Unfortunately this just wasn’t for me.

The concept was actually pretty interesting but I felt like I was reading the same thing over and over.

Thank you NetGalley and Granta publishing for the eARC

Super weird but so captivating, I finished it in a couple of days. Another dive into Murata’s weird and wonderful mind, girl does not miss

Wtf did I just read? This book left me speechless but not in a good way. Honestly at this point I’m worried about why I keep choosing these awful books.
I could see how societies views on sex and marriage might change…..but calling sex between married people incest but they can get IUI and have a baby together is ok??? Just a confounding concept.
Add to that the FMCs obsession with sex…….and with all the weirdness I still would have called it a 3 star read until the ending. I cannot even begin to think what was crossing the author’s mind as they wrote that last chapter.
Trigger warnings abound. But definitely it should be labeled a TW for sexualization of children…..
I honestly wish I had just DNF’d this book at the halfway point.
I did receive an ARC of this title, all opinions are my own.

This was a strange book with a lot of interesting takes on marriage sex and child rearing but the first half was a little repetitive. In this book we follow Amane in a futuristic world where sex is now considered taboo since artificial insemination became the way to have children. Amane was born from a married couple the old way and explores if sex is bad, and her journey of trying to have a child with her husband. This book was unique and I can’t decide if I liked it or not. The writing was very cold and clinical but it made sense in the story and really raised some interesting ideas. The chapters were my main issue it didn’t really have chapters instead 3 parts making it hard to kind of find a place to stop. This was my first book from this author and I really want to read more from them in the future! I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for a chance to read this book for an honest review.

Vanishing World is a classic Sayaka Murata book full of the most absurd and weird commentary on today’s society — and I say this in the most positive way, cos she really has a way of commenting on how the world works through the most deranged ways.

I was a huge fan of Earthlings and I loved Convenience Store Woman. I also think, the one time I saw her speak at a book event, that her ideas and interest in writing books that show how the world works and how it affects us is super important. Especially as her books are hugely influenced by her own experience as a woman living in Japan.

But with that said, I wasn’t as huge a fan of Vanishing World as I hoped I would be. You can tell it’s an earlier work, despite being translated after her other books, and it doesn’t come across as strong in its message as her other books — it did feel uncomfortable to read though, which I think made for a better experience. It’s very clinical and removed from the idea of relationships and love as we know it. Which is the whole point. Yet, it just didn’t fully do it for me.

I will say, though, that in true Sayaka Murata spirit it did have a fucked up little twist and I loved that (even if it made me feel uncomfortable).

I’d probably still recommend it if you’re interested in reading more of her work or would like to read dystopian fiction in which society becomes almost sexless and so far removed from the classic family dynamic that we know nowadays. There was some interesting commentary on the necessity of family structured and relationships, the need for man / woman familial bonds, and the question on whether it’s better to raise children in individual groups or as a community.

In a way, it also reminded me of Hospital by Han Song though less off-putting and sexist. But the clinical weird feeling is very similar in both in my opinion.

/// Thank you to Grove Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC.

I know this will be good but i cant continue because the trigger warning was made me yuck every single time i read it

Thanks to Net Galley and Grove Press for the ARC!

What. did. I. just. read. I love Murata's weirdness, and Vanishing World takes it too a whole new level. This was WILD, but it was also deeply reflective and I haven't stopped thinking about it since. You are going to want your seat belt on for this one.

Sayaka Murata does it again! Vanishing World is a statement to the current sexual, reproductive state of the world. An intuitive discussion of what may come if we take love out of the equation. I highly recommend Vanishing World to all and any Sayaka Murata novel.

Author Sayaka Murata is masterful in her taking on taboo topics in her writing. I loved Convenience Store Woman and found it darkly hilarious; I felt her handling of characters on the spectrum to be impeccable. In Earthlings the provocative subject was incest, and now in sci-fi genre Vanishing World, the institution of marriage has "progressed" to the extent that couples are considered family, and as such, sexual relations between husband and wife are taboo, nauseating, and grounds for divorce. There are other ways that discomfiting themes in Earthlings have been taken to a further level here so I would caution if you took issue with certain scenes in Earthlings, maybe don't bother reading Vanishing World.

