The Labyrinth House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji is a classic Japanese honkaku mystery that blends intricate puzzle-solving with an eerie, atmospheric setting. The novel centers on a group of characters drawn into a strange, maze-like house, where a series of shocking murders unfold. Ayatsuji skillfully constructs a locked-room style mystery filled with red herrings, logical clues, and a chilling sense of dread. While the story emphasizes clever plotting over deep character exploration, fans of traditional whodunits will appreciate the meticulous structure and fair-play clues. It’s an engaging read for those who enjoy cerebral mysteries with a gothic edge.

The Labyrinth House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji is the third installment in the exceptional Bizarre House Mysteries series. These relatively short (under 300 pages) murder mysteries are so unusual and so clever. I don’t see them talked about enough on bookstagram!

Reclusive author, Miyagaki Yotaro, lives a solitary life. When he invites four young writers to join him at The Labyrinth House, they are delighted to accept this great honour. And so begins a deadly contest, will anyone make it out alive?

Despite my amateur sleuthing, it’s safe to say that I was unable to solve this one. The ending is…well, let’s just say I didn’t see it coming. If you enjoy a Japenese locked room mystery, this is a must read.

This was so good!
I had a fun time reading it - I thought I knew what was happening but clearly I did not see it coming!

Unfortunately, I am not the audience for this type of mystery. I thought I would love the puzzle aspect of it, as I loved Tom Mead's first mystery novel, reading only this year, but the flat style, maybe it's the translation I cannot tell, made for a read that did not compel or pull you in.

A very interesting book. There were so many clues and twists I had a hard time keeping up with all the information. I wasn’t able to solve the mystery before it was revealed but the way that everything was revealed was a neat choice.

I've been a big fan of Yukito Ayatsuji's work for a while now, and safe to say that like his others works i've read this one has become an immediate favourite. Usually mystery books are a little disappointing because I see the twist coming a mile off but but Yukito catches me off guard with the twist every time and it always seems so obvious with hindsight! There's something comforting in the way that this book is written and I will definitely be picking up more!

The famed mystery writer Miyagaki Yotaro lives a life of seclusion in the remote Labyrinth House. When Yotaro invites four young crime authors to his home for a birthday party, they are honoured to accept. But no sooner have they arrived than they are confronted with a shocking death, then lured into a bizarre, deadly competition…

As the twisted contest gathers pace, murder follows murder. The ingenious sleuth Shimada Kiyoshi investigates, but can he solve the mystery of the house before all those trapped in its labyrinth are dead? And can you guess the solution before he does?

Dark, twisted, suspenseful. I loved it. Read it in one go. Cannot wait to read more from the author. Will recommend to others.

Okay, WOW! This one kept me guessing just as the rest of the series has and I’ve loved it, but I would have never expected the ending for this one! They are such simple but entertaining and intricate mysteries that just keep you guessing if you miss the smallest details, and I love Shimada more with every book.

I cannot wait for the next one!

I was really drawn in by the setup of this one - give me a locked-room mystery with a remote house, a group of crime authors, and a creepy host with a hidden agenda, and I’m in. And to be fair, The Labyrinth House Murders absolutely kept my attention. I was constantly guessing who would be next and trying to figure out the killer's game before the characters did.

There’s something very satisfying about watching fictional detectives (or in this case, authors) use pure logic to piece things together, and I did enjoy that part a lot. Shimada Kiyoshi was a fun addition too. Cool-headed, sharp, and exactly the kind of character you want to see walk into chaos and slowly untangle it.

But I have to say, some things just didn’t land for me. The female characters were especially disappointing. They felt flat and barely contributed to the story, which was frustrating in a cast that had potential to be a lot more engaging. And while the mystery itself was clever, the writing style didn’t quite work for me. I don’t know if it was a translation issue or just the tone, but something felt off, like it was too stiff or disconnected emotionally.

So, yeah, I liked it enough to finish and I enjoyed the mental puzzle of it all, but I wouldn’t say I loved it. It’s a good one if you're into classic, logic-driven mysteries, but it didn’t completely blow me away.

My copy of this book was provided by NetGalley and Pushkin Vertigo for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you Netgalley, Pushkin Press | Pushkin Vertigo and Yukito Ayastsuji for the eArc of The Labyrinth House Murders.

This is a clever quick read not far removed from the Queen of Murder Mysteries, Agatha Christie. We have characters that have secrets, morally grey or downright horrid. One or two that are alright. Or are they? Locked into a house that has halls, rooms, corridors in which they have to get to a central room to win. A lot of the clues and movements are based around Theseus /Minotaur mythology and the house acted like a Labyrinth.

