More like a 3.5 for me. I'm so happy to finally have read this honkaku classic! I love the fact that this had a lot of references from other murder mystery classics and a true fan would definitely feel involved here. It's really a murder mystery written for murder mystery fans by a murder mystery fan HAHAHA.

With that said, as a fan of this genre, I liked the progression of the story. Though I'm not that convinced when the mystery aspect unfolded. At parts, it felt like there's just too many over explaining done though they may be necessary. Just not my cup of tea I guess.

And like the young detective himself, I'm not much of a fan of locked room murders that are heavily backed by mechanical stuff. Anyways, I'm glad I read this and I'll definitely read The Inugami Curse soon.

Thanks to Pushkin Vertigo for making these stories accessible for an international audience! Also those covers are amazing?!?