Penance Audiobook By Kanae Minato cover art

Penance

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Penance

By: Kanae Minato
Narrated by: Karissa Vacker
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A chilling Japanese psychological thriller and Edgar Award finalist about four women, forever connected by one horrible day in their childhood -- fifteen years later, someone wants to make sure they never forget.

When they were girls, Sae, Maki, Akiko and Yuko were tricked into leaving their friend Emily with a mysterious stranger. Then the unthinkable occurred: Emily was found murdered hours later.

The four friends were never able to describe the stranger to the police; the killer's trail went cold. Asako, the bereaved mother, curses the surviving girls, vowing that they will be the ones to pay for her daughter's murder . . .

Like Confessions, Kanae Minato's award-winning, internationally bestselling debut, Penance is a dark tale of revenge and psychological drama that will leave readers breathless. International Mystery & Crime Thriller & Suspense Psychological Mystery Crime Women Sleuths Suspense Fiction Detective Women's Fiction

Critic reviews

"With echoes of fairy tales and a Rashomon-like narrative structure, Minato's Penance is as ethereal and literary as it is a sharp, tight crime novel."—Literary Hub
"[A] suspenseful psychological melodrama. . . . Filled with strange entwinings of chance and effect, free will and manipulation, the mundane and the bizarre."—The Wall Street Journal
"Minato writes character driven mystery/crime novels that take deep dives into people's psychology--especially girls and women--with an unflinching look at the dark side of humans. I will read any novel she writes."
—BookRiot
"Minato's simple, clear voice highlights the stories' psychological intensity, and themes of powerlessness evolving to strength, duty, and redemption create layers of interest that are perfect for book-group dissection."—Booklist (starred review)
"Moving, tension-filled . . . Minato has crafted an unnerving tale of tragedy, guilt, and penance."—Publishers Weekly
"Kanae Minato is a brilliant storyteller."—Emily St. John Mandel, New York Times bestselling author of Station Eleven

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Thanks to the work of translators and publishers, Japanese literature is now more accessible than ever to English-speaking audiences. If you've ever wanted to learn more about Japanese culture and literature, you cannot go wrong with listening to audiobooks from Japan. We've compiled a list of the most famous Japanese authors who have helped define Japanese literature, and their notable works across genres and time periods.

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... or the Kiyoshi Kurosawa mini-series adaption of this book. Like Confessions, the story's told by multiple narrators. Each is haunted by a tragic event in the past. An event they are never able to escape, especially since one narrator never lets them forget it. The premise is intriguing, but the multiple narratives never come together as a whole, they way they did in Confessions.

The reader's good, for the most part, but does mispronounce Japanese words now and then.

Not as good as Confessions...

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It’s a good psychological book but lacking in the thriller aspect. It’s a lot of unnecessary information about the characters although I like how it was connected in the end. Though without the filler we could have arrived at the conclusion much faster.

We’ll written, but it’s no Confessions

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it feels misogynistic but idk if it’s intentional, cool story and excellent narration, it’s refreshing to not hear classic CoHo style books

omfg girl

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The story was a little circular, a little bit complicated with some of the characters but overall, it was a good adventure.

Another great kanae minoto work

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I would usually not read a book like this, but it came recommended to me, so I wanted to give it a try. I was immediately pulled into this fascinating story after listening to only a few pages. Five 10 year old girls venture out for an afternoon of play at the school grounds when a murder of one of the girls occurs. So many twists and turns to this intriguing plot, which deeply affects the remaining four girl's lives for the next fifteen years. The story is very well written. The narrator really brings the story to life. Her narrative of each character's journey in coping with this unsolved murder is compelling.

Intriguing Book!

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