Translated from Japanese by Polly Barton, this novel was inspired by a real case of serial murder, the “Konkatsu Killer”, a woman who conned wealthy men with her amazing cooking, then poisoned them. In this novel, convicted killer of three men, Manako Kajii is held in the Tokyo Deon House, awaiting her appeal trial. She has been the object of scorn and ridicule in the media, when ambitious magazine researcher and writer Rika Machida sees an insightful interview series with Kajii as a ticket to becoming the first woman editor of her magazine.

Yuzuki does a good job weaving themes of food, self-image, trauma, and women’s work-life balance in this mystery. Of course, it considers these issues from the point of view of Japanese culture, but I think the issues are universal enough that a Western audience can easily relate. The manipulative wiles of Kajii keep both Rika and the reader guessing, trying to figure out if this woman is the real killer, and how she did it, which isn’t clear. The evidence is flimsy at best. Rika is also an intriguingly complex character, with unresolved emotional baggage making her a target for Kajii. Add in a cast of well-drawn supporting characters, such as Rika’s lifelong friend Reiko, mentor and friend Shinoi, work colleagues Yu and Kitamura, and boyfriend Makoto, as well as her parents and people from Kajii’s past, and this makes a fascinating, albeit slow paced mystery.

The complicated role food plays in the lives of women underlies this novel: how much and what women should eat to maintain socially acceptable figures; the time food preparation takes, when women are trying to pursue careers and keep husband and children fed, both for health and happy family memories; eating for sustenance versus eating for pleasure. Japanese women are under the same pressures as Western women, wanting self-fulfillment and satisfaction in work and food, while feeling enormous pressures to look thin, have happy, successful children, keep a clean home, and make husbands happy. Men are not under the same conflicting set of demands, and their advancement is much more easy and assured. The relationship between Kajii and Rika explores these issues, while also satisfying murderinos, as a psychopathic, damaged, master manipulator plays with Rika.

When Rika can finally confront her personal issues, she is able to deal more effectively with Kajii, although her adversary has more tricks up her sleeve. It is a subtle, slow book, different in style from what we have grown accustomed to from Western psychological mysteries. I found the ending to be satisfying, as most loose ends are tied up without feeling contrived. Go outside your comfort zone, and try a different approach to the familiar genre.