Butter

When my phone ran out of juice before lunch at TGI Fridays, I ran into a bookstore for something to read while eating. I found this engrossing novel by Japanese author Asako Yuzuki. Butter is the story of a young Japanese female serial killer who was known for her culinary skills. Manako Kanjii was convicted of killing three men whom she had been dating. Kanjii was a foodie who loved international brands of butter. The book was published in English in 2024.

The publisher's summary:

The cult Japanese bestseller about a female gourmet cook and serial killer, and the journalist intent on cracking her case, inspired by a true story

There are two things that I simply cannot tolerate: feminists and margarine

Gourmet 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.

Rika, 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?

Inspired by the real case of a convicted con woman and serial killer—the “Konkatsu Killer”—Asako Yuzuki’s Butter is a vivid, unsettling exploration of misogyny, obsession, romance, and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan.

Aside from Manako and Rika, there are other fantastic characters. Rika's best friend Reiko is prominent in the story as is her husband Ryosuke, Rika's boyfriend Kamoto, and mentor Yoshinori Shinoi. Secondary characters Kitamura and Yu work with Rika at Shumeisha, which publishes a weekly magazine called Shumei Weekly. Rika is a journalist but never gets to write stories. She is assigned to do research for other journalists. Rika thinks that if she writes a compelling story on Manoko that she will finally see herself in print. She quietly begins researching Manako, not telling her boss what she is doing. When Reiko advises Rika to write Manoko for a recipe, she receives a letter back asking her to visit her at the prison. A relationship begins between them but Rika has to cook certain recipes to please Manako. One item she hates is margarine. Butter must always be used even though there is a butter shortage throughout Japan. After a few months Manako agrees to an exclusive interview with Rika and Rika continues to visit her all while running the story past Shinoi. 

Rika and Reiko decide to sign up for culinary classes at the school Manako attended, hoping to obtain information for the news story. The two women are having problems with their respective men and all of this gets hashed out throughout the book. Their expectations from men do not allow themselves to be happy. Through their talks, Rika and Reiko confront societal expectations of femininity and body image. Japanese women are supposed to be thin. Manako was plus size and while Rika has always been thin, she gained 10 kilos from her recent cooking. Before the ending Reiko will request a divorce and Rika breaks up with Kamoto. In addition, Rika has issues with how her deceased father lived his life just as Manoko had for her father. She feels that they are similar people.

The pace is slow but I couldn’t stop reading. The story isn't about the crime but rather the relationships between the female characters. Butter is a superb piece of writing and I am rating it 5 out of 5 stars. It's definitely going to be included in my top ten books of 2025.

2025 Color Coded Reading Challenge

The Color Coded Reading Challenge is another one of my favorite challenges. I have been participating in the challenge for many years and it is getting harder to find books with colors in the title. However, I cannot resist rejoining the challenge in 2025.

The challenge is hosted by Bev at the My Reader's Block blog.  She has made the challenge a little easier next year by allowing the color to be in the title, the author’s name or the color to be the dominant color for the cover of the book. 

General Rules:

A) Challenge runs from January 1 through December 31, 2025 and any book read after January 1 may count regardless of when you sign up. You may sign-up any time.

B) Read nine books in the following categories:

1. A book with "Blue" or any shade of Blue in the title/author name/on the cover.

2. A book with "Red" or any shade of Red in the title/author name/on the cover.

3. A book with "Yellow" or any shade of Yellow in the title/author name/on the cover.

4. A book with "Green" or any shade of Green in the title/author name/on the cover.

5. A book with "Brown" or any shade of Brown in the title/author name/on the cover.

6. A book with "Black" or any shade of Black in the title/author name/on the cover.

7. A book with "White" or any shade of White in the title/author name/on the cover.

8. A book with any other color in the title/author name/on the cover.title/on the cover (Purple, Orange, Silver, Pink, etc).

9. A book with a word/image that implies color in the title/author name/on the cover. (Rainbow, Polka-dot, Plaid, Shadow, Paint, Ink, etc). For "implies color" the image implying color should dominate the cover, for instance a large rainbow, a field of flowers, or the image of a painter.

C) Crossovers with other challenges are fine.

D) To Sign Up please fill in the form at the challenge post. If you have a blog, please post about the challenge on your site and enter the url link. You may also enter a link to a Goodreads or Library Thing list, Instagram, etc. If you can't use the form for any reason, you may also sign up by commenting at the challenge post.

E) If you post on Facebook, Instagram, or other social media to log a book, please use #ColorCoded2025.

F) At the beginning of the new year, Bev will put up posts for review links for each color category and the sidebar image will be updated to the new challenge links.

Please join me in the challenge.