She can’t just run away, and she is embarrassed to go back to her family. But that is not the way it works in Japan. Had this been me, in North American, I would have lasted a day then gotten an annulment and GTFOd on down the road. She is very much in love with her husband, and wants to please her new family. What I loved about this book is the fact that when you look at the culture that the main character is in, it is easy to understand her desire to explain all of the things that she is experiencing away. When all is revealed, it will leave you wanting a shower. Noriko begins to feel like she’s going crazy, wavering between explaining it all away and being gripped with paranoia as she begins to ask more questions. On top of that, the family seems to have a little side business growing in the back garden, and she begins to question what exactly is growing in the greenhouse. Overwhelmed and a little homesick, she begins to become suspicious when an explosion takes the life of a nearby family and her new family is acting a little but shady. At first, she is intimidated by marrying in to such a large family, especially when they suggest that she moves in with all of them. Now You’re One of Us is centered around Noriko, who marries into the wealthy and prominent Shito family. If its’s a Japanese one with a history, the brace yourself: some surprising truths lurk around the corner. All families have their own rituals, secrets, and credos, like a miniature religious cult these quirks may elicit the mirth or mild alarm of guests, but the matter is rather more serious if you’re marrying into a household. In the tradition of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca and Ira Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby, here is a new classic about the bride who’s no longer sure what to think.

Now You're One of Us by Asa Nonami