbata. Come ha fatto l'assassino a fuggire?
La soluzione è una delle più semplici ed il colpevole è un vecchio cliché del genere. Nulla di eccezionale ma piacevole. 3 stelle.
DEATH IN EARLY SPRING
Il cadavere di un giovane viene rinvenuto soffocato in un edificio in costruzione vicino ad una stazione di Tokyo. A quanto pare il colpevole sembra essere il signor Fuda, suo rivale in amore. Peccato che egli abbia un alibi di ferro. Onitsura, attraverso molti indizi e basandosi sugli orari dei treni(cosa che mi ha ricordato molto Crofts) riuscirà a svelare un piano particolarmente ingegnoso, frutto di una mente metodica e scaltra. La soluzione è davvero geniale, così come le deduzioni che portano l'ispettore al disvelamento della faccenda. 5 stelle.
THE CLOWN IN THE TUNNEL
Durante un'intervista ad una band musicale avviene un omicidio: una dei componenti del gruppo viene trovata assassinata nellasua vasca da bagno e l'assassino pare essere un clown che è stato visto entrare nella casa e, dopo il delitto, in una sorta di tunnel sul retro. La cosa diventa grottesca quando si scopre che dall'altra parte del tunnel nessuno è uscito. Entrambe le parti erano sorvegliate eppure nel tunnel non si trova nessuno, né vi è qualche passaggio segreto. Come ha fatto a svanire nell'aria? Sarà l'antipatico detective Ryuzo Hoshikage a risolvere questo delitto, spiegando come l'impossibile sia stato possibile. Soluzione geniale, che prevede una messinscena alla base di tutto. Mi ha ricordato un trucco usato più volte da Halter, solo che mentre l'alsaziano lo usa "spazialmente", Ayukawa lo utilizza "temporalmente". 5 stelle.
THE FIVE CLOCKS
Mansaku Sasamoto, contabile con un lussuoso tenore di vita, viene trovato strangolato nel suo appartamento. Tutti gli indizi puntano su Nikaido, suo collega con problemi finanziari. Ma l'ispettore Onitsura riceve una soffiata da un suo collega che stava investigando sulle esagerate uscite della vittima: pare infatti che si fosse impossessata di un'enorme cifra illegalmente. Ovviamente non poteva farlo da solo, ma con la complicità del capo sezione Hirondo Sugita. La vittima aveva confessato e aveva richiesto 5 giorni per riunire le prove per incolpare il suo complice ma l'omicidio ha interrotto tale indagine. È chiaro quindi che forse Sugita aveva un motivo più forte per volerlo morto. Peccato che abbia un alibi di ferro, testimoniato da ben 5 orologi differenti in 5 luoghi diversi. Come è riuscito ad ingannare tutti?
Qui più che in altri racconti l'ispettore Onitsura dovrà mettere in moto le sue cellule grigie per destrutturare un alibi perfetto. Un racconto ingegnosissimo, che si avvicina moltissimo a Crots, tanto che Onitsura può essere qui considerato l'ispettore French n
ipponico. Grande meccanismo giallo che dimostra notevole abilità tecnica e creativa. 5 stelle.
THE RED LOCKED ROOM
Nell'obitorio universitario viene rinvenuto il corpo dissezionato di una delle allieve, Emiko Katsuki. Il problema è che il giorno precedente, prima che chiudessero la struttura, nella sala delle autopsie non c'era nulla di fuori posto. La sala era sigillata e l'unico a possedere le chiavi è il giovane Urakami, che si dichiara innocente pur negando che qualcuno possa aver preso la sua chiave portandola sempre con sé. Allora chi è stato? E se non è stato lui, come ha fatto?
Una grandissima camera chiusa costruita su più piani, degna di un Carr. Mi ha ricordato in un certo modo un racconto del Maestro. Grande chiusura di questa ottima raccolta. 5 stelle.
