The Tattoo Murder Case

This is the second Takagi book I have read. (The other is "Honeymoon to Nowhere.") This is a dark, tantalizing mystery with an atmosphere reminiscent of Edogawa Rampo's darkest stories.

The novel revolves around tattoos - tattoo artists and their beautiful, but illegal art, the people sporting the tattoos that transform their lives and bodies, and the collectors of tattoos. Yes, there are people who collect tattoos, which means, of course, that they collect and display SKINS. This includes the brilliant, but extremely creepy Dr Hayakawa, who makes deals with the owners of tattoos that he fancies - when they die, he gets their skins for display in his collection.

At the center of the twisted and very dark underground world of tattoos and tattoo artists in Tokyo is Kinue Nomura, daughter of a famous tattoo artist and bearer of the legendary Orochimaru tattoo courtesy of her father. Orochimaru is a legendary sorcerer who rides a snake. Kinue's older brother Tsunetaro has the tattoo of Orochimaru's rival Jiraiya, who had a giant for a familiar, while her younger sister Tamae was given the tattoo of Tsunedahime, who rode an enormous slug. The story goes that if one person has the tattoos of a snake, a toad, and a slug, the creatures will fight to the death (of the person with the tattoos). One can only imagine what would happen to three siblings with the individual tattoos. The Nomuras certainly appear cursed - the siblings' mother ran off with another man, became a criminal and died in prison; Tsunetaro vanishes during World War II and is presumed dead; and Tamae had the misfortune to be living in Hiroshima around the time of the atomic bomb attack. Only Kinue has survived.

Kinue has a love-hate relationship with her tattoos, which cover a great portion of her body. She covers them most of the time, but sometimes shows them off. She takes part in a contest for the best tattoos and easily wins the women's division:

"...it appeared to the spectators as if the wild-eyed sorcerer on her back was blushing in shame, and the giant snake seemed to be wriggling like a living thing. The meeting hall, which had been dead silent, suddenly erupted in cheers, shouts, and whistles."

However, Kinue has a fear of being killed for her beautiful tattoos. Dr Hayakawa is one of those who wants to possess Orochimaru, though she has turned him down repeatedly. As Kinue's fear - paranoia? - grows, so does her recklessness. She fires her maid for no apparent reason and even goes to the public bath where everyone can see her colorful tattoos. Finally, one night there is an incredibly brutal murder - only a head, arms, and legs are found in Kinue's house. Her torso, with its magnificent tattoos, is missing. Two more murders quickly follow suit. Is there someone hunting for tattoos and perfectly willing to take lives to possess them?

Despite the above description, the story is not that gory. I've seen much worse things in contemporary mysteries and thrillers. Actually, the novel has a decided noir feel to it. There is also a strong sense that you cannot escape your fate no matter how hard you try.

This is easily one of the best mysteries I have ever read. I would really rate it 4 1/2 stars, though, because I got annoyed when the Matsushita brothers (Daiyu and Kenzo), whom I thought were supposed to be the detectives, were deposed in favor of a newcomer, Kyosuki Kamizu, who doesn't make an appearance until page 209. It's almost like Takagi got bored with Daiyu and Kenzo and decided to try someone new. However, I like Kamizu, who does an excellent job reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes or Nero Wolfe, so I'm willing to overlook his late showing.

Highly recommended. I also recommend "Honeymoon to Nowhere," though it is quite different in tone than this.