Silver Glow

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.

2. A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

The Three Laws of Robotics 

I am pretty sure that most people who will see the cover of today's book will think of one particular robot. I for one really can't unsee it.

Robot series
The Caves of Steel (1954)
The Naked Sun (1956)
The Robots of Dawn (1983)

In the future, humankind has evolved into two different beings. The humans who remained on Earth all live packed in sealed-off cities of steel, that keep the big bad outside world and air outside. The Spacers on the other hand, who live in wealth and luxury thanks to their robot-supported economies, naturally look down on the primitive and short-lived humans of Earth and would like the humans to stay on their little Earth. But things are starting to change on Earth thanks to plainclothesman Elijah Baley, who has been succesful in solving two Spacer-related murder cases in The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun. Under his guidance, a small group of humans are slowly, but surely learning to adapt to the Outside world and they hope to one day move out to new planets, like their ancestors once did before them. But one incident on the planet of Aurora, one of the mightiest of Spacer planets, is about to put a stop to their plans. Dr. Falstofe is accused of having destroyed a humanoid robot of his own invention with a mental block on purpose. Dr. Falstofe is a very promiment member of the pro-Earth movements on the planet and the 'roboticide' has put the political position of Dr. Falstofe in grave danger, and if Falstofe should fall, the humans on Earth will never get a chance to move out to new planets again. Dr. Falstofe denies the accusation, but also states that he is the only person with enough knowledge to create the mental block. Baley is called to Aurora to work together with his old buddy Robot Daneel Olivaw (also a creation of Dr. Falstofe) and solve the roboticide, not only to save Dr. Falstofe, but also the future of humankind in Isaac Asimov's The Robots of Dawn (1983).

The Robots of Dawn is the last novel in Asimov's science fiction mystery Robot trilogy starring plainclothesman Elijah Baley and his robot partner R. Daneel Olivaw. The series would later merge with Asimov's Foundation series, but I think this is Asimov's last mystery novel in this particular setting. I loved the previous two books: The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun were fun mystery novels that had a good, fleshed-out science fiction background, which was actually of importance to the mystery plots: the Three Laws of Robotics in particular were set at the core of the plots of each of those novels and the books showed that it is perfectly possible to have fair play mystery plots even with non-realistic and highly advanced settings, as long as the reader is given a fair look at the world and the rules are clear. And the Three Laws is as clear as you can get.

But I have to say that I thought The Robots of Dawn was the weakest of the trilogy in terms of mystery plot. I think that is because of the nature of the "roboticide". The robot was taken out with a mental block; a conundrum its mind could not handle, resulting in Blue Screen of Death. The problem is thus about finding the one who could have the skills to force a mental block. We are told that Dr. Falstofe is the only one, but  "skill" is something vaguely defined and because we're also told that the Laws of Robotics don't work on an absolute scale, you are not given with a clear cut logical problem that could be solved by a close reading of the text, like in The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun. You have mystery that can be explained by "well, maybe X could be skilled enough in Y to do Z, but it's just a guess and not based on any evidence or anything verifiable at all". The final solution in particular contains elements that had hardly been established in the world of the Robot series and kinda came out of nowhere (the hints were quite weak too). "It's the future, it's possible" is the explanation, and that is not how a science fiction mystery novel should work. The Caves of Steel and The Naked Sun were great examples of how to do SF mystery right, but The Robots of Dawn is a gigantic step backwards in showing the possibilities of the SF mystery novel.

I did think the novel was enjoyable as a conclusion to the trilogy though. Not only do we see a couple of familiar faces from the previous two novels, the worlds depicted in this series are always evolving and it's great to see how Elijah and humankind on Earth in general have grown in the last couple of years in regards to looking outside Earth for the future. It's also funny to see how the worlds react to each other in the course of the books: the murder on Solaria (The Naked Sun) which was solved by the mere human Elijah for example has been made into a succesful "TV" series for example and Elijah's exploits (and his more handsome actor-counterpart) are famous even outside Earth.

