Personally I don't love it when the reveal of the killer is one that was impossible for the reader to imagine on their own, though this is quite common because the setups are so intricate they're designed to be too wild to unravel.

I think she got Poe to cover for her by telling him she could go undercover as a detective if everyone thought she was dead. Also, there seems to be a lot lost in translation as the dialogue is very stilted and not all that realistic, which can leave the reader rolling their eyes and being pulled out of the story.The reason for their presence there is a bit flimsy, as they are supposedly there to try to solve this cold case but do not have an actual plan in place to figure out how they will spend their week there. If you wish to read a book that will grip, shock and engage you in equal measure then you need to look no further than The Decagon House Murders. I didn't feel the story gave me all necessary clues throughout the novel for me to feel satisfied with the ending as it unfolded--a lot of these clues instead were given after the fact, to fill in the blanks. An example of this was when the captain manning the vessel that transported the friends to the island commented on their rather bizarre names.

All nine mystery club members received letters saying “My daughter Chiori was murdered by all of you. It’s a locked room mystery that clearly takes its inspiration from Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. He also seems the de facto leader of the group, and I think he’s been pulling strings the entire time. He is married to Fuyumi Ono, author of The Twelve Kingdoms and creator of Ghost Hunt, Juuni Kokuki, and the author for a few other manga. It lacked the labyrinthine quality of The Tokyo Zodiac Murders and the over the top melodrama of The Inugami Clan, but its clarity of purpose - shades of Christie's And Then There Were None - and its interesting focus on physical spaces - and not just the murder house, but nearly all indoor locations - made it thoroughly absorbing from beginning to end.The mystery switches between the club members who are at the house and a couple of ppl who are trying to learn more about an event some of the members were involved with.

Mainly because The Inugami Curse was more dramatic and twist-filled while The Decagon House murders is more of a narration without added 'shocks' and 'emotions'.The characters here are nothing more than pieces on a magnificent, imaginative board game, and their lack of dimension allowed me to feel pleasure in the storytelling. I admire that Ayatsuji took on a classic Christie - there's so much love for the Golden Age mysteries in this book.

This one is my favorite of the genre so far, hitting all the beats you want, while balancing surprises with the tropes. I pretty much figured out who did it fairly early on, but I didn’t figure out how so much (and when the reveal hit, I had a moment where I could have applauded it) “I’m Van Dine” was one of the biggest wham lines I’ve read in a while, and genuinely had me flipping through pages trying to figure it out HOW that one happened. The characters are pretty much cardboard cutouts, but the plot was fascinating, with the two main threads twisting together, and several side threads winding in and out. You’re also kept in the dark if it’s one of the students that’s guilty or that there’s another person hiding on the island.As the group begin to recognize the danger they face, on the mainland former Mystery Club member Kawaminami (or ‘Doyle’) receives an ominous letter. I would recommend this book to any thriller reader and classic crime lover, just so they get to experience Ayatsuji's clever dupe for themselves.