Jewelry Sensho 1 Akimitsu Takagi Tattoo Murder

One of Japan's most popular mystery writers offers "fastidiously executed scenes of decadence" in a "tale of sexual obsession" (The New York Times Book Review).

Kinue Nomura survived World War II only to be murdered in Tokyo, her severed limbs discovered in a room locked from the inside. Gone was the part of her that had one of the most beautiful full-body tattoos ever made. Kenzo Matsushita, a young doctor who was the first to discover the crime scene, feels compelled to help his detective brother, who is in charge of the case. But Kenzo has a secret: he was Kinue's lover, and soon his involvement in the investigation becomes as twisted and complex as the twisted snakes that once adorned Kinue's torso.

The Tattoo Murder Case was originally published in 1948.

"Clever, kinky, highly entertaining". -The Washington Post Book World

"A delightful and different book, not only because of its unusual setting and premise, but because Takagi is a powerful plotter and builder of fascinating and complex characters." -The A.V. Club

"It has all the mind-bending cleverness and dazzling artifice of the Golden Age of mystery, spiced with voyeuristic close-ups of a dying art in which postwar Japan still reigns supreme: full-body tattoos.... Intricate, fantastic and totally absorbing. More, please." -Kirkus Reviews