The Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami will publish his first novel to feature a woman as the main character this summer.

The Tale of Kaho will be published in Japan on 3 July, with an ebook edition released the same day. A UK edition has not yet been announced.

The 352-page novel centres on Kaho, a 26-year-old picture book author, and is based on a four-part series by the author originally published in the literary magazine Shincho between June 2024 and March 2026. The novel is a revised and expanded version. The first instalment, which was translated into English by Philip Gabriel, appeared in the New Yorker in 2024. The story begins with Kaho going on a blind date with a man who tells her: “I’ve dated all kinds of women in my life, but I have to say I’ve never seen one as ugly as you.”

The book follows Murakami’s novel The City and Its Uncertain Walls, which was published in 2024 in the UK.…