THE TIMES BESTSELLER

SHORTLISTED FOR WATERSTONES BOOK OF THE YEAR

'So captivating I read it in a day. So disturbing I thought about it all night' - Janice Hallett, author of The Appeal

'The twists of a Golden Age whodunit, mixed with a wonderfully innovative use of illustrations. Delightfully macabre and fiendishly clever' - G.T. Karber, author of Murdle

A Japanese mystery bestseller, revolving around a series of creepy drawings, in which the reader is the detective - from the YouTube sensation Uketsu

A series of drawings made by a young woman before her death.

A child's disturbing picture of his home.

A desperate sketch made by a murder victim in his final moments.

Each contains a chilling warning.

Each reveals a terrible secret, hidden in plain sight.

Uketsu's eerie mysteries have captivated millions of readers. Can you find the clues in these strange pictures and uncover the sinister truth that connects them all?

Readers love Strange Pictures:

'Unlike anything I've read before... Insanely clever and imaginative'

'This unputdownable read delivers a perfectly constructed puzzle that comes together with a fantastic precision... The strange pictures are truly mesmerizing!'

'This was eerie and so, so clever! I was hooked'



Uketsu is an enigmatic Youtuber and author, specializing in horror and mystery. He always appear in videos wearing a white mask and black body stocking, with his voice digitally distorted. His true identity is unknown. Strange Pictures has already sold more than 600,000 copies in Japan and the foreign translation rights are being quickly bought up across the world. Strange Houses is now available from Pushkin Vertigo, and Strange Buildings is forthcoming.Jim Rion is an American translator and writer living in the beautiful western Japan prefecture of Yamaguchi with his wife, son, and cats of unusual size. His translations for Pushkin Vertigo include Strange Pictures by Uketsu and The Devil's Flute Murders by Seishi Yokomizo.



This Japanese sensation explores a series of nine mysteries through eerie images



Uketsu's strange riddles are chilling and addictive - I couldn't put it down



This refreshingly original, eerie treat of a puzzle invites the reader to immerse themselves in the darkest of mysteries. So captivating I read it in a day. So disturbing I thought about it all night. Uketsu is a disrupter, the master of quiet horror



A macabre, unsettling box of tricks



A labyrinthine and multilayered horror mystery... The entire mystery is wonderfully complex and carefully crafted... This is a story where revelations and new questions wait around every corner, and Uketsu keeps readers guessing until the very end



A creepy little delight of a brainteaser... Innovative and a lot of fun



He's the biggest crime writer in Japan - now Uketsu's work is set to become a UK sensation... Strange Pictures is a collection of eerie mystery stories, ingeniously connected to each other in ways that only become apparent towards the end of the book... It is certainly an enjoyably discomfiting read: Uketsu has the ability to evoke a sense of mounting unease



I loved it! It has the twists and fair-play style of a Golden Age whodunit, mixed with a wonderfully innovative use of illustrations. Delightfully macabre and fiendishly clever. Seemingly unconnected stories tie themselves into a complicated knot, which Uketsu masterfully unravels



Part Rubik's Cube, part Russian doll, part kaleidoscope and altogether irresistible. Strange Pictures is heady, giddy, genre-blurring stuff and so fizzy with invention and possibility that I almost pity the next novel I read



A superlative puzzle made of multiple parts that interconnect in unexpected ways, told inventively through pictures and text. Every twist and turn steepens the sense of foreboding. Original, intricate and deeply unsettling. I've never read anything like it



Absolutely loved this clever little banger. An addictive murder mystery that unfolds like pointillism on the page: only when you reach the end, step back and view the bigger picture does each of its parts click into place. Exceptional!



A Japanese sensation...I felt like this was Professor Layton's Brain Training in a book, I felt like this was a million New York Times crosswords in one. I just really liked this, it was really immersive, I think that if you have a very analytical brain, you will enjoy this too



An intricately woven, at times unsettling, but always mesmerising piece of work



Uketsu understands how to build slow dread in a way that keeps you captivated... I can confidently say that I've never read anything like 'Strange Pictures' before. Uketsu has crafted a unique and engaging novel that will appeal to those armchair detectives out there. The brightly packaged book gives way to a deep and twisty mystery that requires you to put your brain into action and pay close attention



It reveals its structure slowly and teasingly. Cult appeal awaits it



Not many books come up with different concepts or moods to surprise me these days, but this patchwork of crime and horror from Japan certainly did... Think Manga meets Golden Age meets Murdle and more! Innovative it certainly is!



Uketsu makes a triumphant international debut with this eerie chiller...A series of delightfully creepy illustrations and diagrams and the interconnected stories of their creators [allow] the reader to play detective alongside the characters...but this book also proves greater than the sum of its visual tricks, with a surprisingly strong emotional core that will keep readers glued to the page until the unsettling conclusion. This intricate puzzle box is a must for horror fans



A chilling and immersive mystery that invites readers to become the detective, uncovering secrets hidden in eerie illustrations... The narrative unfolds with a quiet intensity, gradually tightening its grip as each chilling revelation comes to light



The highly satisfying kind of puzzle that might send readers scrambling for pen and notebook to jot down the connections between characters and events... An engrossing mystery and suspense novel that comes to a deeply gratifying conclusion



An eerie reading experience like we've never seen before



A terrifying sketch mystery in which nine bizarre pictures are intertwined and a terrifying truth emerges



I inhaled this unique mystery from Japan... I couldn't put it down! So original!... The twists are so good. It made me gasp a few times when dots were connected! Loved this!!



A book like no other I've ever read... very engaging but with unpredictable plot twists... It's definitely a unique one that I think will shake the bookish world



I'm hooked on these chilling and twisted mysteries. Give me everything Uketsu writes - I'll read it in a single day, and I will not be accepting interruptions



For fans of mystery with a pinch of horror, Uketsu throws in delicious shivers. He is very much in control of the hair at the back of your neck... In Uketsu's world, everything we seem to know turn into strange puzzles