Book Review: The Devotion of Suspect X

‘Which is harder: devising an unsolvable problem, or solving that problem?’

Title: The Devotion of Suspect X

Author: Keigo Higashino

Pages: 374

Translator: Alexander O. Smith with Elye J. Alexander

Published: Originally published in Japanese in 2005; this translation was published in 2011

Publisher: Little, Brown

Genre: Crime Fiction/ Mystery

Rating: 5/5 

The Devotion of Suspect X is a crime thriller that presents a story of obsessive love set against the backdrop of a murder. This is the first Keigo Higashino book I have read and I am thrilled to discover an author who follows an extraordinary method to stimulate the reader’s grey cells. The book delves deep into human psyche and highlights the intense emotions felt by the characters. It has all the ingredients of a fascinating crime fiction and yet its beauty lies in its simplicity.

The Devotion of Suspect X is about Ishigami, a mathematical genius and his next door neighbour, Yasuko Hanaoka and the depth of Ishigami’s devotion for her. The drama is introduced in the form of Yasuko’s ex-husband who is murdered at the beginning of the story. The exceptional point is Higashino keeps his readers aware of the murderer, the method and the motive from the very beginning but his gripping storyline never relaxes its hold on the reader till the very end. Now the question is: How does the writer achieve this feat? Suffice to say, therein lies the brilliance of The Devotion of Suspect X!!

You are drawn to Higashino’s carefully constructed world that teases your sensibilities as a mystery reader. He engrosses you into a brain game that involves the ingenious cover-up of the murder and the police investigation that follows it. It compels you to think hard as you race through the story. The fine balance of the known and the unknown elements helps to enhance the book’s appeal.

The book is also about human nature and to what extent a person can go for love’s sake. The genius mind of Ishigami is sure that logical thinking holds the key to the problem at hand. He meets his match in Manabu Yukawa, a brilliant physics professor and his former classmate, who arrives on the scene to help police detective Kusanagi to unravel the mystery. It is a pleasure to understand the thought process of Yukawa as he patiently considers and rejects the hypothetical possibilities associated with the case. The author sure does deserve kudos to keep the storyline taut even when not much happens in terms of physical action for most part of the book.  

The final twist of the story is both poignant and terrifying. The climax touches upon raw emotions that are a rarity in crime fictions. I was left feeling a little sad as I turned the last page of this exceptional thriller. This book will linger long in my mind.  

GO GRAB A COPY AND READ IT..... JUST READ IT!!    

        

The First Step

Each of us, when our day's work is done, must seek our ideal, 

whether it be love or pinochle or lobster à la Newburg, or the sweet silence of the musty bookshelves.

- O. HENRY, "The Social Triangle"

My first step into the world of books was as a 4 year old kid. I had access to plenty of comic books owned by one of my cousins. Those were the days of Phantom, Mandrake and Tintin. The wonderful world introduced by Indrajal Comics and Amar Chitra Katha helped in the initiation of a lifelong bond with books.

By the time I was 10 years old, I was reading the works of celebrated writers like O. Henry, William Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, Mark Twain and Charles Dickens. I must admit that I started reading in a very random manner, without having any real idea of the brilliance of these writers. I used to read any book that was issued to me by the school librarian.  

The first book that really left a strong impression on me during those days was a compilation of short stories by O. Henry. By the time I had finished reading that book I knew I was hooked to the magic of reading. The beauty and simplicity of the stories had a profound effect on a young reader like me.  

The short story that had really fascinated me at that time was ‘The Last Leaf’. I was left spellbound by the beauty of words weaved by O. Henry. The story had three main characters, each having very specific part to play in the tale. But the way the writer presented these characters and developed the essence of the story in so few words left me in wonder. The subplots of sacrifice and death dealt in the story were a bit too much for me to fully appreciate at that age. Nonetheless, I loved this particular story that demonstrated the power of hope and belief. Later when I reread the story after many years, I was yet again in awe of the master story teller and his creation. Till date O. Henry remains one of my favourite writers.

The other short stories included in the book were gems like ‘The Gift of Magi’, ‘Springtime a la Carte‘, ‘After Twenty Years’, ‘One Thousand Dollars’ and a few more that I cannot remember now. For a 10 year old kid each story was a revelation in itself. My journey into the world of books took speed after that and over a period of time I developed a reading habit that continues since. The credit for developing my reading habit also goes to my father, an ardent reader who believes that the greatest gift for any child is the gift of reading. His vision broadened my horizons and I embarked on this wonderful reading voyage.  

Sometimes I wonder how my reading life would have shaped up without that first story of the last leaf.....