Spider Lily: Six Toxic Tales from Japan

By Andrew Innes

The most beautiful flowers hide the deadliest poisons.

In The Sakura Car, a young employee at Sankyo Trains is shocked when the company announces plans to scrap its women-only carriage. A promotional video shifts blame onto women's behaviour rather than the perpetrators that the carriage was created to protect them from.

In Spider Lily, a young girl discovers what she believes to be a space rocket at the base of a nearby mountain. As her paranoia increases, the grip of a local business owner tightens around her family.

In The Language of Flowers, an elderly woman in feudal Kyoto with unmatched knowledge of ikebana seeks formal recognition from the Ikenobou school, only to be rejected by its patriarchal leadership.

In The Hand of Dog, Mizuki discovers the sexist beginnings of the game of Go. As she rises through the ranks of a national tournament, she must come to terms with a devastating dilemma: pursue glory or save her companion and integrity.

In The Second Law of Kansai Dynamics, an old man embarks on a surreal quest involving kabuki dreams, manzai routines and cryptic advice from drunken strangers.

In #Coerced, Idol singer Himawari is forced to shave her head and issue a tearful apology video after violating her agency's no-dating rule. The PR team's manipulation of events is ruthless, but a viral YouTuber uncovers something that doesn't align with the official narrative.

From sexist bosses to sentient bosses, Spider Lily reveals the dark side of beauty.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0FTWSDZFD
• ISBN13: 9798266574427
• Release Date: October 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 316 Pages
• Weight: 0.93 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"