Murder in the Age of Enlightenment: Essential Stories (Pushkin Press Classics)

These are short stories from an unparalleled icon of modern Japanese literature. Sublimely crafted and shot through with a fantastical sensibility, they offer dazzling glimpses into moments of madness, murder and obsession. A talented and spiteful painter is given over to depravity in pursuit of artistic brilliance. In the depths of hell, a robber spies a single spider's thread being lowered towards him. When a body is found in an isolated bamboo grove, a kaleidoscopic account of violence and desire begins to unfold.  Vividly translated by Bryan Karetynk, this mesmerising collection brings together a series of essential works from the master of the Japanese short story.

Ideal for readers interested in general fiction.