Book Review: 1Q84 (Books 1, 2, and 3)

Title: 1Q84 (Books 1, 2, and 3)
Author: Haruki Murakami
Genre: Dystopian
Book Length: Novel
Book Type: eBook
Year Published: October 25, 2011

Date Started: February 11, 2024
Date finished: February24, 2024

I did’t realize it but I had read the trilogy in one book. This review will encompass all three books.

In book one, we are introduced to the two main characters: a woman named Aomame and a man named Tengo. Aomame is an assassin who has a unique way of killing her subjects. She goes undetected but she’s still nervous about getting found out. While on her way to assassinate a man in a hotel, she notices a change in the sky. She asks a policeman if he notices it, but he doesn’t. She goes on her way and gets the job done. Later, she takes a break and finds herself a man to sleep with. She then later finds a woman who’s into BDSM and ends up in a foursome situation in which she can’t remember a thing about. She then meets a woman by the name, Dowager and begins to work for her.

Tengo is a professor at a university. He has a friend who wants him to rewrite a story in a way that could be published. This friend is an editor/publisher, so in a way, he was able to persuade a hesitant Tengo to write it. Along the way, Tengo meets the original writer and the person with the idea behind this story. They spend a lot of time together with Tengo treating her like a friend because she’s a lot younger than he is and he respects her. Tengo though, is sleeping with an older married woman and enjoys her company as much as she enjoys his. The book Tengo was rewriting gets published and creates a strange secret chaos between two groups of people.

In book two, we are introduced to a few new characters. One of them is a private detective named Ushikawa. He appears to be following Tengo, but he’s also curious about Aomame. He works for a group known as Sakigake whose leader’s name is simply, Leader. Aomame is asked to assassin Leader and does so but learns after his death that she is with child. Not his child, but Tengo’s. She doesn’t know how that happened and it remains a mystery. Book two brings Aomame and Tengo closer. They don’t meet but they live within reach of each other. Neither is aware how close the other one is. More people die but not by Aomame’s hands. The Sakigake have started to follow both Aomame and Tengo closer and it seems they plan to either take down one or both of them. Aomame learns this and she’s prepared to die so that Tengo can live even though she hasn’t met him since their childhood.

Book three ties everything together. Ushikawa is taken down by Aomame’s handler because he (her handler) was responsible for her safety. Ushikawa had figured out that Aomame was living in the same apartment he was and that led him to locate Tengo. It was a tight situation, and her handler took the chance because he couldn’t have her dead. The ending was a bit bland. I was hoping for a real strong conclusion and resolution, but it wasn’t there.

This book was interesting because it referenced the book 1984 multiple times. There was also a lot of sexual activities, so I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone younger than 18. Overall, this was an okay read. There was a lot going on—lots of reflecting, but not so much action. There were some thought provoking points that had me dwell on it a bit, but otherwise, it wasn’t what I had expected.

Who should read this book: If you’re into dystopian, deep-thinking stories, you’ll like this. There were some tasteful action scenes, but otherwise be ready to be emersed in backstory and random thoughts.