In a world of artificial insemination Amane Sakaguchi has always felt different, and for that she blames her mother, who always took pride in having flouted social norms, having her child the outdated way, through copulation with her husband. Masturbation and objectophilia are other out there themes explored in this futuristic outsider fiction about a Utopian Experiment City where all children are born via artificial insemination of men and women alike, and raised en masse by a collective "mother" made up by all resident adults.

Vanishing World by Sayaka Murata is exactly what you’d expect if you’re familiar with her work, brilliantly bizarre, unsettling, and impossible to stop thinking about. Murata once again crafts a world where societal norms have been turned completely upside down, and the results are as fascinating as they are disturbing.

In this new reality, traditional procreation between married couples is seen as taboo read: incestuous) while casual relationships outside of marriage are completely acceptable. It's a provocative idea, and while the story never fully explains the logic behind this cultural shift, it fits perfectly into Murata’s signature style of challenging the reader’s assumptions without offering easy answers.

As expected, the narrative really flies off the rails in the final quarter, spiraling into a surreal fever dream that leaves you questioning everything you just read. It’s uncomfortable, thought-provoking, and absolutely unforgettable. The kind of story that leaves you sitting in stunned silence, wondering, what the hell did I just experience?

Fans of Murata’s previous work will find Vanishing World a wild, rewarding ride. If you’re new to her, be prepared: this isn’t just weird for weird’s sake, it’s a pointed, brilliant exploration of human nature at its strangest.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Sayaka Murata, and Grove Atlantic for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

I loved the first 50 pages and was happy given my unfortunate first encounter with the Convenience Store Woman three years ago. I thought I finally became one of the people who can enjoy Sayaka Murata's art. I had no idea how wrong I was.

The rest of the book was fine, I didn't have to force myself to read it, but didn't particularly enjoy it. Some of her thoughts and concerns were close to mine, and it was fun to see the world from the new perspective. The problem started at the very end of the book. And although the phrase 'Normal is the most terrifying madness in the world' should have prepared me for what happens in the end, I wasn't ready. The last few pages completely messed up the overall nice experience I was having with the book.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, the author and the translator for providing me with the arc

3.5⭐

I couldn't wait to read Murata's newest novel and revisit her unique and distinct narrative voice. I was blown away by Convenience Store Woman and then confused and not quite entertained by Earthings, so I was eager to see what Vanishing World had in store. While it's no Convenience Store Woman, Murata's speculative fiction novel immerses you fully in her world but ends leaving a weird taste in my mouth.

Murata's story follows Amane, a woman living in a world where reproducing via sex is increasingly taboo. Yet, this is exactly how Amane was created, and her mother continually defends her choice to do so. Amane fights against her mother's "old-fashioned" ideas and instead fufills her desires with fictional characters and an assortment of her classmates. When Amane grows up and marries, her and her husband decide to move to "Experiment City" where men can bear children and every adult is considered "mother."

For most of the book, I was into its weirdness and the detached tone of Murata's writing. The story was compelling, and all I wanted to do was sit and read the book. However, the ending of the book really discolored my overall reading of it. I hated some of the events leading to it and couldn't quite get over or understand some of the narrative choices that were made.

Prior to the last part of the book, I was well on my way to giving this book four stars. But, after reading the ending, I'm going to have to bump it down to 3.5⭐

Thanks to Net Galley and Grove Press for the ARC!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance reader's copy of this book. Unfortunately at this time I will be unable to give it my full attention, so I will provide a starred rating and return when I can give it a proper review.

3.5 stars.

sayaka murata's vanishing world presents a raw exploration of identity, sexuality, and societal control in a futuristic japan where traditional norms have been upended. our protagonist, amane, grapples with her sense of self in a world that views sex as a shameful act, relegating procreation to the act of artificial insemination.

from the very onset of the story we are introduced to amane's struggle with her identity and societal expectations. unlike her peers, she harbors a secret: she was conceived through coitus, an act of her parents that fills her with shame due to the norms of her society. as she navigates her adolescence, amane's experiences with sexual urges manifest in unconventional ways—through masturbation to fictional characters and ultimately, through open relationships with men outside of marriage (which btw is socially accepted). the societal taboo surrounding sex creates a fascinating tension in her life, as she grapples with her desires while trying to conform to the expectations of her world.

the world murata built is certainly interesting as she explores the concept of marragige as an economic prospect and reproductive commodification to the concept of 'kodomo-chan' children conceived through a lottery-style insemination system. the book prompts you to question the nature of family and the role of individual adults, and by extension parents, in a society.

sadly, for me personally, the concept didn't quite live up to the execution. from the pacing to the world-building, everything felt a little off, as if something were lacking. however, i can still see many people enjoying this book.

overall, the book is a thought-provoking read that challenges conventional notions of sexuality, family, and identity. murata's unique vision of a certain dystopian future delves into the interesting implications of societal control and the struggle for personal authenticity—a future we are not very far from, by the look of it. while the execution didn't quite land at times, the premise of the novel makes up for it.