Nel complesso quindi una raccolta assieme gradevole nello stile ed originale nelle soluzioni gialle. Una gran bella scoperta! Spero che la LRI pubblichi altre meritevoli opere di autori giapponesi.
March 4, 2021
The hell with character, social setting, and emotional entanglements in a murder mystery; let's just get down to the puzzle — the question not so much of who did it, but how. I have toyed with trying a puzzle-mystery story (how hard can it be?), thinking it must be a minority enterprise these days, in an era of serial killers and slick police procedurals. Boy, was I wrong.
So-called "locked room" mysteries have endured in the West since Edgar Allen Poe ("Murders in the Rue Morgue") and Sherlock Holmes, and in later times by writers like John Dickson Carr. Japan has adopted the so-called "classic mystery" genre, or honkaku mystery, with enthusiasm. One of its distinguished practitioners of impossible crimes and unbreakable alibis is Tetsuya Ayukawa, who published these stores from the mid-1950s to 1961. These are several of his best.
Japanese honkaku can be an acquired taste. The sleuths, many of whom consciously ape the alpha detective Sherlock revel in their superior insight. The suspects are often unremarkable individuals, yet still capable of concocting intricate and fiendish plots.
And after all, the plots, the puzzle, are the entire point. Reading a Red Locked Room story is like attending a magician's show where the point is not the magic, but the explanation. For the first part of an Ayukawa story, you watch the magic sleight of hand; then the magician spends the rest of the show explaining exactly how he pulled off his tricks, in meticulous detail.
So, how does it work? What's the trick of it all? Often the answer is to manipulate time. "Death in Early Spring" requires close examination of the famously punctual Japanese train system. "The Five Clocks" entails control of several very different timepieces. But often, Ayukawa relies on the oldest trick in the book: the deception of looking at one hand while missing what the other is doing. "The Clown in the Tunnel," for example, requires a diagram so that we understand the logistics of the deception.
The problem for Ayukawa is that he may have created several astute detectives, but he never manages to conjure a Moriarty worthy of his carefully crafted plots. The title story, for example, unveils a dark story involving body parts, but it's hard to care much for the revelation of the sad-sack killer.
Dastardly deeds require dastardly villains.
So-called "locked room" mysteries have endured in the West since Edgar Allen Poe ("Murders in the Rue Morgue") and Sherlock Holmes, and in later times by writers like John Dickson Carr. Japan has adopted the so-called "classic mystery" genre, or honkaku mystery, with enthusiasm. One of its distinguished practitioners of impossible crimes and unbreakable alibis is Tetsuya Ayukawa, who published these stores from the mid-1950s to 1961. These are several of his best.
Japanese honkaku can be an acquired taste. The sleuths, many of whom consciously ape the alpha detective Sherlock revel in their superior insight. The suspects are often unremarkable individuals, yet still capable of concocting intricate and fiendish plots.
And after all, the plots, the puzzle, are the entire point. Reading a Red Locked Room story is like attending a magician's show where the point is not the magic, but the explanation. For the first part of an Ayukawa story, you watch the magic sleight of hand; then the magician spends the rest of the show explaining exactly how he pulled off his tricks, in meticulous detail.
So, how does it work? What's the trick of it all? Often the answer is to manipulate time. "Death in Early Spring" requires close examination of the famously punctual Japanese train system. "The Five Clocks" entails control of several very different timepieces. But often, Ayukawa relies on the oldest trick in the book: the deception of looking at one hand while missing what the other is doing. "The Clown in the Tunnel," for example, requires a diagram so that we understand the logistics of the deception.
The problem for Ayukawa is that he may have created several astute detectives, but he never manages to conjure a Moriarty worthy of his carefully crafted plots. The title story, for example, unveils a dark story involving body parts, but it's hard to care much for the revelation of the sad-sack killer.
Dastardly deeds require dastardly villains.
January 4, 2021
This was a recommendation on one of the sites I use, based on other books that I have read. On the face of it a translation from Japanese about a locked room mystery seemed to fit the bill rather nicely.
