Strange Buildings by Uketsu

This is the second book of Uketsu's that I've read. It's his second book in the series, but I'm apparently reading the series backwards (Strange Houses is next on my agenda). I was very excited to read and write about this one because I really enjoyed Strange Pictures. It's probably the first series in a while that I've read, if I'm being honest, so it's definitely sparked that love back in me.

As you can assume from the title, Strange Buildings is, in fact, about strange buildings. It's similar to Strange Pictures in that the reader is presented with eleven case files, and as you read through them, you have to figure out how they're all intertwined. I won’t spoil the mystery, but let me tell you that it’s truly some fucked up shit. 

I really liked the DIY element in this book compared to Strange Pictures. I think Strange Pictures sometimes gave too much away without letting me put my thinking cap on, but Strange Buildings hits a sweet spot. The author gives you enough time to ponder the possibilities of how these odd, misshapen, creepy floor plans relate to the crimes committed. I was so invested in the mysteries that I would find myself stopping to write down the facts and the hypotheticals. 

From cults to infidelity to murder to suspicious accidents, there's so much in this book to sink your teeth into. I think the author has a talent for making seemingly surface-level, normal floor plans come alive off the page. The floorplans, albeit strange, are characters in their own right. Reading this book when I did reminded me a lot of The Backrooms movie that came out recently. There's something so weirdly interesting and oddly satisfying about floor plans that don't make total sense; there's something uncanny about a hallway that leads to nowhere. It makes the hair on my arms stand up. Pulling from The Backrooms, the mystery of the floorplans feels like "...describing a dog to someone who's never seen one, then asking them to draw one." At first, something isn't quite right.

It's the odd details like that make this book so addictive, a true page-turner. You don't even realize you're putting together the clues as you read each case file (I think I'd make a great detective). Uketsu leaves enough breadcrumbs to allow you to fully participate in the book without being spoon-fed. It challenges you and makes you do True Detective-level mental gymnastics. Three things I've learned from reading Strange Buildings: a string phone makes a great, even practical, means of communication; cult leaders are the ultimate salespeople; and debt, sometimes, can never be repaid.