{"title":"Asako Yuzuki","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"butter-a-novel-of-food-and-murder-paperback","title":"Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe cult Japanese bestseller about a female gourmet cook and serial killer, and the journalist intent on cracking her case, inspired by a true story\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere are two things that I simply cannot tolerate: feminists and margarine\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGourmet cook Manako Kajii sits in the Tokyo Detention House convicted of the serial murders of lonely businessmen, whom she is said to have seduced with her delicious home cooking. The case has captured the nation's imagination, but Kajii refuses to speak with the press, entertaining no visitors. That is until journalist Rika Machida writes a letter asking for her recipe for beef stew, and Kajii can't resist writing back. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRika, the only woman in her news office, works late each night, rarely cooking more than ramen. As the visits unfold between her and the steely Kajii, they are closer to a master class in food than journalistic research. Rika hopes this gastronomic exchange will help her soften Kajii, but it seems that Rika might be the one changing. Do she and Kajii have more in common than she once thought? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eInspired by the real case of a convicted con woman and serial killer--the \"Konkatsu Killer\"--Asako Yuzuki's \u003cem\u003eButter\u003c\/em\u003e is a vivid, unsettling exploration of misogyny, obsession, romance, and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101229813983,"sku":"9780063236417","price":19.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/ubPVoTCRYF9780063236417.webp?v=1781068514"},{"product_id":"hooked-a-novel-of-obsession-paperback","title":"Hooked: A Novel of Obsession - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Paperback Original\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNamed a Most Anticipated Book by \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eForbes\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003e Oprah Daily, Lit Hub\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eFrom the author of the international bestseller \u003ci\u003eButter \u003c\/i\u003ecomes a chilling and perceptive novel about obsession, female friendship, and the slow unraveling of two lives\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEriko's life looks perfect--from her prestigious job at a Japanese trading firm to her spotless apartment and devoted parents. Her newest project, to reintroduce the controversial Nile Perch into the Japanese market, is as ambitious as she is. But beneath her flawless surface lies a consuming loneliness. Eriko has never been able to hold on to a real friend.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eEnter Shoko: a popular lifestyle blogger whose work Eriko follows obsessively. Shoko lives a life of controlled chaos--messy apartment, take-out dinners, a kind, easy-going husband. She writes about daily contentment, though her fractured relationship with her father gnaws at the edges of her happiness.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen Eriko orchestrates a \"chance\" meeting with Shoko, the two women strike up an unlikely connection. For a fleeting moment, Eriko believes she's finally found what she's always longed for. But as her fascination turns to fixation and Shoko's carefully balanced life begins to dissolve, both women are pushed to breaking points neither of them saw coming.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDeftly translated by Polly Barton, \u003ci\u003eHooked\u003c\/i\u003e is a taut, provocative novel about modern womanhood, the hunger for connection, and the quiet, ordinary ways our lives can spiral out of control. With razor-sharp insight and disarming empathy, Asako Yuzuki explores how far we'll go to be seen and what happens when the ones who see us don't like what they find.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50101821997279,"sku":"9780063442412","price":22.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/ssc0gd0AWU9780063442412.webp?v=1781075706"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/asako-yuzuki.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}