I found the long and detailed introduction to the book and the genre, together with the Japanese history of it all , most interesting. However when it talked about the several short stories that made up this book, I started to realize that I had made a mistake. There was a sense of disappointment as my views of short stories have oft been aired before.
I nearly ditched the book at this stage but, on balance, thought that I would give it a try. I think that it was the wrong decision although I struggled on with it to the end, always in the hope that the next tale might be better.
For me all of the stories lacked depth and merely centered on the actual murder and either its method or the alibi of the chief suspect. Some of the cases were solved by a Consulting Detective who manage to solve them merely by hearing the Detective's notes on the investigation. Even Sherlock Holmes visited crime scenes and met witnesses.
It may have been because these stories were written quite early in the life of this genre in Japan. It wasn't that it was Japanese as I have enjoyed many Japanese written murder - mysteries. These stories seemed so clinical and lacking in any feeling for the deceased or witnesses.
Others may enjoy this approach but sorry, it isnt for me.
I found the long and detailed introduction to the book and the genre, together with the Japanese history of it all , most interesting. However when it talked about the several short stories that made up this book, I started to realize that I had made a mistake. There was a sense of disappointment as my views of short stories have oft been aired before.
I nearly ditched the book at this stage but, on balance, thought that I would give it a try. I think that it was the wrong decision although I struggled on with it to the end, always in the hope that the next tale might be better.
For me all of the stories lacked depth and merely centered on the actual murder and either its method or the alibi of the chief suspect. Some of the cases were solved by a Consulting Detective who manage to solve them merely by hearing the Detective's notes on the investigation. Even Sherlock Holmes visited crime scenes and met witnesses.
It may have been because these stories were written quite early in the life of this genre in Japan. It wasn't that it was Japanese as I have enjoyed many Japanese written murder - mysteries. These stories seemed so clinical and lacking in any feeling for the deceased or witnesses.
Others may enjoy this approach but sorry, it isnt for me.
May 18, 2025
This is a collection of seven stories written in the mid to late 1950s in Japan. Four of the stories are locked room mysteries, featuring Hoshikage, an expert in solving impossible mysteries. The remaining three stories are "crack the alibi" mysteries featuring Detective Onitsura, an inspector featured in many of the author's other novels. Each of the stories really focuses on the puzzle, the mystery, with little character development or backstory, so enjoy these for what they are.
1. The White Locked Room: a dead professor, with only two sets of footprints in the snow.
2. Whose Body?: Three different people all receive murder weapons in the mail, without anyone having been killed. When a corpse is discovered later, how did those weapons play a part in the death?
3. The Blue Locked Room: A theater director is found dead in his locked room, with an undisturbed flower bed under the only open window.
4. Death In Early Spring: Ah yes, the Japanese obsession with train alibis.
5. The Clown In The Tunnel: Everyone sees the clown enter the building and vanish through a tunnel out the back, but he never emerges from the other side of the tunnel.
6. The Five Clocks: An embezzler is found murdered, but the chief suspect has five different clocks providing his innocence.
7. The Red Locked Room: A medical student is found dismembered in a locked autopsy room. How was the killer able to enter and leave?
1. The White Locked Room: a dead professor, with only two sets of footprints in the snow.
2. Whose Body?: Three different people all receive murder weapons in the mail, without anyone having been killed. When a corpse is discovered later, how did those weapons play a part in the death?
3. The Blue Locked Room: A theater director is found dead in his locked room, with an undisturbed flower bed under the only open window.
4. Death In Early Spring: Ah yes, the Japanese obsession with train alibis.
5. The Clown In The Tunnel: Everyone sees the clown enter the building and vanish through a tunnel out the back, but he never emerges from the other side of the tunnel.
6. The Five Clocks: An embezzler is found murdered, but the chief suspect has five different clocks providing his innocence.
7. The Red Locked Room: A medical student is found dismembered in a locked autopsy room. How was the killer able to enter and leave?
December 23, 2024
Japanese detective stories are some of the best I've ever read, and I wish there were even more translated to a language I can understand.
