木製の王子

World-famous painter and sculptor Shirakashi Munenao and his family finally appear in the media after Munenao began accepting interviews and building their strange mansion in the depth of Kyouto's Mt. Hiei. The Shirakashi were mostly living in secrecy before and their inbred family tree draws the public attention. When journalists Kisaragi Uyuu and Anjou Norisada visit their mansion for an article about Munenao's new painting, Shirakashi Akika's severed head is found on her piano. Due to unbroken snow surrounding the mansion, only one of its inhabitants could be the murderer. However, due to huge digital clocks in every room making their movements perfectly rememberable, all of them possess alibis for the hour in which the murder must have been committed!

メルカトルかく語りき

After Another and its unnecessary length deprived me of too much reading time, I felt the urge to read something I knew I'd definitely enjoy in at least some way, so I picked up this second short story collection by Maya Yutaka featuring his arrogant and always brilliant detective Mercator Ayu and his assistant and mystery writer Minagi Sanjou, which was waiting on my desk far too long.

隻眼の少女

Student Taneda Shizuma visits the secluded hot spring village Sugarumura to commit an allegedly romantic suicide. Before his awaited first snow falls though, he encounters the detective-in-training Misasagi Mikage, a 17 year old girl who wants to succeed the name of her deceased mother, a rumored and famous great detective. Soon they wind up in serial murders in the Kotosaki family, the religiously rooted governing family of the village. Mikage sets out for her first case and points out the correct culprit at last. Or so it seems until Shizuma visits the village once more 18 years later...

メルカトルと美袋のための殺人

Mercator Ayu, who himself says his suberb and rapid skills as detective make him tend more towards short stories, and his friend Minagi Sanjou bring the reader 7 of their shared experiences. Most of these are indeed, as the title already hints at, crimes that are constituted the way they are due to Mercator's and/or Minagi's relatedness.

痾

After the ominous murder incident on Kazune Island, Kisaragi Uyuu suffers from post-traumatic memory loss. To get those memories back he continuously finds himself setting temples and shrines on fire. It turns out later that in each remains of those a corpse is found. On top of that Uyuu receives a letter asking what he intends to burn next. Might Uyuu also be a murderer?

夏と冬の奏鳴曲(ソナタ)

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of their idol Mamiya Kazune, a group of people in their forties gather on Kazune Island where they once spend a year together worshipping her. Looking back on their young days they are accompanied by Kisaragi Uyuu and his assistant Maina Touri, who are supposed to interview them and write an article about their reunion. Eventually a decapitated corpse turns up... on a snowy morning in August.

螢

Six members of an occult spot exploration circle plan on staying in the Firefly Mansion located in the thicket of Kyouto's mountain ranges. One of the circle's prospering old boys bought this mansion known for becoming a crime scene ten years ago when a famous composer, the former owner of the mansion, murdered his six performing musicians in one night. What was supposed to be a mere test of courage and an otherwise relaxed camping among the circle members quickly turns into another murder incident.

鴉

After his younger brother Abel returns from a small mountain village not even mentioned on any map and getting murdered shortly afterwards, Kain finds and sneaks into this village to find out the truth behind his brother's life he had there, the reason for his sudden return and the identity of his murderer. His investigations unfold a tale of envy, hatred and hypocrisy...

翼ある闇 メルカトル鮎最後の事件

When the detective Kisarazu Yuuya and his companion and mystery writer Kouzuki Sanetomo arrive at the medieval-ish mansion Souajou, Kisarazu's client has already been killed, just as this client's son, with their heads being cut off and swapped with one body and head found in a locked room. For what sake do the serial murders in the Imakagami family continue? Why all the incomprehensible staging of the murders? And why was Kisarazu hired in the first place?