About the Book
Title: Salvation of a Saint
Author: Keigo Higashino
Publisher: Hachette India
ISBN: 978-0-3491-3934-0
No. of Pages: 377
Price: 350 INR
Genre: Thriller/ fiction
About the Author
Born in Osaka, Keigi Higashino started writing novels while still working as an engineer at Nippon Denso Co. (presently DENSO). He won the Edogawa Rampo Award, which is awarded annually to the unpublished finest mystery work, in 1985 for the novel Hōkago (After School) at the age of 27. Subsequently, he quit his job and started a career as a writer in Tokyo.
In 1999, he won the Mystery Writers of Japan Award for the novel Naoko, which was translated into English by Kerim Yasar and published by Vertical Inc. in 2004. In 2006, he won the 134th Naoki Prize for The Devotion of Suspect X (Yōgisha X no Kenshin). His novels had been nominated five times before winning the award. The novel also won the 6th Honkaku Mystery Grand Prize and was ranked as the number-one novel by Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! 2006 and 2006 Honkaku Mystery Best 10, annual mystery fiction guide books published in Japan.
The English translation of The Devotion of Suspect X was nominated for the 2012 Edgar Award for Best Novel and the 2012 Barry Award for Best First Novel. He writes not only mystery novels but also essays and story books for children. The style of writing differs from his novels, but basically he does not use as many characters as in his novels.
The Cover Speaks
The cover depicts the face of a Japanese lady looking downwards as
if laden with guilt over the white background. This sets the reader into mood of getting into the shoe of the lady and find out what happened. The red back-cover speaks of the synopsis of the story and features acclamation for the book by various dailies.
" Intricate and beguiling... If you like riddles inside enigmas, it will please you no end."- Independent on Sunday
Synopsis
When a man is discovered dead by poisoning in his empty home his beautiful wife, Ayane, immediately falls under suspicion. All clues point to Ayane being the logical suspect, but how could she have committed the crime when she was hundreds of miles away?
As Tokyo police detective Kusanagi tries to unpick a seemingly unrelated sequence of events he finds himself falling for Ayane. When his judgement becomes dangerously clouded his assistant must call on an old friend for help; it will take a genius to unravel the most spectacular web of deceit they have ever faced.
Salvation of a Saint is a magnificently complex and page-turning thriller starring international crime fiction’s most enigmatic sleuth.This is essential reading for all fans of exceptional crime fiction.
Book Review
Do you remember Sherlock Holmes??? The detective Galileo known as Professor Yukawa plays his role very intriguingly.
The story starts at an amorous note between Ayane and her husband Yoshitaka veering towards a scuffle. Ayane dreams of sitting in a rocking chair, stitching a patchwork quilt, watching her belly grow larger with each passing day but her barren land droops her dreams down.“If
we can’t have children, there’s no point to us being married. Romantic love
between a man and a woman always fades with time.” Yoshitaka signals of an unnerving divorce to their one-year happily married life for not being able to live to the purpose of marriage. He doesn't see a woman more than a child producing element. And the first chapter ends with the words of Ayane “I
love you more than anything else in this world. That’s why your words were like
a knife stabbing me in the heart. That’s why you have to die, too”.
The story progresses with the advent of a new woman Hiromi in Yoshitaka's life. The reader gets filled with the disgust of how dark a man could think and prove his infidelity to his beloved. Turning a few more pages and Yoshitaka is found dead by arsenous-acid poisoned coffee. Now as the indorsement of the novel says When a man is discovered dead by poisoning in his empty home his beautiful wife, Ayane, immediately falls under suspicion. This matricide calls for Ayane as the suspect and then the story takes a thriller turn with lots of fuddles being introduced.
Soon, Tokyo Police Department comes into action and some investigating
officers Kusanagi, Utsumi and later on detective Yukawa come into the scene to disentangle the tangled threads of the murder. The human emotions brim out as the story progresses.
This story is a potpourri of suspense and emotions. The main characters with their nicely woven persona like Ayane’s b
strikingness, Yoshitaka's infidelity, Kusanagi’s biased heart, Hiromi’s
tender heart and Yukawa’s satisfaction in dissecting the perfect murder case makes this thriller a perfect scene-before-the-eye.
Who is the murderer?? Ayane?? But how could she kill her better-half?? Lots of questions pop up in the mind and I leave it to you to find out what actually happened. Get set on this thriller ride and lenify your Holmes brain.
In a Nutshell
A very conniving murder mystery which will let you burn the midnight oil and turn pages in the dark night to know the dark secret of the murder.
My Rating
3.5/5
Hioy'oy Hoi Polloi
JJJ
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Nice review.Seems a best read; will pick up.
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