Strange Pictures

A Novel

By: Uketsu

Narrated by: Andrew Grace

A SPOTIFY BEST MYSTERY AUDIOBOOK OF 2025

“Uketsu is a disrupter, the master of quiet horror.”—Janice Hallett, internationally bestselling author of The Appeal

“Delightfully macabre and fiendishly clever. Seemingly unconnected stories tie themselves into a complicated knot, which Uketsu masterfully unravels.”—G. T. Karber, author of the national bestseller Murdle

The spine-tingling "triumphant international debut" (Publishers Weekly starred review) that has taken Japan by storm—an eerie fresh take on mystery-horror in which a series of seemingly innocent pictures draws you into a disturbing web of unsolved mysteries and shattered psyches.

An exploration of the macabre, where the seemingly mundane takes on a terrifying significance. . . .

A pregnant woman's sketches on a seemingly innocuous blog conceal a chilling warning.

A child's picture of his home contains a dark secret message.

A sketch made by a murder victim in his final moments leads an amateur sleuth down a rabbithole that will reveal a horrifying reality.

Structured around these nine childlike drawings, each holding a disturbing clue, Uketsu invites readers to piece together the mystery behind each and the over-arching backstory that connects them all. Strange Pictures is the internationally bestselling debut from mystery horror YouTube sensation Uketsu—an enigmatic masked figure who has become one of Japan's most talked about contemporary authors.

Translated from the Japanese by Jim Rion.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

It actually works as an audiobook

It is useful to have a hardcopy or the digital copy so that you can look at the pictures, but it makes for a fascinating read nonetheless.

Pretty Cool Concept

I really enjoyed the concept of this book, being able to see the drawigs that are analyzed and trying to figure out the puzzle on my own was pretty cool.

Trying to figure out how everything relates to one another was confusing at first but as you get towards the middle of the story, you start to get how it all relates to one another.

Clever mystery

Right when you think you e figured it out, no you haven’t. Not at all. Such a great and entertaining read. Japanese know how to write mysteries.

Make a cheat sheet of characters!

Damn - I might have to get “Strange Houses” soon. This was a super quick and engaging read. You definitely need to have the ability to suspend belief and let some impossible things go. If you are easygoing in that regard and go into this book for the sole purpose of entertainment, then it will be a worthwhile read. I liked the unique touch with the pictures and the unfolding connections throughout the story. I did have trouble remembering all the characters and who was who which is almost impossible to keep track of via audiobook.

An OK mystery-drama

I feel like this book is overhyped. Bad pop- psychology, mediocre murder mystery elements, just didn’t find it impressive. It’s not bad, just not horror, and not the impressive IMO