I was so excited to receive an ARC of this after reading Strange Pictures, which blew my mind with it's ingenuity. I had really high hopes for this after the first book in the series, but unfortunately it really fell short for me. Whilst I did enjoy it, i think it was a bit of a drop after the first. I found this a bit draggy and also a bit farfetched with the theories from the characters so soon.

It’s ridiculous, It’s kooky… but it’s so perfec. Uketsu knows what they’re doing, and they do it oh so well. Apparently I’m a sucker for these types of books

this was my first book by uketsu and I loved it!! it was such a fun reading experience following the characters solving different mysteries and how it all connected at the end. the second I finished strange houses I went and got strange pictures as well. cant wait for the next book by uketsu

This was entertaining and very readable but completely implausible and so it was hard to believe in the story

Stange Houses- Uketsu
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Firstly the cover art for Strange Pictures and Strange Houses are absolutely stunning. I received an ARC for Stange Houses and I was so intrigued at the format and design that I ordered hard copies for both.

I read both books over 2 evenings. They were both engaging and had me intrigued right from the start. I absolutely loved the pictures and trying to mull over the mystery, trying to solve it myself and find the discrepancies. I love a book that makes you use your brain and where you have the chance to figure things out with the author. I’m not going to say too much because half the fun is figuring out where the story is going, the book follows a series of pictures and a murder mystery. There’s quite a brutal section too which feels like it comes from nowhere and adds a really dark twist.

Strange Houses follows the same kind of format, with floor plans to ponder. For me I needed more floor plans and more investigating as that’s what I really enjoyed about Strange Pictures. The second half of this book didn’t seem to have any of the intrigue of the first half and was no where near as satisfying as Strange Pictures. I still enjoyed it and will definitely read the next.
These two books are also standalones, you don’t need to read one before the other.

I found this novel to be so intriguing and a really quick read because I could not put it down! The way the author looked at an odd floorplan with his friend and concocted a strange theory about the dead space in the middle of a house, plus the bedroom with no windows had me consuming the words and illustrations, especially when the article was answered by the woman with her own crazy story that took it all the way out into the wild and creepy field of the map. It certainly left me with an unsettling feeling when the whole story comes out and yes, it is insane but I still enjoyed it enough that I believe I am going to go see what else this author has written. Plus it makes me want to go and see if I can find floorplans of buildings that may hold their own secrets, though hopefully none as murderous as these house turned out to be!

Strange Houses is a creepy and unsettling horror story set in the present day, centered around bizarre, eerie homes with disturbing secrets. The book’s unusual storytelling style, paired with architectural floor plans of the houses, adds a chilling layer of realism that makes the horror hit even harder. The tale involves children as killers, making it especially haunting. It’s a unique and memorable read — I really liked it.

Beforehand let me mention that before I've read this book I already had started reading the manga adaptation in Japanese up to Volume 4.

In this way the first 75% percent felt relatively repetitive for me but that's not a bad thing since the story is very good. Starting from that line onward though it suddenly differs a lot from the point where we are in the manga and I'm still missing the last volume and I have no idea what will happen in the manga, as we're at a point in the manga that soes not exist in the book.

Therefore a reveal at the end makes me overthink the whole structure of the manga and its characters in a whole different way and it makes both the book and the manga adaptation even more enjoyable.

I think this book is similar to Yukito Ayatsuji's 'Another' a work that has the potential to grow more interesting with every new form of adaptation and now I kind of hope for an anime adaptation.

Needless to say I'm very excited for the upcoming translation of his most current book.

Final: 4.25/5

Translated by Jim Rion — In January, we reviewed Strange Pictures by surrealist Japanese YouTuber and dapper mask-wearer Uketsu. That was the author’s second novel, and now his debut, Strange Houses, has also been translated into English. Focusing on the disturbing hidden meanings that can lie behind innocuous-seeming floorplans, it provides architectural insight into the darkest crevasses of the human mind.

