After reading Death on Gokumon Island, I knew I'd be interested in reading more Seishi Yokomizo - and here I am.

"The Devil's Flute Murders" is just as intricate and atmospheric as "Death on Gokumon Island" - although its charm comes less from the gruesomeness of the murders themselves (I'm aware this is an odd thing to write) and more from the slowly dawning horror of a gothic family saga.

A viscount killed himself. A mild, nice man, wrongly accused of a gruesome murder and robbery, he was revealed to be beyond suspicion, but committed suicide anyway, after writing a song called "The Devil Comes and Plays His Flute". Much later, detective Kindaichi is contacted by the viscount's daughter to investigate whether her father is really dead or not, since he's supposedly been seen here and there.

And then the murders start in the family home, where more people than expected live - the mother's uncle and her cousin, as well as both their spouses, servants... well. There are people, is the point. Soon after holding a seance interrupted by the song of the dead man's flute, the first person dies.

Kindaichi and the police start investigating, and their clues lead them on the dead viscount's tail, researching events that took place many years before, revealing dark and entangled family secrets.

I wasn't entirely happy with the way Akiko was described a couple of times as having a fire burning in her that only a forceful man could control - even if it's foreshadowing some of the gothic family horror, it felt embarrassingly like it's saying "she was such a slut and a weakling she would mindlessly run off with anyone who offered". I mean, I get why Seishi Yokomizo wants to paint a picture of wrongness with bold strikes, but it still doesn't work for me no matter how I look at it.

Overall, it made for a nice read, even if the plot moved to a different part of Japan for a while, and even if I kept getting lost between names and relations. During the first pages, Seishi Yokomizo makes sure to drill these into our heads almost as if we're reading a report, but, nonetheless, I messed up and forgot people. (If I had had the paperback, however, looking up the characters by flipping back to the beginning would have been very easy.)

The Devil's Flute Murders is the latest of the English translations of Seishi Yokomizo's Detective Kindaichi series. In post war Tokyo a series of mysterious events occur that turn out to be related. First, a man kills several workers in a jewelry shop, then a couple of month's later a Viscount disappears and is then found dead miles away. Finally, there are a series of murder at the Viscount's home. The family seems to think that the Viscount has come back to life and started killing his family members but Kindaichi does not think so.

The Devil's Flute Murders is filled with a locked door murder, a murder when no one could have done it, and a chase that leave Kindaichi just steps behind the person he is looking for. If you have never read a Yokomizo mystery so should definitely pick up one. The series is not being translated in order so it does not matter which one you select and this one is a pretty good one.

There are a couple of things about this series that are quite apparent by this time (having read four books). Reading any one of them does not automatically reflect on the possibility of enjoying the others equally. One does not need to read them in order; there are cases sometimes mentioned that may not even have been one of the books already (re) published and are still used as part of characterizing the lead detective. The main repetitive thing is dandruff that flies off his head as he scratches it, something that he does less often here because the seriousness of the events seems to overtake the supposed hilarity of watching flakes of dandruff fly off the central character's head.
The part I best appreciated in this installment was the auro of doom and gloom. None of the people introduced to us were nice or friendly. They all have their own agendas, and they are living a greatly changed life in Japan. The feudal system has been officially scrapped, and the repercussions of that are quite obvious. Kosuke has been invited by a young lady to investigate her family since there has been a resurgence in interest in her father's untimely death. The fact that his last published flute album is making the family uncomfortable is a factor that has her interested in figuring things out after all this time.
The family is a bunch of characters with distinct personalities, but it still took me a while to get them sorted out. There is a seance the night that Kosuke arrives at the home to gauge the situation, followed by a death. There is a lot of footwork and actual 'detecting' involved here.
I think my biggest problem with the plot was the reveal/solution. I won't say much regarding why I disliked it, mostly because that would unravel the entire situation.
I found the book well structured, the translation is effective and smooth, and it has not put me off trying more reprints in this line (if and when they come about).
I would not recommend this particular volume (except to the more adventurous of readers), but the author and his detective are an intriguing look at 1940s Japan.
I received an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

3.75

I have been loving these translations of Seishi Yokomizo’s Detective Kindaichi novels and this is no different. Set in Tokyo post World War II, The Devil’s Flute Murders sets up one of the more harrowing Kindaichi cases. I love that the first chapter sets the reader up for how twisty and horrific the case will be by having the narrator explain that they had been putting off writing about this particular case.

