THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

"Tender and thrilling — it’s Yuzuki at her best." — ELLE
"Deliciously satisfying." — iPAPER
"Enjoyable and addictive." — INDEPENDENT
"Fantastically dark." — ERIN KELLY

The thrilling new novel of friendship and dangerous obsession from Asako Yuzuki, the award-winning author of the global sensation Butter.

Eriko really wouldn't mind being savaged, if it was her best friend doing the savaging…

Eriko's life appears perfect — devoted parents, a pristine apartment, and a high-flying job in the seafood division of one of Japan's largest trading companies. Her latest project, to reintroduce the controversial Nile perch fish into the Japanese market, is characteristically ambitious. But beneath her flawless surface, she is wracked by loneliness.

Eriko becomes fascinated with a popular blog written by a housewife, Shōko. Shōko’s posts about convenience-store food and her messy home are the opposite of the typical manicured housewife. When Eriko tracks Shōko down at her favourite restaurant, Shōko is at first charmed by her new companion. But soon, Eriko's obsession with Shōko begins to spiral out of control. How far will she go to hold on to the best friend she’s ever had?

Beautifully translated by Polly Barton, Hooked is a delicious exploration of food, loneliness, and womanhood in contemporary Japan.

Anticipated by: Vogue, Guardian, New York Times, The Times, Sunday Times Style, Elle, Stylist, Grazia, and more.

"Expect to see this distinctive pink cover everywhere." — GRAZIA
"A psychological thriller with a social commentary bite." — INDEPENDENT
"Unsettling, compelling, richly written." — JODIE HARSH, author of You Had to Be There
"Translated with crackling verve." — GUARDIAN
"I couldn't stop reading." — COSTANZA CASATI, author of Babylonia
"Stayed with me for weeks." — IRISH TIMES
"Tremendous — an elegantly written … dissection of female friendship." — THE GLOSS
"You can’t fail to be reeled in." — SERVICE95
"Will leave you gasping." — TOBI COVENTRY, author of He’s the Devil
"No one writes about the lurking monstrosities of womanhood quite like Asako Yuzuki." — ALICE SLATER, author of Death of a Bookseller

Note: Asako Yuzuki's previous book Butter was a No. 2 Sunday Times bestseller (w/c 2025-01-06).

About the Author

Asako Yuzuki was born in Tokyo in 1981. She won the All Yomimono Award for New Writers for her story, ‘Forget Me, Not Blue’, which appeared in her debut, Shuuten No Anoko, published in 2010.

She has been nominated multiple times for the Naoko Prize, and her novels have been adapted for television, radio and film. Butter, her first novel translated into English, won Waterstones Book of the Year 2024, the Books Are My Bag Breakthrough Author Award and Fiction Debut of the Year at the British Book Awards, among other accolades.