Murder in the Age of Enlightenment: Essential Stories

Madness, murder and obsession: a stylishly original and fantastical collection of stories from an iconic Japanese writer From a nobleman´s court, to the garden of paradise, to a lantern festival in Tokyo, these stories offer dazzling glimpses into moments of madness, murder and obsession. A talented yet spiteful painter is given over to depravity in pursuit of artistic brilliance. In the depth of hell, a robber spies a single spider´s thread being lowered towards him. When a body is found in an isolated bamboo grove, a kaleidoscopic account of violence and desire begins to unfold. These are short stories from an unparalleled master of the form. Sublimely crafted and stylishly original, Akutagawa´s writing is shot through with a fantastical sensibility. This collection, in a vivid new translation by Bryan Karetnyk, brings together the most essential works from this iconic Japanese writer.