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تحريات أكيشي كوغورو
استقى تارو هيراي،أو كما يُعرف بإيدوغاوا رانبو،اسمه من الكاتب الأمريكي الشهير إدجار آلان بو، وكذلك حُبّه الجمّ لكتابة القصص البوليسية والتحقيقات، هذا ما نراه جلياً في ذكره المتكرر للعديد من قصصه والأعمال البوليسية الغربية الأخرى هنا وهناك. إذ إن رانبو لم يتوقف عند محبة بو وترجمته لأعماله وقراءاته لقصص التحريات الأجنبية،بل خلق بنفسه أحد أشهر شخصيات التحقيقات اليابانية وأكثرها براعة،قبل ظهور المحقق كونان بكثير،وهنا نتكلم عن أكيشي غوغورو،الشخصية التي استلهمها الكاتب من أعمال أرثر كونان دويل وشخصيته الأشهر شارلوك هولمز.
في هذه القصص الثلاث،سنتحرى بدايات غوغورو الذي كان،قبل شهرته كمحقق خاص وسيم وسيد التنكر الحاذق،شاباً بسيط الهيئة أشعث الشعر،يرتدي اللباس الياباني التقليدي ويعيش في غرفة تكدست فيما كتب التحريات لكنه أظهر براعة مدهشة في كشف بعض الجرائم العجيبة،لا بل الخارقة للطبيعة أحيانا،برفقة صديقه الذي تروى أحداث الكتاب على لسانه.ففي هذا العمل نستكشف بدايات العبقري الشاب وكيفية حله لبعض أصعب القضايا بيسر عجيب وألمعية فريدة تجعله في مواجهته الأولى مع عصابة الكف الأسرد سيئة السمعة وتنطلق بنا لأحد أكثر سلاسل التحريات اليابانية تشويقاً على الإطلاق.
في هذه القصص الثلاث،سنتحرى بدايات غوغورو الذي كان،قبل شهرته كمحقق خاص وسيم وسيد التنكر الحاذق،شاباً بسيط الهيئة أشعث الشعر،يرتدي اللباس الياباني التقليدي ويعيش في غرفة تكدست فيما كتب التحريات لكنه أظهر براعة مدهشة في كشف بعض الجرائم العجيبة،لا بل الخارقة للطبيعة أحيانا،برفقة صديقه الذي تروى أحداث الكتاب على لسانه.ففي هذا العمل نستكشف بدايات العبقري الشاب وكيفية حله لبعض أصعب القضايا بيسر عجيب وألمعية فريدة تجعله في مواجهته الأولى مع عصابة الكف الأسرد سيئة السمعة وتنطلق بنا لأحد أكثر سلاسل التحريات اليابانية تشويقاً على الإطلاق.
121 pages, Hardcover
First published November 5, 2014
86 people are currently reading
1114 people want to read
About the author
Edogawa Rampo
915 books1,050 followersHirai 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.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 74 reviews
August 26, 2015
The most famous fictional detective in Japan is by far, Akechi Kogoro. A Sherlock Holmes, but with a darker edge, due to the narratives of its writer Edogawa Rampo. A true master of crime fiction that mixes with grotesque horror and perverse sexuality. Pulp writing doesn't get better than this collection of early tales with Kogoro as its hero. Rampo is by far the best known writer in Japan for horror/detective fiction. Many films and mangas are based on his fiction - and this writer never lets me down. We're only getting the tip of the iceberg with respect to his work being translated into English. I hope there will be more and more. "The Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro" is not an easy book to find. I found a copy at the local bookstore in Tokyo, and they only had one copy in stock. I strongly suggest tracking down his titles in English - there are currently about four or five out in the English reading market. One of the best is his "Tales from Panorama Island." A story so twisted, you will shake your head thinking "really?" But all his books are superb. Some are detective tales. Some are kinky sexy tales, and some are horror mixed in with kinky sexuality - all great.
September 11, 2017
A 4-story introduction to Akechi Kogoro, the Japanese answer to Sherlock Holmes.
Thanks to William Varteresian’s (the book's English translator) excellent preface, it’s easy to get up to speed with the history and writing style of Edogawa Rampo; one of the most prolific and celebrated Japanese crime writers, whose influence can still be seen these days in various mystery novels, films, anime, manga, and tribute works. In Akechi Kogoro, he has created an iconic detective figure, who is some curious mixture between an eccentric drifter, a bookworm, and a dandy genius.
The four stories selected here represent different natures of crime, as well as different facets of Akechi's persona. My individual takes:
The Case of the Murder on D. Hill
Akechi's first official case, told from the perspective of a Hastings/Watson-style narrator. It's a classic locked room scenario, with some doses of meta fiction, contradicting testimonies, and Akechi’s languid brilliance. The meta is indeed strong here; the narrator has direct conversation with the reader and discusses the situation with Akechi in genre-savvy manner, nearly breaking the fourth wall outright as they brought up Poe’s The Murders in Rue Morgue and Doyle’s The Adventure of the Speckled Band as points of comparison.
It’s a decent case, though I wish it were longer and has more detailed description of the suspects.
The Black Hand Gang
Akechi investigates the kidnapping of a young woman, who is also the narrator’s cousin. Even though the primary clue in this case is untranslatable (a cryptogram in native Japanese characters), I enjoy the dialogue and general flow of this one. The solution is a bit unpredictable, and I admire the way Akechi reveals the actual truth behind perceived fact here.
The Ghost
No more narrator this time, just a third-person account of a wealthy man tortured by the ghost (?) of his former enemy. Rampo called this story “rubbish”, but I don’t think it’s that bad. It’s the shortest and most forgettable story between the four, but the set-up is actually pretty good.
The Dwarf
Crap, my feeling’s really mixed on this one.
On one hand, this is the most sensational and grotesque story in the collection. It’s also by far the longest, with more pages than the other three stories combined. Featuring a seedy nightscape, body parts of young woman found in spectacular fashion, and a literal monster, it’s Rampo completely in his element (and Akechi at his swaggiest), with some social commentary and even a bit of humor.
On the other, it also has a nasty portrayal of its physically deformed titular character and an ending that left a sour taste in my mouth.
Reading these stories, I can see some elements of Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Agatha Christie in Rampo’s writing (seeing that he later created the mystery-solving juvenile series The Boys Detectives Club, there may be even some Enid Blyton in him as well). However, there’s also a unique flavor, a sense of macabre flair that combines Western style of plotting with quintessentially Japanese setting. None of the stories really knock me off my foot, but altogether they make for an enjoyable and diverse read for aficionado of the genre.
Thanks to William Varteresian’s (the book's English translator) excellent preface, it’s easy to get up to speed with the history and writing style of Edogawa Rampo; one of the most prolific and celebrated Japanese crime writers, whose influence can still be seen these days in various mystery novels, films, anime, manga, and tribute works. In Akechi Kogoro, he has created an iconic detective figure, who is some curious mixture between an eccentric drifter, a bookworm, and a dandy genius.
The four stories selected here represent different natures of crime, as well as different facets of Akechi's persona. My individual takes:
The Case of the Murder on D. Hill
Akechi's first official case, told from the perspective of a Hastings/Watson-style narrator. It's a classic locked room scenario, with some doses of meta fiction, contradicting testimonies, and Akechi’s languid brilliance. The meta is indeed strong here; the narrator has direct conversation with the reader and discusses the situation with Akechi in genre-savvy manner, nearly breaking the fourth wall outright as they brought up Poe’s The Murders in Rue Morgue and Doyle’s The Adventure of the Speckled Band as points of comparison.
It’s a decent case, though I wish it were longer and has more detailed description of the suspects.
The Black Hand Gang
Akechi investigates the kidnapping of a young woman, who is also the narrator’s cousin. Even though the primary clue in this case is untranslatable (a cryptogram in native Japanese characters), I enjoy the dialogue and general flow of this one. The solution is a bit unpredictable, and I admire the way Akechi reveals the actual truth behind perceived fact here.
The Ghost
No more narrator this time, just a third-person account of a wealthy man tortured by the ghost (?) of his former enemy. Rampo called this story “rubbish”, but I don’t think it’s that bad. It’s the shortest and most forgettable story between the four, but the set-up is actually pretty good.
The Dwarf
Crap, my feeling’s really mixed on this one.
On one hand, this is the most sensational and grotesque story in the collection. It’s also by far the longest, with more pages than the other three stories combined. Featuring a seedy nightscape, body parts of young woman found in spectacular fashion, and a literal monster, it’s Rampo completely in his element (and Akechi at his swaggiest), with some social commentary and even a bit of humor.
On the other, it also has a nasty portrayal of its physically deformed titular character and an ending that left a sour taste in my mouth.
Reading these stories, I can see some elements of Edgar Allan Poe, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Agatha Christie in Rampo’s writing (seeing that he later created the mystery-solving juvenile series The Boys Detectives Club, there may be even some Enid Blyton in him as well). However, there’s also a unique flavor, a sense of macabre flair that combines Western style of plotting with quintessentially Japanese setting. None of the stories really knock me off my foot, but altogether they make for an enjoyable and diverse read for aficionado of the genre.
July 9, 2017
En estas historias Rampo no es perverso, es directamente sórdido. Tiene una fijación con las pulsiones sexuales y cómo aquellas pueden derivar en el crimen que se nota mucho el que estuviera influenciado por Freud. A veces esa fijación produce malestar, como las descripciones que hace del enano en el relato "El pulgarcito" (lo políticamente correcto aún no había llegado a Japón), pero la mayor parte de las veces es fascinante cómo consigue relatos tan sexualmente cargados en una época como principios del siglo XX.
En estos relatos se nos muestra el Kogoro Akechi de la primera época, que es un poco diferente al que podía conocer en "El lagarto negro", más un aficionado un poco indolente y con una ética, digamos, discutible, que el detective profesional de aquella novela. Por alguna razón, sin embargo, estos relatos me gustaron más que "El lagarto negro", tal vez porque esa novela es más convencional, mientras que estos relatos (aunque el propio autor no estuviera muy contento con "El pulgarcito") tienen cierto toque oscuro y poco sofisticado que resulta refrescante.
