3 stars.

Translated from the Japanese by Jim Rion.

This is billed as mystery/horror; each of the three stories revolves around drawings, the first is about the pregnant partner of a blogger, the second a primary school child and the last a murder victim. There is a mystery within each and an overarching backstory that ties the three together.

This sounds way more interesting than it turns out to be, unfortunately. It’s also not mystery/horror, it’s just mystery. It is, however, a wonderful concept and the book definitely has the tenor of Japanese mysteries….if you’ve ever read any, you’ll know what I mean. It’s just a better idea than it is when executed here. According to the copy on the book the author, “Uketsu” is an enigma in Japan and the book is very popular there. Cannot confirm. But I’m huge in Belgium.

Thank you to Harpervia Publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of Strange Pictures by Uketsu. Artists, visual artists in particular, require not only vision and skill, also a kind of compositional and stylistic know-how—the ability to not just represent what they see, but also to tie the lines, colors, and shapes together into some kind of meaningful whole—to build on parts for a synthesis, often creating something new or unique. Uketsu, the pseudonym of a writer and visual artist in Japan, has uniquely done this through both images and stories based on the images. Strange Pictures is Uketsu’s first published work translated into English. According to the author bio at the end of this book, Uketsu only appears online and masked, where he has published other sketch mysteries. I haven’t checked these out, but after reading Strange Pictures I am more intrigued about what these sketch mysteries might be like and whether they are other stories that are different narratives, but stylistically related to the four stories in this book.

I definitely enjoyed this book. There are four stories that all feature drawings. The story is framed by a child psychologist sharing an picture created by a client. Dr. Hagio walks us (and the class) through an analysis of the image, examining finer details of the drawing and suggesting aspects of the artists/client’s character and psychology. In many ways, readers (and characters) will also apply these analytical skills to the other stories and the drawings they feature. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but the stories are all somewhat different. We do learn about the common underlying thread that links them all by the end of the story—and I think this is mentioned in other reviews. I won’t give it away, but from my reading, I enjoyed knowing this and trying to figure out how the stories were connected.

I liked the first two stories the most. Both had some kind of supernatural and ghostly quality to them. I especially liked how strange and mysterious the first story was. Yet it was also somewhat relatable and kind of like a creepy pasta story. Two college students, members of their paranormal club, gather together to discuss a mysterious blog that starts of seemingly normal, but eventually devolves into a sad story of the death of a wife in childbirth. The posts between the beginning and the end document the couple’s pregnancy and feature “Strange Pictures” that are somehow linked. The final post also presents another twist to the mystery, and sets the two members off on a quest to see how the images are related. I’m not quite sure how they figured it out, but it is a really inventive story and use of images to further the plot. Plus, I found the whole aspect of examining an older blog and speculating about the author’s life to be fascinating (and something I’ve done as well). It was cool to see how the author used this medium and some of the personal clues to kind of create and try to solve a mystery of this person’s life. The other stories don’t use drawings in the same way, although the third story “The Art Teacher’s Final Drawing”, does make more use of the image than stories from Chapter 2 or 4. Chapter 3’s story about an art teacher’s murder is the longest, and is more like a mystery. There were definitely parts that were compelling, but also some parts that were somewhat unbelievable. The mystery really centers on some highly technical information that isn’t probably common knowledge, and I’m not sure how someone would find out. However, I kind of found the murdered art teacher, Miura, a little humorous. He was described as not a very likeable person, someone who was quick to anger, and people close to him didn’t seem that upset by his death. This was mentioned repeatedly and seemed much different from other characters who are murdered in mysteries. Regardless, it is a compelling mystery and kept me guessing and reading. Similarly, Chapter 2’s story “The Smudged Room” relies on knowledge of kanji to interpret what happens in the drawing. It is an interesting story, and there are some kind of mysterious and creepy elements to it as well. The final chapter also ties things together, and it was a quick read.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I loved the use of images and pictures to further the stories. I can’t wait to check out Uketsu’s other online work to read more of these kinds of sketch mysteries. This book was a quick and enjoyable read. Very unique and interesting, and I hope that there are more Uketsu books to come.

I wasn't familiar with author/Youtuber Uketsu prior to reading this short novel, but the cover had me intrigued and the blurb from Janice Hallett convinced me to give the book a try.

The book opens with a college student stumbling across a defunct blog that contains a series of drawings which conceal a much darker truth. The following chapters seem to veer off onto different stories centered around separate drawings of completely different origins and styles, but the reader soon realizes that these stories are intertwined into a larger whole.

