10 Books You May Have Missed This Summer

Crop of the cover of Miyuki Miyabe’s The Gate of Sorrows. Image via publisher Haikasoru

6. The Gate of Sorrows

Miyuki Miyabe’s latest work, translated by Jim Hubbert, takes readers to Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward for a paranormal thriller. Though this book is described as a sequel to Miyabe’s previous novel, The Book of Heroes, The Gate of Sorrows can be read as a standalone.

Tokyo’s busiest district has been hit by a string of murders, but retired police detective Shigenori can’t help but be distracted by a gargoyle that seems to move. Meanwhile, Kotaro, a college student, turns to the Internet to begin his own investigation of what’s going on in Shinjuku. All signs point to an abandoned building in the heart of the district…and supernatural creatures from another world alongside more ordinary threats.

Though translated novels sometimes sound stilted, the translation works quite well here. Goodreads praises its slow burn and its ability to make you think about what it’s trying to say. At 600 pages, it asks for a serious commitment, but this one begs to be savored over a week or two, with its mix of more standard mystery and paranormal horror.

Together, The Book of Heroes and The Gate of Sorrows can serve as an entry into Miyabe’s massive oeuvre, with many of her works available in translation like this one.

Haikasoru; hardcover, 600 pages.

Next: 5. The Crown's Game