The Magician

Name: The Magician
ISBN: 9787513307468

Edogawa Ranpo / Wang HuamaoNew Star Press · ChinaApr 2016

3.9

Word count: 126K words
Chapters: 59
ISBN: 9787513307468

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Summary

The Magician is Volume 8 of the Edogawa Rampo Collection. This time, the famed detective faces the greatest adversary of his career. Seeking revenge, the magician sets a trap shrouded in impenetrable fog. At the bloody murder scene, a mournful flute sounds; the corpse is strewn with exquisite cherry blossoms. There is an ingeniously designed prison boat, a guillotine on the bell tower as if possessed by magic, a beautiful woman dismembered in a public performance, and a red-banded serpent crawling out of the mangled corpse. The magician's ever-changing trickery bewilders everyone's eyes—will Akechi see through it all, unmask the killer, and escape unharmed?

Editor's review

The Magician is one of the volumes in Edogawa Ranpo's collected works, and its main draw is a battle of wits between a famous detective and a worthy opponent. As the brief introduction shows, the story takes revenge as its motive and piles up bizarre elements one after another—bloody murders, a flute’s sound, cherry blossoms, the Prison Gate Boat, the guillotine, and a public dismemberment—to create a typically Ranpoesque atmosphere of the grotesque and the bewitching. Its value for readers lies not in the strict procedures of realistic criminal investigation but in a “magical” stage of crime: the killer uses shifting tricks to confuse everyone, while the detective must see through the apparatus amid the fog. Readers who enjoy the puzzle interest of honkaku mystery, an aesthetics of the strange, and tight confrontations will find it easier to enter; those expecting socially realistic fiction or gentle everyday mysteries should adjust their expectations. It is best read as one piece in the sequence of Ranpo’s works, with attention to how the author uses visual scenes to heighten suspense.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who like Edogawa Ranpo and Japanese weird mystery fiction
Mystery fans who prefer honkaku puzzles and detective-versus-archrival duels
Readers who can accept grotesque crime scenes and staged suspense
Readers who want to understand Ranpo’s style and fill in the volumes of his collected works

Not a good fit for

Readers sensitive to grotesque descriptions such as bloody dismemberment
Readers who prefer socially realistic mystery or light everyday mysteries
Readers expecting rigorous realistic investigative procedure and scientific forensics

Reading tips

Start by treating it as one piece in Ranpo’s collected works, and read the surrounding volumes as interest dictates.
Watch for foreshadowing of the magic tricks and the repeated appearance of stage props.
Slow down when you reach grotesque scenes; there is no need to finish it in one night.
After reading, look back at key scenes and sort out the killer’s scheme and the points where the detective sees through it.

About the publisher

New Star Press China · Founded in 1989

New Star Press focuses on classic works, mystery and detective fiction, science fiction, history, foreign literature and art, and its 602 titles in the library show a balance between popular reading and humanistic depth. Representative books include The Complete Works of Shakespeare: Illustrated Collector's Edition, And Then There Were None, Murder on the Orient Express, The Player of Games, Local Government in Qing China, A Good Man Is Hard to Find and A Collection of Fine Ukiyo-e Prints, spanning classic literature, detective fiction, science fiction, local history and visual art. Its authors and contributors include William Shakespeare, Agatha Christie and Iain M. Banks, as well as translators such as Zhu Shenghao and Su Fuzhong and illustrators such as John Gilbert and George Cruikshank. Known for the detective series Midnight Library and for social-science and humanities titles, the press emphasizes edition design and reading experience; public information is limited, so this profile highlights the publishing features reflected in the library's books.

版权信息
出版前言
总导读
魔术师
作者的话
美丽的友人
猝不及防
幽灵信件
红猫
凄惨画
巨人手印
狱门舟
没有窗户的房间
人肉面具
水，水，水
钟塔
名侦探溺水身亡
古怪的文字
第三次行凶
幽灵塔
断头台
美女分尸
花园洋子
大魔术
麻袋
奇特的逃生术
明智小五郎
阁楼里的追捕
五彩雪
杀人电影
耐人寻味的交易
钻石
杀人电影
水淹地下室
恐怖的遗书
燃烧的骸骨
深夜女访客
地下瀑布
地上与地下
苦战恶斗
消失的千金
震怒的魔术师
八对一
毒蛇
濒死之苦
斑纹蛇
明智小五郎
噩梦
无奇不有
暴露
非同寻常的逮捕行动
绯红的布帘
真凶
墙上的洞孔
意外的共犯
大团圆
《魔术师》解题
孤独的呢喃
乱步变幻

FAQ

Do I need to read other Ranpo works first?

The materials identify it as the eighth volume of the collected works, and the story centers on a duel between a famous detective and a magician. It can usually be read on its own, but familiarity with the detective’s setup in the series will make the relationships and the tension of the confrontation easier to understand.

Are there many grotesque descriptions in the book?

The introduction explicitly mentions bloody murders, the guillotine, and a public dismemberment into five parts, indicating that grotesque scenes are part of the story’s atmosphere. Readers sensitive to bloody descriptions should choose carefully or learn about Ranpo’s overall style first before deciding.

Is the mystery more honkaku or socially realistic?

Judging from the magic tricks, the密室-like stage, and the battle of wits between the detective and his archrival in the introduction, it leans more toward honkaku puzzles and bizarre crime narrative than socially realistic writing. Readers can adjust their expectations accordingly.

Is it suitable for mystery beginners?

It can serve as one entry point for understanding Ranpo’s style, but grotesque elements are prominent. If you are new to mystery fiction, it is advisable to confirm that you can accept weird crime descriptions before starting this work.

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About the author

Edogawa Ranpo Author · Japanese · 1894–1965

Edogawa Ranpo, whose real name was Hirai Tarō, was born in Mie Prefecture, Japan, in 1894 and died of a cerebral hemorrhage in 1965. He is a pioneer of Japanese detective fiction. In 1923 he entered the literary world with The Two-Sen Copper Coin and created the famous detective Akechi Kogorō; he founded the Japan Writers' Association of Mystery and the Edogawa Ranpo Prize, and is known as the father of Japanese detective fiction. His works span mystery and detective fiction, foreign literature, and inspirational growth. Representative works include The Blind Beast, The D-Slope Murder Case: Akechi Kogorō Case 01, The Human Chair, Fangs: The Boy Detectives Club 05, The Boy Detectives Club, Ranpo's Masterpiece Short Stories (six volumes), and The Black Lizard: Akechi Kogorō Case 09. He was skilled at creating eerie atmospheres and exploring the dark and bizarre sides of human nature, exerting a profound influence on Japanese detective literature.

Wang Huamao Author · Taiwan, China

Wang Huamao is a full-time Taiwanese translator of Japanese literature who lives in eastern Taiwan. Public information about Wang is limited, and no birth or death dates or educational background are recorded, but the more than ten translated works in the database show a long-standing focus on rendering Japanese literature into Chinese. The subjects covered are wide, spanning foreign literature, documentary writing, mystery and detective fiction, and classic works. They include literary and mystery classics such as the collected works of Ibuse Masuji, The Strange Tale of Panorama Island, The Human Chair, and The Black Lizard, as well as documentary works such as Black Rain and The Stalker Murder Case in Okegawa, along with titles like The Gun and Chocolate and Bookstore Gengetsu: The Daytime Heat. The translations balance literary quality with readability, maintaining a steady linguistic texture across both detective fiction and pure literature and offering Chinese-language readers a reliable path into modern and contemporary Japanese writing.