A freelance writer specialising in the macabre – a fictionalised Uketsu taking on a starring role – is contacted by Yanaoka, a friend interested in buying a certain house on a quiet residential street in Saitama, suburban Tokyo. It’s the perfect property save for one thing: there’s an inexplicable dead space on the floorplan. Unsettled by this architectural oddity, Yanaoka seeks the advice of the writer, an aficionado of all things weird.

In turn, the writer contacts another friend, Kurihara, who happens to be both an architect and a horror and mystery buff. Kurihara agrees that there is something distinctly odd about the floorplan. After a bit of back and forth on the matter, the pair hit upon a frankly diabolical explanation for the internal layout of the house.

However, before the writer can investigate things further, news breaks that a dismembered body has been found near the house and Yanaoka decides that it’s not the property for him, whatever the reason behind the dead space. Despite his advice no longer being required, Uketsu cannot forget about the odd house and so writes an article describing the strange floorplan, omitting the address of the house.

The article draws a great deal of interest, most notably from a woman named Yuzuki Miyae, who claims to know the house in question. As the writer establishes a rapport with Miyae, he learns that he and Kurihara are not the only ones with suspicions about the house and what might have gone on there. As he investigates further, the true horror of what might have occurred slowly emerges.

Strange Houses is another masterclass in the macabre from Uketsu. While Strange Pictures used a set of perturbing illustrations to tell a series of interlocking stories, Strange Houses relies of some peculiar floorplans as the entry point for a subversive story of what goes on behind closed doors in suburbia. Once again, the mundane becomes disquieting and regular folks seem to be harbouring sinister secrets.

The use of floorplans as a storytelling device is inspired, bringing the key settings to life in vivid and disturbing detail and fostering an immersive atmosphere of unease as each new deviation from a normal house – however small and seemingly benign – is noticed. As Uketsu and Kurihara study the plans with increasing focus, teasing out the details and every potential explanation for them, they build a picture of the former residents.

While the floorplan was a staple of Golden Age crime fiction, particularly in cases of country house and locked-room mysteries, it has rather fallen out of favour as a tool for unravelling a literary puzzle in recent years. Uketsu does a great service to the genre in bringing it back and pushing it to the extreme of its storytelling potential, elucidating how the visual aspects of a crime scene can be subtly but powerfully evoked to enhance the narrative dimensions.

Still, despite the clear homage to the golden age of murder, Strange Houses doesn’t exactly play fair when it comes to the puzzle mystery. While the writer and Kurihara build their case logically for the most part, their initial suspicion as to the purpose of the house is based on a quite outrageous – if not totally bonkers – leap of logic that captures their interest and points them in the necessary direction.

As such, a considerable suspension of disbelief is required at the outset, but the subsequent investigation is so intriguing – and the steady reveal of potential suspects, motivations and clues so compelling – that it is easy to look beyond this issue and go with the flow of the story. This is helped by Strange Houses being a short novel that is heavy on dialogue and graphics and light on exposition, which lends it a rapid pace.

The sense of dread that permeates the story is equally as engaging as the details of the plot, with Uketsu simultaneously building a horrifying premise and establishing a prosaic setting. Against this unsettling backdrop, the clues and the actions of the characters both inform and wrongfoot the would-be detective, rendering Strange Houses a creepy and complex puzzle mystery that almost defies explanation.

Another great mystery from Uketsu! The plot is definitely far-fetched, but I didn’t mind - it doesn’t take itself too seriously, even with the darker elements, and Uketsu has a way of pulling you into the story and making the surreal feel completely believable.

Unlike Strange Pictures, which follows different characters’ stories, Strange Houses focuses on a single narrative but still weaves in intergenerational layers. It took me a bit longer to get into, but once I did, I was invested in finding out how it all came together. The ending is quite ambiguous, and I’m not entirely sure what to make of it, but I like that it kept me thinking after I finished reading.

