The Noh Mask Murder

A gruesome Japanese murder mystery from the author of The Tattoo Murder __________ *** Praise for The Tattoo Murder *** 'Like voyeurs, we follow Takagi down the charred streets of bombed-out Tokyo to scenes of fastidiously executed decadence' New York Times 'This lurid mystery provides a fascinating portrait of wartorn Tokyo' The Times Crime Club, Pick of the Week 'An engaging journey into a Tokyo ravaged by war and its criminal underworld... Crackles with the energy that made Takagi one of Japan's most popular crime authors' Financial Times __________ Strange things are happening in the Chizurui mansion... At night, a figure clad in a Hannya mask is spotted wandering around the house. The amateur crime fiction writer, Akimitsu Takagi, is sent to investigate, but then tragedy strikes. The head of the Chizurui family is found dead inside his study, locked from the inside, with only a Hannya mask and the scent of jasmine as clues to his mysterious death. As Takagi delves deeper into the case, can he discover the link between the family and the curse of the Hannya mask? Who was the person who called the undertaker and asked for three coffins? And how many buried secrets lie behind the inexplicable murder? The Noh Mask Murder is a gripping masterpiece of a locked-room mystery written by one of Japan's most celebrated crime writers.

AKIMITSU TAKAGI was born in Japan in 1920 and went on to work as an aeronautical engineer until the end of the Second World War. He later decided to become a mystery writer on the recommendation of a fortune teller. He went on to become one of the country's most popular crime authors. The Noh Mask Murder won the prestigious Mystery Writers Club Award and is considered one of the great classic Japanese whodunits. Takagi's debut, The Tattoo Murder, is also available from Pushkin Vertigo.