tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post9216684929209446845..comments2024-03-17T02:38:18.796+01:00Comments on Beneath the Stains of Time: Secret of the Moai TomCathttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-67980220507012180852016-10-13T18:06:51.544+02:002016-10-13T18:06:51.544+02:00I hope you'll enjoy it, Origami!I hope you'll enjoy it, Origami!TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-32875284360253005892016-10-13T17:05:20.997+02:002016-10-13T17:05:20.997+02:00OrigamiOrigamiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-37142123058474712232016-10-13T17:04:44.212+02:002016-10-13T17:04:44.212+02:00I have been waiting for this blog entry and it was...I have been waiting for this blog entry and it was a great read!<br />Book is on its way from amazon to my doorstep.<br /><br />Kudos to Ho-Ling as well for his work.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-64839416761748237952016-10-09T09:12:03.145+02:002016-10-09T09:12:03.145+02:00I refreshed my memory by peeking at my review and ...I refreshed my memory by peeking at my review and the problem was that a lot of the (intuitive) deduction were based on 20 year old memories of the murderer. That was a bit of a stretch, because people can change over a period of two decades.<br /><br />However, it is an inverted mystery. So this is not as a big an issue as when it was played as a whodunit. The overall trick and final twist are still brilliant. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-57120160333761290132016-10-09T09:06:51.699+02:002016-10-09T09:06:51.699+02:00I'll keep the series in mind then. I always lo...I'll keep the series in mind then. I always loved the original series. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-55128357856005151172016-10-08T09:07:34.229+02:002016-10-08T09:07:34.229+02:00Yeah, the episode also features Dynomutt. I do rec...Yeah, the episode also features Dynomutt. I do recommend the whole series though, as it's actually very close to the original Where Are You series. Actually, they are set in the same continuity (Velma's parents have a museum of horrors with figures of classic figures like Miner 49er and there are some more surprising ties). <br /><br />Mystery Inc. is like a Scooby Doo series made for adults who used to watch the original series, and now realize how ridiculous the concept was, but still like it. You can now laugh at, but also with it.Ho-Linghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04673330638260132388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-69144366734986046212016-10-08T08:47:52.627+02:002016-10-08T08:47:52.627+02:00I liked 'Salvation of a Saint', but I like...I liked 'Salvation of a Saint', but I liked 'Devotion of Suspect X' even more. So JJ, you definitely should try it. :D<br /><br />TomCat, if I recall correctly, you discussed briefly the fair-play qualities of 'Devotion of Suspect X' in your review? Or did I get your review with Ho Ling's mixed up...? I think one of the two key aspects of the puzzle is certainly clued well. As for the other, I think it's at best vaguely hinted at - but it doesn't stop it from being a very clever and enjoyable book. <br /><br />Jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03389512470283015279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-35431074800790586132016-10-07T22:36:47.562+02:002016-10-07T22:36:47.562+02:00Suspect X is pretty good, I think. A grand inverte...<i>Suspect X</i> is pretty good, I think. A grand inverted mystery with a twist and attached to the book is long-standing discussion whether it qualifies as a proper mystery novel. My opinion: yes! <br /><br /><i>The Tattoo Murder Case</i> is a solid detective story. Some of the finer details have faded a bit over the years, but clearly remember being fascinated about the lore and legends about Japanese tattoo art. Or the gruesome impossible crime revolving around a pile of severed body parts found inside a locked bathroom. It did need a floor plan/diagram though. <br />TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-69263906014486143202016-10-07T20:35:09.342+02:002016-10-07T20:35:09.342+02:00Yeah, I read Salvation of a Saint a little while a...Yeah, I read Salvation of a Saint a little while ago following encouraging reviews and recommendations. Loved the first half, and really enjoyed the solution (telegraphed though it was), but the plot ran out at the halfway point and made the second 50% a real drag. <br /><br />Does Suspect X fare better? Pretty sure I have a copy of that somewhere. Also, I finally tracked down Akimitsu Takagi's The Tattoo Murder Case a couple of months back and should doubtless dive headlong into that...JJ @ The Invisible Eventhttps://theinvisibleevent.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-43944977781534856562016-10-07T15:20:05.864+02:002016-10-07T15:20:05.864+02:00I think that disclosure only adds an extra layer o...I think that disclosure only adds an extra layer of fanboyishness to your fanboying. But who cares? We got another one of these wonderful Japanese mysteries out of it. So feel free to fanboy all over the place. <br /><br />As short as it was, the Dying Message Lecture was a nice touch. I think more could be done with the idea, but the Dying Message simply does not have the long-standing pedigree of the Locked Room. In any case, Dying Messages are short on the monumental titles that are mainstays on best-of lists. <br /><br />I've heard about that incarnation about Scooby-Doo, but never watched it, because it seemed as a complete departure from the original series. But now I might have to give the Quest/Blue Falcon episode a shot. I assume Dynomutt is also a part of that episode? <br /><br />My guess why everyone falls over the Alice name is that it was not explained why a Japanese man was given female name from the West. After all, it was quickly explained why Maria had been given her (in Japan) peculiar name. <br />TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-79842476763663855022016-10-07T09:11:15.264+02:002016-10-07T09:11:15.264+02:00Glad you liked the novel! One thing that I can'...Glad you liked the novel! One thing that I can't *simply* do anymore now is fanboying all over this book w/o the disclosure message I translated the novel, but seriously, I regard this as one of the best Japanese mystery novels, as everything works on its own, and more importantly, together. Like a puzzle. And about the dying message: I personally liked Maria's Dying Message Lecture, as I've seen way too many Locked Room Lectures now.