Just Bourbon

"What they call a gimlet is just some lime or lemon juice and gin with a dash of sugar and bitters. A real gimlet is half gin and half Rose's Lime Juice and nothing else. It beats martinis hollow."

"The Long Goodbye"

The previous book in the series discussed today had a gorgeous cover too, but I really like this one too! Definitely a contender for favorite cover for this year! Don't you just love covers for short story collections when they incorporate something from each of the stories?! And yes...this is the third Madoy review in a month. This review was actually written months ago already, the two FGO Mystery novels discussed earlier this month were just wedged in the schedule.

Almost four years ago, I read and reviewed Van Madoy's short story collection Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai - Koyoi, Nazotoki Bar Sangoukan he. If you want to look for the book now however, you might have some troubles finding a copy of Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai: when the book was re-released as a paperback in 2017, it got not only a new cover, but also a brand new title: Kyoto Nazotoki Shikihou -  Machi wo Aruite Fushigina Bar he ("The Kyoto Mystery Solving Seasonal Report - Strolling In Town To The Mysterious Bar"). The sequel too follows these new title: Kyoto Nazotoki Shikihou - Kosho to Gokai to Ginga Tetsudou ("The Kyoto Mystery Solving Seasonal Report - Used Books, Misunderstandings and the Galaxy Railway", 2018) brings us five new stories starring Toochika Rinto, a young man who started life as a student at Kyoto University only a few months ago. Life has not changed much for Rinto since we last saw him: he is still a member of the city hiking student circle Kamogawa Rampo and while he fell in love at first sight, his relationship with fellow circle member Aoka Sachi still hasn't been updated to the dating status. What has changed however, is that Rinto hasn't been able to find the mysterious bar "No. 3" lately. Rinto himself knew from his own experience that "No. 3" wasn't just an urban legend of the university, but that there really was a bar hidden somewhere on the campus of Kyoto University. In this bar, you don't pay with money, but with a tale of a mystery you encountered. The drinks served by the beautiful bartender Souma Miki always managed to stimulate Rinto's brain, so he could figure out these mysterious events in his life himself. The bar seemed to have disappeared after the events of the first volume, but with some new everyday life mysteries awaiting Rinto in the summer and fall, his reunion with Souma isn't far off.

I enjoyed the first novel in this series because it reminded me a lot of my own year studying at Kyoto University: most of the locales featured were in the vicinity of Kyoto University (or set on the main Yoshida campus), so it all felt very familiar to me. The everyday life mystery genre can be a hit or miss, as the mysteries aren't about "obvious" mysteries like murder, but far more mundane mysteries (though still baffling), but it's quite difficult coming up with a mystery that is a) mundane enough to have some convincing power, and yet b) mysterious enough to pique your interest (and have a satisfying solution). Not all stories in the first volume were as strong, but overall, I liked the book, so it was only a matter of time before I'd continue reading the series.

The opening story, Tama ni Sedori On The Rocks ("And Occasionally A Sedory On The Rocks"), is set at the Shimogawa Shrine Used Book Fair, a book fair held every summer on the grounds of the Shimogawa Shrine. Rinto is this year helping out at one of the stands together with a few other members of Kamogawa Rampo, but none of them know that Rinto was given two secret tasks. One of them was to locate a certain book, which was listed on the inventory list of the stand he's working at. It's supposed to be a rare book, but Mystery Club president Mitsuru thinks nobody else has noticed the presence of the book yet, and hopes Rinto can help her secure the book before somebody else buys it. Rinto's other task was set upon him by his friend and vice-president of Kamogawa Rampo: somebody has apparently sold the address list of the club to a third party, and everyone is been receiving spam mailings at home now. There is a small list of suspects, and Rinto has to check which of them (all helping out at the book fair) is most likely to sell the list for some money. Some odd events happen during the day however: people keep coming asking for certain rare books which were never listed at their booth, and according to Sachi (who is working the register), it seems books have been vanishing from their stand, despite Rinto and another member being on watch inside the booth. Rinto has trouble making sense out of all this, until he runs into Souma Miki, who is enjoying a drink at the book fair herself.