As always, there is also a good amount of philosphical talk about humankind, the man-machine interface and human society, which may or may not be to your liking. I find it very fun to read though and Asimov obviously had fun in creating the Spacer worlds, where Spacers act all high-and-mighty towards Earthlings, but you can still see the same old follies, the same old mistakes even in their exalted societies.

The Robots of Dawn is a rather disappointing end to an otherwise excellent trilogy of science fiction mysteries. As a science fiction novel, it's still good, but as a mystery story, it is simply not as well constructed as the previous two novels. The dangers of the science fiction -  mystery marriage were well evaded in the first two novels, but sadly showed their face a bit too clearly in this last novel. Still, I think that if you have enjoyed Elijah and Daneel's previous adventures, you really should read this last one too.

A Gaggle of Galloping Ghosts

――拝啓探偵さま。事件です――

 さあ奇天烈（きてれつ）怪奇の幕開けよ

『モノノケミステリヰ』（てにをは）

--Dear Detective. It's a case--

Raising the curtains of a strange surprise

"Mononoke Mystery" (Teniwoha)

I wonder whether people outside Japan recognize the word mononoke from Princess Mononoke. Confession: I'm not a fan of Princess Mononoke, which I think is just a less interesting version of Nausicaa of the Valley of Wind (the manga version).

If there's something strange in the neighborhood, who are you going to call? In Tokyo, you'd be calling the Tsukioka Detective Agency. At first, you might be surprised to see the agency is being run by three children, but their detective agency is without the best in its particular field. Which is dealing with youkai: ghosts, ghouls, and goblins that roam Japan. Most of these supernatural beings do little harm to humans nowadays, but there are occasionally youkai who still like to interfere a bit with human lives and that's when Harutari, Yahito and Utsuhi come in action. In Teniwoha's Mononoke Mystery ("Monster Mystery", 2014), the threesome is hired by a local railway company to solve the appearance of a ghost train which has been causing some disturbance among the local population. Their search for the spectral line doesn't take long though, as the train appears several times out of nowhere trying to run the three over. Who is behind the ghost train and why is it running wild in the city?

A while back, I wrote about Teniwoha's Girl Student Detective series, a novel series based on a song. Mononoke Mystery is similarly a cross-media project. Its origins lie in the song Mononoke Mystery, voiced by the famous Hatsune Miku Vocaloid (voice synthesizer software). The imagery of this song in turn are explored in the novel, as well as in a manga series. The world and characters of this so-called Youkai Boys Detective Club series are thus explored across music, books and comics.

The Girl Student Detective series was a normal (if a bit uninspired) detective series, but Mononoke Mystery definitely has an interesting concept: in the world of the Youkai Boys Detective Club series, youkai do actually exist and can cause real harm to people. Youkai are not an unfamiliar concept in detective fiction: Kyougoku Natsuhiko for example is famous for the use of youkai in the Hyakki Yakou series, but there youkai are considered a folkloristic and psychological concept that have influence on the mind and therefore actions of humans. It's the idea of youkai that is of importance there, and no actual supernatural beings are running around in that series.

But as we've seen in various examples on this blog, supernatural or unrealistic phenomena don't mean a mystery plot can't be fair or fun. It's the way supernatural phenomena are presented and used that is of importance (see for example Cat Food, Snow White, Professor Layton VS Ace Attorney and The Caves of Steel for fair, but unrealistic settings). So I was quite curious to see if Teniwoha managed to do something exciting with the concept of youkai in Mononoke Mystery. I'm actually quite interested in youkai, and there are a lot of them in Japan, all with different abilities that could really work well in a detective novel.

Mononoke Mystery however barely shows the potential of actual youkai in a detective story. It is first of all a comedy-action series, focusing on the antics of Harutari (a rather arrogant, but capable detective), Yahito (the cool, level-headed brains and brawn of the group) and Utsuhi (token cute and energetic girl). A lot of the plot is made up by their banter, which I didn't think particularly inspiring. There are also some action scenes where the three use their special powers to take the criminal youkai, in a fairly predictable anime-esque fashion (out-thinking and out-maneuvering the enemy with their specific powers). It is standard-fashion though and even as a comedy-action series, it is not very memorable.