The content of the mysteries reminded me of the tone I would expect from anime, and the level of complexity of the mysteries and the amount to which they were "talked through" reminded me very much of the Ace Attorney series of video games. Neither of these comparisons are meant as a slight to the book as I am a fan of many anime series and adore the Ace Attorney games. However, they are not to everyone's taste. and I think that this book will have limited appeal as well. The reading level feel a bit juvenile, but that may be due in part to the translation. It is difficult to know.

For mystery readers looking for an interesting, international twist on the genre, this book is worth checking out. It might also be an appealing choice for high school readers who are getting introduced to the genre.

Special thanks to Harper via and NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

While I love pictures, reading and mystery, clashing pictures and these stories did not work for me, at all. The pictures were very, how do I put this, childlike maybe, and juvenile and I felt any drawing Uneasy used to the solving of the mysteries, could have been any picture worked into the story, because I can draw a picture right and glean any clue from it I want to.

I really was excited to get this book. What a real letdown for me. Good concept but not executed.

I believe the biggest issue I encountered with the book was the translation. Unfortunately, it did not do the story justice. Much of the dialogue felt unnatural, almost reminiscent of AI-generated text. There was a lot of telling instead of showing; for example, phrases like "[character] was happy" were common.

On a positive note, I enjoyed the puzzle aspect of the story. The intricacies of the plot and how everything unfolded kept me hooked. The mystery aspect made me eager to continue reading. From what I’ve learned about the author, I am intrigued by their anonymity and am excited to explore their other works online.

I truly believe that a better translation of this book could resolve my issues with the reading experience and elevate it to a 4 or 5-star read. I honestly wish I could read it in the original language.

The concept of this book sounded very interesting. Sadly the writing style was just not for me and the stories fell flat.

This book promises an eerie, gripping tale full of mystery and horror, and while it has its moments, I found it just wasn’t for me. The concept of creepy childlike drawings hiding dark secrets is undoubtedly unique and intriguing, and I can see how it might captivate readers looking for a fresh take on the genre. However, the execution felt a bit juvenile, especially with the writing style that leaned more toward young adult, which at times felt a little too simplistic for my taste.

I really appreciated the creativity behind the structure, with each drawing leading to a new mystery and adding layers to the overall story, but ultimately I found myself not fully connecting with the characters or the eerie atmosphere the book was aiming for. It’s definitely a book that will resonate more with younger audiences, or readers new to horror-mystery, as the tone felt more suited to that demographic.

There’s a lot of potential here, and I can understand why it’s taken Japan by storm, but for me, it didn’t quite hit the mark. Still, if you’re in the mood for a light, offbeat horror mystery, this could be a fun read.

My thanks to NetGalley and HarperVia for an advance copy of this new novel that combines words and illustrations to tell a story about love, children, caring too much, and the horrors that can ensue.

I have always enjoyed stories that have found a way to combine words and pictures to tell a complete story. Not like in sequential art like comic strips, comic books or graphic novels, and not in books that illustrate a scene. I talk more about images that share the story, where a clue can be hidden, or where a character's motivations and beliefs can truly appear. There have been a lot of books that have done this, some of them quite well. However some of these books either offer great art, and not great writing, or vice versa. Also, few have been as unsettling, nor as a book of mystery played so far with readers, offering clues right out in the open, if only the reader could see them. One can see why this book and others by the author, who hides their real name has become a sensation. Strange Pictures by Uketsu, translated from the Japanese by Jim Rion is a book that seems simple to begin with but folds the reader into a work as beautiful as a work of origami, and makes one question everything one reads or sees.

Strange Pictures seems like a collection of short stories, all united by the art the stories contain. Starting with the first one, which features a young high school student who is a member of a paranormal interest club in his school. The student is told of a blog, that seems unusual and odd. The blog contains pictures of a woman praying, a child, and a baby along with others, along with blog entries detailing the pregnancy of the writer's wife. The next story deals with a boy drawing a picture of his apartment, but wiping it away, at the same time his mother realizes they are being followed. Two reporters discuss a murder, with the only clue being a sketch of the murder scene done by the victim, stuffed in his wallet. Each story seems to have an ending, each has art that deals with that ending, or makes on question the ending. Slowly one realized that something is going on, something much bigger than one thinks. And far more evil.

I went into this book not knowing what to expect, and was blown away. The writing is real good. Each story has a different narrator, and each story feels different. The characters seem real, curious, lost, or caught in a situation that might be out of their control. The translation is very good. Nothing awkward of strange in the writing, and once a reader gets into it, the book is very hard to put down. The art and words have a real symbiotic relationship here. The art is good, and what is more interesting is that the author does them in different techniques, and shows how it is done, as well as showing what the true story the art is hiding.

