Strange Buildings by Uketsu: To Read or Not to Read?
Hi Readers! I had pre-ordered Uketsu’s latest book Strange Buildings. But, I am not sure what’s wrong with Amazon that it never prioritises the pre-orders. Everyone who ordered it normally post release already had gotten it, read it and even reviewed it but my book wasn’t even shipped! So, you understand how much platonic tension existed between me and this book. Very oh-I-must-have-you-now vibe. When it was finally delivered on Friday, I finished it over the weekend. And just like stories that have a lot of slow burn and yearning, this one led nowhere but to disappointment vile. Read more to find out!
~~GOODREADS DESCRIPTION~~
From the bestselling author of Strange Houses and Strange Pictures comes a mesmerizing novel of eleven strange buildings and one terrible secret.
A lonely hut in the woods.
A murder house.
A hidden chamber.
A mysterious shrine.
A home in flames.
A nightmarish prison. . . .
Each of the buildings in this book tells a chilling story. Each one is part of a puzzle. Look closely . . . and you’ll see that everything is connected. All leading to a revelation so horrifying you won’t want to believe it.
Millions have become addicted to solving Uketsu’s dark mysteries. Strange Buildings is the strangest, and darkest, of them all.
~~THOUGHTS~~
Read at your own risk! Several trigger warnings.
What you read on the book cover: Eleven Buildings. One Terrible Secret.
What that actually means: Accidental child death. Three murders. One murder disguised as accidental. One murder. One suicide. Another child death. Again a child’s death by neglect and physical abuse. A couple’s death by fire. One more suicide. Prostitution through debt bondage.
Approximately 13 people dying across 254 pages, all in some way, shape or form of torture. It’s one thing writing a mystery novel so it’s a ‘page-turner’, but it’s an entirely different thing to make it so dark that the readers become depressed and would want to finish it just for the hell of it.
As someone who loved Strange Pictures and liked Strange Houses, Uketsu had become an auto-buy author. But, Strange Buildings changed the equation entirely. While reading the first two books, I was always surprised by how unique they were. But, Strange Buildings did not do it for me. The book’s first 254 pages contain these 11 Files, and the second part contains Kurihara’s deductions, and I had issues with both.
After reading only the first 4 Files, I was emotionally exhausted, and had to force myself to continue reading by taking a LOT of breaks. Piling on all that death and murder and evil, file after file was terrible. As someone who reads all kinds of mysteries and dark stories, never have I felt so disturbed and hopeless. And, after the first part comes the second part with all the deductions or rather a heap load of speculations and repetitions. In Strange Houses, these far-fetched deductions made by Kurihara at least made sense. But, in this one it was so far stretched out and became so complicated that it bordered on ridiculous. At that point, I was beyond caring. A mystery like this would usually have me taking notes, finding loopholes, trying to figure out the bigger picture, but in all honestly, I just didn’t care. I have rated Strange Buildings by Uketsu at 3/5 STARS!
Here are the reviews of the previous two books if you’d like to read them!
Until next time,
About The Author
Aishwarya Shenolikar
Hello! I'm Aishwarya, an Introverted bookworm & writer. I have been reviewing books since 6 years on my blog - Mindscape in Words. My favourite genres are Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thrillers, Magical Realism, Poetry, Fantasy & Memoirs. I like the kind of books which evoke emotions on several levels leaving me wrecked, but also incredibly content. I'm dreaming for the world to paint a landscape full of words, more like Mindscape in Words. Hope you enjoy the view.