Seishi Yokomizo (1902-81) was one of Japan’s most famous and best-loved mystery writers. He was born in Kobe and spent his childhood reading detective stories, before beginning to write stories of his own, the first of which was published in 1921. He went on to become an extremely prolific and popular author, best known for his Kosuke Kindaichi series, which ran to 77 books, many of which were adapted for stage and television in Japan.

Akira is a bilingual screen actor who has played roles in internationally released film and TV. In recent years, Akira has worked alongside Temuera Morrison in feature film The Brighton Miracle and appeared as a Tibetan monk in Rake, alongside Richard Roxburgh. He has worked on many officially selected and award-winning projects including short film 2AM, a psychological horror – where Akira played a psychologist – that has had 45 Official Selections worldwide, collecting 14 wins in multiple categories. Akira is fluent in Japanese and enjoys working with his Standard American and Japanese accents. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Praise for Seishi Yokomizo's classic mysteries: ? .

With a reputation in Japan to rival Agatha Christie's, the master of ingenious plotting is finally on the case for anglophone readers ? Guardian

Readers will delight in the blind turns, red herrings and dubious alibis... Ingenious and compelling ? Economist

This is Golden Age crime at its best, complete with red herrings, blind alleys and twists and turns galore... A testament to the power of the simple murder mystery and its enduring appeal ? Spectator

Plenty of golden age ingredients... with a truly ingenious solution ? Guardian, Best New Crime Novels

A classic murder mystery Comparisons with Holmes are justified, both in the character of Kindaichi and Yokomizo's approach to storytelling mixing clues, red herrings and fascinating social insight before drawing back the curtain to reveal the truth ? Japan Times

At once familiar and tantalisingly strange... It's an absolute pleasure to see his work translated at last in these beautifully produced English editions ? Sunday Times

Has a touch of Agatha Christie but with so much added spice. There are plenty of twists, red herrings, and suspects in this monkey puzzle of a story. Japan has a wonderful history of crime writing, and Yokomizo is one of their finest authors ? NB Magazine

The diabolically twisted plotting is top-notch ? New York Times

Another legendary Yokomizo book... A campy and delightful detective novel ? Books and Bao

A gory tale of family greed, honour, revenge and loyalty with plenty of red herrings. Full of action and with a detective like no other ? Live and Deadly

A delightfully entertaining locked room murder mystery... There are plenty of twists, red herrings, and suspects in this monkey puzzle of a story... An ideal book to curl up with on a winter's night ? NB Magazine

Atmospheric, exciting and knotty whodunits. The covers alone are enough to get any fan of the genre salivating ? Japan Times --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.