Abstract

--Everyone is so jealous that they want to kill someone. A beautiful girl, Hotaru, throws herself onto the train tracks. Her fleeting death brings regret and tragedy. -- The author, winner of the Excellence Award for the R-18 Literature Award for Women by Women, returns to her roots and digs out the sludge that nests in the hearts of girls with her vivid sensitivity. Three otaku girls attend a girls' school known as the bottom of Kyoto's high school hierarchy, and are treated as the bottom of the school caste system within the school. One day, a breathtakingly beautiful girl, Hotaru, transfers from Tokyo. The three gather in the otaku club, which is only called the biology club in name, and are absorbed in their respective hobbies. Hotaru appears and asks to join, confessing, "I'm an otaku too." The four gradually deepen their bond as friends, but one day, Hotaru jumps onto the train tracks and dies. Years pass without the truth being revealed, and she finds herself entangled in the distortion of the tragedy that Hotaru left behind. This is the first mystery novel by a master of delicate depictions of the young girl's mind.

Author’s Information

Kinachiren was born in 1987 in Kyoto Prefecture. She currently resides in Kyoto Prefecture. She won the Excellence Award in the 9th R-18 Literature Award for Women by Women, presented by Shinchosha, for her short story "It Melted and Withered" while she was still in university. She made her debut with "Static Electricity and Miyako's Unconsciousness" (Gentosha), which depicts the heartbreak and growth of a beautiful girl. Since then, she has written in a wide range of genres, cherishing the subtleties of a girl's heart, widening the scope of her literary expression. Her most recent work is "This is a Flower Story by Hanako for Hanako" (Takarajimasha), a romance mystery set in the room of a reclusive girl and in Kyoto. /