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Review: Asa Nonami's novel has a strangely hypnotic tone, reminiscent of classic Victorian novels, like "Wuthering Heights." Escalating the suspense and terror, the author infuses the atmosphere of this tale with a morbid curiosity and peril that spans the literary legacy from Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher" to Roland Topor's "The Tenant."

NOW YOU'RE ONE OF US, translated from the author's Japanese novel, is a refreshing read. As a written language, the Japanese are meticulous in choosing the right character to represent precisely what they are trying to convey. The translation is easily accessible to an American audience and the particular choice of adjectives and adverbs puts this novel on a higher literary level. There is an impressive conversation of language. There are just enough words to convey character descriptions and provide a tangible presence for the reader to become emotionally involved. It is a staple of all the titles under the Vertical imprint.

Nonami's haunting tale hinges on a sense of isolation and disorientation as her heroine must deal with these dark issues that linger just below the surface of this family that jointly maintains a pleasant façade. As Noriko begins to question her sanity and the depth of the family's sinister intentions the novel takes on an air of threat that is as lingering as what Shirley Jackson created in "The Lottery" and "The Haunting." There are some interesting twists and enough bizarre moments that make this a more contemporary story, and the final chapter to this odd tale brings the madness to a resounding crescendo.

The extreme elements of the novel aside, Asa Nonami's NOW YOU'RE ONE OF US does for marriage what "Jaws" did for a day at the beach, and males and females alike will surly get a chill out of it.

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