‘Tender and thrilling it’s Yuzuki at her best’ ELLE

‘I couldn't stop reading’ COSTANZA CASATI

‘Unsettling, compelling, richly written’ JODIE HARSH

‘Dark, tender, unforgettable’ JANE CASEY

The unmissable new novel of friendship and dangerous obsession from Asako Yuzuki, the award-winning author of the global bestselling 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, 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 eating convenience-store food and her untidy home are the opposite of the typical Japanese housewife’s manicured lifestyle. When Eriko tracks Shōko down at her favourite restaurant and befriends her, Shōko is at first charmed by her new companion. But soon Eriko's obsession with Shōko begins to spiral out of control, threatening her carefully laid plans. How far will she go to hold on to the best friend she’s ever had?

Beautifully translated by Polly Barton, Hooked is an unsettling story of the line between friendship and dangerous obsession, and a delicious exploration of food, loneliness and womanhood in contemporary Japan.

A most anticipated book of 2026 in Vogue, Guardian, New York Times, Forbes, The Times, Sunday Times Style, Elle, Stylist, BBC, Grazia, Bricks Magazine, Radio Times, LitHub, Oprah Daily and Daily Express.

‘The kind of book you press into your friends’ hands, desperate to dissect it’ ERIN KELLY, author of The House of Mirrors

‘An exciting new thriller that you won't be able to put down’ RADIO TIMES

‘Expect to see this distinctive pink cover everywhere’ GRAZIA

‘[A] razor-edged story about women, appetite and what we'll do to feel chosen … Safe to say, we're already hooked’ OPRAH DAILY

‘No one writes about the hidden depths and lurking monstrosities of womanhood quite like Asako Yuzuki’ ALICE SLATER, author of Let the Bad Times Roll

‘A thrilling and deliciously sharp examination of the extremes of female friendship. Achingly tender and wickedly funny’ EDEL COFFEY, author of In Glass Houses

‘Dark, spiny and slippery, this haunting tale of loneliness and longing in the modern age will leave you gasping’ TOBI COVENTRY, author of He’s the Devil

Praise for Hooked:

‘Obsession, tension and toxic loneliness: Hooked had me in a headlock. No one writes about the hidden depths and lurking monstrosities of womanhood quite like Asako Yuzuki’ Alice Slater, author of Let the Bad Times Roll

‘A brilliant, shocking, unforgettable page turner … I couldn't stop reading’ Costanza Casati, author of Babylonia

‘An exciting new thriller that you won’t be able to put down’ Radio Times

‘Remember seeing Butter all over your commute? A similar hype surrounds the follow-up, Hooked … Tender and thrilling it’s Yuzuki at her best’ Elle

‘Another page-turner, and I'd recommend adding it to your reading lists immediately’ Daily Express

‘The author of the international sensation Butter returns with another razor-edged story about women, appetite, and what we’ll do to feel chosen … Safe to say, we’re already hooked’ Oprah Daily

‘A thrilling and deliciously sharp examination of the extremes of female friendship. Achingly tender and wickedly funny’ Edel Coffey, author of In Glass Houses

‘An ominous obsession hangs like a shadow over Hooked, but it's the delicate exploration of female friendship that makes this novel remarkable. Dark, tender and unforgettable’ Jane Casey, author of The Secret Room

‘The most stressful fun I’ve ever had reading a book … Another gripping, singular slice of contemporary life from Asako Yuzuki’ Jodie Matthews, author of Meet Me at the Surface

‘The kind of book you press into your friends’ hands, desperate to dissect it’ Erin Kelly, author of The House of Mirrors

‘I loved this intense and claustrophobic story of loneliness, identity and obsession’ Lucy Diamond, author of The Island Getaway

‘Dark, spiny and slippery, this haunting tale of loneliness and longing in the modern age will leave you gasping’ Tobi Coventry, author of He’s the Devil

Asako Yuzuki is the author of Butter, her first novel translated into English, which became a no.1 Sunday Times bestseller. It 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.

She won the All Yomimono Award for New Writers for her story, ‘Forget Me, Not Blue’, which appeared in her debut, Shuuten No Anoko. She has been nominated multiple times for the Naoki Prize, and her novels have been adapted for television, radio and film.