No diré que es para todo el mundo, pero a mí me han gustado mucho.
En estos relatos se nos muestra el Kogoro Akechi de la primera época, que es un poco diferente al que podía conocer en "El lagarto negro", más un aficionado un poco indolente y con una ética, digamos, discutible, que el detective profesional de aquella novela. Por alguna razón, sin embargo, estos relatos me gustaron más que "El lagarto negro", tal vez porque esa novela es más convencional, mientras que estos relatos (aunque el propio autor no estuviera muy contento con "El pulgarcito") tienen cierto toque oscuro y poco sofisticado que resulta refrescante.
No diré que es para todo el mundo, pero a mí me han gustado mucho.
December 14, 2022
قرأت هذه الرواية -ككثيرٍ من أمثالي- بسبب حبّي للشخصية المبنيّة على الكاتب في أنمي كلاب طوكيو، وهو الأنمي الذي تنتمي إليه الشخصيّة الموضوعة بلا خجلٍ على الغلاف.
إنّ الترجمة سيّئة كما تحتوي على الكثير من الأخطاء الطباعية، بغضّ النّظر عن الصور المسروقة من مانجا كلاب طوكيو (القصّة المصورة) والموضوعة كما هي دون سياقٍ ودون تغيير حوارات المانجا.
تحريات أكيشي كوغورو هي قصص غموضٍ لطيفة وممتعة وخفيفة ، ولكنَها لا ترتقي إلى مستوى أغاثا كريستي أو شارلوك هولمز فتبدو لي كمشروع غموضٍ لطيفٍ ولكن غير ملفتٍ للنظر بالقياس إلى المكتبة العالميّة المتوفرة في أيدي الجميع.
(تحذير: القصص تحتوي على بعض الأشياء الغير مناسبة للأطفال)
إنّ الترجمة سيّئة كما تحتوي على الكثير من الأخطاء الطباعية، بغضّ النّظر عن الصور المسروقة من مانجا كلاب طوكيو (القصّة المصورة) والموضوعة كما هي دون سياقٍ ودون تغيير حوارات المانجا.
تحريات أكيشي كوغورو هي قصص غموضٍ لطيفة وممتعة وخفيفة ، ولكنَها لا ترتقي إلى مستوى أغاثا كريستي أو شارلوك هولمز فتبدو لي كمشروع غموضٍ لطيفٍ ولكن غير ملفتٍ للنظر بالقياس إلى المكتبة العالميّة المتوفرة في أيدي الجميع.
(تحذير: القصص تحتوي على بعض الأشياء الغير مناسبة للأطفال)
January 28, 2018
Four stories:
The Case of the Murder on D Hill 「D坂の殺人事件」
The Black Hand Gang 「黒手組」
The Ghost 「幽霊」
The Dwarf 「一寸法師」
I've written about Edogawa before (see here), in these four crime stories are the same themes as you're used to with his writing. To me Rampo is a crime fiction nerd's crime fiction writer. He wrote a dictionary (not translated into English?) of crime fiction's common tropes and twists, and his short fiction is full of allusions and outright quotes of the Western greats, like this one:
Rampo uses very common structures and stories and, based on his extensive knowledge of what has been before, comes up with very unique endings and explanations that nobody else has come up with before.
Interestingly (especially in the first story, The Case of the Murder on D Hill) his master detective quotes a bit of psychological scientific literature to explain how you cannot trust eye witness accounts, which to me is surprising, given the release year of these stories (1925!). Only in recent years have the pitfalls of memory been popularised, just think of the Gorilla experiment (1999) which could be repeated in expert observers, when researchers put gorillas in x-rays and 83% of radiologists did not see the gorilla (Drew et al., 2013). One hundred years between Edogawa's writing and people still find novel examples of inattentional blindness!
Anyway, if you need to choose only one story to read, go for The Dwarf, which Wikipedia even lists as its own novel (it's not that long). That one is genuinely creepy and definitely not for young adults, there's a murder, body mutilation and exhibition, and sexual blackmail and promiscuity.
The Case of the Murder on D Hill 「D坂の殺人事件」
The Black Hand Gang 「黒手組」
The Ghost 「幽霊」
The Dwarf 「一寸法師」
I've written about Edogawa before (see here), in these four crime stories are the same themes as you're used to with his writing. To me Rampo is a crime fiction nerd's crime fiction writer. He wrote a dictionary (not translated into English?) of crime fiction's common tropes and twists, and his short fiction is full of allusions and outright quotes of the Western greats, like this one:
Dear readers, I wonder if some of you might not be reminded of Poe’s The Murders in the Rue Morgue or Doyle’s The Adventure of the Speckled Band as you read this story. In other words, I wonder if you might not be imagining that the criminal in this case is not a human being, but an orangutan or a venomous Indian serpent or something of that kind. I actually considered that myself.
Rampo uses very common structures and stories and, based on his extensive knowledge of what has been before, comes up with very unique endings and explanations that nobody else has come up with before.
Interestingly (especially in the first story, The Case of the Murder on D Hill) his master detective quotes a bit of psychological scientific literature to explain how you cannot trust eye witness accounts, which to me is surprising, given the release year of these stories (1925!). Only in recent years have the pitfalls of memory been popularised, just think of the Gorilla experiment (1999) which could be repeated in expert observers, when researchers put gorillas in x-rays and 83% of radiologists did not see the gorilla (Drew et al., 2013). One hundred years between Edogawa's writing and people still find novel examples of inattentional blindness!
Anyway, if you need to choose only one story to read, go for The Dwarf, which Wikipedia even lists as its own novel (it's not that long). That one is genuinely creepy and definitely not for young adults, there's a murder, body mutilation and exhibition, and sexual blackmail and promiscuity.
April 17, 2025
La antología de Rampo más floja de todas las que he leído. Si sus otros relatos son herederos directos de Poe, estos lo son de Arthur Conan Doyle. El autor deja de lado la exploración de la psique maníaca para hacer hueco al detective Kogoro Akechi, una especie de Sherlock inmoral y dejado, y ponerlo a resolver crímenes de lo más enrevesados. Eso sí, aunque se desvie de su obra más típica, aún mantiene ese toquecito personal y grotesco.
-El asesinato de la cuesta D ★★★☆☆
Primer relato en el que aparece Kogoro Akechi y en el que se pone a resolver el asesinato de la esposa de un librero. Tiene buen ritmo, pero la conclusión del caso se la ha sacado un poco de la manga.
Una cosa muy curiosa del relato, es como el mismo narrador te trata como si fueras un crío y se hace preguntas retóricas para ubicarte como lector y señalarte los puntos clave del caso. Por lo que tengo entendido a raíz de leer la introducción a la novela: «Los crímenes del jorobado», este recurso lo utilizaba para ayudar a los lectores japoneses. En el país no había ningun tipo de género policíaco, así que se daban esas indicaciones para que los lectores pillaran la gracia de estas historias. Como lector actual, esas interacciones me parecen ridículas, pero tienen un toque algo entrañable cuando se sabe el contexto.
-El fantasma ★★☆☆☆
Un hombre se obsesiona con que le persigue el espíritu vengativo de su mayor enemigo. Bastante soso y olvidable.
-Pulgarcito ★★★☆☆
Un enano se pasea por Tokio lanzando miembros cercenados de una mujer y Kogoro acaba a cargo de la desaparición de la hija de una familia aristócrata (no es muy complicado imaginar como van a converger ambas tramas). Aquí ya no hablamos de relato, si no de una novela de 160 páginas, y una un tanto mediocre, he de decir. La historia tiene sus giros, pero se me ha hecho igualmente aburrida y demasiado directa. Que si enano maligno para arriba, que si enano maligno para abajo. Los personajes tienen propósitos forzados por el bien de la trama y no hay nada que resalte en toda la obra. Pero bueno, he de reconocer que este al menos tiene un final inesperado. Si no llega a ser por ese audible gasp que me sacó en esas últimas páginas al descubrir al culpable, no se habría sacado esa tercera estrella.
En cuanto al contexto de «Pulgarcito», la obra la escribió casi al mismo tiempo que su más conocida: «La bestia ciega». Y poco después de su publicación, renegaría de ambas por su supuesta baja calidad literaria. Si bien «La bestia ciega» no es ninguna maravilla, sí que es original y tiene una exploración sensorial bastante interesante. En cambio, «Pulgarcito» si que me ha parecido floja, quizá no para renegar de ella, pero sí como para mantenerla un poco en la sombra.
-El asesinato de la cuesta D ★★★☆☆
Primer relato en el que aparece Kogoro Akechi y en el que se pone a resolver el asesinato de la esposa de un librero. Tiene buen ritmo, pero la conclusión del caso se la ha sacado un poco de la manga.
Una cosa muy curiosa del relato, es como el mismo narrador te trata como si fueras un crío y se hace preguntas retóricas para ubicarte como lector y señalarte los puntos clave del caso. Por lo que tengo entendido a raíz de leer la introducción a la novela: «Los crímenes del jorobado», este recurso lo utilizaba para ayudar a los lectores japoneses. En el país no había ningun tipo de género policíaco, así que se daban esas indicaciones para que los lectores pillaran la gracia de estas historias. Como lector actual, esas interacciones me parecen ridículas, pero tienen un toque algo entrañable cuando se sabe el contexto.
-El fantasma ★★☆☆☆
Un hombre se obsesiona con que le persigue el espíritu vengativo de su mayor enemigo. Bastante soso y olvidable.
-Pulgarcito ★★★☆☆
Un enano se pasea por Tokio lanzando miembros cercenados de una mujer y Kogoro acaba a cargo de la desaparición de la hija de una familia aristócrata (no es muy complicado imaginar como van a converger ambas tramas). Aquí ya no hablamos de relato, si no de una novela de 160 páginas, y una un tanto mediocre, he de decir. La historia tiene sus giros, pero se me ha hecho igualmente aburrida y demasiado directa. Que si enano maligno para arriba, que si enano maligno para abajo. Los personajes tienen propósitos forzados por el bien de la trama y no hay nada que resalte en toda la obra. Pero bueno, he de reconocer que este al menos tiene un final inesperado. Si no llega a ser por ese audible gasp que me sacó en esas últimas páginas al descubrir al culpable, no se habría sacado esa tercera estrella.
