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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
DNF - Had to return to the library but actually wasn't too disappointed about that.
"El día se le había hecho muy largo. Sus pensamientos perdían nitidez. Notó que la distinción entre lo que sabía y lo que ignoraba empezaba a difuminarse. Su cansancio se propagó por el agua caliente. Cada vez que cerraba los ojos, sentía aumentar el peso de la somnolencia.
En la calle soplaba el viento.
El cristal esmerilado repiqueteaba en el marco. Hasta donde alcanzaba su memoria, aquella casa siempre había sido vieja. "
Seis cuatro (Rokuyou)
Hideo Yokoyama 2012
@salamandraed
Traducción de Jofre Homedes
#ebiblio
La visita nocturna de un matrimonio a la morgue para identificar a su hija desaparecida es el pistoletazo de salida de una sorprendente historia de venganza que bucea en la hermética y jerarquizada estructura policial japonesa, exponente fiel de la sociedad.
A través de la denodada lucha, externa e interna, del nuevo jefe de prensa de la prefectura por no dejarse cazar en las redes que se tienden entre diversos departamentos, altos mandos y representantes de la prensa, conocemos los pormenores y chapuzas en la investigación del secuestro y posterior asesinato de la pequeña Shoko. Catorce años atrás el caso, bautizado como Seis Cuatro, no consiguió cerrarse satisfactoriamente y el asesino escapó impune.
Mikami, azotado por sus propios demonios se encuentra atrapado en el delicado y frágil equilibrio entre el trabajo policial y el afán informativo de la prensa, mientras lucha contra la corrupción interna de la jefatura.
Brillante, adictivo y complejo, este título ha consumido todo mi #marzoasiatico y parte de abril
#seiscuatro #rokuyou #hideoyokoyama #novelanegra #novelajaponesa #leeresvivir #leermola #libros
En la calle soplaba el viento.
El cristal esmerilado repiqueteaba en el marco. Hasta donde alcanzaba su memoria, aquella casa siempre había sido vieja. "
Seis cuatro (Rokuyou)
Hideo Yokoyama 2012
@salamandraed
Traducción de Jofre Homedes
#ebiblio
La visita nocturna de un matrimonio a la morgue para identificar a su hija desaparecida es el pistoletazo de salida de una sorprendente historia de venganza que bucea en la hermética y jerarquizada estructura policial japonesa, exponente fiel de la sociedad.
A través de la denodada lucha, externa e interna, del nuevo jefe de prensa de la prefectura por no dejarse cazar en las redes que se tienden entre diversos departamentos, altos mandos y representantes de la prensa, conocemos los pormenores y chapuzas en la investigación del secuestro y posterior asesinato de la pequeña Shoko. Catorce años atrás el caso, bautizado como Seis Cuatro, no consiguió cerrarse satisfactoriamente y el asesino escapó impune.
Mikami, azotado por sus propios demonios se encuentra atrapado en el delicado y frágil equilibrio entre el trabajo policial y el afán informativo de la prensa, mientras lucha contra la corrupción interna de la jefatura.
Brillante, adictivo y complejo, este título ha consumido todo mi #marzoasiatico y parte de abril
#seiscuatro #rokuyou #hideoyokoyama #novelanegra #novelajaponesa #leeresvivir #leermola #libros
It can be difficult to read at times, mostly because the plot is slow to pick up. There isn't much action or suspense either. The story instead seems to focus on how the main character is coping after his daughter's disappearance and the discoveries he is making about his co-workers. He goes through a lot of internal conflict that made it hard for me to decide if I liked him or not. I feel like the story would be better if we could read through the point-of-view of other characters. A nice thing though is that the book does a good job of explaining the past while progressing the story line. The main character is a bit too self-absorbed in the first half of the book. At least he goes through sufficient character development to change his mindset. It's difficult to determine the motivations behind his actions and decisions.
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The slowest of slow burns that, eventually, makes its way to a satisfying conclusion of one core mystery (if not all of the book's intrigues). The bureaucratic skulduggery and drama turns out to be a cultural universal; I've always wondered why different crime-fighting divisions in Scandinavian police procedurals so often find themselves at cross-purposes despite having an ostensibly common mission. Then I went to work for the Department of Education. Most of the drama in this novel comes from the friction between the Japanese police's criminal investigations and public relations divisions. The scope and complexity of the story would lend itself well to long-form television adaptation.
“It takes a heretic to catch a heretic.”
