After the events in Strange Houses, a writer fascinated by the occult is bombarded with letters from people with tales of mysterious architecture in their own lives. He picks eleven to investigate, little knowing these eleven are strangely intertwined. Odd layouts, useless hallways, apartments with no escape: all leading to an underlying mystery and a revelation so horrifying you won’t want to acknowledge it.
People are often irrational. They make stupid decisions for the sake of unquestioned beliefs, particularly where religion is concerned.
This was probably his strangest book. It was interesting how all eleven of the “case files” interconnected into one overreaching mystery. The reveals about the brothel and the “great sin” behind the Rebirth Cult were both unexpected. I will say that at the minimum a passing acquaintance with Japan and its mores might be needed to understand this book (and maybe the series as a whole). Interesting that the feeling I’m getting is that Strange Pictures is disconnected (unrelated? In a different universe?) than Strange Houses and Strange Buildings. Love that in all three books people basically get away with murder.
To be honest, I’m not really sure if the interview that was included in the “Exclusive Edition” I purchased really added anything. The mystery (or mysteries) seemed to be really well thought out and interesting, though you could say that about any of Uketsu’s three books. This is yet another book that has the overlaying message “no one can fuck you up quite like family (especially parents)”. Also, generational trauma is the gift that just keeps on giving.
I will say that one of the mysteries I can’t quite figure out how it fits into the overlying plot; all the others Uketsu explains, but this one just is kind of there. The plot is very Japanese/Asian-centric; there are very few other places that I think it would have worked, based on ingrained, cultural and societal traditions and taboos. The fact that the story is told in a series of conversations, and there is very little action happening in the present day plot is an interesting stylistic choice. This is a “thinking/talking” book, not a “acting/doing” book. The included diagrams are a nice choice to help you try and puzzle the mysteries out to a solution along with the main character.
Hopefully Uketsu is planning on continuing this series, as I find his work highly enjoyable. If you like intricate mysteries with not-so-average solutions, I would recommend this book and the series on a whole.
