Hotel Iris by Yoko Ogawa

I quite enjoy Yoko Ogawa's japanese books. Her books are very dreamlike and captivating. The first book I read by her was The Housekeeper and the Professor which was a splendid book to read. I really enjoyed it so I was sure I would enjoy Hotel Iris as well. I was right. Another great book by her. This one was haunting and strange in a way, a story about a 17 year old girl named Mari working at a hotel her mother owns. Her mother always wants her around helping out leaving Mari with hardly any time for fun. But then she meets an older man who was kicked out of the hotel for causing a scandal with a prostitute he was with. Hearing the man's voice caught complete attention for Mari. This older man is a pain artist who lives at an island and makes Mari do humiliating things by tying her up, hitting and spitting at her and Mari despite what he does to her, loves him and seeks him again and again. So yes its strange and a dark novel but still was a good read for me.