Lonely Castle in the Mirror

I have fondly read a few Japanese literature pieces and find them truly mind-compelling. So, I picked up this book hoping to have a great time, and this book didn’t disappoint. I really love it. It has a slow start, but it gradually builds up. Since there are a few characters, one by one, I get to know about them, and slowly profile them in my mind.

Here’s a little blurb on the back of the book:

“In a neighborhood in Tokyo, seven young people wake up to find their bedroom mirrors shining. Placing their palms on the surface, they are pulled through into a wondrous castle, where they encounter not only each other, but also their taskmaster: a bossy young girl in a mask, named Wolf Queen.”

The mystery that surrounds them, they are not like constantly in life and death situation but still it was a good read. The characters give us more perspective on the issue at hand and each of them, their characters were distinct and loveable in their own way.

And the author was great at hiding clues and misleading us (the readers). It never cross my mind. (I can guess few of the character’s background stories but not all of them).

“Houses just like the one she lived in; tall condos, apartment buildings that looked, from where she stood, like matchboxes. In the distance, she could catch the lights flickering in the supermarket.

They are all out there there somewhere.

Every one of them, in the same district as her.”

Lonely Castle in the Mirror, by Mizuki Tsujimura (2022)

The peak of the story for was great – and how everything comes nicely together at the end. There are some loose ends (not all the characters are talked about but it gives enough space for imagination, to fill it up by ourselves).

I would recommend anyone to pick up this book.