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ikaryst's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It’s been a decade+ since my last mystery book and this was such a welcomed read to my collection. Prior to this, I was unfamiliar with Keigo Higashino’s works but now, I will be anticipating future stories from this author.
From the start to the end, Malice had me at the edge of my seat because I was so eager to uncover the secrets behind the murder of acclaimed bestselling novelist Kunihiko Hidaka. The written accounts of the characters were extremely immersive as though I could see inside their minds.
What made this super entertaining was how the author revealed hints gradually for us readers to also figure out the mystery. The narrative is void of any information dumping and unfolds in a remarkably clever and uncomplicated manner, enhancing the overall enjoyment of this literary journey.
From the start to the end, Malice had me at the edge of my seat because I was so eager to uncover the secrets behind the murder of acclaimed bestselling novelist Kunihiko Hidaka. The written accounts of the characters were extremely immersive as though I could see inside their minds.
What made this super entertaining was how the author revealed hints gradually for us readers to also figure out the mystery. The narrative is void of any information dumping and unfolds in a remarkably clever and uncomplicated manner, enhancing the overall enjoyment of this literary journey.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, and Murder
Moderate: Rape, Suicide, and Violence
mirrorofneptune's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Like Higashino's Detective Galileo books, this is very reminiscent of a character study. We spend a lot of time with the cast and arguably less on the mechanisms of the murder, but it's still a fun locked room mystery. The title is very apt, as malice, envy, and resentment are all recurring themes.
Kaga wasn't as interesting to me as Yukawa or Kusanagi, likely because he didn't feel quite as fleshed-out; he does have a provided backstory but in my mind it didn't quite translate into characterization. That being said, I did like what we got from him, and I trust Higashino to not neglect developing his detective as the series progresses.
Kaga wasn't as interesting to me as Yukawa or Kusanagi, likely because he didn't feel quite as fleshed-out; he does have a provided backstory but in my mind it didn't quite translate into characterization. That being said, I did like what we got from him, and I trust Higashino to not neglect developing his detective as the series progresses.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Bullying and Rape
rarasreads's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
When attempting to write this review, I had to remind myself of the different elements that make up Japanese detective fiction vs Western crime fiction. It is through this lens I found this story to be relatively engaging and unique in that it focuses on the motive for the murder rather than on the killer (whose identity is immediately known) or the method.
In listening to the audiobook, I appreciated the distinct styles with which Detective Kaga and Osamu are portrayed and narrate their POVs. The Detective is clever and thorough with his investigation, although I did find it a bit convenient that he relied on his hunches that always ended up being correct. However, I still enjoyed the process by which Kaga conducted his interviews and procedures to connect the dots between the past and present. Osamu was all the over place, crafting stories to throw the Detective and readers off.
I liked how the Detective pieced the motive together at the end with a bit of a twist. Nevertheless, the ending still left me wanting a bit more clarity. I certainly want to try more Japanese crime fiction but I don’t think I will be continuing this particular series.
In listening to the audiobook, I appreciated the distinct styles with which Detective Kaga and Osamu are portrayed and narrate their POVs. The Detective is clever and thorough with his investigation, although I did find it a bit convenient that he relied on his hunches that always ended up being correct. However, I still enjoyed the process by which Kaga conducted his interviews and procedures to connect the dots between the past and present. Osamu was all the over place, crafting stories to throw the Detective and readers off.
I liked how the Detective pieced the motive together at the end with a bit of a twist. Nevertheless, the ending still left me wanting a bit more clarity. I certainly want to try more Japanese crime fiction but I don’t think I will be continuing this particular series.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
claireshields's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
hoppyread's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Bullying and Rape
hikajelny's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
From the beginning til the end, everything that I guessed or predicted were all wrong. You would have thought that you got the answer but no, it wasn’t as easy as this. Malice is a brilliantly written piece of literature that challenged your standpoint through the presentation of unreliableness of the materials presented, thus causing you to scrutinize everything. The author made it work without overcomplicating the plot through easy narration and direct explanation/discovery of a situation, motive, anything that might raise a question.