There are some parts that were genuinely inspired though, but never executed in a completely satisfying way. Mononoke Mystery is not a fair-play puzzle plot mystery, but there were neat segments where the three had to deduce what kind of youkai they were facing (which would make their battles a lot easier). Despite being supernatural, fictional beings, youkai are actually very well documented and appear in many documents of several centuries old, and I think most people actually know a fair number of them, so I'd say that the reader has a good chance at catching the hints. I think that this was good concept: it allows for supernatural stuff in the plot, but yet offer fair play in the sense that the reader can logically deduce the identity of the youkai based on the hint. But the way it is done in Mononoke Mystery is rather limited and a bit too obvious and not nearly as entertaining as it could have been.

I think that Mononoke Mystery has an interesting concept, but I guess that Teniwoha is very aware of how to catch the most listeners/readers with his music/books/manga, and he obviously designed the whole Youkai Boys Detective Club series to be a very accessible action-comedy serie with slight mystery elements, rather than something which would satisfy the more genre-specific fans. This first book of Mononoke Mystery also leaves some important questions unanswered, which will probably be addressed in following volumes, but I don't think I'll ever read them, as I very much doubt Teniwoha will push this series in the direction I'd love to see it go to, as I do think the basic idea is catchy. I have the same feeling with Teniwoha's Girl Student Detective series, but that one at least tries to give me some puzzle plot stories.

Original Japanese title(s): てにをは 『モノノケミステリヰ』

Evil Under the Sun

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm. 

2. A robot must obey the orders given to it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.

3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws.

The Three Laws of Robotics

Man, that's some nicely painted cover art! It might be me, but I have the feeling that these kind of covers aren't that common anymore in English-language releases.

Colonization of other planets have created a rift between the humans of Earth, who live in gigantic sealed cities of steel that keep fresh air and the sky outside, and the "Spacers", who enjoy economic and military superiority thanks to extensive use of robots. In The Caves of Steel, police detective Elijah Baley was forced to work together with the Spacer robot R. Daneel Olivaw (R. stands for Robot) on a murder investigation on a Spacer outpost on Earth. In Isaac Asimov's The Naked Sun (1956), Elijah is sent out as the first Earth-human in centuries to venture outside Earth: local authorities on the planet Solaria have trouble with a murder, because it's basically the first murder that happened there. The prosperous planet has a fixed population of twenty-thousand and because of the enormous estates available for each person, the Solarians have lost their need for personal contact. Most people only "view" each other through holographic projections and even married couples rarely "see" each other. It is under these circumstances that Rikaine Delmarre was murdered. Logically, only his wife could have come close enough to actually murder him, but there was no murder weapon found on the scene. Elijah and Daneel are asked to solve the case, as an Earthling would have much more experience with such vulgar and intimate behavior like murder.

The Naked Sun is a direct sequel to The Caves of Steel, which was an excellent science fiction mystery novel that presented a fleshed-out future Earth where the evolution of humankind on Earth appears to be reaching a critical point and robots have become more or less accepted as common tools in society. Asimov's famous Three Laws of Robotics also featured heavily in the novel and were used in surprising ways to give the reader a perfectly fair and intricately plotted impossible crime.

The Naked Sun lacks the impact factor The Caves of Steel had for me, as it was the first in the series I read, but it is still an excellent mystery novel that builds further on the foundations laid in the first novel. The most interesting point about the book is definitely the special socio-cultural environment of Solaria: Solarians absolutely detest personal contact and the actual presence of other people. All contact is done through holographic projections and practically everything is done by robots, so the Solarians all live in perfect leisure without having to do a thing. The result is that the Solarians are described in a way similar to how the robots work in Asimov's work: like robots, Solarians have specific characteristics that prevent them from doing certain actions.