Oh man, if there's one thing I remember of my own visit to the Shimogawa Shrine Used Book Fair it's this: bring an umbrella. I hadn't, and it suddenly started to rain extremely hard (happens often in the summer), so I went inside one of the booths, figuring I could just browse until the rain would stop. Of course, this was in the summer, in Kyoto (notoriously hot and sticky), and let me tell you this: you do not want to be stuck inside a small booth with plastic walls, with other people, in the summer. Anyway, the sedory in the title refers to sedori, professional used book dealers who know where they can buy a certain title cheap to sell for a better price elsewhere. This story is the most like a conventional mystery story, with books slowly disappearing despite two sets of eyes on guard and some other events that play in the background. The way the books are stolen wouldn't work normally in a normal brick 'n' mortar bookshop, but in this particular setting I can definitely see it going succesfully. I can't really write about the other plot points in detail as that might spoil too much, but I think Madoy does a good job at hinting at how it's done, even if it's a bit too obvious the way it's done now.

In Mienai Blue ("Invisible Blue"), Rinto's becoming rather worried when Sachi doesn't reply to his mail and doesn't answer her phone either, especially as he can't remember whether he said something stupid after having too many drinks at the Kamogawa Rampo get-together. While aware that it's kinda stalker-y, he decides to ask help from a fellow Kamogawa Rampo member. He hadn't much in common with the rather attractive Haibara Karen, but when he learns she lives in the same apartment complex as Sachi, he pleads with Haibara to let him inside the complex and go try visit Sachi. She, reluctantly, agrees, but the two are surprised to not only learn from Sachi's neighbor that he heard some loud noises from the room next door two nights ago, when Rinto tries the door, he finds it's unlocked, and they see blue plastic sheets covering everything! Haibara and Rinto spend some time together discussing Sachi and end up at a temporary No. 3, where bartender Souma Miki warns Rinto, as this mystery is far more than he could guess. This is a classic example of an "look at the events from a different angle" story, which is something that works quite well within this subgenre of normal, mundane mysteries. Indeed, there's nothing really strange going on in this story, but once the solution is out, you realize you might've taken some things for granted. As a standalone mystery story, this isn't a particular strong one, but it works really well as a way to further develop the relation between Rinto and Sachi, while still having a mystery plot as its foundation.

The aftermath of Nadeshiko wa Mou Suki Janai ("I Don't Like Nadeshiko Anymore") has Rinto in a rather depressing mood, and things only become worse. The circle Kamogawa Rampo was assigned a rather horrible booth spot for the upcoming November Festival (Kyoto University's school festival), so Rinto was to renegotiate with the festival comittee. Rinto arrives a few minutes early for his appointment, and has a few rounds of two-man poker with a former member of Kamogawa Rampo in a classroom next door, figuring he'd see the committee president pass by the hallway. But when he finally sees the president, Rinto's utterly surprised to learn that more than an hour has passed since their appointment, and that they'll get no new rooms, even though Rinto's sure he only spent a few minutes playing poker next door. Rinto checks different clocks at different times during the story, so how could the time suddenly change from a few minutes past six to long past seven? The solution is kinda easy to guess, as it obviously all revolves arounds clocks. The storytelling doesn't follow a chronological order, with some initial events somewhat vague because it's not been explained by a flashback yet, which makes this story only seem more complex than it actually is. I'd say this story is the most like conventional mystery story together with the opening story. The reference to Ayukawa Tetsuya's Itsutsu no Tokei is nice though, as that too is a story where somebody seems to have a perfect alibi vouched for by five different clocks. By the way, I think I forgot to mention this in my review of the first book, but this whole series with a mysterious bar etc., is a reference to certain series by Ayukawa Tetsuya.

