This book is a page turner but there is a section where the pace drops a little and you just want to get to the end. Despite this flaw, I enjoyed the story for its elements like references to Greek mythology characters, the maze-like labyrinth house and the twists. The way characters react to being locked in a house is a bit weird, why is no one freaking out? Because I would be so freaked out.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this advanced reader's copy and the opportunity to this early. Review has been posted on Waterstones and Goodreads.

I received an eARC of this title through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I honestly could not finish this book. I think when I read the description, I was expecting one thing, but once reading, it turned out to be another.

The beginning was rough for me because I was confused as to what was happening. It took me until part 2 to finally understand it all.

All this to say, I just don't think this book is for me. My rating is more about how much I enjoyed it. I think the premise is interesting, and I love how we are bringing more international titles to English. This is definitely a title I know people will like.

I really enjoyed this book. Having a book within a book was a really clever idea and I think it worked really well.
It kept me guessing all the way through and even when I thought I had cracked it, it threw in another curveball.
The descriptions were so good and I really felt like I was there.
I like how it was all wrapped up in the end with no loose threads. I would definitely read the other books in the series.

A renowned mystery writer’s birthday party turns deadly when a series of murders traps a group of crime novelists in his secluded mansion. This novel is basically a puzzle with no emotion, no character development, no humanity.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The Labyrinth House Murders is a superb locked room puzzle that playfully interrogates the idea of a fair-play mystery.

Unlike other meta mysteries, this one doesn't lean too far into irony or directly address the reader; Labyrinth House is simply a love letter to mystery and Bizarre House series fans alike. Ayatsuji knowingly indulges in his titular labyrinth, crafting an eccentric setting of horrific masks, confounding architecture, and Greek myths. The characters may race frantically through the labyrinth's halls, but, for any mystery reader, it's a decadent treat to get lost in.

Short and snappy, Labyrinth House gets to the bloodshed quickly and doesn't concern itself with much else. The characters are familiar standards who never overstay their welcome, always willing to sacrifice themselves for the plot. Literary mystery fans will likely not find this one to their tastes; I would recommend this primarily to those who enjoy Christies and other classics.

Overall, The Labyrinth House Murders is a comfortable one-day thrill that asks you to read between the lines, but will likely still surprise you.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

The Labyrinth House Murders by Yukito Ayatsuji is a third person-POV Japanese locked room mystery. When mystery editor Utayama and his wife Keiko are called by one of Utayama’s authors, Miyagaki, to his elaborate home, they aren’t expecting the strange game he’s set up between his four protegees or the the series of bodies that will be left behind by the end of the week.

The structure of this mystery is an anthology within a book within a book. The four protegees are ordered by Miyagaki to write a short mystery where they are murdered as a competition to see which one will inherit his fortune. We get the parts of the stories they wrote that feature how they were murdered and then we get the broader book which is being read by another character. It’s very interesting and the prologue and epilogue are the only real moments that we get with the character who is reading everything else, so we don’t get a lot of who they are as a character. As I have not read the other books in the series, if this character showed up in the other books, I’m sure it would provide a bit of texture that I am missing.

When I read a mystery, I tend to go for the ones that are more character-driven and don’t feature detective characters. I was drawn to this one because I love Japanese lit, want to expand the amount of mysteries I read, and locked room mysteries fascinate me as a concept. What I really liked about this one really was the structure because it is fairly different and the idea of the writers all writing their own deaths. I found myself looking forward to how these writers dealt with the mounting bodies and how they would depict themselves in this very morbid situation.

I would recommend this to fans of locked room mysteries and readers of Japanese lit looking for a twist on the classic mystery

I decided to DNF this book after starting it and then having spent weeks with other books, I wasn’t entirely encapsulated.

The premises is unique but I found myself not enjoying all the twists and turns / not knowing who the murderer was. I ended up going to the end to know what happened.

Anyone who enjoy murder mysteries though- will enjoy this!

Sadly I couldn't read this because the formatting was messed up but I like this series and will seek the finished copy out.

