Review: The Little Sparrow Murders by Seishi Yokomizo

Synopsis: An old friend of Kosuke Kindaichi's invites the scruffy detective to visit the remote mountain village of Onikobe in order to look into a twenty-year-old murder case. But no sooner has Kindaichi arrived than a new series of murders strikes the village - several bodies are discovered staged in bizarre poses, and it soon becomes clear that the victims are being killed using methods that match the lyrics of an old local children's song...

The legendary sleuth investigates, but soon realises must unravel the dark and tangled history of the village, as well as that of its rival families, to get to the truth.

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This is the sixth in the Kosuke Kindaichi series that have been translated and re-issued; and my engagement with each new (old) release never wanes.

It is a child's nursery rhyme that will aid Kindaichi in solving not only a twenty year murder mystery but the current one that links back to the original. As usual, family secrets, jealousies and rivalries drive the narrative and slowly come to the fore as we discover connections between the victims and their families.

Yokomizo is the master at weaving an intricate and devilish plots, whilst ensuring the reader is immersed in both scenery and culture, to the point that they feel like they are literally following in the footsteps of our detective, Kindaichi.

Hasegawa Hiroki as Konsuke Kindaichi

As always, I am looking forward to the next release from Pushkin Press (Murder at the Black Cat Cafe) - and cannot recommend this series enough.