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Bullet Train by Kotaro Isaka
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Bullet Train

A Novel

$20.99

Retail price: $22.95

Discount: 8%

This title is not eligible for purchase with membership credits. Why?

Narrator Pun Bandhu

This audiobook uses AI narration.

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Translator Sam Malissa
Length 13 hours 38 minutes
Language English
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A dark, satirical thriller by the bestselling Japanese author, following the perilous train ride of five highly motivated assassins—now a major film starring Brad Pitt, Lady Gaga, Joey King, and Sandra Bullock

Nanao, nicknamed Ladybug—the self-proclaimed “unluckiest assassin in the world”—boards a bullet train from Tokyo to Morioka with one simple task: grab a suitcase and get off at the next stop. Unbeknownst to him, the deadly duo Tangerine and Lemon are also after the very same suitcase—and they are not the only dangerous passengers onboard.

Satoshi, “the Prince,” with the looks of an innocent schoolboy and the mind of a viciously cunning psychopath, is also in the mix and has history with some of the others. Risk fuels him as does a good philosophical debate—like, is killing really wrong?

Chasing the Prince is another assassin with a score to settle for the time the Prince casually pushed a young boy off of a roof, leaving him comatose. When the five assassins discover they are all on the same train, they realize their missions are not as unrelated as they first appear.

A massive bestseller in Japan, Bullet Train is an original and propulsive thriller that fizzes with an incredible energy and surprising humor as its complex net of double-crosses and twists unwind.

Award-winning author Kotaro Isaka takes listeners on a tension-packed journey as the bullet train hurtles toward its final destination. Who will make it off the train alive—and what awaits them at the last stop?

Kotaro Isaka is a bestselling and multi-award-winning writer whose books have sold millions of copies around the world. He has won the Shincho Mystery Club Award, the Mystery Writers of Japan Award, the Japan Booksellers’ Award, and the Yamamoto Shugoro Prize. His novel Bullet Train is an international bestseller and the basis for an upcoming major film from Sony Pictures, starring Brad Pitt and Joey King.

Sam Malissa holds a PhD in Japanese Literature from Yale University. He has translated fiction by Toshiki Okada, Shun Medoruma, and Hideo Furukawa, among others.

Illustration of person sitting

Shop small, give big!

With credit bundles, you choose the number of credits and your recipient picks their audiobooks—all in support of local bookstores.

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Limited-time offer

Get two free audiobooks!

Now’s a great time to shop indie. When you start a new one credit per month membership supporting local bookstores with promo code SWITCH, we’ll give you two bonus audiobook credits at sign-up.

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Reviews

“High-speed…with lots of twists and turns…It has a Tarantino-meets-the-Coen-Brothers feel to it.”

“Off-beat, fast-paced, and humorous…unlike any other thriller you’ll find on the bookshelves.”

“It’s fast, deadly, and loads of fun…at once outlandish and virtuoso.”

“The setting of a train keeps all the action cooped up. That, in turn, ramps the suspense up tenfold.”

“Isaka keeps the suspense high throughout. Fans of intricate action fiction will be enthralled.”

“Breakneck pacing, masterful character development, and well-timed comic relief set Isaka’s pitch-perfect (and seamlessly translated) thriller up for blockbuster status.”

“There is a graceful elegance to Pun Bandhu’s narration…Bandhu’s performance complements author Kotaro Isaka’s taut dialogue and superb plot. Throughout, Bandhu’s unique personas and subtly defined voices deftly capture the listener’s imagination.”

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Give audiobooks, support local bookstores! Start gifting