The strong suit of this book for me was the authors ability to leave logical hints while not giving the plot away completely. It made for a fun time! There was a few ‘Oh that’s what that was about!’ moments. I guessed some twists, but I didn’t have everything figured out.
The weak point? Well, *that* one plot point. Of course. I’d normally be harsher but I think in the mystery genre I can respect being a little more ridiculous in the name of delivering a unique story. I wanna read the others!

A fun whodunnit with a side of Greek mythology. Thought I suspected the right person but there were twists and turns much like the labyrinth itself.

this was a bit underwhelming? maybe because i haven’t read anything by this author before but i couldn’t get into story like i thought i would. unfortunately i struggled with this one and it took me a long time to finish

I love Japan after living there, and pick up Translated Japanese mysteries when I can. Would not have picked this one (I think an email invite?). Not enamored with the competition story per se but well written.

This is my third book by this author in this series and I am completely hooked. I do love a good locked room, murder mystery, and this did not disappoint. This was a short but quick read and I felt like it was the perfect length I did not feel like I was missing anything or wanting more at the end

I’m not even sure where to begin with this one. Why did I choose to read this book? Two reasons: the striking cover design and my irresistible weakness for works by Asian authors—hand me anything, and I’ll devour it. That said, this was actually my first Asian crime novel, and I went in with pretty high expectations.

Structurally, The Labyrinth House Murders is a classic locked-room mystery thriller. Four authors and three critics/editors are invited to celebrate the 60th birthday of a legendary writer, Miyagaki Yotaro. The event takes place in the infamous Labyrinth House—a secluded, maze-like building designed by a controversial architect, far from civilization. The guests arrive, but the guest of honor does not. After hours of waiting, Yotaro is declared dead by suicide. However, he has left behind a will with a bizarre request: each of the four authors must write a murder mystery set in the very same Labyrinth House, using the real people present as characters. The twist? In every story, the author must be the victim. They have five days to write their stories, and no one is allowed to leave. On the sixth day, the critics will pick the best story—and the winning author inherits Yotaro’s entire fortune.

Sounds like a plan, right? Only instead of five quiet days of writing, the house becomes a crime scene. One by one, the murders written into the stories begin happening in real life—exactly as they were imagined. The house is locked, there’s no contact with the outside world, and soon it becomes clear: someone is playing a very dangerous game, and survival is no longer guaranteed.

The book follows a very Agatha Christie–style structure, where both the characters and the reader are equally clueless and stuck in the same impossible situation. Strange, inexplicable things keep happening, and only one or two individuals might have any idea what’s really going on. Toward the end, a deus ex machina swoops in to tie things together in a way that feels sudden and improbable. But—as the TV infomercials say—that’s not all! Just when you think the story is over, an epilogue flips everything on its head. Then it flips it again. And maybe one more time for good measure. Twist after twist.

Honestly, I’m still not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand, it’s quite fun to see an author pull the rug out from under you again and again. On the other hand—and this might just be a personal issue - despite the intriguing setup, the story never truly clicked for me emotionally. I kept waiting for that spark, for the moment I’d feel hooked and deeply invested, but it never came. I kept reading, intrigued by the premise, but I didn’t feel much of anything.

That said, the story’s structure and the way the initial murders were set up showed a lot of promise. The inclusion of legends and mythological figures added an atmospheric layer that had the potential to tie beautifully into the ending. But despite the buildup, these elements never quite paid off in the resolution, which left me slightly disappointed.

The Labyrinth House Murders is the third book in Ayatsuji’s House Murders series, each of which features a different building designed by the same eccentric architect. Having read only this one, I can confidently say the books seem to work well as standalones. And a special shoutout to the cover designer - it’s absolutely eye-catching and definitely part of what drew me in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the chance to read this intriguing mystery!

"A twisty and ingenious stand-alone classic Japanese murder mystery from the author of The Decagon House Murders.

Can the brilliant Kiyoshi Shimada solve the mystery of this bizarre house before all those trapped in its labyrinth are dead? Can you guess the solution before he does?

Miyagaki Yōtarō is one of Japan's most famed mystery writers, but several years ago he put down his pen and left the Tokyo literary world for a life of seclusion in the remote Labyrinth House, built by the notorious architect Nakamura Seiji. When four of the country's most exciting up-and-coming crime writers are invited to the house for Yōtarō's 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 with each other...