This collection of short stories is quite delightful, I really like anthologies.
One of the main things that forces me to lower my rating is the constant deus ex machinas. Case is complicated; detective is at a loss, oh no! Better call our cop friend that, on his first listen of the impossible enigma, solves it with an arrogant smirk. The cases are also often extremely convoluted.
But this wasn't the most aggravating thing.
Women.
Dear lord. These short stories were written in the 1950s, and YOU CAN TELL.
I highlighted some of the passages that, at best, made me raise an eyebrow or, most of the time, made me pause my reading to clutch at my skull in utter bewilderment. I'd copy and paste them here, but I'm feeling lazy at the moment.
Just know that a woman is either irresistibly attractive (and that's of course her only trait), or she's plump and average (which makes her immediately suspicious of murder, obvi).
At least, either way, the men around are much smarter and they'll prove that to you, and the women will oooohhh and aaaahhh, so there's that
This collection of short stories is quite delightful, I really like anthologies.
One of the main things that forces me to lower my rating is the constant deus ex machinas. Case is complicated; detective is at a loss, oh no! Better call our cop friend that, on his first listen of the impossible enigma, solves it with an arrogant smirk. The cases are also often extremely convoluted.
But this wasn't the most aggravating thing.
Women.
Dear lord. These short stories were written in the 1950s, and YOU CAN TELL.
I highlighted some of the passages that, at best, made me raise an eyebrow or, most of the time, made me pause my reading to clutch at my skull in utter bewilderment. I'd copy and paste them here, but I'm feeling lazy at the moment.
Just know that a woman is either irresistibly attractive (and that's of course her only trait), or she's plump and average (which makes her immediately suspicious of murder, obvi).
At least, either way, the men around are much smarter and they'll prove that to you, and the women will oooohhh and aaaahhh, so there's that
October 1, 2021
Overall, I'd say this was a good collection. I kept brief notes on each story and it looks like I was delighted by many of the clever solutions. The only one that I didn't particularly enjoy was the title story -- which was also the final story in the book. So, after getting the great classic detective feel that I wanted throughout it all, we end on this sour note where the mystery was still clever, but the story was definitely of a time and more sexist (and other such things) than any of the other ones. My favorite stories were Whose Body (which I imagine they didn't want to use because of the Dorothy Sayers book) and Death in Early Spring (which I guess isn't as evocative a title). Plus there was a Blue Locked Room tale that goes well with the title but, come to think of it, was my second least favorite story...
May 24, 2022
I have read the English translation and rated this book 5 star for the quality/originality of puzzles developed in these stories. A must-read for any mystery fan who loves puzzles that offer credible solutions. However, if you are looking for mysteries that develop the story through character development of each suspect, intense conversations between the detective and the suspects or interaction between the suspects (typical of Agatha Christie or Ellery Queen books), you may not find these stories fitting that genre. For me personally, this book made me want to read more mysteries of the honkaku/new honkaku genre from Japan.
April 18, 2025
Much as I enjoy a good mystery story that focuses on logic, I have to admit this collection of short stories didn’t entirely live up to my expectations. Don’t get me wrong—I was entertained, and I don’t regret reading it. But more often than not, I felt there were way too many characters involved, considering how short the stories are. Not to mention the lengths some of them had to go to commit the crime, which I understand is the point of this sort of story, but it becomes a little too hard to believe when it gets so far-fetched.
January 20, 2021
The Red Locked Room, by Tetsuya Ayukawa, is a collection of 7 short mysteries that are well worth a read. Ayukawa is a lauded mystery author from Japan, who wrote from the late 50s through his death in 2002. The stories are fun, short, and generally easy to follow. I found that the age of the stories and cultural differences made it hard to parse what was happening at a few parts, but aside from that these mysteries won't disappoint. - Peter
5 out of 5
5 out of 5
March 1, 2021
A collection of Japanese locked room mystery short stories. Most were written many years ago. The stories were generally good, although there was pretty much no attempt made to allow a reader to be able to figure anything out. At times, the writing was a little stilted, but I don't know if that comes from the translation, the original writing (and the time period from which it was written), or style or what. It wasn't enough of an issue to stop me from finishing.