En cuanto al contexto de «Pulgarcito», la obra la escribió casi al mismo tiempo que su más conocida: «La bestia ciega». Y poco después de su publicación, renegaría de ambas por su supuesta baja calidad literaria. Si bien «La bestia ciega» no es ninguna maravilla, sí que es original y tiene una exploración sensorial bastante interesante. En cambio, «Pulgarcito» si que me ha parecido floja, quizá no para renegar de ella, pero sí como para mantenerla un poco en la sombra.
May 18, 2024
книга яку я взяла для порівняння перекладів рампо різних років (моя бакалаврська робота переслідує мене) але поки можу сказати лише те, що з усіх перекладів що мені вже довелося прочитати, цей - мій найменш улюблений
самі історії, звісно, мають право на відомість серед мас - але якщо у вас немає можливості читати рампо в оригіналі то я все ж радила б принаймні залишити цю книгу "на потім"; боюся, якщо зробити її вашим вікном до рампівської творчості у вас може зникнути абсолютно будь-яке бажання читати щось із його творів в подальшому ☕
самі історії, звісно, мають право на відомість серед мас - але якщо у вас немає можливості читати рампо в оригіналі то я все ж радила б принаймні залишити цю книгу "на потім"; боюся, якщо зробити її вашим вікном до рампівської творчості у вас може зникнути абсолютно будь-яке бажання читати щось із його творів в подальшому ☕
June 17, 2024
Las primeras historias me han gustado, aunque tampoco tenían mucho misterio. Sin embargo, la última se me ha atragantado y, como era la más larga, no acabo con una muy buena impresión de este libro.
July 13, 2024
_ اسم الكتاب: تحريات أكيشي كوغورو
_اسم المؤلف: أيدوغاوا رامبو
_ دار النشر: منشورات ظل
_ عدد الصفحات: 133
📌 رأيي بالكتاب:
كتاب ياباني عبارة عن قصص ذات تصنيف جرائم و تحقيق بوليسية مقتبسه من الأنمي اليابانيBungou Stray Dogs والصور مقتبسه من المانجا .
سنتحرى بدايات المحقق العبقري آكيشي غوغورو الوسيم وسيد التنكر الحاذق بسيط الهيئة أشعث الشعر يرتدي اللباس الياباني التقليدي ويعيش في غرفة تكدست فيها كتب التحريات.
📌 يحتوي الكتاب على ثلاث قصص وهي :
_القصة الأولى : قضية الجريمة في دي هيل
_ القصة الثانية : عصابة الكف الأسود الحقائق المكشوفة وهي أكثر القصص التي نالت إعجابي.
_القصة الثالثة : الشبح
للأسف الترجمة ليست جيدة واحتوت على أخطاء مطبعية كثيرة بحاجة للتدقيق اللغوي والإملائي.
📌 تقييمي : 2.5/5
_اسم المؤلف: أيدوغاوا رامبو
_ دار النشر: منشورات ظل
_ عدد الصفحات: 133
📌 رأيي بالكتاب:
كتاب ياباني عبارة عن قصص ذات تصنيف جرائم و تحقيق بوليسية مقتبسه من الأنمي اليابانيBungou Stray Dogs والصور مقتبسه من المانجا .
سنتحرى بدايات المحقق العبقري آكيشي غوغورو الوسيم وسيد التنكر الحاذق بسيط الهيئة أشعث الشعر يرتدي اللباس الياباني التقليدي ويعيش في غرفة تكدست فيها كتب التحريات.
📌 يحتوي الكتاب على ثلاث قصص وهي :
_القصة الأولى : قضية الجريمة في دي هيل
_ القصة الثانية : عصابة الكف الأسود الحقائق المكشوفة وهي أكثر القصص التي نالت إعجابي.
_القصة الثالثة : الشبح
للأسف الترجمة ليست جيدة واحتوت على أخطاء مطبعية كثيرة بحاجة للتدقيق اللغوي والإملائي.
📌 تقييمي : 2.5/5
August 14, 2024
I FINALLY FINISHED THE DWARF (SCREW UNI FOR PUTTING ME IN A READING SLUMP)
I think it’s high time I learn some new Japanese vocabulary (body horror and whatnot) I might never need (I may or may not have bookmarked all the original Ranpo texts while gathering information about my presentation).
I think it’s high time I learn some new Japanese vocabulary (body horror and whatnot) I might never need (I may or may not have bookmarked all the original Ranpo texts while gathering information about my presentation).
June 10, 2021
I don't know much about Rampo's later works or Akechi Kogoro, so I won't be able to say anything about how Rampo's style improved or anything useful like that.
The stories collected here are fun to read and are pretty solid despite having nothing to build upon. Rampo's stories are one of the precursors to this type of mystery genre in Japan after all, and he walked so that writers coming after him could run.
Akechi does change as the stories progress, we can see how he starts becoming his own person later on; to the point where he starts wearing Chinese robes in 'The Dwarf' and we all buy it.
I have to say that I'm being pleasantly surprised by the detective characters in Japanese novels, they're nicer and have their shit together compared to their Western counterparts. Even someone like Akechi, who could be compared to Holmes, is really polite and has a lot of consideration for his clients.
Anyway, the short stories also have elements of ero and guro, which Rampo is also known for. 'The Dwarf' in particular has this emphasis on the dwarf's grotesque appearance and the eroticism of having him pursue relations with a beautiful lady. (From what it looks like, it is about ero guro and the aesthetics of it rather than prejudice but I'd suggest giving the story a miss if you don't like that kind of ableist language and depiction.)
Despite that, I still enjoyed the stories and got surprised at the twists.
The stories collected here are fun to read and are pretty solid despite having nothing to build upon. Rampo's stories are one of the precursors to this type of mystery genre in Japan after all, and he walked so that writers coming after him could run.
Akechi does change as the stories progress, we can see how he starts becoming his own person later on; to the point where he starts wearing Chinese robes in 'The Dwarf' and we all buy it.
I have to say that I'm being pleasantly surprised by the detective characters in Japanese novels, they're nicer and have their shit together compared to their Western counterparts. Even someone like Akechi, who could be compared to Holmes, is really polite and has a lot of consideration for his clients.
Anyway, the short stories also have elements of ero and guro, which Rampo is also known for. 'The Dwarf' in particular has this emphasis on the dwarf's grotesque appearance and the eroticism of having him pursue relations with a beautiful lady. (From what it looks like, it is about ero guro and the aesthetics of it rather than prejudice but I'd suggest giving the story a miss if you don't like that kind of ableist language and depiction.)
Despite that, I still enjoyed the stories and got surprised at the twists.
July 23, 2024
I'm sorry, but what was up with the ending of The Dwarf?
"In order to save the remorseful XXX, I may have persuaded the dying YYY to make a false confession..."
um, maybe it's just me, but you're not remorseful if you can think of a cover-up for the murder you committed?!?? And the fact that Akechi is helping the murderer is just weird.
Anyways, there was a lot of telling how the crimes were committed, but not a lot of showing.
"In order to save the remorseful XXX, I may have persuaded the dying YYY to make a false confession..."
um, maybe it's just me, but you're not remorseful if you can think of a cover-up for the murder you committed?!?? And the fact that Akechi is helping the murderer is just weird.
Anyways, there was a lot of telling how the crimes were committed, but not a lot of showing.
February 9, 2025
বইটি রহস্য ও গোয়েন্দা গল্প প্রেমীদের জন্য একটি অবশ্যপাঠ্য। এদোগাওয়া রাম্পোর অসাধারণ লেখনী এবং আকর্ষণীয় প্লট।
আকেচি কোগোরো চরিত্রটি এদোগাওয়া রাম্পোর সৃষ্টির একটি অন্যতম সেরা উদাহরণ,আকেচি কোগোরো কে জাপানিজ শার্লক হোমস বলা হয় । তরুণ গোয়েন্দা হিসেবে তার চরিত্রটি ধীরে ধীরে বিকশিত হয়, এবং প্রতিটি মামলার মাধ্যমে তার দক্ষতা এবং বুদ্ধিমত্তা আরও পরিপক্ব হয়ে ওঠে।
বইটি জাপানি সাহিত্যের অন্যতম শ্রেষ্ঠ রহস্য ও গোয়েন্দা গল্পের সংকলন, যা বিখ্যাত লেখক এদোগাওয়া রাম্পো। এদোগাওয়া রাম্পো, যিনি পশ্চিমা সাহিত্যের বিশেষ করে এডগার অ্যালান পো-এর দ্বারা প্রভাবিত, তার লেখনীতে এক অনন্য রহস্যময়তা এবং মনস্তাত্ত্বিক গভীরতা যোগ করেছেন।
বইটিতে মোট চারটি গল্প আছে, সবকটি সেরা। তিনটি ছোটো গল্প একটা বড়ো গল্প।
আকেচি কোগোরো চরিত্রটি এদোগাওয়া রাম্পোর সৃষ্টির একটি অন্যতম সেরা উদাহরণ,আকেচি কোগোরো কে জাপানিজ শার্লক হোমস বলা হয় । তরুণ গোয়েন্দা হিসেবে তার চরিত্রটি ধীরে ধীরে বিকশিত হয়, এবং প্রতিটি মামলার মাধ্যমে তার দক্ষতা এবং বুদ্ধিমত্তা আরও পরিপক্ব হয়ে ওঠে।
বইটি জাপানি সাহিত্যের অন্যতম শ্রেষ্ঠ রহস্য ও গোয়েন্দা গল্পের সংকলন, যা বিখ্যাত লেখক এদোগাওয়া রাম্পো। এদোগাওয়া রাম্পো, যিনি পশ্চিমা সাহিত্যের বিশেষ করে এডগার অ্যালান পো-এর দ্বারা প্রভাবিত, তার লেখনীতে এক অনন্য রহস্যময়তা এবং মনস্তাত্ত্বিক গভীরতা যোগ করেছেন।
বইটিতে মোট চারটি গল্প আছে, সবকটি সেরা। তিনটি ছোটো গল্প একটা বড়ো গল্প।
November 26, 2024
"জাপানের অদ্ভুতুড়ে গল্প" পড়ার পর র্যাম্পোর প্রতি এক্সপেকটেশন ছিল অনেক।তাই বইটা খুব বেশি ভালো লাগে নি আমার কাছে।উপন্যাস এবং প্রথম গল্পটা ভালো লেগেছে।বাদ বাকি দুইটা গল্প এভারেজ।দেখা যাক র্যাম্পোর পরেত গল্পগুলো কেমন লাগে।
December 17, 2022
Ce recueil de Edogawa Ranpo (à savoir Edogā Aran Pō une transposition d'Edgar Allan Poe) m'a passablement déçu. J'avais lu il y a douze mois "L'enfer des miroirs", un conte très bien réussi dans la tradition du grand écrivain américain qui m'avait donné l'envie de mieux connaitre Ranpo. Ce livre contient trois contes du détective de Kogoro Akeshi qui ressemble énormément à Joseph Rouletabille de Gaston Leroux. On n'y trouve rien qui explique la grande réputation de Ranpo.
