Out

The ending of this book was beyond what I can tolerate but I think it is a case of the author doing what they want to do in defiance of giving the reader what they want or expect from crime fiction -- whether it is a happy ending, a return to the norm, etc. I don't think the reader is supposed to feel a sense of peace with the ending.

Otherwise, the rest of the book is want I want from a crime novel. Shifting perspectives, with each character strongly situated in the their social and economic circumstances and how they relate to other characters. Every character and situation is very well developed before any crime happens. Police are not the central figures in it, it is the actually the "criminals". This is procedural and detailed without needing to make the police or a detective central figures that restore balance to the world after it has been destabilized by a horrific act.

The initial crime itself is that one of the factory workers kills their abusive husband and people band together to help dispose of the body -- and as stated above, we know all of these people by the time this occurs. That's the synopsis but once we arrive at this point, we're into entirely different territory that's not easy to summarize or spoil. Or rather, if I just told you what happens as events on a timeline, it wouldn't reflect what I experienced as a reader.

As we're dealing with the worst parts of human nature, depicted in full, I don't actually recommend that other people read this. As I said, the ending is too much for me but I accept that it is integral to what the author is doing with this particular piece. As the rest of it is strong, I will read other stuff by Natsuo Kirino with some expectation that she'll keep bringing the stuff that resonated with me.