51 Novels set in Tokyo

1Q84 is a novel written by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami, first published in three volumes in Japan in 2009–10. It covers a fictionalized year of 1984 in parallel with a "real" one. The novel is a story of how a woman named Aomame begins to notice strange changes occurring in the world. She is quickly caught up in a plot involving Sakigake, a religious cult, and her childhood love, Tengo, and embarks on a journey to discover what is "real".

1945 is an alternate history novel by Michigan economics professor Robert Conroy, an author of alternate history novels, such as 1901 and 1862. It was first published in trade paperback and ebook form by Ballantine Books in May 2007. In the novel's point of divergence, the Kyūjō coup overthrew Japanese Emperor Hirohito and so World War II resumed until 1946.

After Dark is a 2004 novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami.

After the Banquet is a 1960 novel by Yukio Mishima.

All She Was Worth is a crime novel by Miyuki Miyabe. It was originally published under the Japanese title "Kasha".

Bicycle Days is the debut novel by American author John Burnham Schwartz published in 1989 on his 24th birthday. It began as an undergraduate thesis for Harvard's East Asian Studies department and became a critically acclaimed bestseller. It was inspired by his time living in Japan.

Breasts and Eggs is a short novel by Mieko Kawakami, published by Bungeishunjū in February 2008. It was awarded the 138th Akutagawa Prize. The original work has not been translated into English.

Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage is the thirteenth novel by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami. Published on 12 April 2013 in Japan, it sold one million copies in one month.

Confessions of a Mask is the second novel by Japanese author Yukio Mishima. First published on 5 July 1949 by Kawade Shobō, it launched him to national fame though he was only in his early twenties.

Crossfire is a novel by Miyuki Miyabe. The novel, published in Japan in 1998, and was published in English by Kodansha America in 2006. The English version was translated by Deborah Stuhr Iwabuchi and Anna Husson Isozaki.

Death by Water is a 2009 novel by Kenzaburō Ōe. It was published in hardcover by Kodansha on 15 December 2009. It was published in paperback in 2012. An English translation by Deborah Boliver Boehm was published in 2015. The novel is the fifth in a series with the main character of Kogito Choko, who can be considered Ōe's literary alter ego.

December 6 is a 2003 thriller novel by American author Martin Cruz Smith.

Demon City Shinjuku is a novel by Hideyuki Kikuchi that was adapted into an original video animation (OVA) in 1988, directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri. The title has also been translated as Hell City Shinjuku and Monster City. It was also released as two manga by ADV Manga in 2003 and 2004. The novel was also released in English in 2011 by Digital Manga Publishing, compiled with its sequel Demon Palace Babylon.

Durarara!! (デュラララ!!), often shortened to DRRR!!, is a Japanese light novel series written by Ryohgo Narita, with illustrations by Suzuhito Yasuda. Durarara!! tells the story of a dullahan working as an underworld courier in Ikebukuro, an internet-based anonymous gang called the Dollars, and the chaos that unfolds around the most dangerous people in Ikebukuro. The series ran for thirteen volumes, published by ASCII Media Works under their Dengeki Bunko imprint. A sequel series, titled Durarara!! SH and set two years after the events of the original series, started in 2014.

The Earthquake Bird is the debut novel by British author Susanna Jones published in 2001. It won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize, a Betty Trask Award, and the Crime Writers' Association John Creasy Dagger. The novel was later adapted by Wash Westmoreland into a film called the Earthquake Bird, which was released by Netflix in November 2019.

The Frolic of the Beasts is a 1961 novel by Yukio Mishima. It is considered a minor work from Mishima's middle period. Drawing inspiration from Noh plays, specifically the 14th-century Motomezuka, the novel centers on a tragic love triangle depraved by adultery and violence. It is a short novel in length and has a nonlinear narrative structure. The novel was first serialised thirteen times in the weekly magazine Shukan Shincho between 12 June 1961 and 4 September 1961. It was published in hardcover format by Shinchosha on 30 September 1961. It was published in paperback by Shincho Bunko on 10 July 1966. The novel was translated into Italian by Lydia Origlia and published by Feltrinelli in September 1983. The novel was translated into English by Andrew Clare and published in paperback format in the United States and Canada by Vintage International on 27 November 2018. Clare's translation was later published in paperback in the United Kingdom by Penguin Modern Classics on 4 April 2019.