Overall, an entertaining read, and I’m excited to see what Uketsu does next!

Side note: The Kindle ARC formatting is pretty bad and did take away from the experience a bit as it has affected the translation on the images as well as the script-style dialogue. Not the author’s fault at all, so I won’t dock points, but hopefully it will be tidied up for the final release.

3 1/2⭐️

This novel was absolutely fascinating, the way the author uses floor plans to seamlessly tell a story is a work of art in itself. I adored that in this novel you could play detective, all the hints and clues were provided for you to work out, even with the clues being left out for you to work out, I still didn’t see some of the plot twists coming; this book combines crime fiction with horror, with a healthy amount of Japanese culture, I won’t say more as I do feel that everyone should read this novel for themselves without knowing too much about it!

Overall this was a very different kind of read for me, after reading this ARC I have instantly bought the authors other novel ‘strange pictures’ as despite some of the characters having some far fetched explanations for things, this book had a charm that had me hooked from the moment I started, so much that I read this book in one sitting, which is unheard of for me.

#StrangeHouses #NetGalley

Strange House by Uketsu opens with a compelling setup: a writer interested in the occult is invited by a friend—an architect named Kurihara—to investigate a strangely constructed home in Tokyo. The house is full of oddities: dead space, unnerving layouts, and a past that refuses to stay buried. As they explore its design and history, they encounter unsettling documents, cryptic floorplans, and a widow whose story deepens the mystery.

The novel’s strength lies in its atmosphere. The writing is eerie and disorienting by design, and the shifting timelines and layered perspectives create a sense of constant unease. It kept my interest throughout, especially during my long commutes—there’s something deeply engaging about the way the story slowly reveals itself, piece by piece.

Where it fell short for me was in the resolution. While the buildup is intriguing and the premise original, some of the final turns didn’t deliver the impact I was hoping for. The novel leans heavily into ambiguity, and though that will appeal to some readers, I found certain plot threads less satisfying than expected.

Still, Strange House is a distinctive and original work of psychological horror. Readers who appreciate open-ended narratives, experimental structure, and stories that blur the line between memory and reality will likely find it rewarding.

Many thanks to Pushkin Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Can you uncover the dark secret of these strange houses? When you do, an unforgettable truth will be revealed."

This is one of the strangest books I've ever read. It's fairly short, I read it in a couple of hours, & it's based around the floorplans of three houses. It's difficult to give a synopsis without giving anything away - I will say that it is dark in tone. It also read very much like true crime rather than a fictional mystery, in fact, I had to doublecheck the genre.

I did think it was farfetched though to have the characters of the author & the architect immediately jump to what seemed an outlandish explanation for the floorplans, only for them to turn out to be right. It was all rather convenient but I suppose it kept things brief. Overall, it wasn't quite what I was expecting but I have another book from the same author in my TBR pile & this has piqued my interest enough that I will be reading it sooner rather than later. 3.25 stars (rounded down)

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Pushkin Press/Pushkin Vertigo, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Strange Houses by Uketsu
It's about a writer and his friend look into weird houses with strange floor plans. As they explore, they uncover dark family secrets and creepy things hidden inside the houses.

What I liked about the book is that I get to look at floor plans and solve the mystery. I liked that it's spooky, with hidden rooms and creepy houses.
It also has a deep story about family and the past, and a fun mix of pictures and story.

A fun, creepy book with cool puzzles and a sad, interesting story.

A fun and exciting murder mystery that once you start you just get addicted to solving and can’t stop reading

As someone who happily spends hours scrolling through real estate listings and browsing floor plans like puzzles, Strange Houses felt like a personal entrapment for my imagination. Uketsu's new novel scratches my brain in ways I didn't know it needed it.
I really enjoyed the straight forward prose, it was easy to follow and kept the story moving without getting caught up in anything and lagging.
I look forward to picking it up in a physical edition to make flipping between the story and the floorplans a little easier and really taking the time to appreciate it all over again.