Le premier conte, "L'assassinat de la rue D", malgré son titre qui rappelle "Double Assassinat dans la rue Morgue" de Poe nous présente un jeune enquêteur qui possède la personnalité de Joseph Rouletabille. Le problème est qu'il faut aimer le style de Leroux. L'intrigue tourne autour d'une histoire de deux couples qui se livrent à des pratiques sexuelles sadiques. D'après l'introduction de l'éditeur, on trouve l'amour vicieux dans bien des contes de Ranpo. On s'ennuie mais au moins on fait la connaissance de l'auteur.
"Le fantôme", le deuxième conte est très court. Le fantôme ne fait pas peur et la manière dont Kogoro Akeshi résout l'énigme est tout à fait improbable.
"Qui" le troisième conte est un mystère ou une énigme en chambre close qui suit très fidèlement la recette du "Mystère de la chambre jaune" de Gaston Leroux. Même le dessin du lieu du crime est similaire à celui de Leroux. Heureusement, "Qui" est le dernier conte du recueil parce que je n'aurai pas eu la patience de continuer.
Le premier conte, "L'assassinat de la rue D", malgré son titre qui rappelle "Double Assassinat dans la rue Morgue" de Poe nous présente un jeune enquêteur qui possède la personnalité de Joseph Rouletabille. Le problème est qu'il faut aimer le style de Leroux. L'intrigue tourne autour d'une histoire de deux couples qui se livrent à des pratiques sexuelles sadiques. D'après l'introduction de l'éditeur, on trouve l'amour vicieux dans bien des contes de Ranpo. On s'ennuie mais au moins on fait la connaissance de l'auteur.
"Le fantôme", le deuxième conte est très court. Le fantôme ne fait pas peur et la manière dont Kogoro Akeshi résout l'énigme est tout à fait improbable.
"Qui" le troisième conte est un mystère ou une énigme en chambre close qui suit très fidèlement la recette du "Mystère de la chambre jaune" de Gaston Leroux. Même le dessin du lieu du crime est similaire à celui de Leroux. Heureusement, "Qui" est le dernier conte du recueil parce que je n'aurai pas eu la patience de continuer.
February 3, 2017
My relationship with Edogawa Rampo is probably the best out of all the Japanese authors I have read so far. He is probably the only one I do not dislike and I am definitely going to check out more of his work.
I am yet to read Edgar Alan Poe’s books, so I do not know how he does his mysteries, but Edogawa Rampo’s style reminds me more of a Sherlockian mystery, rather than Christie’s classic structure. That is especially true for the last story in this bind-up, The Dwarf, where we are never given the information needed to uncover the perpetrator by ourselves. I find this kind of unfair because I would love to play detective every now and then.
What I didn’t like about this book was that, even though it is supposedly Akechi Kogoro’s earliest cases, we know nothing about him, except the fact that he is an “amateur detective”. He doesn’t have any quirks like Holmes or Poirot. We are just told that he likes to talk about his reasoning behind the murder mysteries he is involved with and is a little condescending. I find this dissatisfactory. As the most famous Japanese detective, I would have wanted more. I wonder if this is perhaps because unlike the aforementioned he does not have an assistant who records the story for us.
Anyway, I will be checking out his stories about the Detective Boys and Twenty Faces as well some time in the future. After all, Edogawa Rampo doesn’t bore me to death.
I am yet to read Edgar Alan Poe’s books, so I do not know how he does his mysteries, but Edogawa Rampo’s style reminds me more of a Sherlockian mystery, rather than Christie’s classic structure. That is especially true for the last story in this bind-up, The Dwarf, where we are never given the information needed to uncover the perpetrator by ourselves. I find this kind of unfair because I would love to play detective every now and then.
What I didn’t like about this book was that, even though it is supposedly Akechi Kogoro’s earliest cases, we know nothing about him, except the fact that he is an “amateur detective”. He doesn’t have any quirks like Holmes or Poirot. We are just told that he likes to talk about his reasoning behind the murder mysteries he is involved with and is a little condescending. I find this dissatisfactory. As the most famous Japanese detective, I would have wanted more. I wonder if this is perhaps because unlike the aforementioned he does not have an assistant who records the story for us.
Anyway, I will be checking out his stories about the Detective Boys and Twenty Faces as well some time in the future. After all, Edogawa Rampo doesn’t bore me to death.
November 21, 2021
Four stories. Four early, slightly differing portrayals of Rampo's detective extraordinaire, Akechi Kogoro. Altogether an interesting read—I particularly liked the first three stories—but not the greatest introduction to Rampo's impressive portfolio. The last story in this book, The Dwarf, marks my least favourite of his works so far. Longest story in the book, technically well executed, but personally I found it to be a tedious tale overall.
January 18, 2022
3.5
Han sido tan solo 3 relatos, pero vaya relatos mas intensos. A pesar de lo interesante y truculento de los casos, siento que a Rampo aquí le vuelve a fallar la prosa y cierta parte del desarrollo de su relato más largo. Igualmente para cualquier persona que le guste el misterio y quiera aprender sobre la figura de Kogoro Akechi es un must read.
Han sido tan solo 3 relatos, pero vaya relatos mas intensos. A pesar de lo interesante y truculento de los casos, siento que a Rampo aquí le vuelve a fallar la prosa y cierta parte del desarrollo de su relato más largo. Igualmente para cualquier persona que le guste el misterio y quiera aprender sobre la figura de Kogoro Akechi es un must read.
June 18, 2018
Ya tenía rato queriendo leer a Edogawa Rampo y por fin pude hacerlo con este gran libro que recoge tres relatos de la primer etapa del peculiar detective Kogoro Akechi. ¡Quedé profundamente satisfecho!
Kogoro Akechi en esta primer etapa es un detective amateur que se dedica a resolver casos misteriosos y con pocas probabilidades de que se resuelvan. Rampo utilizó como modelo al famoso Sherlock Holmes de Doyle y a lo largo de sus relatos mete referencias tanto a este autor como a otros famosas obras europeas detectivescas.
Akechi se ve impulsado por la curiosidad a resolver, al menos los dos primeros casos, sin que nadie se lo pida y demuestra desde un principio una gran capacidad de deducción y visión hacia los detalles de cada aspecto del caso, no sólo en las escenas del crimen o lugares físicos sino también en los aspectos psicológicos de todos los implicados, un estilo fuertemente influenciado por el psicoanálisis freudiano.
En estos casos se enfrentará a un asesino que aparentemente se esfumó de manera inexplicable de la escena del crimen, a un sospechoso fantasma que asecha a un importante empresario y, finalmente, al más terrible y sádico de los criminales: un vengativo enano que idea su truculento plan para sacias sus apetitos sexuales.
Kogoro Akechi en esta primer etapa es un detective amateur que se dedica a resolver casos misteriosos y con pocas probabilidades de que se resuelvan. Rampo utilizó como modelo al famoso Sherlock Holmes de Doyle y a lo largo de sus relatos mete referencias tanto a este autor como a otros famosas obras europeas detectivescas.
Akechi se ve impulsado por la curiosidad a resolver, al menos los dos primeros casos, sin que nadie se lo pida y demuestra desde un principio una gran capacidad de deducción y visión hacia los detalles de cada aspecto del caso, no sólo en las escenas del crimen o lugares físicos sino también en los aspectos psicológicos de todos los implicados, un estilo fuertemente influenciado por el psicoanálisis freudiano.
En estos casos se enfrentará a un asesino que aparentemente se esfumó de manera inexplicable de la escena del crimen, a un sospechoso fantasma que asecha a un importante empresario y, finalmente, al más terrible y sádico de los criminales: un vengativo enano que idea su truculento plan para sacias sus apetitos sexuales.
August 30, 2017
Rampo llegó a mí este año con El extraño caso de la Isla Panorama, novela que tuve que estudiar y analizar para un trabajo de la universidad y enseguida yo, que no soy especialmente fan de las novelas detectivescas, me enamoré de su forma de escribir y de llevar la historia. El estilo de este autor tiene muchos tintes occidentales pero, sin embargo, lo aúna a la perfección con la tradición oriental, lo que hace de sus obras una fusión de lo más interesante y, por supuesto, de lo más recomendable.
Crítica completa en: https://alibreria.com/2017/08/30/crit...
Crítica completa en: https://alibreria.com/2017/08/30/crit...
June 10, 2025
অন্যতম প্রিয় লেখক এদোগাওয়া র্যাম্পোর হাত ধরে নতুন এক গোয়েন্দা চরিত্রের সঙ্গে পরিচয় হলো। পুরো সংকলনে ৩টি গল্প ও একটি নভেলা ছিলো। সবগুলো গল্পই ভালো লেগেছে। বিশেষ করে ডি. হিলের হত্যাকাণ্ড গল্পটা বেশি ভালো লেগেছে। এবার অনুবাদের কথায় আসি। লুৎফুল কায়সারের অনুবাদ খুব ভালো এবং সাবলীল ছিলো অন্য দুজন অনুবাদকের তুলনায়। নভেলা "দৈবাঙ্গ বামন" এর অনুবাদ আরও সাবলীল হওয়ার সূযোগ ছিলো। কিছু কিছু শব্দ এবং বাক্যচয়ন বেশ কাঠখোট্টা লেগেছে নইলে পুরো পাঁচ তারকাই দিতে পারতাম।
November 15, 2025
akechi es una diva 🔥
April 3, 2022
Edogawa Rampo was the pen name of Hirai Tarou (1894-1965), who I last talked about as the author of The Fiend with Twenty Faces. That children’s book featured Akechi Kogoro as the Detective Boys’ adult mentor, but he was already an established series character by that time. This volume reprints three of his early short story appearances, and his first novel length adventure.