Firstly, this book is so demanding, so tiring, so dragging, and so long. Struggled so much to read through all the pages since the book volleyed me from one character to another. I’ve never been the biggest fan of crime novels, but Six Four is far more complicated to just be branded as such. If anything, Six Four is an intricate work, with layers stacked on top of one another. Its multi-layered feature made it such a challenging read to pay attention to the tiny details: from the recurring small accounts that would later on be revealed to have set up the pace of a big twist.
When I said Six Four is not just a crime book, it is because it is also a handbook for those in the police force in Japan. The element is simply important: it was hard to cross through the cultural difference, as evident in the book’s relationship between the police force and the media. The presence of internal politics between the book’s prefecture’s police force manifested more than the presence of the crime itself.
Three stars rounded half up for the apparent effort of Hideo Yokoyama neatly crafting up this piece, from the presence of the elements of the crime to the very meticulous details of the plot structure itself.
Firstly, this book is so demanding, so tiring, so dragging, and so long. Struggled so much to read through all the pages since the book volleyed me from one character to another. I’ve never been the biggest fan of crime novels, but Six Four is far more complicated to just be branded as such. If anything, Six Four is an intricate work, with layers stacked on top of one another. Its multi-layered feature made it such a challenging read to pay attention to the tiny details: from the recurring small accounts that would later on be revealed to have set up the pace of a big twist.
When I said Six Four is not just a crime book, it is because it is also a handbook for those in the police force in Japan. The element is simply important: it was hard to cross through the cultural difference, as evident in the book’s relationship between the police force and the media. The presence of internal politics between the book’s prefecture’s police force manifested more than the presence of the crime itself.
Three stars rounded half up for the apparent effort of Hideo Yokoyama neatly crafting up this piece, from the presence of the elements of the crime to the very meticulous details of the plot structure itself.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is definitely in the "middle of the road" category for me. Neither loved it nor hated it. There were points were it was an absolute slog, and also points where it was quite exciting.
If what you want from a thriller is fast-paced action with a cliffhanger at the end of every chapter, then this book is not for you. It is veeeery slow burner of a story which despite being based on a kidnapping case does not deliver the excitement that this premise might hint at. It's more about the politics and corruption of the Japanese police force. It's complex, multifaceted and involved, and you have to pay attention.
Sometimes with books it's a case of wrong time, wrong place. I think this was the problem here. The book is not poor quality. It's a well-constructed story with tight prose and a satisfying conclusion. But I think I had a lot on my mind whilst reading it so I was forever catching myself having to reread the same lines because my brain was in drift mode, and it just wasn't quite gripping enough to hold my flighty attention.
My other notable problem was with the protagonist. I couldn't sympathise with Mikami AT ALL at any point in the novel, which made it difficult to connect to the story. He's a difficult character to sympathise with at the best of times, and then you find out about halfway through that he. After that I was just like whevs Mikami I couldn't give two shits about your plight now mate. Jog on.
I do usually keep my distance from thrillers because I find most of them to be tedious, formulaic and poorly characterised, and I tend to gravitate only to those that come critically acclaimed or highly recommended by reliable sources (e.g. original Millennium series, Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train). Six Four definitely fell into the first category and looking at other reviews people seem to really like it. I can definitely understand why, but it fell flat for me.
If what you want from a thriller is fast-paced action with a cliffhanger at the end of every chapter, then this book is not for you. It is veeeery slow burner of a story which despite being based on a kidnapping case does not deliver the excitement that this premise might hint at. It's more about the politics and corruption of the Japanese police force. It's complex, multifaceted and involved, and you have to pay attention.
Sometimes with books it's a case of wrong time, wrong place. I think this was the problem here. The book is not poor quality. It's a well-constructed story with tight prose and a satisfying conclusion. But I think I had a lot on my mind whilst reading it so I was forever catching myself having to reread the same lines because my brain was in drift mode, and it just wasn't quite gripping enough to hold my flighty attention.
My other notable problem was with the protagonist. I couldn't sympathise with Mikami AT ALL at any point in the novel, which made it difficult to connect to the story. He's a difficult character to sympathise with at the best of times, and then you find out about halfway through that he
Spoiler
responded to his mentally ill daughter having an emotional breakdown by PUNCHING HER IN THE FACE?!?!?!I do usually keep my distance from thrillers because I find most of them to be tedious, formulaic and poorly characterised, and I tend to gravitate only to those that come critically acclaimed or highly recommended by reliable sources (e.g. original Millennium series, Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train). Six Four definitely fell into the first category and looking at other reviews people seem to really like it. I can definitely understand why, but it fell flat for me.
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