For fans of haunted but not quite haunted houses, clever architectural puzzles, or people like me who have ever just looked at a floor plan and thought "what is wrong with this, and why??" - an absolute must read.

Thank you Pushkin Press and Uketsu for this enthralling ARC read <3

In Strange Houses, Uketsu builds on the eerie, atmospheric world introduced in Strange Pictures, crafting a novel that is as intellectually stimulating as it is unsettling. This isn’t a typical haunted house story—it’s a meticulous architectural mystery wrapped in psychological horror and familial legacy.

The novel follows a writer who becomes fixated on the oddly designed house of a friend in Tokyo. At first glance, the building seems charming, but closer inspection of its blueprints reveals anomalies—dead-end corridors, inexplicable empty spaces, and concealed rooms. Intrigued, the narrator partners with an architect named Kurihara, and together they attempt to unravel the purpose behind the strange design. What they uncover is a multi-generational mystery involving disappearances, inheritance, and a chilling tradition that’s been hidden behind plaster and floorboards.

One of the novel’s most unique features is how it uses actual floorplans as a central part of the narrative. These aren’t just set dressing—they’re puzzles the reader is invited to solve alongside the protagonist. Every room, hallway, and unused corner carries meaning. As the story deepens, the architecture itself becomes a character—silent, oppressive, and full of secrets. The way Uketsu turns blueprints into instruments of suspense is deeply effective, and the tension simmers until it boils over in the final chapters.

The emotional core of the novel is rooted in family history and trauma. As the story shifts between present-day investigation and historical revelations, we learn about the Katabuchi family, their twisted legacy, and how physical space was weaponized to hide, control, and eventually erase. These themes of generational obligation, secrecy, and psychological confinement give the book a weight that lingers long after it ends.

That said, some readers may find the pacing uneven. The slow buildup—heavy on exposition and historical flashbacks—requires patience. Conversations can feel slightly formal or stiff at times, perhaps due to the translation or the inherently introspective nature of the protagonist. There’s also an ambiguity to the ending that some may find unsatisfying, especially if they prefer mysteries to be fully solved.

Still, Strange Houses is a compelling and original entry into contemporary horror fiction. It asks its readers to engage not just emotionally, but intellectually—to trace, decode, and question every space and silence on the page. Fans of House of Leaves, Shirley Jackson, or layered, literary horror will find much to appreciate here.

Uketsu has proven once again that horror doesn't need jump scares or gore to be profoundly disturbing. Sometimes, all it takes is a house with one too many doors that don’t lead anywhere—and a past that refuses to stay hidden.

Uketsu - Strange Houses // thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

Strange Houses is Uketsu’s sophomore novel and I liked it just as much as his debut. Admittedly this format didn’t go well on kindle, but worked much better in the NetGalley reader.

I’m very fond of mixed media in books and here the entire novel was based on house and floor prints as well as architectural secrets.

The story is written in interview format with some letters interspersed. We explore the mystery of a weird house with a secret room without windows and doors which according to one of the characters is used to kill and dispose of bodies. From there is gets wilder and wilder.

The book is a fairly quick and easy read. It’s only 208 pages and you can’t put it down because the mystery is so compelling. The story was unhinged and you have to suspend your beliefs but I found it interesting and fun! The mystery is a bit convoluted and confusing, but enjoyable.

While it’s marketed as horror I didn’t find it particularly scary or creepy. I’d rather call it a good murder mystery. The ending was my favorite because it gets really meta!

I devoured Strange Pictures, jumped straight into Strange Houses and now I’m just wondering how long I have to wait for Strange Buildings?

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Brilliant! I loved the Strange Pictures novel and this really has lived up to my expectations! A whirlwind ride which had me hooked from start to finish! Just love this authors work! Can’t wait for more!

This book is part mystery, part psychological horror, and all atmosphere. I found myself feeling a sense of dread as the weird floor plan spirals into a chilling investigation of architectural anomalies.