this book was entertaining, i liked the twists that i wasnt expecting, but it wasn’t my favourite that i’ve ever read. i think the misogyny was a little too much as it kind of overshadowed the girl boss subversive feminism that i think the author was aiming for.

I found this book by turns horrifying, with the violence & brutality, and really quite tender as the relationship between the two women develops. It wasn't a comfortable read for me, I was extremely anxious during the scene with the dog near the start, and it elicited pretty strong emotional responses. Powerful if not completely enjoyable!

Akira Otani is a Japanese author who has written for video games and manga. Her first novel translated into English is The Night of Baba Yaga (translated by Sam Bett). This is essentially manga on the page, and it is easy to imagine the line drawings or potentially anime version of this hyperviolent but heartfelt novel set in a heightened version of the world of the yakuza.
When The Night of Baba Yaga opens, Yoriko Shindo has essentially been kidnapped by a yakuza clan. She shows her mettle by beating down a number of the footsoldiers but is eventually out matched. She is then given a choice – become the bodyguard to the headman’s teenage daughter Shoko or be killed. At the same time she learns that Shoko’s father is searching for her mother who ran away with one of his lieutenants. In another thread of this story a woman and her husband in hiding help out at an accident and are outed to the world.
The Night of Baba Yaga is ultra-violent and should come with a bunch of trigger warnings for the squeamish. But it is, also, strangely heartfelt. The relationship that grows between the unwilling Shindo and the stand-offish teen Shoko is well developed. This is particularly necessary to underpin the build up to a number of reveals including who Shoko is betrothed to and a couple of other major wholly unexpected but well set up twists and turns. So that the whole endeavour resolves in something completely unexpected and weirdly compassionate.

A very fast paced crime thriller. While the story was interesting i found the characters a bit flat and the pacing to be too fast. It reads very quickly and is perfect for people who have little knowedge of Japanese culture/language. So very accessible.
If your after something complicated and immersive this is not it.
It was fun and enjoyable and had a good twist that i didn't see coming.

Loved this! What a ride... perfect read for a lazy Sunday arvo. I wasn't expecting it to be quite so brutal, but the story builds and shapes itself around the violence so that while shocking, still feels entirely right. I was drawn to Shindo's story from the opening page, and I loved witnessing her relationship to Shoko grow and develop. The little twist towards the end came together beautifully, and I finished this book with my heart in my throat, so hopefully for these characters. The writing is raw, confident and compelling.

Thank you to Faber & Faber, the author, and NetGalley for the DRC in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ Content Warnings: #ExtremeViolence #SexualViolence #Misogyny #MaleOnFemaleViolence ⚠️

If you're unfamiliar with the Yakuza or Japanese organised crime, I strongly recommend doing a bit of research beforehand. This novel does not shy away from brutal, graphic scenes - many involving violence against women and the imagery is intense.

The Night of Baba Yaga is a brutal, stylised crime novel drenched in blood and pain. It’s not a story for the faint-hearted - this is Yakuza fiction at its most visceral but it has soul beneath the savagery. Stylistically, it feels like a literary remix of Kill Bill or John Wick. The pacing is generally tight and propulsive and at just 224 pages, it's a compact yet impactful read.

I’ve seen some readers classify this as an LGBTQ+ novel, but I don't agree. While there is a palpable sapphic energy between the two female leads — Shindo and Shoko — their connection is more spiritual than romantic. It’s a kindred spirit bond: both women are survivors of a patriarchal system that’s determined to control them. Shoko navigates within the system; Shindo fights from outside it.

The moment outside the bank — where Shindo breaks Utagawa's nose to free her — is a turning point. It’s not romantic, but it’s deeply symbolic: someone finally stands up for Shoko’s autonomy, not to claim her, but to protect her right to choose.

I found Shindo particularly compelling: strong in both body and mind, fiercely self-sufficient. But the origins of her strength are disturbing—“trained” by her father not in disciplined martial arts, but in raw, weaponised violence.

As much as I liked this novella, there were afew things that didn’t quite work for me:

The final quarter of the novel (starting around the point when Shoko and Shindo flee together) undergoes a stark tonal shift. Time begins to leap forward in disorienting ways, with crucial moments occurring “off-screen” or being only vaguely alluded to. Chapters are unnumbered, timelines blur, and I often lost track of who was who, especially as multiple names and minor characters resurface unpredictably.

The emotional arc that was carefully constructed in the earlier chapters starts to unravel. We’re told that Shoko and Shindo spend decades together on the run, but very little is shown of their evolving dynamic. After such an intimate portrayal of their bond earlier in the novel, the sudden narrative distance in the final section felt abrupt (blink and you miss it) and while the conceptual ending is powerful, the execution felt rushed and underdeveloped. I actually turned back a few pages at certain points, thinking I’d accidentally skipped a chapter. The ending almost feels like it belongs to a different book — more epilogue than finale — and left me with more questions than resolution.

Did anyone else feel like Yoshiko and Masa's fates were left completely unclear after they were located after being featured on the TV news?