As the competition proceeds, and murder follows murder, the brilliant Kiyoshi Shimada investigates. 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?

Readers of Japanese crime classics and fans of clever puzzle mysteries, such as Magpie Murders, Eight Detectives, and The Appeal will love the third stand-alone book from the author of Decagon House Murders and Mill House Murders - Japanese crime classics that have dazzled readers with their ingeniously constructed plots and solutions. The whole book is like a magic trick, with one of Ayatsuji's trademark breathtaking reveals at the end."

A very Murder By Death vibe. I love it!

“Utayama suddenly felt dizzy, as if he were being sucked into the crack between reality and fantasy.” (Chapter 6)
Me too, Utayama, me too!
This Japanese detective novel is written in the shin honkaku style, an extreme version of the puzzle mystery with a floor plan, list of characters, locked rooms, closed circle of suspects, etc. The Labyrinth House Murders takes place in a house belonging to a retired mystery writer in Japan. The house’s design is inspired by the Labyrinth of Greek mythology. A select company of mystery writers and literary critics are invited to stay in this house for a sort of story competition. When guests start turning up dead, the remaining invitees must follow clues and use their knowledge of detective fiction to find out who is behind the deaths.

Read this book to enjoy an elaborately-structured puzzle mystery set in a unique location and based on a fantastical premise, in the best tradition of this unique Japanese genre. However, do not read this mystery expecting realism, psychological or otherwise! The characters enter enthusiastically into the ‘game’ aspect of the situation they are in, rather than responding in frustration or terror to being locked in a maze-like building underground while people keep turning up dead.
As a translator myself (though not of Japanese), I congratulate this book’s translator, Ho-Ling Wong, for navigating the intricacies of fair play clues and meta-narrative to render a smooth, idiomatic English translation.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read a review copy of this book.

DNF @ 42%

This wasn't bad, per se. The narrative style was a little too stilted for me, and the characters felt very bland and stereotypical. Granted, this could be because of the translation, and I do understand that sometimes cadence and flow don’t always match up well in translated works. But I just didn't find myself compelled by / invested enough in this story to continue reading it. And at almost the halfway mark that doesn't bode well for a mystery novel.

Maybe I'd have felt differently if I'd read the first two books before this and had formed an attachment to the detective? But who can say.

Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Locked room-cum-labyrinth mystery
—
Look, it’s hard to tell you much without telling you everything. Suffice it to say that this is a locked room mystery with a labyrinth at its heart. Throw in four mystery writers, a literary race to win a fortune, and a rapidly growing pile of dead bodies, and you’ve got yourself this homage to every locked room mystery you could imagine. Of course, it’s got its own Japanese touches and quirks of plot and characterisation, but as an introduction to Japanese crime, you can’t go wrong.

Admittedly, it’s part of a series and if you’ve read the first one, The Decagon House Murders, this is a retread of that previous book so you may feel shortchanged, but come back for the fiendish logic puzzles and the final chapter which is a lot.

Three and a half stars.

The Labyrinth House Murders is a chilling psychological thriller that immerses readers in an atmospheric, suspense-filled narrative. The story centers around a seasoned detective who is called to investigate a series of gruesome murders that have occurred within the confines of a sprawling, dilapidated mansion. As the detective delves deeper into the case, they uncover disturbing connections between the victims and the house's dark history, which is rife with secrets, betrayals, and a history of violence. The mansion itself almost becomes a character, with its labyrinthine halls and eerie ambiance playing a pivotal role in the unfolding mystery.

The novel expertly weaves together complex characters, each with their own hidden motives, and a plot that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. The pacing, while deliberate in places, builds an air of suspense and dread that intensifies as the investigation progresses. The slow burn of the narrative serves to deepen the mystery, leading to a shocking and unexpected conclusion that will leave readers questioning everything they thought they knew.

Ideal for fans of gothic mysteries and psychological thrillers, The Labyrinth House Murders offers a haunting exploration of human nature, deception, and the dark forces that can shape our fates. This compelling novel is sure to captivate anyone seeking a tale of suspense, intrigue, and psychological depth.

Can't wait to read more of his books!