annieb123's Review of Butter

by Asako Yuzuki

'Compelling, delightfully weird, often uncomfortable' PANDORA SYKES

'Unputdownable, breathtakingly original' ERIN KELLY

'I have been glued to Asako Yuzuki's new novel Butter’ NIGEL SLATER

‘A full-fat, Michelin-starred treat’ THE TIMES

The cult Japanese bestseller about a female gourmet cook and serial killer and the journalist intent on cracking her case, inspired by a true story.

There are two things that I can simply not tolerate: feminists and margarine.

Gourmet cook Manako Kajii sits in Tokyo Detention Centre convicted of the serial murders of lonely businessmen, who she is said to have seduced with her delicious home cooking. The case has captured the nation’s imagination but Kajii refuses to speak with the press, entertaining no visitors. That is, until journalist Rika Machida writes a letter asking for her recipe for beef stew and Kajii can’t resist writing back.

Rika, the only woman in her news office, works late each night, rarely cooking more than ramen. As the visits unfold between her and the steely Kajii, they are closer to a masterclass in food than journalistic research. Rika hopes this gastronomic exchange will help her soften Kajii but it seems that she might be the one changing. With each meal she eats, something is awakening in her body, might she and Kaji have more in common than she once thought?

Inspired by the real case of the convicted con woman and serial killer, "The Konkatsu Killer", Asako Yuzuki’s Butter is a vivid, unsettling exploration of misogyny, obsession, romance and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan.

'Luscious … I devoured this' IMOGEN CRIMP

'A salty morsel with one hell of a bite’ ALICE SLATER

‘Nothing short of ingenious’ INEWS

‘Ambitious and unsettling’ GUARDIAN

'It isn’t entirely clear whether to read the novel or devour it’ OBSERVER

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Butter is a trippy foodie real-crime novel by Asako Yuzuki. Released 16th April 2024 by HarperCollins on their Ecco imprint, it's 368 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. Paperback format due out in Feb. 2025 from the same publisher. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

This is a surprisingly philosophical book full of wry observations about life, gender roles, body image, and food (and murder). It's loosely based on the real life, arrest, and convictions of Kanae Kijima who serially seduced, defrauded, and subsequently murdered lonely businessmen over a period of several years in Japan.

Originally published in Japanese in 2017 it gained a cult following. The English language translation work by Polly Barton is seamless and unobtrusive and the prose flows very well.

Classy, cool, and well written, there's nothing frenetic or outré about the book, and it winds up being a lot more psychological and philosophical than murder-y, with deep ruminations on systemic misogyny, fat-shaming-culture, human nature, and society.

Four stars. Weird but very well written.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Reading updates

30 June, 2024: Started reading

30 June, 2024: Finished reading

30 June, 2024: Reviewed