That is why the murder on Rikaine can be presented as an impossible crime. Psychologically speaking, only the wife could have come close to the victim, as the only person with whom he occassionally had personal contact, yet there was no murder weapon found on the crime scene. So physically someone else must have done it and taken the weapon with them, yet psychologically the victim would never have allowed other people to come even close, and very probably the same for the murderer. It is a very interesting conumdrum that arises from Asimov's careful plotting and rules and I absolutely love it.

Like in The Caves of Steel, the Three Laws of Robotics are of great importance in this novel and Asimov manages to explore them even more as both a mystery plot device (once again, very cleverly so), as well as a philosophical question, using Elijah and the robot Daneel to explore the consequences and limits of the three laws.

I hardly read science fiction, but I kinda like the sociological discussions that go in Asimov's Robot series. The questions of where humankind could be going, the man-machine interface, the way communities develop under special circumstances: personally I find this all very interesting and I think Asimov's done a great job at addressing these questions, but still keeping these themes very relevant to the main mystery plot. Oh, as for other science fiction mysteries: I also liked Inherit the Stars!

Anyway, The Naked Sun is a great science fiction mystery novel that does everything it wants to do fantastically: it is a great mystery novel, it is a great science fiction novel and it's fun. Will probably read the last book in the series (relatively) soon!

Killed in the Ratings

Something old, something new, 

something borrowed, something blue,

The holiday season traditionally has a lot of mystery and murder on TV, for some reason. For the bigger and more interesting productions, I usually write seperate posts, but this season there was little I saw that warranted its post, so I grouped it all together in a short short post (where I write shorter reviews/thoughts on multiple mystery media, as opposed to longer, focused reviews). Funnily enough, this is the first short short posts in almost two years that does not feature either Detective Conan or The Young Kindaichi Case Files.

The TV special Kurotokage ("The Black Lizard") was broadcast on Japanese TV on December 22, 2015 and is an adaptation of Edogawa Rampo's 1934 book, commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the writer's death. The original book is one of Rampo's best known stories and chronicles the adventures of great detective Akechi Kogorou as he attempts to capture the female thief the Black Lizard. It is a very pulpy adventure book, but oh-so-fun. The campy 1968 film was a very faithful and enjoyable adaptation of the book. The 2015 special is in a word horrible. I can live with the fact they moved the story to the present, or the fact they made Akechi Kogorou the Deputy Superintendent General of the police department, rather than a private detective. But the special is just dull.

Attempts at lighthearted comedy kill any attempts of creating atmosphere, the acting is mediocre at best (and the awful script is definitely not helping the actors) and the story has boring and uninspired attempts at adding "original" elements to the original book. The latter wouldn't be even that bad if they had at least tried to follow the spirit of the book, or Rampo's writings in general: 2004's Rampo R's version of the book was only based very loosely on the book, but at least it built on the themes of the book and Rampo in general, so that was a a lot more enjoyable than 2015's TV special. This is not how you should commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the most infuential mystery writer of Japan.

Kurotokage moved the story to the present, something Sherlock also did in its main series by moving Sherlock Holmes to a modern background, but the 2016 New Year's special The Abominable Bride goes back to the past. The story is set in Victorian London, where one Emilia Ricoletti managed to do the impossible by first committing suicide and then returning as a ghoul bride to kill her husband with a shotgun. Back at the morgue, Inspector Lestrade is horrified to discover that Ricoletti's corpse in the morgue showed signs of having moved and asks Sherlock Holmes of 221b Baker Street to help him. Note that this special is set in Victorian London like in the original stories, but that the characters are those from Sherlock and not that of the original canon. Anyway, this was a mostly enjoyable special.

The story has a bit of a Scooby Doo vibe actually, with demon brides haunting town. The mystery plot is rather forgettable though: I wouldn't say it's particularly smart, it's actually a rehash of something Sherlock has already done and the way it comes to a conclusion is very clumsily done. On the other hand: the latter half of the special gives the viewer a new perspective on the narrative up until then, and manages to give a rather bland mystery plot a bit more glamour by using that narrative as part of a bigger narrative. Overall an enjoyable TV special that fits well in the spirit of the series despite the setting, but I wouldn't watch it for the impossible crime.