“The Case of the Murder on D Hill” is the first Akechi story. Our unnamed narrator is between a young man between school and work, as apparently is Akechi himself. (Our narrator knows nothing of his background.) They’re both big fans of mystery and detective stories. One night they’re nursing cups at the coffeeshop on D Hill when they notice something odd about the used bookstore across the way. Although it’s open, neither the proprietor nor his wife has been visible for the last half hour. When they investigate, they discover that the bookstore owner’s wife has been strangled to death.
Various circumstances, including contradictory eyewitness evidence, make it seem to be an impossible crime. The narrator comes up with a theory with only one possible suspect–Akechi Kogoro! Fortunately, Akechi is able to explain where his friend went off the rails, and the true solution to the mystery.
This story was written to show that a “locked-room” type of mystery could be done in a Japanese dwelling, without the architectural requirements of Western houses. Initially, one of the clues was central to the solution, but feedback pointing out how unlikely it was caused Edogawa to have it be part of the false solution instead.
The story was written in 1925 but is indicated to have happened a few years before. At this point, Edogawa hadn’t fleshed out Akechi’s character, so he’s a bit of an enigma. He looks and has mannerisms like a local celebrity rakugo storyteller, dresses in a shabby striped kimono, and lives in a tiny room filled with books above a tobacconist’s shop. His interest in detection is entirely amateur.
“The Black Hand Gang” has the same narrator. While he’s down at heel himself, he has a rich uncle. That uncle’s daughter has gone missing, the work of the infamous Black Hand Gang. The uncle paid the ransom demand, but his daughter has not been returned as is the gang’s usual procedure. An air of mystery prevails because the gang member who picked up the money left no tracks! Akechi is called in and figures out how to find and rescue the young lady. Then he explains the twist to his friend.
Genre enthusiasts will easily figure out one of the twists. However, another one requires detailed knowledge of Japanese writing systems so will be opaque to most casual readers. Anti-Christian religious prejudice is a plot point.
“The Ghost” is the tale of businessman Mr. Hirata, whose rival Tsujido has finally died. Tsujido had vowed vengeance years before for reasons never actually revealed in story, so Hirata had been living in fear. But just as Hirata starts to relax, he gets a letter from Tsujido promising that Tsujido will become a ghost and haunt him from beyond the grave. Sure enough, Tsujido’s face keeps popping up in crowds and floating in photographs. Maybe he’s not dead? But the official records say he is! And Tsujido’s own son is acting as though his father is dead.
Near a nervous breakdown, Hirata goes on vacation to a spa, but even here he sees Tsujido! Also at the spa is Akechi Kogoro, who convinces Hirata to tell him the story, and figures out the truth of what has happened.
Most of the story is the mounting evidence of the haunting and Hirata sliding towards madness, with Akechi just showing up towards the end to resolve the matter.
“The Dwarf” was written in 1927, and marks the first of a series of changes in Akechi Kogoro. He’s spent a considerable amount of time in Shanghai and now habitually wears Chinese clothing, has a much larger room, and even subordinates as he’s now a professional private detective.
The protagonist of the novel is Kobayashi Monzo, who’s a lot like the anonymous narrator of the first Akechi stories. He’s between school and work, and knew Akechi back when they shared a boarding house. Late one night, bored but not sleepy, he goes to a city park to observe the night life. He observes a little person (the “dwarf” of the title) who is carrying what appears to be a human hand. He stalks the little person through the parks and the dark streets of Tokyo, losing sight of him when the pursued, apparently not aware he’s being followed, goes in at the gate of a temple.
When he goes to the temple the next day, Kobayashi is assured by the head priest that no such person entered the temple last night, or is even known there. Other people in the neighborhood confirm that they’ve never seen a little person at the temple or hanging out in the neighborhood, something they’d surely remember. Confused, Kobayashi is startled to be hailed by someone he knows, the lovely Mrs. Yamano. It turns out she remembers him mentioning his friendship with Akechi Kogoro and wants an introduction.
Mrs. Yamano wants to hire Akechi to investigate the disappearance of her stepdaughter Michiko. Michiko vanished from a locked house with no one seeing or hearing her leave, there’s no note or odd behavior that would indicate she left voluntarily, and no outside contact has found her elsewhere.
Akechi finds a previously overlooked clue that indicates Michiko has met with foul play. The hunt is on!
It turns out the family has several dark secrets, and a certain master criminal is taking advantage of this for his own agenda. Evidence seems to be piling up against Akechi’s client, Mrs. Yamano, but Kobayashi, who has the hots for her, is willing to step out of line to assist her.
This novel has some disturbing imagery, what with the severed limbs, deformity and repeated use of dolls going on. Large portions of Tokyo were poorly lit during the Taisho Era, so darkness closes in and conceals, with flashes of light suddenly revealing unsettling sights. A certain amount of this is misdirection, keeping the reader from figuring out too much before Akechi explains all at the end.
Some of the translation comes across as a little clumsy, or perhaps those bits were just odd in the original.
The ending is mostly satisfying, with Akechi showing his preference for merciful justice over a strict accounting to the law.
Content note: Ableism. The outdated word “dwarf” is used for a little person, and the narration also repeatedly calls him a “cripple” and “deformed child”. Prejudice against people with deformities is part of his background, and he’s not exactly treated well in the present day. There’s a bit of slut-shaming, and one of the characters is being coerced for what would be unwanted sex. In the initial chapter, Kobayashi witnesses what is implied to be a gay pick-up in the park.
Overall: A good selection of stories that gives an idea of Edogawa Rampo’s early style and puzzle building expertise. Recommended to mystery fans looking for something both old-fashioned and offbeat.
“The Case of the Murder on D Hill” is the first Akechi story. Our unnamed narrator is between a young man between school and work, as apparently is Akechi himself. (Our narrator knows nothing of his background.) They’re both big fans of mystery and detective stories. One night they’re nursing cups at the coffeeshop on D Hill when they notice something odd about the used bookstore across the way. Although it’s open, neither the proprietor nor his wife has been visible for the last half hour. When they investigate, they discover that the bookstore owner’s wife has been strangled to death.
Various circumstances, including contradictory eyewitness evidence, make it seem to be an impossible crime. The narrator comes up with a theory with only one possible suspect–Akechi Kogoro! Fortunately, Akechi is able to explain where his friend went off the rails, and the true solution to the mystery.
This story was written to show that a “locked-room” type of mystery could be done in a Japanese dwelling, without the architectural requirements of Western houses. Initially, one of the clues was central to the solution, but feedback pointing out how unlikely it was caused Edogawa to have it be part of the false solution instead.
The story was written in 1925 but is indicated to have happened a few years before. At this point, Edogawa hadn’t fleshed out Akechi’s character, so he’s a bit of an enigma. He looks and has mannerisms like a local celebrity rakugo storyteller, dresses in a shabby striped kimono, and lives in a tiny room filled with books above a tobacconist’s shop. His interest in detection is entirely amateur.
“The Black Hand Gang” has the same narrator. While he’s down at heel himself, he has a rich uncle. That uncle’s daughter has gone missing, the work of the infamous Black Hand Gang. The uncle paid the ransom demand, but his daughter has not been returned as is the gang’s usual procedure. An air of mystery prevails because the gang member who picked up the money left no tracks! Akechi is called in and figures out how to find and rescue the young lady. Then he explains the twist to his friend.
Genre enthusiasts will easily figure out one of the twists. However, another one requires detailed knowledge of Japanese writing systems so will be opaque to most casual readers. Anti-Christian religious prejudice is a plot point.
“The Ghost” is the tale of businessman Mr. Hirata, whose rival Tsujido has finally died. Tsujido had vowed vengeance years before for reasons never actually revealed in story, so Hirata had been living in fear. But just as Hirata starts to relax, he gets a letter from Tsujido promising that Tsujido will become a ghost and haunt him from beyond the grave. Sure enough, Tsujido’s face keeps popping up in crowds and floating in photographs. Maybe he’s not dead? But the official records say he is! And Tsujido’s own son is acting as though his father is dead.
Near a nervous breakdown, Hirata goes on vacation to a spa, but even here he sees Tsujido! Also at the spa is Akechi Kogoro, who convinces Hirata to tell him the story, and figures out the truth of what has happened.
Most of the story is the mounting evidence of the haunting and Hirata sliding towards madness, with Akechi just showing up towards the end to resolve the matter.
“The Dwarf” was written in 1927, and marks the first of a series of changes in Akechi Kogoro. He’s spent a considerable amount of time in Shanghai and now habitually wears Chinese clothing, has a much larger room, and even subordinates as he’s now a professional private detective.
The protagonist of the novel is Kobayashi Monzo, who’s a lot like the anonymous narrator of the first Akechi stories. He’s between school and work, and knew Akechi back when they shared a boarding house. Late one night, bored but not sleepy, he goes to a city park to observe the night life. He observes a little person (the “dwarf” of the title) who is carrying what appears to be a human hand. He stalks the little person through the parks and the dark streets of Tokyo, losing sight of him when the pursued, apparently not aware he’s being followed, goes in at the gate of a temple.
When he goes to the temple the next day, Kobayashi is assured by the head priest that no such person entered the temple last night, or is even known there. Other people in the neighborhood confirm that they’ve never seen a little person at the temple or hanging out in the neighborhood, something they’d surely remember. Confused, Kobayashi is startled to be hailed by someone he knows, the lovely Mrs. Yamano. It turns out she remembers him mentioning his friendship with Akechi Kogoro and wants an introduction.
