The Decagon House Murders Quotes
"Honkaku refers to a form of the detective story that is not only literature but also, to a greater or lesser extent, a game."
"I shall introduce a brief history of Japanese honkaku mystery for the fans of English-language mystery fiction."
"In the latter half of the 1950s, the literary world of the Japanese detective novel was shaken up by a heavy earthquake."
"The most desirable plan was not one that limited your own moves, but a flexible one that could adapt to circumstances."
"Man will always be mere man, and never a god."
"In my opinion, mystery fiction is, at its core, a kind of intellectual game."
"What mystery novels need are—a great detective, a mansion, its shady residents, bloody murders, impossible crimes, and never-before-seen tricks played by the murderer."
"The introduction of suspicious inhabitants of a mansion and the fair presentation of the character profiles right from the start."
"Reality is brimming with too many coincidences and whimsical actions by humans for even the craftiest scheme to succeed exactly as planned."
"Whether he could pull it off depended on his own intellect, quick thinking and, most of all, luck."
"But there’s been just too much effort put into all of this for it to be a simple prank."
"The weather report said it would be clear weather the whole week."
"People tell the same stories all over the world."
"But magic isn’t just about the trick, it’s about performance and misdirection."
"It’s not that I’m not interested. I just haven’t had that many opportunities to see it."
"It wasn’t an accident. We might really be the ones who killed her."
"The biggest hurdle in the case was the fact the Blue Mansion had burnt down completely."
"Two heads are better than one, and three are even better."
"I think it was just an unfortunate accident."
"I’m interested in how the case turns out as well."
"The silence became oppressive. Each was watching for a sign from one of the others, waiting for someone to break into laughter and admit to the deed."
"The criminal—I can use the word, can’t I?—has to be one of us here."
"The seven of us are the only people on the island. Therefore, the person who placed these plates here has to be one of us."
"Sorry, Agatha, could you make us some coffee?"
"It'd be different if it had been some pencil writings on pieces of drawing paper."
"Let's go out and breathe in some fresh air after tea."
"This isn't the first time the seven of us have got together somewhere."
"Can't you keep fiction separate from reality?"
"We shouldn't have come to this island after all."
"They always go their separate ways, except when they’re out to get me, and only then do they work together."
"The only thing we can do is start a fire and hope they find us."
"I haven’t seen a single fishing boat this whole time."
"You may well say that, but for all I know you, or perhaps Van, might be the one who killed Orczy."
"The night is cool / Oh, the harvested rice ears when I wake / My hand pillow / Even both my sleeves in autumn / Blow in the unrelenting wind."
"But a motive for that... there has to be one, however weird it might be."
"The murderer must be mad, insane! We can’t understand the thoughts of a madman!"
"See, nothing wrong with me. Now you too, Agatha."
"It's natural, it's because you're all worked up now."
"Good night, Agatha. Don't forget to lock your door and window."
"Impressive bedside manner, Poe. You'll make a great doctor."
"If I take it too seriously, I might be the next to lose it."
"The only one who knows for sure you're not the murderer is yourself. So you need to look out for yourself."
"You need to take good care of the present he'd sent me."
"There’s something that sets this cup apart. There’s something that makes it fundamentally different from the others."
"The decagon theme in this building was a major piece of misdirection."
"Hiding a single eleven-sided object in a house of decagons. Fantastic joke, right?"
"The murderer waited until everyone had gone to sleep and sneaked into the room where Carr’s body lay."
"So the fact he didn’t do that means he had an important reason to return by sea."
"The last remaining survivors would become suspicious of each other, and might kill each other."
"The gigantic blaze burnt on furiously, trying to scorch the passing clouds."
"We are investigating on that assumption for the moment."
"But now we have found a secret underground room beneath the burnt-down Decagon House with the body of a murdered man inside."
"We now suspect that Nakamura Seiji’s death was a suicide by burning and that the whole tragedy was some sort of group suicide carried out by him."
"A fair face. A fragile body that would break if hugged too strongly."
"Timidly avoiding the eyes of other people, the two of them had loved each other. Silently, but deeply."
"Afraid that the tiny cosmos they shared with each other would shatter if anyone knew about it."
"Without any warning, the selfish, cruel hands of unknown persons had taken the warmth that was his family away to a place he could never reach."
"A light rain fell during the night, but it did not interfere with his plans."
"A fathomless sense of emptiness tortured him, as if something had been ripped away from his heart."
"The waves shining red in the setting sun came from far away to wash against the shore and retreat back from whence they came."