Strange Houses

Uketsu is the narrator of the novel. He functions as a surrogate for the reader, learning everything about the titular houses at the exact same time the reader does, although the novel’s Afterword complicates this role somewhat by suggesting that he has withheld information.

Uketsu’s persona is based heavily on the public persona the author has created for his YouTube channel, though the novel’s Uketsu instead works as a feature writer, publishing stories that draw the interest of his publication’s readers. The deployment of an avatar that mirrors the author’s real-world persona drives verisimilitude, making the characters and events described feel more like real people and real situations. This grounds the more outlandish aspects of Uketsu’s discussion with Kurihara with the aim of enhancing the atmosphere of horror.

As a character, Uketsu is dynamic, learning to manage his curiosity in tandem with the novel’s exploration of The Inaccessibility of the Truth. The start of the novel finds him becoming increasingly interested in the floor plan that Yanaoka brings to him. Uketsu often writes about macabre topics, which has given him the reputation of being an expert on “weird things.” Even after Yanaoka gives up his interest in the house, Uketsu continues to investigate it because he cannot help but entertain the possibility that Kurihara’s interpretation may be correct.