Out - by Natsuo Kirino

Bought this book about 2 days ago and managed to finish it just about an hour ago. This book is written by Natsuo Kirino and translated by Stephan Snyder, first published in Japanese in 1997.

Just the illustration of the cover is enough to give you the creeps. The front shows the face of a girl, with a blade to her eye, as for the back of the book, it shows the same face of the girl, but instead of the blade to her eye, there is a thin trail of blood.

Every time when I fished out the book to read on the MRT (Singapore's subway), people will begin to look at me in horror, most probably thinking "what is this psycho reading??!!"

Of course, I derived some kick in doing that. ;p

Ok, back to the book, this story portrays 4 women and the hideous crime they have committed and the price they have to pay. The main characters are highly complex and it brings out the sinister side out of every living soul.

Am I capable of killing? I might if I am being pushed to the edge. When it is either to kill or to be killed, are you capable of killing another person?

This book is scary because it shows how very ordinary people might turn to monsters and murderers when they are being pushed to cross the line... ...

Neither ghosts nor ghouls is mentioned, but the auntie next door, whom you see every morning might just be capable of doing anything. Even killing. And that scares the shit out of me.

What an individual is capable of doing to another individual, is scary. Especially when it is committed with a sinister pleasure... ...

If you are looking for a thriller with a different setting (in this case, it's Tokyo), Out is recommended.