It's here! Browse the 2024 Penguin Christmas gift guide
Villain

Villain

Summary

A young woman is brutally murdered on a remote mountain road. A young construction worker, Yuichi, is on the run - but is he guilty?

This is the dark heart of Japan; a world of seedy sex hotels and decaying seaside towns; a world of loneliness, violence and desperation.

As the police close in on Yuichi and his new lover, the stories of the victim, the murderer and their families are uncovered. But these men and women are never what they appear to be...

Reviews

  • Yoshida has been compared to Stieg Larsson for his pairing of lurid crime and social critique, but his tone is less sensationalist, more melancholic...Yoshida exposes cruelty and alienation at all levels of Japanese society
    New Yorker

About the author

Shuichi Yoshida

Learn More

More from this Author

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more