Hello there! Would you know by any chance if "The Harsh Mistress of the City"/"Queen of the Isolated City" is available to read online? If so, would you please send me a link to read it? Thanks!
As far as I’m aware there is no pirated version available online, but the book is available for legal purchase - in Japanese, of course - through any website or app that sells Kodansha digital editions. I personally recommend Kinoppy (http://k-kinoppy.jp), which is Japanese bookstore Kinokuniya’s version of the Kindle app. I buy most of my Japanese books through Kinoppy now and it’s really great. You can use it on a phone, tablet, or desktop computer - again, exactly like the Kindle app or Google Books.
Actually, speaking of Kindle… The book IS available in the Amazon.co.jp Kindle Store, but it appears to be region-locked so I can’t purchase it. Which is ridiculous because I could whip out my American credit card and buy a physical copy of the book to be shipped straight to the doorstep of my home halfway around the world with no problems, but Amazon won’t let me buy a digital copy of the book with the same credit card?! Somebody else might have better luck, though! I wonder if customers in other countries might be able to purchase digital books from AmazonJP? In the end it doesn't really matter, though, because if AmazonJP is going to region-lock their Kindle store then I and the rest if the barbarian gaijin can just buy the exact same books from their competitors - like, say, Kinokuniya. Which is exactly what I've been doing.
(Side note: It’s the 21st fucking century and I cannot fucking believe that region-locking digital books is a fucking thing that is actually fucking happening, but that is a rant for a different post. Ahem.)
Anywhoo all Japanese Kodansha books - including light novels and manga - are widely available for legal purchase through a variety of digital platforms. I bought my copy through Kinoppy, so that’s the store that I recommend, although I’m sure there are many other equally as good options out there.
And if you want a TRANSLATED version of the book, well… All you have to do is wait. I’m sure it will only be a matter of time before KodanshaUSA announces the license. Then you’ll be able to buy the book pretty much anywhere online.
Apologies for the public response, since I don’t normally do this anymore, but hopefully this information might be useful to more than just the OP!