As always, I love the historical element to these stories and the look at what Japanese society was like in the aftermath of World War II. I thought the mystery was well plotted and I liked the way it all played out. I think this is the most complex of the books that have been translated, and I did find that I had to reread some passages to keep track of who was who and the clues we had been given.

Yokomizo’s books are great for those who love the classic crime novels of Conan Doyle and Christie, and I can’t wait for the next installment to be translated!

I've really been enjoying my foray into classic Japanest mysteries. Seishi Yokomizo's Detective Kosuke Kindaichi is an interesting fellow: a former soldier, he is called on occasionally by the police for help, particularly for the more baffling murder mysteries.

It's 1947 now, and Japan is dealing with the aftermath of WWII and power and other shortages. Kosuke Kindaichi is approached by a young woman, Mineko, whose father Hidesuki Tsubaki, a former Lord, committed suicide some months earlier. The family, however, are perturbed by recent sightings of the dead man. Kindaichi is intrigued, and arrives at the family compound and meets the Mineko's mother and her spiritualist/doctor, and a variety of in-laws and their spouses, families and staff. Kindaichi quickly feels the tensions, and soon after a ritual to ascertain if the dead man is still alive, the first murder occurs.

Inspector Todoroki informs Kindaichi that Lord Tsubaki had been interrogated intensively as a possible suspect in another set of shocking murders. Tsubaki was eventually ruled out, but committed suicide soon after.

Kindaichi's investigation takes him through the family members' histories and motives and leads him to a town Tsubaki had travelled to months ago to ascertain if what the man did or saw there factored into his suicide, and the current murder(s).

This is a story full of genuinely unlikeable people in a family who used to enjoy the privileges of nobility prior to the war. There is a sense of entitlement in some of the family members, and their relationships are complex, and complicated by old secrets and terrible acts. Kindaichi gradually teases out the truth, and it's all uglier than he imagined.

There are multiple murders along the way, and Kindaichi despairs of understanding the situation at the heart of the family. Author Yokomizo kept me guessing and flummoxed as he slowly revealed how one awful action in the past echoed through several people's lives. It's a twisty, slowly unfolding story, with a satisfying, tragic payoff at the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Pushkin Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

This book had an interesting premise and id read a book by the author that id previously enjoyed but sadly this wasn't for me. It was well written but parts of the plot and flow didn't work for me.

Another book in the Kosuke Kindaichi series of mysteries, The Devil’s Flute Murders is set in 1947, as Japan continues its slow recovery from the destruction of WWII to the bombings and social changes. A young woman seeks Kindaichi’s assistance due to strange problems afflicting her extended family. Her father, Viscount Tsubaki, had recently disappeared, then been found dead. But now her family, especially her mother, Akiko, has begun to see him. Is he alive? Is this a ghost? And why did he leave?

So begins the most complex of Kindaichi’s cases I’ve yet read. There are multiple murders, questions of ghostly visitation, family history that must be explored, and numerous people, family, retainers and friends, living on the estate grounds that may be victims or perpetrators.

At times I feared getting lost in the complexity but the use of a knowing narrator on occasion alongside the detective’s thoughts and speech helped to prevent that happening. There were also some odd features in the dialogue that I don’t recall from prior books. While they did briefly bother me at times, I still enjoyed the mystery and the search and wanted to know the outcome. I didn’t guess…couldn’t have guessed, actually.

Rated 3.5 rounded to 4

Copy from Pushkin Vertigo through NetGalley. The review is mine.

Another great instalment in the Kosuke Kindaichi series and probably my favourite one yet!
Each of these stories has plenty of plot twists and keeps you guessing until the end, and this one certainly didn’t disappoint. With sordid family secrets that people are more than willing to kill for, this murder mystery whodunnit ensures that the reader is kept hooked throughout as the endearing Kindaichi gets ever closer to solving the murders and mysteries that he finds himself caught up. Kindaichi’s character always ensures that the heavy concept of murder has a light-hearted edge in the way that he conducts himself and those who encounter him for the first time, often greatly underestimating him before discovering his many talents and going on to respect him greatly.