This was sufficiently weird but very unique. While the concept was cool and it had the Murata flair of the absurd. It wasn't as hard-hitting as her other novels to me.

Thank you to Netgalley and Grove Press for a copy. This is out now!

This book is set in a dystopian world where there is no sexual intercourse between couples.Sex is something to be disgusted or avoided , no one talks about it and no one practices it to have baby, rather do artificial insemination to bear a child.The latter method is encouraged while former is extinct.

Amane is born from the former method and she always sees it as a shame to be born in such a way.The world is changing everyday that they try to create a world where each individual do not need a partner to be with or depend for something like having a child.Amane is consumed by all the new changes happening in the world that she does not want to look back to how the world worked once.

This book was totally weird from the very beginning considering the concept.There are so many gross and bizarre things that are hard to digest yet fascinating.Anyways I really enjoy how she writes no plot books that are intriguing enough to continue.

My main issue with this was that it was a bit boring in the first part, and the book really picked up in the second half but the ending was a letdown for me.I was constantly waiting for something reasonable to happen even though I never get it from her books.Also was not a fan of the world and felt like a nightmare living it from the main PoV.

Overall recommending this to those who love a weird fiction set in a dystopian world.

I found the concept of this book to be really interesting but the execution felt a bit lacklustre to me. It was very slow to build up and while I liked seeing Amane slowly giving in to the brainwashing it still didn't leave much of an impression on me.

Surreal, yet poignant. Sayaka Murata’s novels have a way of getting across such rich and emotional concepts in the most atypical of stories. Perfect book for those who love weird woman fiction.

Sayaka Murata, a Japanese author best known for her novel Convenience Store Woman delves into a strange alternate reality in her 2015 novel Vanishing World. The Japan of Vanishing World is one in which artificial insemination, introduced following World War II has led to a decline, and almost demonization of sexual intimacy. Murata takes this premise and follows it through to some scarily believable end points in a place called Experiment City.
The main character of Vanishing World, Amane is a bit of an outsider due to the fact that she was conceived and born naturally. But she needs connection is desperate to fit in and so does what all of her contemporaries do and falls in love with an anime character, which later becomes a slew of anime characters. Her first marriage fails because her husband wants to have sex with her – in this world husband and wife are seen as “family” so any relations between them are considered to be incest. Her second husband Saku understands the rules and both have relationships outside their marriage to fulfill their need for "love". Amane and Saku eventually move to Experiment City where all children are raised communally and men can carry babies to term.
There are plenty of scifi ideas in Vanishing World, but what Murata is really interested in is exploring the decline of intimacy, of people who project their emptions onto fictional characters and, underlying all of this, the significantly declining birthrate in Japan. The book comes across as a though experiment in which a single, relatively uncontroversial idea (in this artificial insemination) is taken to an extreme and projected over a long enough period to create some absurdist outcomes.
As with many books in translation though, while there is a universality to the ideas that Murata is dealing with in Vanishing World, there are almost certainly nuanced points she is making about Japanese society in particular that are likely to pass many readers by. But even so, Murata has delivered a scenario that provides plenty for readers to think about.

Sayaka Murata consistently delivers entertaining and shocking social commentary through sci-fi /horror/unhinged women's lit, and Vanishing World is no exception. 

Vanishing World is set in an alternate reality where society has deemed procreation through natural means inefficient and chaotic. A nuclear family still consists of a father, mother, and children, however, it is considered incest for husband and wife to have a physical romantic relationship... because it's sex with a family member. 

I really love the themes this title explores. I love how creative and unsettling this narrative plays out. My only criticism is that I felt Vanishing World's puzzle pieces ultimately didn't fall into place as cleanly as some of her other titles. I was left with a lot of questions. Overall, the logic of the world didn't seem to fully align with itself. 

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Grove Press (An imprint of Grove Atlantic) for an advance e-copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.