Eh, I use the tags "science fiction" and "fantasy" very loosely with this novel.
As with all of Murakami's works, it skirts the edge of this and that. It is difficult to follow if you are not paying attention, moreso when you are trying to pay attention to an audiobook as it turns out. There are two narrators that switch off on chapters due to the split narrative of the story. I found their voices pleasant to listen to, but their accents for different characters and their pronunciations of certain Japanese words grated on my ears to the point that it ruined those parts of the story for me. I think that I would have preferred to read this one.
I enjoy the themes of reality vs. non-reality that Murakami regularly explores in his stories, this one especially delving into the Russian philosophical side of things, haha. The particular flavor of, ah, graphic detail is definitely an acquired taste though.
Alas, I will not be counting this one for any of my on-going challenges.
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