This is an ultraviolent, brutal thriller that leaves a deep bruise. It’s about women fighting for the right to exist on their own terms in a world designed to crush them. It's stylish, grim and unapologetically bleak, but also rich with subtext.

Sam Bett’s translation is excellent, as expected. He has earned major recognition in the field of Japanese-to-English literary translation. If the rushed final act is a flaw, I doubt it lies in the translation — it feels more like an editorial decision or simply the author’s chosen structure.

It’s worth noting that this novel won the CWA Crime Fiction in Translation 🗡 Dagger, making Akira Otani the first Japanese author to do so. Personally, I would’ve preferred Asako Yuzuki’s Butter to have taken the prize. Butter offers a slower, more psychologically layered exploration of gender, agency, and Japanese society — whereas Baba Yaga leans into visceral impact and genre tropes. It really came down to what the judges were valuing: intellectual complexity vs. emotional shock. The Dagger often favours books that shake rather than soothe and Baba Yaga does exactly that.

#TheNightofBabaYaga #NetGalley

This is not my usual genre but I gave it a go. It was interesting and different. I did enjoy it overall. Thank you for an arc of this

A short novella containing violence, maiming, sexual assault, swearing and animal cruelty. The story was too brutal to draw me in and I ended up skimming the last part. Not one that I can recommend.I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

An interesting premise and a glut of compelling, blood-soaked fight scenes are not enough to cover up a barebones plot and multiple disturbing scenes of sexual assault and threat.

It get ultimately like the author was betraying their characters for the sake of shock value. I’m sure that there will be many people who vibe with this novel, but it’s not for me at all.

It’s more of a 4.25 rating. Or even a 4.5 on a more generous day. This is a quick and very fun read. But it’s got a lot of substance too.

I’ve been looking forward to reading more translated books. I’m lucky to speak two languages that are two of the biggest in the world, so there are many books I can read without needing to find a translation. But there are also so many other cultures I would love to explore through reading books written by the authors of those countries. Japanese books are pretty popular, I would say. But very often, the ones that are translated into other languages are written by men. Now, there is nothing wrong with books written by men but when I saw that the author of this particular book is looking to add a different flavour to the literature of her country, I was intrigued. Seeing that she wants to write adding a female perspective to her stories, and getting rid of certain more sexist aspects, definitely caught my attention because many of the big Japanese authors are known to add storylines or comments that I just don’t want to read about. It might be a cultural thing and some books are older but I don’t have to enjoy it. So that bit of information about this author was the main reason why I wanted to read this book. I would love it if her short story collection “Nobody said we’re perfect” was translated into English as well because it sounds like my kind of book.

The premise says it’s like a mix of “Kill Bill” and “Thelma and Louise”. Those are strong references and it really is a good way to make an elevator pitch for people. There is that element of rebellion, of wanting to run away from oppression. And there is plenty of action with some gory details added to make the action more realistic, which is very Kill Bill.
I appreciated that apart from the translation, there were footnotes explaining the meaning of some words. It’s not many and we can always use the dictionary tool when reading on an e-reader. But since this is a language that comes from a different alphabet for many of us, just making sure people understand what everything means is super important.

In the story, we get the points of view of two female characters. There are other characters that are very important to the story but it’s mostly these two female characters we follow. How different they seem to be but maybe they’re more similar than anyone would expect. Even themselves. There we get that character study that I love so much and it made the characters so intriguing from the very beginning. I wanted to know more about them, I wanted them to become friends, …very strong leads for the story. And their arcs were so well written.
This little world that’s been created is portraying what would be the Japanese mafia so it’s ruthless. The author isn’t sugarcoating this at all but it’s a book for adults so…why should she? I feel the way we were told this story could be very crude at points and the language was very strong. Not just due to a few bad words but the tone was just relentless sometimes. It’s covering heavy topics so I do enjoy the straightforward nature of the storytelling. I feel with the kind of books I read more (European, North and South American), authors sometimes tend to overexplain. At points, I feel they believe the readers are idiots. We don’t need our hands to be held the whole time. This book does the complete opposite and that’s probably why it’s shorter. It just tells you the story as it is. It’s pretty simple to understand so why bother with overexplaining? Some people won’t like how this story is told. The structure can get a bit confusing at one point but then it’s easy to understand what was going on. And I liked how the author tricked us a little. But maybe this could also be seen as “dry” writing. I enjoyed the change, personally. There’s no filler in this story and that’s amazing.
The ending was also really beautiful.

That female, maybe some would call it feminist, touch is also seen in the way some more delicate topics are treated. There’s a part of the story that scared me for a second and then what ended up happening made me laugh so hard. And I was reading in public so…but I loved how the author approached that. She didn’t pretend that those horrible things don’t happen. She showed the kind of people who do those things and how awful they are. But did it in a way that I crave when it comes to this type of content being included in the media I consume.

It’s hard to make these reviews sometimes without people telling me I used the wrong kind of language to describe how I felt. Or some could be mad because I see flaws in other cultures. But I know there’s plenty of misogyny in my home country and the continent I live on. I acknowledge my own flaws on a daily basis. Hence why I also appreciate authors who, like the author of this book I review today, try to add a different perspective to literature that only women can add. Instead of just complaining about the issues with their country’s literature, they try to change it for the better.

