Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Rashōmon and Seventeen Other Stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa

2 reviews

fernhunter's review

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emotional reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I've read an extended version of the book (about 42 stories). It is a great collection to get acquainted with Akutagawa Ryuunosuke and I enjoyed like a half of them. Some stories made me think and their depth make you want to reread immediately to get to the point. However, other stories are a little boring and way too simple. Overall, I would recommend the book, especially for traveling or if you don't have much time. I bet you'll find at least one story that will blow your mind.
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albernikolauras's review

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challenging dark sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? N/A
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a complicated set of stories to review. I enjoyed most of the stories well enough, and this edition was excellent with how the footnotes helped explain the stories. The collection overall was greater than the individual stories. The stories generally fall into historical fiction (for the author's time) and some semi-autobiographical stories.

I would highly recommend reading the introduction to this story collection (or at least the timeline, which I went back and forth to throughout the collection) and go into this ready to learn. Akutagawa was plagued by a lot of darkness within his life, and this collection definitely carries that darkness, so beware.
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