September 1, 2025
A collection of Japanese puzzle mystery involving locked room murders and fabrication if false alibis . All the stories are masterful puzzle and needs attention to details to understand and appreciate fully. I am not fond of the writing style and how the characters are developed, but in a way that is too much to expect in short stories. Overall a nice collection to read if you are fan of classic golden age puzzle mysteries.
November 14, 2024
The Red locked room
A deep murder mystery novel where the crime most often takes place else where and the culprit throws the chase elsewhere.
Hosikage is like a Janese sherlock with the author being a sucker for details to the point where even a room map is shown in a novel where the reader can't understand something.
With references making it easier to read the author has done a great job.
A deep murder mystery novel where the crime most often takes place else where and the culprit throws the chase elsewhere.
Hosikage is like a Janese sherlock with the author being a sucker for details to the point where even a room map is shown in a novel where the reader can't understand something.
With references making it easier to read the author has done a great job.
September 17, 2020
Interesting Short Stories
These were interesting stories and I don’t believe the average reader would be able to solve the how question. Although I will admit that I realized the how of one - I just guessed the wrong who. They are well worth reading.
These were interesting stories and I don’t believe the average reader would be able to solve the how question. Although I will admit that I realized the how of one - I just guessed the wrong who. They are well worth reading.
June 3, 2021
Hate to give it 3 stars because the writing is decent, but all too often these stories hinge on some tiny detail and if you notice it "you win" and if you don't you're a dum dum, and I don't find the genre very compelling.
The last story in the book was hailed as the best example of this genre and it was the only one I solved... so it goes.
The last story in the book was hailed as the best example of this genre and it was the only one I solved... so it goes.
January 11, 2022
Average mystery short stories. Japanese crime fiction is usually hit or miss for me. This one lands somewhere in between. I didn't hate nor love. I think as there's no real character development in each story. Fine but forgettable.
January 24, 2024
This is a collection of short stories written by Tetsuya.
Some of the mystery stories were good & some were not.
I enjoyed the White Locked Room/Whose Body & Red Locked Room.
The rest just fell flat.
I felt that most the mystery revolved around revenge/women scorned/scandals.
One or two is nice, but repetitive stuff makes it very boring...
Some of the mystery stories were good & some were not.
I enjoyed the White Locked Room/Whose Body & Red Locked Room.
The rest just fell flat.
I felt that most the mystery revolved around revenge/women scorned/scandals.
One or two is nice, but repetitive stuff makes it very boring...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 15, 2020
I really liked the first two stories but the rest weren’t as satisfying.
December 11, 2021
This book was impressive with unique stories and mysteries .
A must read for fans of mystery novels.
A must read for fans of mystery novels.
January 23, 2022
The alibi:locked room puzzles are clever, but the stories offer no character or style. But a good read for the intricacies of plot.
March 11, 2022
Pretty good. Locked room mysteries and unbreakable alibis. Because they’re short stories the plots and the puzzles don’t really have time to breathe. I’d like to know why Ayukawa made his amateur detective (snobbish, snide, supercilious) personally unpleasant. The introduction is informative about mystery writing in Japan.
May 16, 2022
Simplistic stuff focused mostly on chronological tricks and purported impossibilities, but only enjoyable on rare occasions.
May 21, 2024
Totally delightful.. After a long time, a great mystery short story collection
October 5, 2023
Convoluted and Poorly Executed.
A deeply disappointing read. I found this novel to be lacking in various aspects, and it left me questioning why I had invested my time in it.
Firstly, the plot was convoluted and poorly executed. It seemed as though the author was trying too hard to create a sense of mystery, resulting in a tangled mess of a storyline. Instead of feeling intrigued, I was often confused and frustrated.