<br /><br /><br />As for Jonny Quest, I never really watched it, but for some reason I can remember the CG-scenes very vividly. Scooby Doo: Mystery Incorporated (a brilliant Buffy-generation parody on Scooby Doo itself and mystery fiction) had an episode featuring Dr. Quest IIRC, where they created the superhero The Blue Falcon.<br /><br />Anonymous already noted it, but the Alice comes from Alice in Wonderland. I wonder why so many people fall over the name though, Alice Cooper isn't female either :P But yeah, you'll find plenty of Alice in Wonderland references in Arisugawa's work, which is why I chose the spelling Alice over Arisu (Arisugawa's 'logo' for example is the Cheshire Cat). In The Moai Island Puzzle, there's even a subtle reference to The Walrus and The Carpenter: at the end of the boat scene, Alice's narration looks back at all the things that happened that night; of shoes--and ships...Ho-Linghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04673330638260132388noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-3671736749611538722016-10-07T08:21:06.233+02:002016-10-07T08:21:06.233+02:00Just wait for the next release? Or try one of Keig...Just wait for the next release? Or try one of Keigo Higashino's translated Detective Galileo novels? <i>The Devotion of Suspect</i> is a gem of an inverted mystery and <i>Salvation of a Saint</i> has an original (impossible) poisoning that you'll either love or hate. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-86197949822260153842016-10-07T08:15:20.422+02:002016-10-07T08:15:20.422+02:00Why, of course, the name is a reference to Alice i...Why, of course, the name is a reference to <i>Alice in Wonderland</i>! Why am I so dense lately? <br /><br />I'm sure Lewis Carroll's story is popular in Japan, but Ellery Queen (IIRC Dannay in particular) were also in love with <i>Alice</i> and themes from Carroll's tale often found there way into their own work. Most notable in one of their most well-known short stories, "The Adventure of the Mad Tea Party," from <i>The Adventures of Ellery Queen</i>. <br /><br />So it sort of makes sense that the self appointed successor of Ellery Queen would pick a name like Alice for himself. TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-51846504027038679092016-10-07T06:46:29.316+02:002016-10-07T06:46:29.316+02:00I only have The House That Kills by Noel Vindry le...I only have The House That Kills by Noel Vindry left to read and then I'm fully up to date with LRI - a terrifying thought, where will I go then for my feindish puzzles in translation?!JJ @ The Invisible Eventhttps://theinvisibleevent.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-61053701878112283192016-10-07T02:46:04.407+02:002016-10-07T02:46:04.407+02:00I bought this one when it came out. I thought it w...I bought this one when it came out. I thought it was good. I didn't like the fact that the Japanese honorifics were left out; it feels too Westernized for me. It feels to me like the dialogue is a bit off from the original.<br /><br />As far as "Alice" goes, this is undoubtedly a Western name, and the most likely source for the Japanese is Alice in Wonderland. It appears to me that the Japanese are in love with Alice in Wonderland; their popular culture has innumerable references to that book. The dream nature of the Alice stories is very consistent with Japanese culture, as in the story about the butterfly.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-45482646063769015112016-10-06T22:23:05.939+02:002016-10-06T22:23:05.939+02:00I probably should have mentioned in the review tha...I probably should have mentioned in the review that the treasure hunt pretty much entered MacGuffin territory once the murders began. But, as you said, solving clues of the statues and maps would have taken either a genius or an idiot savant. So it was a good thing that the treasure hunt was primarily used to get the story rolling. <br /><br />I should also try and make an effort, in the months ahead, to catch-up on all of the missed releases from LRI, but give me some time. <br />TomCathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03415176301265218101noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5516189026477178777.post-69226187023428054592016-10-06T21:26:44.719+02:002016-10-06T21:26:44.719+02:00Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I LOVED this, and am delighted ...Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I LOVED this, and am delighted (though unsurprised) that you feel the same -- I'm with you in hoping that we see more Arisugawa translated. I especially enjoyed how ornate the "find the diamonds" puzzle became alongside the murder plot...you, the reader, don't stand a hope in hell of solving the jewel mystery, but it's brilliantly clever and a wonder to watch it unfols all the same.<br /><br />LRI are currently two for two with their shin honkaku, wonder what John and Ho-Ling have up their sleeves for us next...JJ @ The Invisible Eventhttps://theinvisibleevent.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.com