In the winter of 1937, the village of Okamura is abuzz with excitement over the forthcoming wedding of a son of the grand Ichiyanagi family. But amid the gossip over the approaching festivities, there is also a worrying rumour - it seems a sinister masked man has been asking questions about the Ichiyanagis around the village.Then, on the night of the wedding, the Ichiyanagi family are woken by a terrible scream, followed by the sound of eerie music - death has come to Okamura, leaving no trace but a bloody samurai sword, thrust into the pristine snow outside the house. The murder seems impossible, but amateur detective Kosuke Kindaichi is determined to get to the bottom of it.

Vorwort
Japan's greatest classic murder mystery, translated into English for the first time

Autorentext

LOUISE HEAL KAWAI has translated around a dozen works of Japanese literature, including works by Seicho Matsumoto and Taeko Tomioka. In 2018, her translation of Seventeen
by Hideo Yokoyama was longlisted for the Best Translated Book Award. Her most recent works for Pushkin are the classic locked-room murder mysteries Murder in the Crooked House by Soji Shimada and Seishi Yokomizo's The Honjin Murders. Louise lives in Japan's Kanto region. Seishi Yokomizo (1902-81) was one of Japan's most famous and beloved mystery writers, best known for creating the legendary detective Kosuke Kindaichi, who featured in more than 70 stories, many of which were adapted for stage and television in Japan. The Honjin Murders, the first Kosuke Kindaichi novel, is regarded as one of Japan's great mystery novels and won the inaugural Mystery Writers of Japan Award in 1948. The Inugami Curse, The Village of Eight Graves, Death on Gokumon Island, The Devil's Flute Murders, The Little Sparrow Murders, Murder at the Black Cat Cafe and She Walks at Night are also available or forthcoming from Pushkin Vertigo.