The November Festival is on the way in 5-fun Dakedemo Matte ("Take Five"). On the second night, most student and circle clubs that have a booth in a classroom stay overnight on campus, in their respective assigned rooms. Haibara and Sachi, who have been chosen to be become the club president and vice president next academic year, are staying overnight too, while Rinto's gone home. Haibara and Sachi wake up in the very early morning (the others are still sleeping because of all the booze), when both of them make shocking discoveries. Sachi, who was working register at their booth, finds out that all the money bills from their money box have been removed. At the same time, Haibara realizes that the door of the classroom can't be opened: something is blocking the door. It turns out someone had filled a water mattress right in front of the classroom door, trapping all the members of Kamogawa Rampo who stayed overnight in their classroom. In the morning after they have been rescued, Sachi decides to ask Rinto for help in finding out what happened to the money, as things just don't add up: some other circles had been robbed of money too overnight, it seems, but why was Kamogawa Rampo the only circle to have been locked up in their classroom, and while they may have been all asleep during the theft, how did the thief manage to steal the bills without making any noise, as all the money, coins and bills, were thrown together in a metal tin box? I really like the motive, as it's realistic and firmly set within the culture of Kyoto University's November Festival and it fits wonderfully in the idea of an everyday life mystery, but I have some questions with the execution, as no matter how you look at it, why the water mattress? It's a really weird way to block a door, especially as this was in a hallway in a faculty building, where more circles were residing that night. It seems so unlikely nobody would've noticed a water mattress being filled in a hallway until Haibara and Sachi did early in the morning. I'd have loved some more hinting too: I don't think this is a bad story, by any means, but I do feel the story has much more potential than it shows now, and while the final product isn't my favorite story of this volume, I think the core idea is: if only the execution had been slightly different.

Gineiden no Yoru ("The Night of the Galaxy Eizan Electric Railway") is actually the story that I was looking forward the most, but also the most disappointing story. The Eizan Electric Railway is a small local railway line in Kyoto which starts out in Demachiyanagi and then heads towards Mt. Kurama. When I lived in Kyoto, I lived half a minute away from the Shugakuin Station on this line (you might also know it from the anime K-On!), so I was quite curious to see how this small railway line would feature in a mystery story, but this story does something completely different from what my (admittedly unfounded) expectations were. Having grown closer in the last story, Sachi has confided to Rinto something that happened to her when she was young and on holiday in Kyoto with her family. Her family was staying in an inn near the Eizan Railway at the time. She woke up in the middle in the night, and looked outside to see the Eizan train riding off into the sky. She doesn't expect Rinto to believe her, but she'd would like to know what it was what she had seen. There's so little happening in this story that writing anymore would veer into spoiler territory. Basically, when a certain prop appears in a certain scene, it's kinda easy to guess where this story will go to. It's not really a mystery story either, but more like a lite mystery book-end story so Rinto and Sachi can grow closer at the end of this volume.

As a pure mystery short story collection, Kyoto Nazotoki Shikihou - Kosho to Gokai to Ginga Tetsudou is probably too lite for most people: only one, arguably two are "conventional" mystery stories, while the others are plotted around misunderstandings in human relations. While the core is definitely mystery, I think most people would enjoy the book more if read as a YA novel. Of course, it speaks to Madoy's plotting that he can make these situations still feel like puzzle plot mysteries, and you never really feel like he's playing unfair, but I am quite aware that not everyone will have the same nostalgic feelings I definitely have when I'm reading this book. I for one really enjoyed seeing all these little mysteries set around locales and communities that should feel very familar to a student of Kyoto University, and some ideas like the Book Fair setting or the motive for the November Festival mystery work really well, I think, but yeah, if I were to give points in my reviews (which I will never do), I'd do the "you can subtract 2 points if the nostalgic factor doesn't count for you".

Original Japanese title(s): 円居挽 『京都なぞとき四季報 古書と誤解と銀河鉄道』：「たまにはセドリー・オン・ザ・ロックスを」/ 「見えないブルー」 / 「撫子はもう好きじゃない」 / 「五分だけでも待って」 / 「銀叡電の夜」

Jazz Toast

"I suppose it's a bit too early for a gimlet."

"The Long Goodbye"

Man, Van Madoy's (hardcover) books all have gorgeous cover art. Today's book easily has one of the best covers I've seen this year.

