Asako Yuzuki

'There are two things that I can simply not tolerate: feminists and margarine.’

A Japanese bestseller, Butter is the story of gourmet cook and serial killer Manako Kajii. Convicted of seducing lonely businessmen with her cooking and killing them for their money, Manako is incarcerated in Tokyo Detention Centre, refusing visitors. That is until journalist Rika Machida writes to her asking for her beef stew recipe and Manako can’t resist. Rika thinks she’s about to get the biggest scoop of her career but when she begins taking Manako’s cooking advice it seems Rika’s life is about to change in ways she never expected. Funny, feminist and absolutely mouthwatering, Butter is inspired by the real-life case of ‘The Konkatsu Killer’.

Asako Yuzuki is a novelist and short story writer. Her story 'Forget Me, Not Blue' won the All Yomimono Award for New Writers. Her novel Nile Perch Women's Club won the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize. Several of her books (including Butter) have been nominated for the Naoki Prize and many have been adapted for radio, film and television.

Hosted by Caroline Magennis, Associate Professor in Contemporary Literature at the University of Salford and author of Harpy: A Manifesto for Childfree Women. Presented in partnership with The Japan Foundation and 4th Estate.