Gaku Stories, also published under the title My Boy: A Father's Memories, is an I Novel by Japanese author Makoto Shiina. It was published in 1985 by Shueisha. The same publisher also published a sequel, Zoku Gakumonogatari, in 1986.

Ghostwritten is the first novel published by English author David Mitchell. Published in 1999, it won the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and was widely acclaimed. The story takes place mainly around East Asia, but also moves through Russia, Britain, the USA and Ireland. It is written episodically; each chapter details a different story and central character, although they are all interlinked through seemingly coincidental events. Many of the themes from Ghostwritten continue in Mitchell’s subsequent novels, number9dream and Cloud Atlas, and a character later appears in The Bone Clocks.

The Girl Who Played Go is a 2001 French novel, original published as La Joueuse de Go, by Shan Sa set during the Japanese occupation of Manchuria. It tells the story of a 16-year-old Chinese girl who is exceptionally good at the game of Go, and her game with a young Japanese officer. It was translated into English in 2003 and has been translated into 32 languages in total.

Hachiko Waits is a children's book, written by Lesléa Newman and illustrated by Machiyo Kodaira. It uses the true story of Hachikō the Akita dog from Japan and adds Yasuo, a young boy, to the story. It won several awards.

Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World is a 1985 novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami. It was awarded the Tanizaki Prize in 1985. The English translation by Alfred Birnbaum was released in 1991. A strange and dreamlike novel, its chapters alternate between two narratives—"Hard-Boiled Wonderland" and "The End of the World".

In the Miso Soup is a novel by Ryu Murakami. It was published in 1997 in Japanese, and in 2003 in English. The novel won the Yomiuri Prize for Fiction in 1997.

Kafka on the Shore is a 2002 novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami. Its 2005 English translation was among "The 10 Best Books of 2005" from The New York Times and received the World Fantasy Award for 2006. The book tells the stories of the young Kafka Tamura, a bookish 15-year-old boy who runs away from his Oedipal curse, and Satoru Nakata, an old, disabled man with the uncanny ability to talk to cats. The book incorporates themes of music as a communicative conduit, metaphysics, dreams, fate, the subconscious.

The Lake is a short 1954 novel by the Japanese writer Yasunari Kawabata. This book tells the story of a former schoolteacher named Gimpei Momoi. The Lake was adapted into a film by Yoshishige Yoshida under the title Woman of the Lake.

The Last Children of Tokyo, originally published in Japanese as Kentoshi (献灯使), is a 2014 science fiction novel by Yoko Tawada. The English version translated by Margaret Mitsutani was published in the UK in 2018. It was published in the US as The Emissary.

Life for Sale is a 1968 novel by Yukio Mishima. It was first serialised twenty-one times in the weekly magazine Weekly Playboy between 21 May 1968 and 8 October 1968. It was published in hardcover format by Shueisha on 25 December 1968. It was published in paperback by Chikuma Bunko on 24 February 1998. The novel was translated into English by Stephen Dodd and published in paperback format in the United Kingdom by Penguin Classics on 1 August 2019. The English translation received a wider release in paperback by Vintage International on 21 April 2020.

Listen to Me, Girls. I Am Your Father!, known in Japan as Papa no Iukoto wo Kikinasai! , also known as PapaKiki! (パパ聞き!) for short, is a Japanese light novel series written by Tomohiro Matsu and illustrated by Yuka Nakajima. The first volume was published by Shueisha under their Super Dash Bunko imprint December 2009. As of March 2015, eighteen volumes have been released. A manga adaptation drawn by Yōhei Takemura started serialization in the September 2011 issue of Jump Square, with several spin-off manga series also launching in the same year. An anime television series adaptation by Feel aired in Japan between January 11, 2012 and March 27, 2012, with an original video animation released on June 25, 2013. A video game by Bandai Namco Entertainment was released for the PlayStation Portable on April 26, 2012.