It's April, and Toochika Rinto has just moved from the east to Kyoto, where he'll finally start his new life as a first year student of Kyoto University. He joins the student circle Kamogawa Rampo, which organizes group strolls all across the ancient capital that is Kyoto. Here, he falls in love with his fellow member Aoka Sachi, who seems to have more interest in strange events and mysteries that pop in everyday life. One of the mysteries of Kyoto University is a tale, no, an urban legend about a bar called "No. 3" located on the main campus. The bar is said to constantly move around the campus, sometimes being located inside a classroom, sometimes in a laboratory. But the most curious fact behind No.3 is that the beautiful bartender, Souma Miki, doesn't ask for money in exchange for her cocktails: she will only make a cocktail in exchange for an interesting mystery. Follow Rinto and his visits to No. 3 in Van Madoy's 2014 short story collection Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai - Koyoi, Nazotoki Bar Sangoukan he ("Another Glass of Clover Leaf - Tonight, To Mystery Solving Bar No. 3").

Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai - Koyoi, Nazotoki Bar Sangoukan he is Van Madoy's (or Madoi Ban) first short story collection and his first work outside his quirky courtroom mystery Revoir series, which ended last year. At one hand, Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai is quite different from the Revoir series. Gone are the private trials, the many characters who kept up-oneing each other with more and more outrageous deductions which were all allowed in court as long as the other party couldn't disprove them and instead we have a short story collection in the tradition of everyday life mysteries: little non-criminal mysteries that one comes across over the course of a normal day. No murders, no theft. Of course, even if the mysteries are non-criminal, that doesn't mean they can't be perplexing or even down-right impossible. For example, we have a problem of two people could have boarded the same taxi at the same time at different places.
 
Like the Revoir series though, Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai is also distinctly Kyoto-flavoured. The story is not just 'set' in the city of Kyoto and Kyoto University: the ancient capital and the university are used extensively as the stage for the book and references to local culture, geography and other little things make this book a genuine "Kyoto Mystery" (like for example Kitamori Kou's Minor Kyoto series). Van Madoy studied at Kyoto University, so no wonder the city feels so real in this book, like it did in the Revoir series. This time, the story is about university students who actually study, so we are also treated to quite a lot of scenes set on the Yoshida campus of Kyoto University and overall, I think the book feels very recognizable for anyone who has been in Kyoto or has visited Kyoto University.

Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai ("Another Glass of Clover Leaf") is both the title story as well as the opening story and introduces the reader to Rinto, Sachi and the gang of the Kamogawa Rampo circle. On the way to a welcome party for the new members, Rinto and Sachi witness one of their fellow first-year members step in a four leaf clover Yasaka Taxi (a taxi company which has a three-leaf clover as its logo. There are only four taxis with a four leaf mark). Strangely enough though, Rinto and Sachi then witness different members step out of that same taxi at the party. When they ask those members when they stepped into that taxi, they disccover that they boarded the car at the same time Rinto and Sachi saw their fellow first-year member step in the taxi! Even stranger is that that girl seems to have disappeared, as she never turned up at the party. And as he ponders about that mystery, Rinto walks into the legendary No.3 bar, which serves rather (brain) stimulating cocktails.

A great opening story. The mystery is at the surface simple, but as you'd expect from someone who wrote the Revoir series, things are never what they seem at first, and despite the relatively short length, the plot actually does manage to go quite deep and is much more carefully hinted than you'd first guess. Personally, I also loved the familar setting (the story is set around the area of dowtown Sanjou and Shijou) and the urban legend angle on both the taxi and the titular No. 3 bar itself.

Juliet ni wa Hayasugiru ("Too Early for a Juliet") has Rinto still pining for Sachi, but have his feelings for her created a miracle? Kamogawa Rampo is having a little excursion to a Maiko Odori, where once a year maiko perform their arts to the general public and show how much they've learned the last year. Rinto's seat is in the row behind Sachi, a little way away from her, which is a bit disappointing. However, at the end of the performance, Rinto discovers he is sitting right next to Sachi! How did the two come to sit next each other, even though both were looking at the performance? The solution is a bit obvious if you have been paying attention to the behaviour of the characters in the previous and this story, but I have to say that the final conclusion and sorta twist ending were fun.