Mrs. Yamano wants to hire Akechi to investigate the disappearance of her stepdaughter Michiko. Michiko vanished from a locked house with no one seeing or hearing her leave, there’s no note or odd behavior that would indicate she left voluntarily, and no outside contact has found her elsewhere.
Akechi finds a previously overlooked clue that indicates Michiko has met with foul play. The hunt is on!
It turns out the family has several dark secrets, and a certain master criminal is taking advantage of this for his own agenda. Evidence seems to be piling up against Akechi’s client, Mrs. Yamano, but Kobayashi, who has the hots for her, is willing to step out of line to assist her.
This novel has some disturbing imagery, what with the severed limbs, deformity and repeated use of dolls going on. Large portions of Tokyo were poorly lit during the Taisho Era, so darkness closes in and conceals, with flashes of light suddenly revealing unsettling sights. A certain amount of this is misdirection, keeping the reader from figuring out too much before Akechi explains all at the end.
Some of the translation comes across as a little clumsy, or perhaps those bits were just odd in the original.
The ending is mostly satisfying, with Akechi showing his preference for merciful justice over a strict accounting to the law.
Content note: Ableism. The outdated word “dwarf” is used for a little person, and the narration also repeatedly calls him a “cripple” and “deformed child”. Prejudice against people with deformities is part of his background, and he’s not exactly treated well in the present day. There’s a bit of slut-shaming, and one of the characters is being coerced for what would be unwanted sex. In the initial chapter, Kobayashi witnesses what is implied to be a gay pick-up in the park.
Overall: A good selection of stories that gives an idea of Edogawa Rampo’s early style and puzzle building expertise. Recommended to mystery fans looking for something both old-fashioned and offbeat.
February 27, 2021
Sat atop the pantheon of Japanese Murder Mystery sits one name. Edogawa Rampo. One of the most acclaimed murder mystery awards in the genre bears his name, both in honour of his contributions as an author, and his role in pioneering the Mystery Writers of Japan, the largest club in Japan’s extremely active community. Rampo is best known as an author for his character Akechi Kogoro, who has gone on to have a life of his own in Japanese pop-culture outside of Rampo’s works. Seventh place on our recommendations list for 2020 is the Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro, a collection of four of the first Akechi Kogoro tales, The Murder on D Hill, The Black Hand Gang, The Ghost and The Dwarf.
The Murder on D Hill details a simple locked room mystery that challenges the belief that Japan’s paper walls would make such a thing impossible, after the wife of a bookstore owner is found dead in his shop. The Black Hand Gang details a mysterious case where a young woman is demoned away over a ransom by the Black Hand Gang, where Kogoro is summoned to find out what the gang is really up to and if there’s a way for the father to have his daughter returned safely. The Ghost, interestingly one of Rampo’s least favourite of his own works, follows a businessman who is stalked by his recently deceased arch-nemesis, in which Kogoro arrives late in the tale and sets about undoing the curse. The final story, The Dwarf, was the first novel-length Akechi Kogoro story, detailing the tragic death of a young girl and her family’s collaboration with Kogoro to unravel the actions of the elusive Dwarf that appears responsible for the murder.
Kogoro is such an unusual protagonist, unlike many of history’s iconic detectives, he seems flawless. Certainly, characters like Sherlock and Poirot are unmistakably brilliant, but even as ‘flawless’ characters, they have their detractors, such as Sherlock’s drug abuse and overbearing personality, or Poirot’s obsessive nature, infuriating perfectionism and lacking physique. Kogoro, much in the spirit of S.S. Van Dine’s Philo Vance, is personable, intelligent, quick-witted and handsome, ready to rise to any challenge that should face him. It’s not to say that these two are alone in their faultlessness, but rather, that like Philo Vance, history tends to treat them less kindly. Somehow, though, I don’t find Kogoro anywhere near as obnoxiously perfect. Kogoro is much more sparingly used, with his talent only coming out when it seems Rampo believes you have had the opportunity to learn what you need. In some cases, like The Ghost, Kogoro doesn’t even appear until the last part of the story, an announcement by Rampo that you should be able to solve it by now, a rather blatant example of how he treats his detective.
This isn’t to say that Kogoro is absent of character. His curiosity is enticing, as he leads his chronicler to and fro with quiet clues as to his own thought process. Particularly the mind games played with the multicoloured kimono that even had our narrator suspecting Kogoro himself of the Murder on D Hill were excellently played. His exuberant intrigue as he discovers he inadvertently saved a man’s life in The Ghost. The remarkable character moment he has at the end of The Dwarf, they’re all excellent and make his pure perfection feel closer to human than it would be reasonable to expect. These are also the first cases in the character’s run, so don’t expect it to remain this way if you delve deeper into the Kogoro catalogue. In these stories alone, Rampo’s approach to a perfect detective is so much more compelling than Van Dine’s, and I think it’s a fascinating case study to compare the two as their approaches, on the surface, are so similar.
As for the mysteries themselves, we have an interesting bundle. I don’t think any of them are particularly challenging, though it’s worth noting that despite managing to piece together events entirely, The Dwarf did manage to best me. I won’t get into how it managed to do that, but this was one of the most satisfying defeats I’ve experienced in a long time, even if it was a very cheap blow that knocked me out. On the other hand, two of the stories in this collection fall on almost the same trick, which would be annoying if you were reading them as separate purchases, but is actually quite a compelling example of an author improving upon their own ideas when read as a pair. Considering the staggeringly prolific community he inspired, Rampo undoubtedly proved his case that mystery novels, including closed room puzzles, were compatible with Japan’s culture, and architecture.
Rampo’s work is one of those fantastic works which has inspired so much that has come after it, and so as you read through you will inevitably notice elements from other more recent stories you’ve read, from all over the world. What really surprised me about Rampo’s work, is that alongside authors whose work is so heavily referenced, his work manages to hold its own compared to those who he inspired. The brilliant absurdity and occasional grotesque touches provide each story with a flair that, whilst others have undoubtedly improved upon since, still have a great deal of unique value. There are occasional touches that had me concerned, such as The Dwarf’s peculiar description, but Rampo is clear about making it a caricature and is reported to have gone to lengths to ensure it was portrayed respectfully in film adaptations. Other motivations revolve around darker or more hidden parts of society and do so in a way that is credible and engaging, but I dare not say more because Rampo has trapped me by tying them so closely with the core of his puzzles. Ultimately, at no point would I describe these stories as ‘tame’, and that really is the core of what makes them so great to read, even to this day.
You can catch our full thoughts and discussion on The Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro up on Death of the Reader's Podcast.
The Murder on D Hill details a simple locked room mystery that challenges the belief that Japan’s paper walls would make such a thing impossible, after the wife of a bookstore owner is found dead in his shop. The Black Hand Gang details a mysterious case where a young woman is demoned away over a ransom by the Black Hand Gang, where Kogoro is summoned to find out what the gang is really up to and if there’s a way for the father to have his daughter returned safely. The Ghost, interestingly one of Rampo’s least favourite of his own works, follows a businessman who is stalked by his recently deceased arch-nemesis, in which Kogoro arrives late in the tale and sets about undoing the curse. The final story, The Dwarf, was the first novel-length Akechi Kogoro story, detailing the tragic death of a young girl and her family’s collaboration with Kogoro to unravel the actions of the elusive Dwarf that appears responsible for the murder.
Kogoro is such an unusual protagonist, unlike many of history’s iconic detectives, he seems flawless. Certainly, characters like Sherlock and Poirot are unmistakably brilliant, but even as ‘flawless’ characters, they have their detractors, such as Sherlock’s drug abuse and overbearing personality, or Poirot’s obsessive nature, infuriating perfectionism and lacking physique. Kogoro, much in the spirit of S.S. Van Dine’s Philo Vance, is personable, intelligent, quick-witted and handsome, ready to rise to any challenge that should face him. It’s not to say that these two are alone in their faultlessness, but rather, that like Philo Vance, history tends to treat them less kindly. Somehow, though, I don’t find Kogoro anywhere near as obnoxiously perfect. Kogoro is much more sparingly used, with his talent only coming out when it seems Rampo believes you have had the opportunity to learn what you need. In some cases, like The Ghost, Kogoro doesn’t even appear until the last part of the story, an announcement by Rampo that you should be able to solve it by now, a rather blatant example of how he treats his detective.
This isn’t to say that Kogoro is absent of character. His curiosity is enticing, as he leads his chronicler to and fro with quiet clues as to his own thought process. Particularly the mind games played with the multicoloured kimono that even had our narrator suspecting Kogoro himself of the Murder on D Hill were excellently played. His exuberant intrigue as he discovers he inadvertently saved a man’s life in The Ghost. The remarkable character moment he has at the end of The Dwarf, they’re all excellent and make his pure perfection feel closer to human than it would be reasonable to expect. These are also the first cases in the character’s run, so don’t expect it to remain this way if you delve deeper into the Kogoro catalogue. In these stories alone, Rampo’s approach to a perfect detective is so much more compelling than Van Dine’s, and I think it’s a fascinating case study to compare the two as their approaches, on the surface, are so similar.
As for the mysteries themselves, we have an interesting bundle. I don’t think any of them are particularly challenging, though it’s worth noting that despite managing to piece together events entirely, The Dwarf did manage to best me. I won’t get into how it managed to do that, but this was one of the most satisfying defeats I’ve experienced in a long time, even if it was a very cheap blow that knocked me out. On the other hand, two of the stories in this collection fall on almost the same trick, which would be annoying if you were reading them as separate purchases, but is actually quite a compelling example of an author improving upon their own ideas when read as a pair. Considering the staggeringly prolific community he inspired, Rampo undoubtedly proved his case that mystery novels, including closed room puzzles, were compatible with Japan’s culture, and architecture.
Rampo’s work is one of those fantastic works which has inspired so much that has come after it, and so as you read through you will inevitably notice elements from other more recent stories you’ve read, from all over the world. What really surprised me about Rampo’s work, is that alongside authors whose work is so heavily referenced, his work manages to hold its own compared to those who he inspired. The brilliant absurdity and occasional grotesque touches provide each story with a flair that, whilst others have undoubtedly improved upon since, still have a great deal of unique value. There are occasional touches that had me concerned, such as The Dwarf’s peculiar description, but Rampo is clear about making it a caricature and is reported to have gone to lengths to ensure it was portrayed respectfully in film adaptations. Other motivations revolve around darker or more hidden parts of society and do so in a way that is credible and engaging, but I dare not say more because Rampo has trapped me by tying them so closely with the core of his puzzles. Ultimately, at no point would I describe these stories as ‘tame’, and that really is the core of what makes them so great to read, even to this day.