I was quite surprised to find out how fast the story progressed - when it came to thriller or detective theme story, the plot tended to be drawled out in a way that it felt the detective was “struggling” with the challenge through long description and abundance of hints to be parsed through but it was different for this book. It didn’t mean that the challenge didn’t exist, it was present strongly but written in a way that lulled you into a false sense of security. You were as confused as the characters — it was at the very least, basic in the manner of description to fit the image of, “This is it, this is what we know and there’s no need to talk poetry about it.” Hence, the fast pacing of the story (at the very least to me).
The characters portrayed are also very on-ground. It evoked strong emotions from you, whether it’s sense of justice, dread, pity, with the careful way the author wrote and developed them. It was truly brilliant with the way the author would call back and maintained the identity of the characters, then presenting it in a way that might lead you to believe otherwise.
It’s definitely a worth read — my guts were basically free falling and my brain worked overtime trying to piece everything out.
I was quite surprised to find out how fast the story progressed - when it came to thriller or detective theme story, the plot tended to be drawled out in a way that it felt the detective was “struggling” with the challenge through long description and abundance of hints to be parsed through but it was different for this book. It didn’t mean that the challenge didn’t exist, it was present strongly but written in a way that lulled you into a false sense of security. You were as confused as the characters — it was at the very least, basic in the manner of description to fit the image of, “This is it, this is what we know and there’s no need to talk poetry about it.” Hence, the fast pacing of the story (at the very least to me).
The characters portrayed are also very on-ground. It evoked strong emotions from you, whether it’s sense of justice, dread, pity, with the careful way the author wrote and developed them. It was truly brilliant with the way the author would call back and maintained the identity of the characters, then presenting it in a way that might lead you to believe otherwise.
It’s definitely a worth read — my guts were basically free falling and my brain worked overtime trying to piece everything out.
Content Warnings
Minor: Bullying and Rape
a1exander's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Rape, Terminal illness, Car accident, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Infidelity and Suicide
jhbandcats's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I really like all the Kiego Higashino books I’ve read, especially The Devotion of Suspect X. The ending was shocking; I felt like I’d been punched. Higashino is a master of the plot twist. However, I feel Suspect X is the pinnacle of his work and nothing I’ve read since has been quite as powerful. Of course when the bar is set so high, it’s difficult to surpass what’s already the best.
Malice is the first of a different series. It focuses more on plot than character. The man arrested for murder is such an unreliable narrator that it’s hard to see what he’s truly like. We learn more about Detective Kaga, and his guilt and remorse at failing a student who was being bullied back in his teacher days, but we don’t know anything else about him. We know nothing about his private life, his friends and family, his likes and dislikes - his character isn’t developed at all.
The plot, which is explained early on, changes repeatedly. The readers aren’t sure what’s true, and I found it confusing to have to keep rearranging my idea of what had happened. In the end I felt it was more of an overly complicated annoyance than a plot twist. That said, I’m about to start reading the second in the series to see what happens next.
Overall the book was complex and convoluted and, as such, was quite a feat. But I didn’t find it completely satisfying.
Malice is the first of a different series. It focuses more on plot than character. The man arrested for murder is such an unreliable narrator that it’s hard to see what he’s truly like. We learn more about Detective Kaga, and his guilt and remorse at failing a student who was being bullied back in his teacher days, but we don’t know anything else about him. We know nothing about his private life, his friends and family, his likes and dislikes - his character isn’t developed at all.
The plot, which is explained early on, changes repeatedly. The readers aren’t sure what’s true, and I found it confusing to have to keep rearranging my idea of what had happened. In the end I felt it was more of an overly complicated annoyance than a plot twist. That said, I’m about to start reading the second in the series to see what happens next.
Overall the book was complex and convoluted and, as such, was quite a feat. But I didn’t find it completely satisfying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Rape, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
eclecticemily's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Rape
seaoftranquility's review against another edition
mysterious
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying and Rape