A nervy thriller. . . .
Out has the force of a juicy tabloid scandal. . . . A potent cocktail of urban blight, perverse feminism and vigilante justice." -
The New York Times Book Review "Scarily omniscient. . . . Like Walter Mosley, [Kirino] exploits the beat-down potential of the hard-boiled novel to depict life on society's bottom in ways that subtly read as one part social protest, one part sadomasochistic entertainment."
-The Village Voice "A gutsy, unflinching foray into the darkest, most dangerous recesses of the human soul. . . . Riveting, hair-raising . . . definitely not for the faint-of-heart."
-Minneapolis Star-Tribune "Mingling biting feminist commentary with engrossing storytelling . . . a scathing allegory about the subjugation of women in Japanese society and the secret lives this forces them to lead."
-The New York Times "Masterful and psychologically astute." -
San Francisco Chronicle "A brutally realistic picture of contemporary society. . . . Spare, unsentimental." -
Newsweek "So dark, so gruesome . . . it left this reader reeling. No gritty urban American tale of violence can match the horror of
Out." -Carol Memmott,
USA Today
"Daring and disturbing,
Out is prepared to push the limits of this world-not only in violence and sex but also in human outlook. . . . Remarkable." -
Los Angeles Times
"Truly a universal tale. . . . Kirino knows not only everybody's business but everybody's mind-her way with interior monologue is pungent and prismatic." -
The Village Voice
"Brings the mystery thriller to new levels of intensity and realism. . . .
Out has great plot twists, vigor, and an ending that would make Hannibal Lecter smile." -
Library Journal (starred review)
"Sensational." -
Time Out, NY "Finally, a masterpiece in this genre . . . . a novel that realistically shows how ordinary people can be drawn into committing brutal crimes." -- Prize Jury, Mystery Writers of Japan
"Forget about flower arranging and geisha girls. . . .
Out offers an intriguing look at the darker sides of Japanese society while smashing stereotypes about Japanese women." -
Washington Post Book World "A knuckle-clenching thriller." -
Entertainment Weekly
"Grimly satisfying . . . like no one you've ever read before." -
Kirkus Reviews
"
Out descends beneath the genre's foundation to provide a remarkable series of insights into the forces that drive the charnel house of a postindustrial culture." -
American Book Review "Dark, seductive and occasionally brutal,
Out explores the lower classes of Japanese society with a distinctive gallows humor." -
Book "A gutsy, unflinching foray into the darkest, most dangerous recesses of the human soul. And the book's riveting, hair-raising final scenes, although definitely not for the faint-at-heart, serve as an unsettling reminder that the desperate desire for freedom has the potential to set any ordinary individual among us off down a very dark and lonely road." -
Minneapolis Star-Tribune "
Out turns the whole subservient geisha image on its head." -
Jane
"Absurdly compellingÉa superb and riveting thriller." -
Book Trust (UK)
"An exciting, disturbing read. . . . Kirino's Tokyo is an unexpected place, far from the glamorous stereotype." -
Telegraph (UK)
"A feminist revenge plot meets social critique and hardcore horror in a startling Japanese mix of satire and sensation."-
The Independent (UK)
"A page-turning thriller that at the same time delivers one of the most powerful wallops for feminist literature in recent memory."-Telegraph Magazine (UK)
After strangling her husband, Masako Katori, a middle-aged wife and mother working the night shift at a Tokyo factory, enlists the aid of four co-workers to conceal the crime. Reprint. 50,000 first printing.