Set after the end of the Second World War, our unkempt hero finds himself having to navigate the new challenges that life faces for the residents of Japan as they try to rebuild their lives and adapting to the new ways of life that it has bought about. The author’s skill in creating a seemingly impossible locked room murder rival the other greats of the classic murder mystery era; Seishi Yokomizo’s are always well thought-out and demonstrate a high level of understanding and creativity on his part to create such a scenario.

Finally, thank you to NetGalley and Pushin Vertigo for an ARC of this book.

Scruffy, odd, scratchy private detective Kosuke Kindaichi is back in “The Devil's Flute Murders”, another fine golden age homage by Seishi Yokomizo.

The story is set in post-war Japan, 1947, a time of social upheaval and shortages as Japan tries to recover from World War II. The old social classes are gone, and many of the noble families have fallen on hard times, making compromises to survive. A daughter of one of these families, Mineko, comes to Kindaichi with an odd request – her father, a Viscount and composer, wrote a beautiful haunting piece of music and then committed suicide. However, his ghost has been appearing to the family, specifically to her mother Akiko, accompanied by the haunting music (the flute of the title). The family is gathering in an attempt to contact his spirit, Mineko is asking for Kindaichi’s help in getting to the bottom of this mystery. When the séance is followed by a locked room murder, Kindaichi is plunged into a family drama with many secrets and a possible tie back to a gruesome murder which has remained unsolved. Several others will die before Kindaichi can get to the truth of the Devil’s Flute.

This is my fifth Kindaichi mystery and all of them have been superb, a throwback to the British golden age mysteries with a very definite Japanese twist. Out of the five, this is definitely the most complex, the most twisted, the hardest to follow (many of the names are similar sounding to Western ears). And another complication is that there are very few likable characters in this book, Kindaichi being the exception (although he acts strangely at times, even for him). Everyone has something to hide, everyone is a little protective of their secrets and of the family. A wonderful peak into a dramatic time in Japan’s history.

I requested and received a free advanced electronic copy from Pushkin Press via NetGalley. Thank you!

Locked door mystery! Give me all the weird explanations to these type of whodunits and howdunits, and I’ll be quiet for few hours reading in my corner. The explanation of this mystery was no less surprising than many other I read. I don’t know how to explain weirdness of it without giving away any spoilers. So read it!

What I don’t get about Japanese literature though is need to include some sort of taboo topic. Let it be incest, let it be some messed up ritualistic murder. They always have something in their stories that shake you up, and this one of course has one of those taboo topics.

I haven’t read any stories by Seishi Yokomizo and I was missing on him. He was the Japanese Christie who offered Kindaichi as a match for Poirot. If you haven’t read him and love detective stories, don’t sleep on this series. This is only book #8.

This is the fourth book by Seishi Yokomizo that I’ve read and yet I continue to be astonished by his books. I have previously enjoyed The Honjin Murders, Death on Gokumon Island and The Village of the Eight Graves. This author’s unsettling settings and vivid characters always stay in my mind.

This book was much like his others where it focuses on the detective Kosuke Kindaichi unraveling mysteries surrounding a cast of complex characters. However, I am always continually surprised and the twists and turns each story takes me. The reader is provided with small clues through out the book to help them figure out the ending. I tried to pay attention to every small detail but I still could not unravel the mystery.

I recommend this book to anyone who grew up reading mysteries such as Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys like me. It was so fun to try and guess the culprit. I do want to put a warning that the content of this book is heavier than the usual cozy mysteries.

Thank you so much for Net galley and Pushkin Vertigo for the advanced readers copy.

