Out is the first of her novels to appear in English and was nominated for an Edgar Award. Natsuo Kirino lives in Japan.

"Scarily omniscient. . . . Like Walter Mosley, [Kirino] exploits the beat-down potential of the hard-boiled novel to depict life on society's bottom in ways that subtly read as one part social protest, one part sadomasochistic entertainment." -The Village Voice

"A gutsy, unflinching foray into the darkest, most dangerous recesses of the human soul. . . . Riveting, hair-raising . . . definitely not for the faint-of-heart." -Minneapolis Star-Tribune

"Mingling biting feminist commentary with engrossing storytelling . . . a scathing allegory about the subjugation of women in Japanese society and the secret lives this forces them to lead." -The New York Times

"Masterful and psychologically astute." -San Francisco Chronicle

"A brutally realistic picture of contemporary society. . . . Spare, unsentimental." -Newsweek

"So dark, so gruesome . . . it left this reader reeling. No gritty urban American tale of violence can match the horror of Out." -Carol Memmott, USA Today

"Daring and disturbing, Out is prepared to push the limits of this world-not only in violence and sex but also in human outlook. . . . Remarkable." -Los Angeles Times

"Truly a universal tale. . . . Kirino knows not only everybody's business but everybody's mind-her way with interior monologue is pungent and prismatic." -The Village Voice

"Brings the mystery thriller to new levels of intensity and realism. . . . Out has great plot twists, vigor, and an ending that would make Hannibal Lecter smile." -Library Journal (starred review)

"Sensational." -Time Out, NY

"Finally, a masterpiece in this genre . . . . a novel that realistically shows how ordinary people can be drawn into committing brutal crimes." -- Prize Jury, Mystery Writers of Japan

"Forget about flower arranging and geisha girls. . . . Out offers an intriguing look at the darker sides of Japanese society while smashing stereotypes about Japanese women." -Washington Post Book World

"A knuckle-clenching thriller." -Entertainment Weekly

"Grimly satisfying . . . like no one you've ever read before." -Kirkus Reviews

"Out descends beneath the genre's foundation to provide a remarkable series of insights into the forces that drive the charnel house of a postindustrial culture." -American Book Review

"Dark, seductive and occasionally brutal, Out explores the lower classes of Japanese society with a distinctive gallows humor." -Book

"A gutsy, unflinching foray into the darkest, most dangerous recesses of the human soul. And the book's riveting, hair-raising final scenes, although definitely not for the faint-at-heart, serve as an unsettling reminder that the desperate desire for freedom has the potential to set any ordinary individual among us off down a very dark and lonely road." -Minneapolis Star-Tribune

"Out turns the whole subservient geisha image on its head." -Jane

"Absurdly compellingÉa superb and riveting thriller." -Book Trust (UK)

"An exciting, disturbing read. . . . Kirino's Tokyo is an unexpected place, far from the glamorous stereotype." -Telegraph (UK)

"A feminist revenge plot meets social critique and hardcore horror in a startling Japanese mix of satire and sensation."-The Independent (UK)

"A page-turning thriller that at the same time delivers one of the most powerful wallops for feminist literature in recent memory."-Telegraph Magazine (UK)