From postmodern Renaissance man Ryu Murakami, master of the psychothriller and director of Tokyo Decadence, comes this hair-raising roller-coaster ride through the nefarious neon-lit world of Tokyo’s sex industry. In the Miso Soup tells of Frank, an overweight American tourist who has hired Kenji to take him on a guided tour of Tokyo’s sleazy nightlife. But Frank’s behavior is so strange that Kenji begins to entertain a horrible suspicion—that his new client is in fact the serial killer currently terrorizing the city. It is not until later, however, that Kenji learns exactly how much he has to fear and how irrevocably his encounter with this great white whale of an American will change his life.
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Easygoing young Kenji makes good money guiding Americans through Tokyo's seamy nightlife. His teenage girlfriend has no objections, as long as he reserves New Year's Eve for her. But Kenji's latest client, a simmering psychopath called Frank, disrupts those holiday plans. He wants to regale Kenji with crazy monologues as he hypnotizes low-level sex workers. A fat man with superhuman strength, skin that's metallic to the touch, and an unsettling habit of telling contradictory lies, Frank immediately raises the guide's hackles. Kenji even suspects that this ugliest of Americans dismembered a local schoolgirl and immolated a homeless man. But until he can prove his suspicions--and for a disturbing while after--Kenji will keep leading this monster man from one bizarre scene to another. It's a compelling nightmare for Kenji and the reader, who both hope he'll either wake up screaming or escape and alert the cops. Instead, everyone remains in evil's thrall until it's too late. A wicked meditation on the worst traits of American and Japanese society, this is a creepy culture clash indeed. Frank Sennett
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Review
"A writer with talent to burn . . . Fellini and Günter Grass, David Bowie and Dostoevski, García Márquez and Mike Leigh’s Naked all come to mind." —Gary Indiana, author of Rent Boy
"A blistering portrait of contemporary Japan . . . one of the most savage thrillers since The Silence of the Lambs." —Kirkus Reviews
"A blistering portrait of contemporary Japan . . . one of the most savage thrillers since The Silence of the Lambs." —Kirkus Reviews
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By kevnm
Format:Hardcover
Kenji meets a serial killer through his work and spends a couple days with him. There's some slaughter, of course, which Kenji passively observes (maybe he's hypnotized by a Visa card. It's complicated.). Anyway, the serial killer is philosophical (uh-oh) and his monologues (and Kenji's reactions) provide some astonishing psychological and sociological critiques: maybe there is no "real" self! Oh yeah, and a lot of people are lonely and others care only about material goods!
This is a cut above (pun intended) lots of slasher trash, but it's not nearly as profound as it thinks it is. Recommended for moody, reflective teens and young adults entranced by the combination of gore and aimless disaffection.
This is a cut above (pun intended) lots of slasher trash, but it's not nearly as profound as it thinks it is. Recommended for moody, reflective teens and young adults entranced by the combination of gore and aimless disaffection.
Format:Hardcover
While not usually a fan of the "slash and trash" genre, Murakami's newest gives a reason to explore the subject of the serial killer. Examining both Japanese and American stereotypes and ideosyncracies, the book gives a fascinating portrayal of the "man on the edge". The book moves quickly and was over way before I was ready for it to end. While not his best work, this was worth waiting for. In many ways I can see this as "American Psycho" done correctly. The violence is a little over the top in some sections, but in a kind of quirky style, so not really offensive. Nice translation, no real issues there.
By "hemizygous"
Format:Hardcover
It seems like I have been waiting for years, since reading Coin Locker Babies, ATB and Sixty-Nine, for another Ryu Murakami story to read. Now that I have it, I can neither say that I am dissapointed nor wholly satisfied.
I guess that "In the Miso Soup" is categorized as a "psycho-thriller" and other reviews have been negative due to the amount of violence in the book. The story is based in the seedy world of the Tokyo sex trade, so naturally the overall theme is dark and the subject matter for adults. Although there is violence, none of it seemed overly gratuitous to me, and is there mainly to flesh out the characters.
The book is relatively short, which is a let-down after the great saga of Coin-Locker Babies that I enjoyed so much. "Miso Soup" is a good and solid thriller-type story that although not spectacular, is very enjoyable and full of seemingly factual information (on Japanese club/sex/night life).
This book is a must-read for Ryu Murakami fans, since who knows how many years it will be until the next story comes along.
I guess that "In the Miso Soup" is categorized as a "psycho-thriller" and other reviews have been negative due to the amount of violence in the book. The story is based in the seedy world of the Tokyo sex trade, so naturally the overall theme is dark and the subject matter for adults. Although there is violence, none of it seemed overly gratuitous to me, and is there mainly to flesh out the characters.
The book is relatively short, which is a let-down after the great saga of Coin-Locker Babies that I enjoyed so much. "Miso Soup" is a good and solid thriller-type story that although not spectacular, is very enjoyable and full of seemingly factual information (on Japanese club/sex/night life).
This book is a must-read for Ryu Murakami fans, since who knows how many years it will be until the next story comes along.
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3.5 out of 5 stars
Most recent customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Don't buy the hype
A pretentious and self-important exercise. Far too cute for it's own good and a meditation that keeps pounding the head of the reader... ok already; we get it! Read more
Published on Jun 9 2004
5.0 out of 5 stars
5 Stars!
Tight, well-written thriller that takes you into the underworld of the sex industry in Shinjuku, Tokyo through the eyes of a tourist guide who gets involved with a psychopathic... Read more
Published on Mar 25 2004 by Neil MacLean
5.0 out of 5 stars
the saltiness of blood
... If one takes a look at the constant themes of violence, explicit sex, drug use, etc. that commonly appear in Murakami's novels and his screenplays, he wrote the screenplay for... Read more
Published on Mar 25 2004 by Daitokuji31
1.0 out of 5 stars
Ques que c'est? Run run RUN AWAY!
Do I have to give it one star? Well I did finish it. But YUCK! Double YU-UCK and NOT in a fun way. Ultra Passive narrator. Cliched
American psychopath. Read more
American psychopath. Read more
Published on Mar 25 2004 by Christopher Enzi
1.0 out of 5 stars
A MAJOR DISAPPOINTMENT
Hoping to expand my experience with oriental fiction in a story by a Japanese writer I ordered this impressively recommended novel. It was more than novel. Read more
Published on Mar 23 2004 by Robert L. Stark
5.0 out of 5 stars
A book that excites you then forces you to think
In the Miso Soup, by Ryu Murakami, is the kind of book that brings up many emotions and stays with the reader long after they have finished it. Read more
Published on Feb 6 2004 by G. M. Jenkins
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