Having reads a fair few Japanese books that have been translated, this has been done very well indeed.( Thank you Ho-Ling Wong ) The main plot line flowed and easy enough to flow but complex enough to keep your mind busy with theories. Coupled with a variety of well built characters makes this book very engaging. I loved the authors notes, which interestingly at the beginning book leaves another layer of mystery.

I also listened to the audio version while reading ( Its nice to swap between mediums ).Yukito Ayatsuji and Kaipo Schwab who narrated this book did an upstanding job with their well paced, storytelling voices .

4 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC for this book!

This story is about a wealthy writer, Miyagaki, who invites several people, including writers, an editor, a critic, and a priest’s son, to his strange home. After they arrive, they find themselves locked in the house and thrown into a competition to win Miyagaki’s fortune. Everything is going okay until they discover a body…

I absolutely loved this book and look forward to reading the others in this series (I didn’t realize this was the third one, but it still read fine as a standalone). The plot twists were done very well and weren’t predictable. I liked the cast of characters and the setting had an eerie feeling which I love. At first it was a bit hard to me to remember who was who since I’m not super familiar with Japanese names, but I got adjusted pretty quickly.

I have genuinely no idea what I thought of this book! . It was clever but also weird and kept me guessing but I don’t know whether the characters were well set out so all in all this was a bit meh

The Labyrinth House Murders is a smart, twisty mystery that pulls you in with its creepy atmosphere and clever plotting. Yukito Ayatsuji knows how to build tension, and the bizarre, maze-like house at the center of the story adds a haunting, almost surreal vibe that keeps you on edge. It’s got all the fun of a classic whodunit—locked rooms, red herrings, and a big reveal—but with a fresh, modern feel. If you like mysteries that make you think and keep you guessing, this one’s a total page-turner.

This latest instalment of the bizarre house mysteries is an absolute corker. Following on from the previous titles, this novel is a locked-room whodunit set in a Labyrinth House. When a famed murder mystery writer invites four of his proteges to a party, along with his editor, a critic, and a crime genre fan, no one expects tragedies to start befalling the guests. However, as the bodies start piling up, the remaining guests must quickly work out who is behind the killings and why.

This was one of those books where one sentence can spin everything you thought you knew on its head, and I loved it. The characters were fascinating, the plot was dastardly, and the conclusion was unexpected. While one small detail continues to throw me, it was so cleverly done overall that I can overlook it and give this one five stars for being so blooming entertaining. I look forward to the next!

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

Thank you NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, this book just didn’t work for me. The writing style felt dense and slow, and the pacing made it hard to stay engaged. The premise had potential, but the twist at the end felt more confusing than clever, and ultimately unnecessary. I wanted to enjoy the eerie setting and mystery, but I never felt fully invested in the characters or the outcome.

I'm sorry, but this didn't work for me. I am fond of Japanese literature, but this one was painfully slow, considering the genre, like nothing significant happening for a long time and I began to lose interest. But then I must admit that I am an impatient reader, especially if it's a thriller.

Not really a review as I couldn't finish. Not posting it anywhere else.

Thank you for the ARC.

Well, I definitely was entertained. And I was SO sure about the plot twist and hence was shocked when you author went, "You thought THAT was the plot twist hahahaha, here are two more." But that doesn't mean the twist was good, or necessary. Then again, a male author in the 80s wrote this so I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. (Those who have read the book, you KNOW what twist I am referring to.)

This book was extremely clever. The way that the story was crafted around previous incidents made this more compelling to read.

This one just ended up not working for me mostly for the narration/writing style. I like to feel connected to the story and characters and that's what tends to draw me into a story, but I always felt so far away from the characters in this one. I felt like an outside observer just trying to follow along as best as I could.

Also what was that ending? Period blood? I feel like this author doesn't understand basic biology at all and sets back women's rights decades. Take a basic anatomy class please.

An older, very successful and influential mystery writer invites four protegees and three critics to his house in order to celebrate his sixtieth birthday. But as the guests wait, it becomes apparent something is wrong - only to be informed their host committed suicide.

The old author has left an odd will: he will split his immense fortune between setting up a literary prize and the one writer who can come up with the best 50-page mystery story in the next few days, and the judges will be the three critics. But as the days go by, murders start happening in the labyrinthine underground home and none of the guests can get out.

"The Labyrinth House Murders" is quite enjoyable, despite being a bit too dry for my tastes. But while the characters and setting aren't all that fleshed out, the mystery itself is exciting. It has twists and turns (like a labyrinth, lol) and stories within stories leading to false turns. And while I was quite sure I had the murderer right early on, I was still surprised to see how everything panned out at the end. Fun!