Last year, an interesting, if flawed TV adaptation of Christie's Murder on the Orient Express was broadcast on Japanese TV, but this holiday season also featured a Christie adaptation, but on British TV (where else?). And Then There Were None, a three-part series based on Agatha Christie's classic that started on Boxing Day 2015, was perhaps the biggest surprise. Other recent adaptations of Christie's work on the TV were err... not optimal., so I was not expecting too much of this series, so imagine how surprised I was when I realized that this was actually a very faithful series. This series does an especially great job at visualizing the pressing atmosphere on Soldier Island, where invisible Death awaits ten sinful men and women.

The series is rather long (3x55 minutes), so there are some original parts that build on the original book in order to fill the running time, but little of it feels unnatural (I say little, because I'm not fond of one particular scene in the last episode). Overall, I think And Then There Were None was a great mini-series.

And that's it for today. Mystery-wise, this holiday season was better than than last year's, though nothing beats the extravaganza of two years ago (with Sherlock, Trick, The Kindaichi Case Files and more all starting in the first few days of the New Year). I hope next year will be at least as good as this year!

Original Japanese title(s): 江戸川乱歩（原）　『黒蜥蜴』

Turnabout Memories - Part 5

"I have to go over everything that's happened. I have to remember"

Another Code R: Journey into Lost Memories

As always, the year on this blog ends with a short look back at the posts of this year. One 'problem' is that a lot of the reviews posted in the first half of this year were actually already written in 2014 (I have too many reviews waiting to be posted...). So my memories of a great deal of the material is a lot older than one year. Oh well. As always, this post features a round up of reviews and other posts that made an impression on me this year, with categories made up as I go. And I can also assure you that I have plently of review written and waiting, so 2016 will be like always. Anyway, that's it for this year!

Best Project Outside The Blog!
The Decagon House Murders

Obviously, Locked Room International's English release of Ayatsuji Yukito's The Decagon House Murders has been a big event for me this year, as I was the translator. I first read the book myself in 2011 and loved it (see my review of the book then). Naturally, I could never have dreamt I would be the one translating it some years later. And I was happy to see that a lot of reviews were quite positive. Who'd have guessed that the Washington Post would write about "honkaku" mystery fiction one day?

Oh, and I totally forgot mentioning it here, but the December 2015 issue of Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine also featured a translation by me of Kouga Saburou's The Spider.

Best Translation Posted On The Blog! In 2015!
Muma (Kim Nae-seong)

Well, I only posted one this year. Interestingly enough, it's a translation of a Korean story, though I worked from a Japanese translation (because for some reason, I just can't get Korean in my head). Kim Nae-seong is the grandfather of Korean mystery stories, but basically unknown outside his home land, so I hope that at least this translations helps a bit in bringing him under the spotlight, even if just for a moment.

The Longest Detective Story Of 2015! In Real Time!
The Scarlet Truth Revealed in Detective Conan 85 (Aoyama Goushou)

My review of Detective Conan 85 was posted as the last post of 2014, but after the 2014 list was made, so it still counts for this year. Anyway, The Scarlet Truth Revealed is special because it's actually the conclusion to a storyline that started way back in 2007! And don't get me wrong; it's not like there was radio silence in those seven years: in those seven years, many red herrings and real clues have been left here and there throughout various other stories in the series. I think most fans already knew what was going on, but you can't deny that Aoyama did something ambitious and I'd say it was also done quite satisfactorily.

Most Interesting Game Played In 2015! But Probably Older!
Dai Gyakuten Saiban (The Great Turnabout Trial) (3DS)

Okay, there was little competition this year. Tantei Shinshi DASH! was pretty bad and the two Tantei Jinguuji Saburou PS2 games reviewed this year were certainly not nearly as good as the previous ones. Ghost Trick (DS) was a replay, so doesn't really count. But the 2015 summer release Dai Gyakuten Saiban, despite some flaws, was an exciting and fantastic historical courtroom mystery featuring an original, but highly enjoyable version of Sherlock Holmes. Gyakuten Saiban 5 / Phoenix Wright - Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies (3DS) was a very safe sequel to the series, but Dai Gyakuten Saiban manages to recapture that initial sense of excitement we all had when we first played the series. If only it wouldn't have so many obvious hooks for a sequel.