You can catch our full thoughts and discussion on The Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro up on Death of the Reader's Podcast.
November 18, 2017
I need to expand my knowledge about sleuth fiction from Japan because I've only heard about Edogawa Rampo (and I love it so much) so if you good people have recommendation about Japanese sleuth, please do share.
Anyway, Akechi Kogoro rings two bells inside my head:
1. Kogoro Mouri, the sleeping detective in comic book Detective Conan
2. Inspector Akechi, the handsome police detective in comic book Detective Kindaichi (which is actually has better crime solving than those of Conan's, but sadly less popular because of God-knows-why).
Anyway, Akechi Kogoro rings two bells inside my head:
1. Kogoro Mouri, the sleeping detective in comic book Detective Conan
2. Inspector Akechi, the handsome police detective in comic book Detective Kindaichi (which is actually has better crime solving than those of Conan's, but sadly less popular because of God-knows-why).
September 17, 2018
One of the most interesting reads of this year for me is Edogawa Ranpo's The Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro. I'm not fond of detective novel/stories yet I found Ranpo's writing intriguing despite it being translated, it's still good.
October 25, 2023
quite boring tbh but the first story was actually pretty good
July 1, 2020
This is a collection of four early stories written by Japanese crime mystery master Edogawa Rampo in 1920s and translated into English in 2014 by William Varteresian. The first 3 stories (The Case of the Murder on D. Hill, The Black Hand Gang and The Ghost) are all short stories. The last story (The Dwarf) is a novella. All four stories feature the famous Rampo detective Akechi Kogoro, who appears in 21 novels and short stories in Rampo’s works.
Edogawa Rampo is the best known early Japanese mystery writer and is the Grand Master of Japanese crime fiction. He has been called the Edgar Allen Poe of Japan and championed the Japanese mystery writing style of ero-guro-nansensu (erotic grotesque nonsense), which is somewhat similar to the Poe style that involve both the erotic and grotesque in a mystery (as exemplified in the story The Dwarf). His pen name Edogawa Rampo is actually a phonetic rendering of Edgar Allen Poe’s name in Chinese characters. The version I read comes with a very good introduction on Rampo’s life and his writing style. Some of the stories do not have a lot logical step by step evidence gathering and clue-based detection but instead focus on the psychology side with conclusions just announced by the detective at the end. However, the atmosphere, the buildup, and the writings are all very good and are very interesting reads.
The first story in the collection is The Case of the Murder on D. Hill (published in 1925) (4 Star). It is the first story ever written that features Rampo’s detective Akechi Kogoro. It is a locked room mystery in a Japanese style bamboo and paper house setting. An unnamed Narrator and Akechi Kogoro were in a café facing a secondhand bookstore where later the strangled dead body of the wife of the owner will be discovered. The bookstore is a locked room in the sense all the exits are covered by witnesses who observe nobody exiting since the murder but yet no murderer was found inside. Akechi finally concluded the murderer is the owner of the nearby soba shop. He was having an affair with the dead woman and killed her in an accident while engaging in masochism sex with her. Akechi observed that the dead woman was strangled but there is no sign of struggle. In addition, both the dead woman and the soba shop owner’s wife have unexplained bruises on their bodies, which Akechi interpreted to mean both of them had masochism sex with the soba store owner.
The second story is The Black Hand Gang (published in 1925) (3 Star). This is my least favorite story in the book. In this case, Akechi solved his case by using cryptanalysis. At that time, there was a gang of kidnappers active in Tokyo called the Black Hand Gang. A rich businessman’s daughter Fumiko was abducted for a 10000 yen ransom. After the ransom was paid, the daughter was not returned. It turns out two separate events happened here. The daughter has eloped with her lover and no kidnapping was involved. Akechi was able to figure that out by deciphering some innocuous looking postcards Fumiko has been receiving for a month and realized she was secretly planning an elopement with her lover. After she disappeared, the rich businessman’s servant, Makita, cooked up a scheme and send the ransom note to his boss to look like the Black Hand Gang has kidnapped Fumiko. At the ransom dropoff point on a dark night, Fumiko (who is short) disguised himself as a tall gangster using stilts. Finally, Akechi tracked down Fumiko and convinced her to return home and also got the ransom money from Makita and returned them to the businessman without disclosing to him Makita was involved.
The third story is The Ghost (published in 1925). (5 Star). Mr. Hirata, a successful businessman, lives in fear of his mad and crazy business rival Tsujido, who has sworn to harm Hirata. Therefore, Hirata was very relieved when he heard Tsujido has died. However, soon after his death, Hirata received a letter from Tsujido telling Hirata his spirit will continue to haunt Hirata to his death. Soon after, there were many instances where Hirata thinks he sees the spirit or the person of Tsujido. First he got a photograph of a group business photo with Tsujido’s face superimposed on it, then he got a phone call and heard Tsujido laughing on the phone, and then he saw Tsujido in a crowd at a public meeting and in various public places. To run away from Tsujido’s spirit, he went on a vacation on the seaside. There, he saw Tsujido again. Fortunately for Hirata, he ran into Akechi at the resort and Akechi agreed to look into it for him. It turns out Tsujido faked his own death and deliberately showed up in various places to try to drive Hirata crazy.
The fourth story is The Dwarf (published in 1926) (5 Star). It is a novella instead of a short story. It is also one of Rampo’s most famous work and is the first of his stories to be made into movie. This has a similar plot to Akimitsu Takagi’s famous The Tattoo Murder Case (published in 1948). The story here is about an evil genius and a criminal mastermind who is a dwarf. However, by using artificial legs and clever disguises, he looks like a normal height man and serves as the head priest at the Yogen Temple during daytime. At night, he led a cruel criminal empire and mutilate normal healthy people as revenge for his deformity. When a young lady Yamano Michiko disappeared, her mother Mrs. Yamano asked for Akechi Kogoro’s help. Soon after, a young woman’s left forearm and right forearm were discovered in different places in the city and the fingerprints match those found in Michiko’s room. What follows then is a locked room mystery with a complex plot with quite a few twists and turns. However, it turns out that what really happened was Yamano Michiko actually murdered her illegitimate sister Komatsu by hitting her on the head with a blunt object and slipped her body out of the house the next day in a garbage bag. Michiko then took the place of Komatsu and let people think it was Michiko that has been murdered. Michiko also got the Dwarf to help her dispose of the body. However, the Dwarf decided to double cross her and to blackmail the Yamano family by carving up Komatsu’s body and putting the limbs in various public places to put pressure on the family. Ultimately, Akechi very cleverly deduced in the end that the fingerprint samples he collected in Michiko’s room (which matches those on the severed hands), were a setup. Michiko has wiped her room clean and placed items from Komatsu’s room with Komatsu’s fingerprints to lead detectives to make the wrong identification. Ultimately, Akechi solved the case. He also captured the Dwarf after a chase scene involving building that are set up like mazes with hidden tunnels and trap doors. The Dwarf fell from a great height during his escape and was severely injured. In the end, Rampo created an alternative ending to the story by first having the Dwarf made a dying declaration that when he removed Komatsu’s body from the garbage bag, she was still alive. Michiko has only injured her with the blow to her head but has not killed her. It was the Dwarf who strangled her to death. Rampo then have Akechi joking suggests to his friend Kobayashi Monzo it was Akechi who convinced the Dwarf to say that even if it is not true so that Michiko can be found not guilty of murder and get a chance of a new life given she has now repented. It is up to the reader which version of truth you want to believe.
Edogawa Rampo is the best known early Japanese mystery writer and is the Grand Master of Japanese crime fiction. He has been called the Edgar Allen Poe of Japan and championed the Japanese mystery writing style of ero-guro-nansensu (erotic grotesque nonsense), which is somewhat similar to the Poe style that involve both the erotic and grotesque in a mystery (as exemplified in the story The Dwarf). His pen name Edogawa Rampo is actually a phonetic rendering of Edgar Allen Poe’s name in Chinese characters. The version I read comes with a very good introduction on Rampo’s life and his writing style. Some of the stories do not have a lot logical step by step evidence gathering and clue-based detection but instead focus on the psychology side with conclusions just announced by the detective at the end. However, the atmosphere, the buildup, and the writings are all very good and are very interesting reads.
The first story in the collection is The Case of the Murder on D. Hill (published in 1925) (4 Star). It is the first story ever written that features Rampo’s detective Akechi Kogoro. It is a locked room mystery in a Japanese style bamboo and paper house setting. An unnamed Narrator and Akechi Kogoro were in a café facing a secondhand bookstore where later the strangled dead body of the wife of the owner will be discovered. The bookstore is a locked room in the sense all the exits are covered by witnesses who observe nobody exiting since the murder but yet no murderer was found inside. Akechi finally concluded the murderer is the owner of the nearby soba shop. He was having an affair with the dead woman and killed her in an accident while engaging in masochism sex with her. Akechi observed that the dead woman was strangled but there is no sign of struggle. In addition, both the dead woman and the soba shop owner’s wife have unexplained bruises on their bodies, which Akechi interpreted to mean both of them had masochism sex with the soba store owner.
The second story is The Black Hand Gang (published in 1925) (3 Star). This is my least favorite story in the book. In this case, Akechi solved his case by using cryptanalysis. At that time, there was a gang of kidnappers active in Tokyo called the Black Hand Gang. A rich businessman’s daughter Fumiko was abducted for a 10000 yen ransom. After the ransom was paid, the daughter was not returned. It turns out two separate events happened here. The daughter has eloped with her lover and no kidnapping was involved. Akechi was able to figure that out by deciphering some innocuous looking postcards Fumiko has been receiving for a month and realized she was secretly planning an elopement with her lover. After she disappeared, the rich businessman’s servant, Makita, cooked up a scheme and send the ransom note to his boss to look like the Black Hand Gang has kidnapped Fumiko. At the ransom dropoff point on a dark night, Fumiko (who is short) disguised himself as a tall gangster using stilts. Finally, Akechi tracked down Fumiko and convinced her to return home and also got the ransom money from Makita and returned them to the businessman without disclosing to him Makita was involved.