A rare reading experience, and one that I would like to see more of. I know little about the author, except that they are mysterious, but I would love to read more by this gifted individual. A book for people who enjoy reading, art, and being fooled by writers.

A collection of interconnected Japanese horror short stories each coming from a drawing. There’s nothing like the tension created from short stories building on one another. Each of these were unsettling and left so many unanswered questions that I couldn’t put it down until I knew everything. Sometimes translated books don’t hit right for me, for some reason or another, but that wasn’t the case here. Some may find it repetitive, but I liked the constant reminder of things that had already happened. It helped keep the mystery and the characters straight, for me. This was so much fun to read, and the overall story was horrifying and entertaining.

I absolutely LOVED this book! The puzzle pieces are incredibly clever and the connections between stories was amazingly done! I would read anything by this author!

Thank you to HarperVia and NetGalley for the ARC of this book!

I really struggled with how to rate this one but I eventually settled on 3.5 stars. I absolutely loved the visual elements and while the mysteries held my attention and kept me guessing, it did feel a little gimmicky and borderline cheesy at times. I think the main issue for me comes down to what I'm assuming is a translation issue. There were so many lines that felt badly written, especially the dialogue, which led to everything coming across as quite juvenile to me. Overall, I was still highly entertained and would recommend to anyone looking for an attention-grabbing mystery.

Weaving several stories together into one big payoff, Strange Pictures will have you feeling like an amateur sleuth in this creative and engaging whodunnit horror mystery. Unlike anything I’ve ever read, I definitely recommend it.

Thank you to Harper Collins Publishers and HarperVia for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I'm always very happy about an ARC and being able to give it a review! <3

This book was pretty unusual but still super exciting and creepy. I love it when pictures are worked into books... it gives the whole story an even scarier vibe.

The writing style was good and well translated.

The story is told in four parts and each of them include pictures which helps you unravel the mystery. I loved it to read and figure out myself what was going on. I really liked the first story! And all the little stories come together in the end - well done! Very complex an clever.

So if you liked hidden pictures by Jason Rekulak then here you go!

A mystery within a mystery... And like a giant puzzle inside a maze, every piece fits in perfectly, you just have to be careful to find the clues.

It's labeled under the horror category, but I did not find it fitting in that genre, where there is some unsettling feelings within the book, it's not enough to call it horror.

But what it is, its a amazingly narrated mystery/thriller told in multiple POV and through drawings and images, all very cleverly integrated within the story. With given clues, pictures, guesses from characters and what feels like you're living in the game Whodunnit.

Twists and turns, stories within stories all very delicately woven together into this compact but full punch mystery tyat leans heavily into the psychological thriller side.

If you enjoy a good page turner, the game Ace Attorney and an intricate generational Scooby-Doo dark mystery then this here is for you. I want to thank NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this e-book ARC

A short collection of incredibly creepy stories that revolve around pictures. A short read, and quite creepy.

3.5 stars!

The idea here had intrigued me from the jump, and I truly did enjoy the structure of this. The multiple chapters with different pictures, the mysteries being unraveled of each one, the way they all ended up connecting. It was definitely worth the read, especially being so quick.

I do think it may have worked well as a longer novel. A lot of the chapters were mostly dialogue of the mysteries being explained rather than actually letting the reader try to figure things out, or see how the characters did so (for the most part anyway). I didn't love that, but everything else made up for it.

Strange Pictures is an interesting book. Each story is part of a larger whole, and each has a picture puzzle that furthers the larger part. I feel like saying too much more would spoil the fun of the book. This is definitely the kind of book that you want to know as little as possible about going in.

The book reads quickly. I started it in the early morning and finished it early afternoon, with several breaks. It is, in turns, interesting, creepy, and chilling.

I'm glad I didn't know much before I went into this, and I would recommend reading very little before starting. Every little story was self-contained and it was fun to learn how the parts fit together. This book was also unique because of how much the pictures played a part, and there was something of romance, mystery and horror. I enjoyed this and had a hard time putting it down. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

For fans of Japanese horror this is a must. Creepy, otherworldly puzzles present themselves and then play out their occult games with their unwitting participants. Highly recommend.

Dear Author,

I don't believe I've read anything quite like this mysteriously, haunting book. Using drawn pictures to tell many stories, which are somehow linked is unique. I really enjoyed reading your book. Are you writing more? I hope so. Such a fun and intelligent book.

Sincerely Yours,

J.D.McCoughtry

Thank you, NetGalley and HarperVia, for the opportunity to read this ARC.