The characters were one-dimensional and unrelatable. Their actions and motivations were often inexplicable, making it difficult to connect with or care about their fates. It felt as if they were merely vessels for the plot rather than fully developed individuals.
Right from the beginning, the characters exhibited behavior that felt disconnected from reality. For instance;
Discovering someone brutally stabbed to death, his response appeared unusually composed, which doesn't align with realism. Moments later, this was followed by...
After stumbling upon a murder victim, your initial instinct is to inspect the body? Risking contamination of the crime scene? Who behaves in such a manner?
Furthermore, the writing style was lackluster. The prose lacked depth and failed to create the atmosphere or tension necessary for a successful mystery novel. It read more like a series of disconnected events rather than a cohesive narrative.
Conclusion: It was disappointing and poorly executed mystery novel. Its dissapointing plot, shallow characters, and lackluster writing left me with a sense of regret for having picked up this book. I would not recommend it to anyone seeking a satisfying mystery read.
A deeply disappointing read. I found this novel to be lacking in various aspects, and it left me questioning why I had invested my time in it.
Firstly, the plot was convoluted and poorly executed. It seemed as though the author was trying too hard to create a sense of mystery, resulting in a tangled mess of a storyline. Instead of feeling intrigued, I was often confused and frustrated.
The characters were one-dimensional and unrelatable. Their actions and motivations were often inexplicable, making it difficult to connect with or care about their fates. It felt as if they were merely vessels for the plot rather than fully developed individuals.
Right from the beginning, the characters exhibited behavior that felt disconnected from reality. For instance;
‘Excuse me, is the professor at home?’
‘He’s here, but I am afraid he’s in no condition to see you,’ the man replied bluntly. His unfriendly face betrayed feelings of confusion. Kimiko frowned as she detected the smell of alcohol on the man’s breath. There’s no smell as unpleasant to those who don’t drink as the odour of stale alcohol.
‘Why, is there something wrong with him?’
‘You could say that. He’s dead.’
Discovering someone brutally stabbed to death, his response appeared unusually composed, which doesn't align with realism. Moments later, this was followed by...
‘We’d better make sure it was murder before phoning the police.’
After stumbling upon a murder victim, your initial instinct is to inspect the body? Risking contamination of the crime scene? Who behaves in such a manner?
Furthermore, the writing style was lackluster. The prose lacked depth and failed to create the atmosphere or tension necessary for a successful mystery novel. It read more like a series of disconnected events rather than a cohesive narrative.
Conclusion: It was disappointing and poorly executed mystery novel. Its dissapointing plot, shallow characters, and lackluster writing left me with a sense of regret for having picked up this book. I would not recommend it to anyone seeking a satisfying mystery read.
September 18, 2023
Eh, not many of the tricks were that cool or interesting. There's a lot just throwing times off, like culprit switching clocks in 5 ish places (kind of, some were different time distortions like ordering from different restaurant and pretending order was another restaurant to delay/trick the time, switching guy's watch in bath, etc). There's one of the guy burning his shoes and walking in dead guy's shoes I believe and having a injured foot from the too small shoes. There's others like a policeman who obscured time of death since he was culprit, etc.
I don't hate any of the tricks, but some, such as the watch one, feel outlandish and extreme to pull off successfully. There's not many that blow my mind as super elegant or clever. Even wearing another's shoes is a common trick in mysteries or something that's easily thought of IMO.
Overall, I wasn't blown away by it. I didn't read it all but read a good portion of it and know all the mysteries and solutions and would like more books like this but just with cooler tricks IMO. Intend to hopefully go back one day.
I don't hate any of the tricks, but some, such as the watch one, feel outlandish and extreme to pull off successfully. There's not many that blow my mind as super elegant or clever. Even wearing another's shoes is a common trick in mysteries or something that's easily thought of IMO.
Overall, I wasn't blown away by it. I didn't read it all but read a good portion of it and know all the mysteries and solutions and would like more books like this but just with cooler tricks IMO. Intend to hopefully go back one day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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