The third story is The Ghost (published in 1925). (5 Star). Mr. Hirata, a successful businessman, lives in fear of his mad and crazy business rival Tsujido, who has sworn to harm Hirata. Therefore, Hirata was very relieved when he heard Tsujido has died. However, soon after his death, Hirata received a letter from Tsujido telling Hirata his spirit will continue to haunt Hirata to his death. Soon after, there were many instances where Hirata thinks he sees the spirit or the person of Tsujido. First he got a photograph of a group business photo with Tsujido’s face superimposed on it, then he got a phone call and heard Tsujido laughing on the phone, and then he saw Tsujido in a crowd at a public meeting and in various public places. To run away from Tsujido’s spirit, he went on a vacation on the seaside. There, he saw Tsujido again. Fortunately for Hirata, he ran into Akechi at the resort and Akechi agreed to look into it for him. It turns out Tsujido faked his own death and deliberately showed up in various places to try to drive Hirata crazy.
The fourth story is The Dwarf (published in 1926) (5 Star). It is a novella instead of a short story. It is also one of Rampo’s most famous work and is the first of his stories to be made into movie. This has a similar plot to Akimitsu Takagi’s famous The Tattoo Murder Case (published in 1948). The story here is about an evil genius and a criminal mastermind who is a dwarf. However, by using artificial legs and clever disguises, he looks like a normal height man and serves as the head priest at the Yogen Temple during daytime. At night, he led a cruel criminal empire and mutilate normal healthy people as revenge for his deformity. When a young lady Yamano Michiko disappeared, her mother Mrs. Yamano asked for Akechi Kogoro’s help. Soon after, a young woman’s left forearm and right forearm were discovered in different places in the city and the fingerprints match those found in Michiko’s room. What follows then is a locked room mystery with a complex plot with quite a few twists and turns. However, it turns out that what really happened was Yamano Michiko actually murdered her illegitimate sister Komatsu by hitting her on the head with a blunt object and slipped her body out of the house the next day in a garbage bag. Michiko then took the place of Komatsu and let people think it was Michiko that has been murdered. Michiko also got the Dwarf to help her dispose of the body. However, the Dwarf decided to double cross her and to blackmail the Yamano family by carving up Komatsu’s body and putting the limbs in various public places to put pressure on the family. Ultimately, Akechi very cleverly deduced in the end that the fingerprint samples he collected in Michiko’s room (which matches those on the severed hands), were a setup. Michiko has wiped her room clean and placed items from Komatsu’s room with Komatsu’s fingerprints to lead detectives to make the wrong identification. Ultimately, Akechi solved the case. He also captured the Dwarf after a chase scene involving building that are set up like mazes with hidden tunnels and trap doors. The Dwarf fell from a great height during his escape and was severely injured. In the end, Rampo created an alternative ending to the story by first having the Dwarf made a dying declaration that when he removed Komatsu’s body from the garbage bag, she was still alive. Michiko has only injured her with the blow to her head but has not killed her. It was the Dwarf who strangled her to death. Rampo then have Akechi joking suggests to his friend Kobayashi Monzo it was Akechi who convinced the Dwarf to say that even if it is not true so that Michiko can be found not guilty of murder and get a chance of a new life given she has now repented. It is up to the reader which version of truth you want to believe.
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July 7, 2023Kogoro Akechi es uno de los detectives más importantes de la literatura japonesa. Sin embargo, en esta 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗶𝗼́𝗻 𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗼𝘀 (dos cortos y uno más extenso) aún parece ser un amateur. De pelo desordenado y con ropas tradicionales, Akechi es un joven al que le gusta resolver crímenes y misterios de los que (en específico en esta narrativa inicial de Rampo) no vemos del todo cómo se arman las piezas del rompecabezas. Así que no esperen que siempre cumpla un papel protagónico a lo largo de la historia.
En esta primera época de Akechi se percibe a un personaje con una ética discutible, de cierta forma prejuicioso, al que no le importa resolver el crimen o misterio por justicia o deseos de ayuda, sino por saciar su curiosidad. Parece, incluso, un personaje alejado, sin mucha emoción, introspectivo, pero, eso sí, engreído. Y bueno, es que el mismo Rampo hace referencias directas a detectives como Auguste Dupin de Poe y Sherlock Holmes de Conan Doyle. Es oscuro, poco sofisticado y alguien de quien no se conoce mucho. Es curioso cómo dos de ellos están narrados desde la visión de un “amigo” o “conocido” de Akechi con ínfulas de superioridad y quienes desconfían o van en contra del mismo detective, a pesar de ser fieles aliados al principio.
Estos son, pues, algunos de los primeros casos de Akechi: 𝘌𝘭 𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦 𝘭𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢 𝘋, 𝘌𝘭 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘢 y 𝘗𝘶𝘭𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘰. Cada relato tiene una característica: son casos en los que está de por medio la depravación humana. Digamos que durante el libro se sienten atisbos de “perversidad”. Son crímenes, además, con una carga pasional muy fuerte: relaciones sadomasoquistas, venganzas, asesinatos brutales. No esperen un libro light en temática. Muy por el contrario, Edogawa Rampo es crudo y trata cuestiones subidas de tono, con personajes moralmente cuestionables según la sociedad, así como tilda con la palabra “extraño” o “tenebroso” a aquello que tendía a verse como “anormal” en su época.
En esta primera época de Akechi se percibe a un personaje con una ética discutible, de cierta forma prejuicioso, al que no le importa resolver el crimen o misterio por justicia o deseos de ayuda, sino por saciar su curiosidad. Parece, incluso, un personaje alejado, sin mucha emoción, introspectivo, pero, eso sí, engreído. Y bueno, es que el mismo Rampo hace referencias directas a detectives como Auguste Dupin de Poe y Sherlock Holmes de Conan Doyle. Es oscuro, poco sofisticado y alguien de quien no se conoce mucho. Es curioso cómo dos de ellos están narrados desde la visión de un “amigo” o “conocido” de Akechi con ínfulas de superioridad y quienes desconfían o van en contra del mismo detective, a pesar de ser fieles aliados al principio.
Estos son, pues, algunos de los primeros casos de Akechi: 𝘌𝘭 𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦 𝘭𝘢 𝘤𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘢 𝘋, 𝘌𝘭 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘮𝘢 y 𝘗𝘶𝘭𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘰. Cada relato tiene una característica: son casos en los que está de por medio la depravación humana. Digamos que durante el libro se sienten atisbos de “perversidad”. Son crímenes, además, con una carga pasional muy fuerte: relaciones sadomasoquistas, venganzas, asesinatos brutales. No esperen un libro light en temática. Muy por el contrario, Edogawa Rampo es crudo y trata cuestiones subidas de tono, con personajes moralmente cuestionables según la sociedad, así como tilda con la palabra “extraño” o “tenebroso” a aquello que tendía a verse como “anormal” en su época.
May 27, 2017
3.5/5
En la figura del detective privado Kogoro Akechi el escritor Edowaga Rampo creó uno de los investigadores criminales más conocidos y populares de la literatura japonesa, adaptado en multitud de ocasiones al lenguaje del manga y del cine. En este volumen Satori ediciones recoge tres de sus primeros casos, en los años de «formación», cuando el detective era todavía un excéntrico joven de veintipocos años y se dedicaba a la investigación de un modo aficionado —varias veces es descrito como detective amateur en el texto—, más por la pura satisfacción de resolver un crimen que por la captura de un criminal. De hecho, en varios de estos primeros casos —como también se puede apreciar en el relato "El que pasea por el revés del techo" incluido en la antología "La mirada perversa"—, el detective hace gala de cierta «amoralidad», no buscando el castigo del autor del crimen sino un perverso placer de saberse más listo que los demás. La resolución intelectual del misterio es su premio y poco más necesita. Con el tiempo este comportamiento irá volviéndose más «socialmente aceptable», pero no todavía en los casos que nos ocupan. Casos con un alto componente de misterio, pero también de depravación, de bajos instintos, juegos sexuales —más sugeridos que mostrados, eso sí— y moralidad retorcida. Asesinatos inexplicables, espíritus vengativos, muchachas desaparecidas, cuerpos descuartizados, secretos revelados… Entre Poe y Doyle el autor japonés consigue facturar una obra con personalidad propia.
Reseña completa en Sagacomic:
http://sagacomic.blogspot.com.es/2017...
En la figura del detective privado Kogoro Akechi el escritor Edowaga Rampo creó uno de los investigadores criminales más conocidos y populares de la literatura japonesa, adaptado en multitud de ocasiones al lenguaje del manga y del cine. En este volumen Satori ediciones recoge tres de sus primeros casos, en los años de «formación», cuando el detective era todavía un excéntrico joven de veintipocos años y se dedicaba a la investigación de un modo aficionado —varias veces es descrito como detective amateur en el texto—, más por la pura satisfacción de resolver un crimen que por la captura de un criminal. De hecho, en varios de estos primeros casos —como también se puede apreciar en el relato "El que pasea por el revés del techo" incluido en la antología "La mirada perversa"—, el detective hace gala de cierta «amoralidad», no buscando el castigo del autor del crimen sino un perverso placer de saberse más listo que los demás. La resolución intelectual del misterio es su premio y poco más necesita. Con el tiempo este comportamiento irá volviéndose más «socialmente aceptable», pero no todavía en los casos que nos ocupan. Casos con un alto componente de misterio, pero también de depravación, de bajos instintos, juegos sexuales —más sugeridos que mostrados, eso sí— y moralidad retorcida. Asesinatos inexplicables, espíritus vengativos, muchachas desaparecidas, cuerpos descuartizados, secretos revelados… Entre Poe y Doyle el autor japonés consigue facturar una obra con personalidad propia.
Reseña completa en Sagacomic:
http://sagacomic.blogspot.com.es/2017...
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