Maria-sama ga Miteru , often shortened to Marimite (マリみて), is a Japanese light novel series written by Oyuki Konno with illustrations by Reine Hibiki. Originally written as a short story in 1997, Shueisha published 37 light novel volumes from April 1998 to April 2012. The story focuses on a group of teenage girls attending the Catholic Lillian Girls' Academy in Tokyo, Japan. Its storyline largely revolves around the lives and close relationships of the school's student council known as the Yamayuri Council.

Men Without Women is a 2014 collection of short stories by Japanese author Haruki Murakami, translated and published in English in 2017. The stories are about men who have lost women in their lives, usually to other men or death. The collection shares its title with Ernest Hemingway's second short story collection.

Mnemosyne , also known as RIN: Daughters of Mnemosyne, is a six-episode Japanese anime television series produced by Xebec and Genco. The anime was produced to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the AT-X network, which it originally aired on. Funimation licensed the series in North America. The plot, rich in the mix of murder and action, is set in modern and near-future Tokyo, and revolves around Rin Asougi, an immortal private investigator. A light novel and a manga adaptation have also been published.

Norwegian Wood is a 1987 novel by Japanese author Haruki Murakami. The novel is a nostalgic story of loss and burgeoning sexuality. It is told from the first-person perspective of Toru Watanabe, who looks back on his days as a college student living in Tokyo. Through Watanabe's reminiscences, readers see him develop relationships with two very different women—the beautiful yet emotionally troubled Naoko, and the outgoing, lively Midori.

number9dream is the second novel by English author David Mitchell. Set in Japan, the 2001 novel narrates 19-year-old Eiji Miyake's search for his father, whom he has never met. Told in the first person by Eiji, it is a coming of age and perception story that breaks convention by juxtaposing Eiji Miyake's actual journey toward identity and understanding with his imaginative journey. The novel employs eclectic narrations in each chapter.

One Morning Like a Bird is the fifth novel by English author, Andrew Miller, released on 4 September 2008 through Sceptre. The novel received mostly positive reviews.

Out (アウト) is a 1997 Japanese crime novel written by Japanese author Natsuo Kirino and published in English in 2004. The novel won the 51st Mystery Writers of Japan Award for Best Novel. It is her first novel to be published in the English language. The book is currently published by Vintage, part of Random House, in Britain and has been translated into English by Stephen Snyder. The English translation was nominated for the 2004 Edgar Award for Best Novel.

Pattern Recognition is a novel by science fiction writer William Gibson published in 2003. Set in August and September 2002, the story follows Cayce Pollard, a 32-year-old marketing consultant who has a psychological sensitivity to corporate symbols. The action takes place in London, Tokyo, and Moscow as Cayce judges the effectiveness of a proposed corporate symbol and is hired to seek the creators of film clips anonymously posted to the internet.

Piercing is a novel by Ryu Murakami. Originally published in Japanese in 1994, it was translated and published in English by Bloomsbury Publishing in 2008. An American film adaptation starring Christopher Abbott and Mia Wasikowska, directed by Nicolas Pesce, was released in 2019.

Ring is a Japanese mystery horror novel by Koji Suzuki first published in 1991, and set in modern-day Japan. The novel was the first in the Ring novel series, and the first of a trilogy, along with two sequels: Spiral (1995) and Loop (1998). The original Ring novel sold 500,000 copies by January 1998, and 1.5 million copies by July 2000. Ring was the basis for the Ring franchise, including a 1995 television film, a 1998 theatrical film of the same name (Ring), a television series, and two international film remakes of the 1998 film: a South Korean version and an English-language version.