As for memorable non-mystery games I played this year: I played all three MOTHER (Earthbound) games on GBA, which were very quirky and funny RPGs with its shares of flaws. But man, fantastic and imaginative writing. Super crossover game Project X Zone 2 (3DS) had little improvements over the first game besides being slightly less tedious, but some of the new characters are absolutely golden (Segata Sanshirou is a blast to see in the story). Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer is very addictive. Also: I finally played Final Fantasy VII (PS), one of the biggest icons in gaming culture. Like with Star Wars, most people nowadays know the story and all its twists even if they haven't played it, because of the numerous references to it in everything, but I still wanted to play the game. It can feel outdated sometimes, but even now, the music compositions and the background designs are something to enjoy.

But enough about games...

Best Cover Seen In 2015!
Clover Leaf (Van Madoy)

With the rise of e-books, I have the feeling that covers have become less important for a lot of people, even though I absolutely love good cover art. I've seen quite some good ones this reading year. NisiOisiN's Zaregoto series always has catchy cover art with pop colors, like in Psycho Logical. The original hardcover release of Taiikukan no Satsujin ("The Gymnasium Murder") has slightly different art, but the 2015 paperback still has a very striking cover with yellows and blue tints. But I'd say that Clover Leaf's cover was the most unique of the books I saw this year, featuring art by Ogura Mayuko, whose art you can view at her website.

Best Non-Review Post! Of 2015!
Clues in mystery fiction

I only made two non-review posts this year, it seems. One about clues in mystery fiction, one about language-specific tricks in mystery fiction and translation. Both are topics I enjoy, but both posts were written rather chaotically, so they may seem like the ramblings of a mad man. The one on clues is the most comprehensive though and offers a feeble attempt at posing a typology of clues in mystery fiction of the logical elimination kind. And while my 'Clue Lecture" might not be very memorable, I do think that after all those writings on locked rooms and I don't know what, it might be interesting if more people thought about clues in mystery fiction and its relation to the notion of 'fair play' in the genre.

Weirdest Book Reviewed On The Blog! In 2015!
Gyeongseong ui ilbon eo tamjeongjakpumjip ("A Collection of Detective Stories from Keijou")

There's no competition here. A book published in South Korea, featuring Japanese-language mystery stories from the period Korea was a colony of Japan. I am quite certain this is the only English review of the book, and I wouldn't be surprised if it will remain so, considering the contents! Besides the novelty of the stories themselves, I also find the book incredibly interesting as someone who enjoys Japanese literature, linguistics and sociology. Also, this book was a great example of international cooperation, as a friend got me this (and she had to answer awkward questions about why she bought such a book when people at the office saw it). There's another book in the series on urban legends, folklore and stuff by the way, for those interested.

Best Trick of 2015!
Ao wa Umi to Manicure no Iro ("Blue is the Color of the Sea and Manicure") in Niji no Ha Brush - Kamiki Raichi Hassan (Hayasaka Yabusaka)

A "trick" is the element of a mystery story that is the actual mystery and its solution. Like a magic trick, a trick in mystery fiction consists not only out of what the audience sees, but also the actual truth behind the magic. Looking back at the list of reviews this year, the short story Ao wa Umi to Manicure no Iro is the one story that stands out most in memory: I still remember being baffled when first confronted with the mystery, and I remember even better the shock when the truth was revealed. Sometimes, I choose the best trick of the year based on the complexity and structure of the trick, but this year, I choose the trick that made the most impression on me in terms of surprising me.

