Why You Should Read: Three Assassins
With interesting nicknames: The Whale, The Cicada, The Pusher
It was a rainy Friday afternoon and I was the only customer in my favorite independent bookstore, Lit Books, in search of new books and inspiration.
The owner, Min Hun, probably saw me browsing aimlessly and came up for a chat. I asked him for any book recs and he picked up Three Assassins by Kotaro Isaka as one of his top books for that month.
Well, I love thrillers, and thrillers by Japanese authors are right up my alley. I thanked Min Hun for his recommendation and paid for the book happily.
Kinokuniya owns my heart and soul but this is the reason why independent bookstores are so wonderful! You don’t get personal recommendations in big bookstores like Kino or Tsutaya.. small bookstores are more intimate, in that sense. Bonus point to Lit Books - they recognize and remember their customers’ names :)
Three Assassins is about a guy, Suzuki, who is set on a journey to avenge his brutally murdered wife. He joins Fraulein, the criminal gang responsible for killing his wife, and is determined to find the killer. He encounters three professional assassins from the same group -
The Whale: An assassin who talks his targets into committing suicide. A stoic guy who is haunted by the ghosts of his victims.
The Cicada: An assassin who specializes in knife work and enjoys killing whole families. A talkative, small guy who wants to break free from his employer.
The Pusher: An assassin who pushes his targets in front of cars and trains. A quiet, seemingly normal guy with a wholesome family.
The Pusher murders Suzuki’s wife’s killer in front of his eyes. Suzuki is enraged; he feels that he is robbed of his “right” to kill and determines to find The Pusher to discover the truth. He then gets into a series of incidents that involve these assassins and finds his world changing as he gets deeper into their murderous realm.
There is also a pair of assassins who called themselves The Hornets, who kill their victims with poison. The reveal of who The Hornets are at the end was pretty satisfying, even when they only play a minor role in this story.
I am glad I picked this one up cos I really enjoyed it!
The three assassins are truly interesting as Isaka gives them excellent background stories and characters. They are not just professional murderers; they are humans with emotions, hopes, and wants. Aside from the grisly murders they commit, I find myself sympathizing with these assassins. That’s how great the writing is :)
The story moves along swiftly without much fluff and Three Assassins is a book that will make you want to read to the end. This is my first Kotaro Isaka book and will definitely be on the lookout for his other books.
Highly recommend it if you are looking for a great thriller to bury yourself in (I hope that’s not too assassin-y of a phrase, haha).
Have a great weekend!
Hey friends!
I intend to write a short review of books I read and share it with you once a week, here on Shelves Upon Shelves. I have been writing book reviews on my other site, www.helloristinaaa.com but I thought I’ll do a mini newsletter written specifically for those who love to read and always looking for new book recs!
I believe there are truly no bad books, as it all depends on your preference. I will try to feature the books I’ve read and loved in this newsletter so do subscribe if you love to get small book recs from me on weekly basis!
Xx,
Ristina