The Sea of Fertility is a tetralogy of novels written by the Japanese author Yukio Mishima. The four novels are Spring Snow (1969), Runaway Horses (1969), The Temple of Dawn (1970), and The Decay of the Angel (1971). The series, which Mishima began writing in 1964 and which was his final work, is usually thought of as his masterpiece. Its title refers to the Mare Fecunditatis, a lunar mare.

Shopping is the debut novel by British author Gavin Kramer published in 1998 by Fourth Estate, it won the David Higham Prize, the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize, and was short-listed for the Whitbread First Novel Award.

Spark is a 2015 novel written by Japanese comedian Naoki Matayoshi. The story revolves around the career struggles of and relationship between two manzai comedians. The English version of the novel is translated by Alison Watts and published in 2020. The novel won the 153rd Akutagawa Prize and was adapted as a Netflix original series which is accessible worldwide.

Spring Snow is a novel by Yukio Mishima, the first in his Sea of Fertility tetralogy. It was published serially in Shinchō from 1965 to 1967, and then in book form in 1969. Mishima did extensive research, including visits to Enshō-ji in Nara, to prepare for the novel.

The Summer of the Ubume is a Japanese novel by Natsuhiko Kyogoku. It is Kyogoku’s first novel, and the first entry in his Kyōgōkudō series about atheist onmyōji Akihiko "Kyōgokudō" Chūzenji. It has been turned into a live-action feature film.

A Tale for the Time Being is a metafictional novel by Ruth Ozeki narrated by two characters, a sixteen-year-old Japanese American girl living in Tokyo who keeps a diary, and a Japanese American writer living on an island off the coast of British Columbia who finds the diary of the young woman washed ashore some time after the 2011 tsunami that devastated Japan.

Teito Monogatari is an epic historical dark fantasy/science fiction work; the debut novel of natural history researcher and polymath Hiroshi Aramata. It began circulation in the literary magazine Monthly King Novel owned by Kadokawa Shoten in 1983, and was published in 10 volumes over the course of 1985–1987. The novel is a romanticized retelling of the 20th-century history of Tokyo from an occultist perspective.

Tokyo is a 2004 novel by British crime writer Mo Hayder. It was short-listed for the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger award, as well as several others. Tokyo was reviewed by the internationally read UK newspaper, the Guardian as well as by Kirkus Reviews under its US title.

Tokyo Fiancée is a novel by the Belgian writer Amélie Nothomb. It appeared on 20 August 2007 published by Éditions Albin Michel. A film adaptation was released in 2014.

Tokyo Ueno Station is a 2014 novel by Zainichi Korean author Yū Miri.

Totto-chan, the Little Girl at the Window is an autobiographical memoir written by Japanese television personality and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Tetsuko Kuroyanagi. The book was published originally as 窓ぎわのトットちゃん in 1981, and became an "instant bestseller" in Japan. The book is about the values of the unconventional education that Kuroyanagi received at Tomoe Gakuen, a Tokyo elementary school founded by educator Sosaku Kobayashi during World War II.

Tuvalu is a 2006 novel by Australian author Andrew O'Connor. It won The Australian/Vogel Literary Award for unpublished manuscripts by writers under 35.

Weathering with You is a 2019 Japanese animated romantic fantasy film produced by CoMix Wave Films and released by Toho. It depicts a high school boy who runs away from his rural home to Tokyo and befriends an orphan girl who has the ability to control the weather.

Mori Ōgai's classical novel, The Wild Geese or The Wild Goose, was first published in serial form in Japan, and tells the story of unfulfilled love set against a background of social change and Westernization. The story is set in 1880 Tokyo. The novel contains commentary on the changing situation between the Edo and Meiji periods. The characters of the novel are diverse, including not only students preparing for a privileged intellectual life and commoners who provide services to them, but also a pair of highly developed female characters. Mori sympathetically portrays the dilemmas and frustrations faced by women in this early period of Japan's modernization.