The Devil's Flute Murders is a book featuring detective Kindaichi, written by the classic Japanese mystery writer Seishi Yokomizo. I'd already read the first book in the series, and I had similar feelings about both of them.
The cast of characters was bizarre and each of them was easy to distinguish. I didn't particularly like the depiction of women, although I quite enjoyed Kikue's character, she stole the scene everytime she appeared. As for the story, I really liked the mystery surrounding Viscount Tsubaki's death, and how it wasn't clear if he was really dead or not. The different murders were also quite intriguing.
However, the middle of the book felt too dragged out to me, and I lost a little interest in the story. Towards the end I also guessed the motive and the culprit, however I was quite satisfied by the solution. It wasn't too over the top like it was, in my opinion, in the first book of the series.

Pushkin Press is doing mystery fans such a huge favor by republishing Seishi Yokomizu's classic mysteries! The Devil's Flute Murders brings back detective Kindaichi for another one of the fair-play murder mysteries popular in Japan.

In this, we have missing persons, poison, stabbing, clobbering, hidden identities, and a jewel heist. And of course, lots of misdirection!

I really liked this book. It is fast paced and kept me guessing throughout. I'd love to read more from this author.

This was such a fast paced, engaging read! So many mysteries wrapped up in one! I had no clue who did what or why, and it was so fun to finally hear all the reveals! I already have the rest of this author's translated works waiting to be read, I enjoyed this one so much!

The Devil’s Flute Murders is a great murder mystery. Tons of twists and turns for all readers to enjoy!

A Fiendish Crime..
The enigmatic Detective Kosuke Kindaichi - impossible crimes his forte - is called upon once again to investigate a fiendish crime in this cleverly complex and well constructed, classic locked room mystery. With a plethora of suspects and a twisted, convoluted yet ingenious, plot this is another well received whodunit with an excellent translation. The cover art for this series a wonderful bonus.

5 stars for me! I love locked room mysteries and this was such a page turner! I can usually guess some part of the mystery but not this time. Highly recommend if you’re looking for an original unique tale in the vein of Agatha Christie. Pretty sure this will be one of my favorite mysteries of 2023.

Read the latest release from Kosude Kindaichi series and I can see the stories are getting darker and disturbing. A thing about me - I love mystery books like a child loves chocolate. Agatha Christie books are my go-to when I want to get out of reading slump. Last year, I stumbled on Seishi Yokomizo books. Seishi Yokomizo was one of Japan’s most famous and best-loved mystery writers. These murder mystery follow a pattern, though the stories are different we can spot familiar elements and easter eggs from other books. Anxiety inducing writing, feuding family, deep dark secrets, locked room mystery, whodunnit make-up the book. In this book, Kindaichi (our detective) is approached by a girl whose father was briefly a suspect in a horrific murder case, but was later set free. The father commits suicide but is now spotted by his family members. Is the father really dead or is his ghost making reappearance to take revenge? Someone in the family gets murdered, the father makes an reappearance and eerie flute music (the devil's tune) starts playing. Will Kindaichi be able to find the real devil behind these strange happenings? I was hooked from the first page, the story dragged on a bit in the middle but takes pace soon after. The last 30% has one secret revelations after another. I stayed up late to finish this book.
Liked -
1. The clever reference to 'The Devil Comes and Plays His Flute' line
2. Character portrayal
3. Kindaichi's logical reasoning
Did not like -
1. The over-use of shock, gasp related terms. If I had a shot every time 'a chill run down someone's spine', I would be sloshed.
2. The book is disturbing and full of unlikable characters.
3. So many characters!

Overall, a good mystery read. Hope @pushik_press translates and releases other books in the series soon.

Kosuke Kindaichi returns to investigate a mystery within the Shingu/Tsubaki household. When a young woman comes to him with a story of her father's mysterious disappearance and death Kindaichi is not sure what there is to investigate but then the woman tells him her mother doesn't believe he is dead. She asks him to come to the family home as they try to contact the dead. From there the mystery grows as bodies begin piling up.

The writing style is clear and easy which is good because the mystery is complicated. There is a large cast of characters, mostly unlikable, and therefore many suspects. Another mystery that gripped Japan just before the disappearance also has a connection.

The story comes at a time of change for the aristocracy. There are uneasy family relations. A disturbing flute recording holds a clue. A creepy, brooding atmosphere hangs over everything. We are warned at the beginning how twisted the tale is. Nothing prepared me to figure it out. Read this if you like dark mysteries.