Two women affected by Yakuza unite their forces.
Some triggering moments and some fight scenes.
I have mixed feelings about this book.
I liked the setting and some of the themes.
However, did not feel fully comfortable and engaged all the time.

Many thanks to netgalley, the author and the publisher for approving my request to read this book.

I enjoyed this novella which is action packed but I would definitely recommend that trigger warnings are checked before reading as it does contain a lot of violence and other uncomfortable scenes, think Kill Bill but in book form.

I liked the punchy, fast paced plot which didn't let up throughout and I enjoyed how it ended.

If you like revenge thrillers with strong female characters then this ones for you.

When Shindo is attacked by Yakuza and overcomes them, she is kidnapped and forced into working as a bodyguard for Shoko, the sheltered and spoiled daughter of the head of the gang. At first, the two women clash, but slowly they come to realise that both of them are being manipulated by violent, psychotic men who aim to control every aspect of their lives... Shindo may be a reluctant bodyguard, but she soon realises she has to protect her charge from her employers as much as outside influences, and the bloodbath that erupts threatens to leave no one standing...

A pulpy, propulsive thriller with the visceral impact of a John Wick movie and the subversively violent feminism of Foxy Brown or Thelma and Louise, THE NIGHT OF BABA YAGA pulls you into its world from the opening pages and drags you through to an unexpected and welcome twist in the tale that makes you rethink some of what has come before. Sam Bett's crunchy translation has you wincing with pain while also empathising with its two female leads who may come from different worlds, but face a common enemy.

An absolute blast of a novel that uses it's pulpy atmosphere to explore dark themes, and keeps those pages turning at a rollicking pace. Great fun and definitely a hearty recommendation.

A loud, abrasive, visceral read that though quite short took some time to get into.

It’s non stop full throttle stuff. I’m not completely sure what story the author is trying to tell.

A story of an unlikely friendship and of 2 women being victims of pantomime villain bad guys.

Over the top and brash and violent.

It’s kill bill for the Gen Z. And it’s all a bit disappointing. Maybe it’s just lot in translation.

A story about two young women in 1980s Japan, who find companionship and understanding in each other, as they fight against gender stereotypes that try to force them into a box. The story follows the friendship from its beginning to its conclusion, and is full of violence and gore, which seem to haunt the women's struggle for self-determination.

I liked the energy and the hyper-action that permeated nearly every scene. I also liked the two protagonists, who are personable and relatable. The depiction of the misogynistic society in Japan, and especially as it presents itself in the Yakuza world, are powerful and emotive.

That being said, I found the book to be a bit jarring in terms of its pacing and events - it was perhaps too brief to portray all the complexity the author was going for. This erratic nature makes it look almost like a sketch for an anime series, where violence takes the front stage, and character development, albeit present, is delegated to a secondary role.

One additional comment on the reviews that somehow portray this book as an LBTQ+ novel. I found nothing to suggest any sexual relationship between the protagonists. I thought the book was much more about two women becoming unlikely friends in the face of societal pressures, applied strongly but differently to each. It might be that the women are queer, but literally nothing in the book suggests this.

I liked the book a lot, and recommend it to anyone looking for something that packs a punch, and feels like binge-watching an energy fuelled anime OVA. It's not overly deep, but it doesn't feel like that's the purpose here.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

‘Suddenly, she realized she was taking deep, heavy breaths. Unable to hide her excitement. This was fun. Preparing for a journey that could end with everybody dead.’

The Night of Baba Yaga is a visceral look into the Yakuza underbelly of Japan.

We follow Yoriko Shindo as she is thrust into a Yakuza family following a fight with some of their members.

Unsure of what to use her for, she is put as a bodyguard for the daughter of the leader of the family, Shoko, who starts their connection as cold as can be.

After warming to each other, we find that the main thing that Shoko needs protecting from is closer to home.

I enjoyed this more than I thought, sadly as most revenge type stories tend to go, the ending was a little deflating, but I enjoyed the journey to it!

exciting and engaging and well worth the praise its been given.
we have a powerhouse of a fight Yoriko who is kidnapped and then after seeing what shes made of is allowed to live if she takes on the roll of the boss's daughters bodyguard. now she has something new, something to really care about. its not just her life at risk now but that makes it more dangerous and with way more at stake she quietly simmers until she can loudly make her stand.
i loved the power and strength i could feel our heroine had. she was everything i wanted in this character. so much more real to me to.
but the dangers sadly never slows. not for woman, and not by men. and we truly SEE this in this book and its not always easy. but its also not easy because of how grossly real the aspects and behaviours are. and it really dives into that as you'd aspect so a few readers might want to be aware of that and just no go here. it doesn't hold back and show you those men and what they do and say in all there horrificness. you do get the fight back ut for some who struggles with this that might not feel enough simply by the content you do have to read.
this book was an experience. it was left field to my usual and im glad i saw the title and was intrigued. that intrigue paid off.