The Just-Ten-In-No-Particular-Order-No-Comments List
Jikan no Shuuzoku ("Customs of Time") (Matsumoto Seichou)
Kuroi Hakuchou ("Black Swan") (Ayukawa Tetsuya)
Yoru yo, Nezumitachi no Tame ni ("Oh Night, For My Mice") (Renjou Mikihiko)
The HOG Murders (William L DeAndrea)
Fatal Venture (Freeman Wills Crofts)
Taiikukan no Satsujin ("The Gymnasion Murder") (Aosaki Yuugo)
De Laatste Kans ("The Last Chance") M.P.O. Books
Kim Nae-seong Tantei Shousetsu Sen ("A Selection of Detective Stories by Kim Nae-seong") (Kim Nae-seong)
The Sacrlet Truth Revealed in Detective Conan 85 (Aoyama Goushou)
Dai Gyakuten Saiban ("Great Turnabout Trial") (scenario: Takumi Shuu)

Q&A

答えはどこに隠されてるの somebody knows

 あきらめないでもうちょい考えて Question! Answer! 

「Q&A」（B'z）

The answer lies hidden somewhere / Somebody knows

Don't give up / Think a bit more / Question! Aswer!

"Q&A" (B'z)

Don't you just hate false covers? The scene on the cover of today does not actually happen in the book. The designer probably came up with this after reading golf links + dead body in the summary, but you'd think the publisher would say something about that.

A game of golf between Bobby Jones and the local doctor ends with the discovery of a man who appears to have fallen off a small cliff. While the man is still alive, the doctor declares that it's only a matter of time, so he returns to the village to make the necessary arrangements, while Bobby stays to watch over the man's last moments. Just before the man dies however, he utters the line: "Why didn't they ask Evans?" This seems to be the end of the tragic affair, but some time afer the body had been identified by his relatives, suspicious job offers from abroad arrive at Bobby's place, which are then followed by attempts on his life. Bobby and his friend Lady Frances Derwent (Frankie) suspect it all has to do with the dead man on the golf course and his last words and decide to find out what really lies behind his death in Agatha Christie's Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (1934).

Why Didn't They Ask Evans? is a title that made an enormous impression on me the first time I read it. It is a simple title, but it conjures up so many questions. Who is Evans? What didn't they ask Evans? Why would they need to ask Evans? Who are they? I had absolutely no idea what the book was about, but to me, it appeared to be one of those titles that look silly, but make so much sense in hindsight, if you know the story. I think I've known the title for more than 15 years, so I have to admit: my expectations were rather high, as I'd finally know the answer to the question.

And the answer was...a bit disappointing. Why Didn't They Ask Evans? is a clever title, but I can't say the usage of it in the book is particularly smart. I had expected a dying message puzzle or something like that, but there is actually a very straightforward answer to the question and you're almost given no time to think about it once you've been given the proper hints, so this is a good example of me having way too much expectations based on just the title.

But overall, I did quite enjoy Why Didn't They Ask Evans? as a lighthearted thriller-type of novel. At least, I enjoyed a lot more than the more tedious The Secret of Chimneys I read a while back. I think it's because Why Didn't They Ask Evans? is a lot like The Secret Adversary, which I absolutely love. Like Tommy & Tuppence's first adventure, Why Didn't They Ask Evans? features a young couple (the parents of one being a vicar), who go out on an adventure that is filled with thrills and misadventures and a lot of coincidence and luck. The masquerades, the bluffing, the romantic subplots, the two novels are actually very alike. In fact: the 1980 TV adaptation of Why Didn't They Ask Evans? starred Francesca Annis and James Warwick, who would go on to co-star again in the TV adaptation of The Secret Adversary and Partners in Crime a few years later (there is no such thing as a recent Tommy & Tuppence TV series. Nope).

Of course, like The Secret Adversary, Why Didn't They Ask Evans is rather simplistic in actual mystery plot (despite a locked room murder!), with immense coincidence pushing the plot forward despite a serious lack of suspects and such, but I found it fairly entertaining as something light. But you are probably looking for something different if you want something memorable or impressive.

I personally enjoyed Why Didn't They Ask Evans?, but I am very well aware that is is also a very flawed work by Christie. The Secret Adversary dates from 1922, but more than ten years later, Christie basically gave the readers a very similar work, even down to the flaws. I wouldn't put Evans high on the to-be-read-list, but it can be fun if you like Tommy & Tuppence, I think.

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」