Blue Lagoon ni Oboresou ("Like Drowining in A Blue Lagoon") is set in the Kyoto Aquarium, the latest detination of Kamogawa Rampo. Rinto and Sachi meet a woman there, who knows much about the aquatic inhabitants and acts as a guide for them. During their stroll, the woman is pushed down on the ground, but when Rinto starts to chase the culprit down the walking route, he finds his target has disappeared completely. Later, the woman also disappears, leaving Rinto and Sachi only with questions. The answers however are slightly disappointing. The main 'trick' of this story is something I personally don't think is 'strong' enough to serve as a central plot device, so the story feels a bit lacking in impact, in my opinion. The hinting is done adequately, but where the other stories often featured several layers, this story feels the most simple.

Kamogawa Rampo attends the Yamahoko ceremony in Pale Rider ni Miirarete ("Bewitched by the Pale Rider"). Rinto loses sight of Sachi for a while, only to find her unconcious, having falling from her seat up high down to the ground. Rinto is not sure whether it was just an accident or a crime, so he once again sets out for the No. 3 bar to find answers. The story is set-up rather simply, but unlike the previous story, it serves just as an introduction for a thrilling conclusion that delves a bit deeper in the history of the mysterious bar. The mystery elements are rather easy to see through, I am afraid, but I thought it an interesting story that deepens the No. 3 bar lore, which also helps set up the last story.

The final story, Nanashi no Guf ni Uttetsuke no Yoru ("A Fitting Night For No Name Guf"), too sets the No. 3 bar at the center of the mystery. One night, Rinto happens to come across the No. 3 bar again, finding it inside one of the new pre-fab container rooms placed on the campus, and has a drink, before leaving again to visit a friend who lives in an in-campus dorm across from the current location of No. 3. Just an hour has passed when a fire breaks out in one of the pre-fab containers, which was of course the one where the No. 3 was located in. The students manage to extinguish the fire, but when Rinto takes a look inside, he discovers the room was empty. But how could bartender Souma Miki have moved her complete bar, including counter and countless of bottles of drinks, out of that container within the hour of him leaving and the fire breaking out?

The solution to the disappearance of No. 3 is again rather simple, but Van Madoy manages to give the story quite some depth by sticking more mystery to it and also involving the history of the No. 3 bar, and the result is a fairly deep mystery story for the amount of pages. Also, this is the only story actually set on the campus of Kyoto University and I personally saw a lot of familiar sights here. Actually, the exact area where this story is set, is where I spent most of my time during my time at Kyoto University, which may be the same for Van Madoy: it is right next to the club room of the Kyoto University Mystery Club (which also makes a guest appearance in this story).

At the end of the book, we're never really told whether Bar No. 3 is really a magical bar or not. A rather realistic history of the bar is given throughout certain points of the book, but the reader is also given the impression that there is some almost magical force surrounding the bar, attracting customers with riddles on their mind. In the end though, it doesn't really matter. Even if the bar is magical, the mysteries in the book are always solved with logic, so the 'magic' element would not interfere with Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai being a mystery book. The conclusion of the book is rather open-ended regarding the No. 3 bar, so we could well get more adventures in the future, or not.

Nostalgia for Kyoto probably also played a role, but I quite enjoyed Clover Leaf wo Mou Ippai - Koyoi, Nazotoki Bar Sangoukan he. Most of the stories are fun, even if the main tricks can be a bit simple to see through at times. Luckily, Van Madoy usually realizes this all too, and he manages to make even simple tricks appear much more enjoyable by adding layers to the story. The youth romance angle also never intrudes on the mystery plot, and works well as a running storyline. Following Rinto as he tries to get closer to Sachi is certainly entertaining. I for one am quite curious to see if we'll see more of Rinto, Sachi and the mysterious bar No. 3 in the future.

Original Japanese title(s): 円居挽　『クローバー・リーフをもう一杯　今宵、謎解きバー「三号館」へ』： 「クローバー・リーフをもう一杯」 / 「ジュリエットには早すぎる」 / 「ブルー・ラグーンに溺れそう」 / 「ペイルライダーに魅入られて」 / 「名無しのガフにうってつけの夜」