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Title details for Cult X by Fuminori Nakamura - Available

Cult X

by Fuminori Nakamura
Kalau Almony
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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The magnum opus by Akutagawa Prize-winner Fuminori Nakamura, Cult X is a story that dives into the psychology of fringe religion, obsession, and social disaffection. When Toru Narazaki's girlfriend, Ryoko, disappears, he tries to track her down, despite the warnings of a private detective he's hired to find her. Ryoko's past is shrouded in mystery, but the one concrete clue to her whereabouts is a previous address where she lived: in a compound in the heart of Tokyo, with a group that seems to be a cult led by a charismatic guru with a revisionist Buddhist scheme of life, death, and society. Narazaki plunges into the secretive world of the cult, ready to expose himself to any of the guru's brainwashing tactics if it means he can learn the truth about Ryoko. But the cult isn't what he expected, and he has no idea of the bubbling violence beneath its surface. Inspired by the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway, Cult X is an exploration of what draws individuals into extremism. This multi-faceted novel is nothing less than a tour de force, capturing the connections between astrophysics, neuroscience, and religion. It is an invective against predatory corporate consumerism and exploitative geopolitics, and it is a love story about compassion in the face of nihilism.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    May 22, 2018

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781501987434
      • File size: 416529 KB
      • Duration: 14:27:46

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      March 26, 2018
      A man’s search for his missing girlfriend drives this gripping novel from Nakamura (The Boy in the Earth). After Ryoko Tachibina disappears from Toru Narazaki’s life after hinting that she is going to kill herself, he gets a lead on her potential whereabouts from a PI friend, who reports that she was a member of a mysterious religious organization in Tokyo—the kind “people didn’t hear many good things about.” When Toru goes to its headquarters, he’s told that, while Ryoko had been there, she was actually a member of a rival group—a “nameless cult,” labelled simply “X” by Japan’s Public Security Bureau. As Toru continues his quest for the truth about Ryoko’s loyalties, he learns more about X, which proves to pose a threat to the entire country. Though lengthy digressions in the form of transcribed lectures about faith and science demand some patience, and some readers may be uncomfortable with the explicit sex scenes, this noirish thriller will resonate with Ryu Murakami fans.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Where has Toru Narazaki's girlfriend, Ryoko, gone? The question at the heart of this thriller takes us into the fringes of Japanese culture through the capable narration of Brian Nishii. His steady, measured pace reflects the reserved nature of Japanese society. This quality adds to the puzzle of Ryoko's disappearance and her murky past. Nishii is a dependable guide through whom we experience Toru's growing desperation to find out what happened to Ryoko. Is she a willing participant in a dark cult? Or has she been coerced back to her former life? Nishii's delivery brings across Toru's rising panic when the cult appears to have terrorist intentions. Both plot and narration work together to ratchet up this listening experience. M.R. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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