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    The Devotion of Suspect X: A Detective Galileo Novel
    The Devotion of Suspect X: A Detective Galileo Novel
    The Devotion of Suspect X: A Detective Galileo Novel
    Audiobook9 hours

    The Devotion of Suspect X: A Detective Galileo Novel

    Written by Keigo Higashino

    Narrated by David Pittu

    4/5

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    About this audiobook

    Yasuko Hanaoka is a divorced, single mother who thought she had finally escaped her abusive ex-husband Togashi. When he shows up one day to extort money from her, threatening both her and her teenaged daughter Misato, the situation quickly escalates into violence and Togashi ends up dead on her apartment floor. Overhearing the commotion, Yasuko's next door neighbor, middle-aged high school mathematics teacher Ishigami, offers his help, disposing not only of the body but plotting the cover-up step-by-step.

    When the body turns up and is identified, Detective Kusanagi draws the case and Yasuko comes under suspicion. Kusanagi is unable to find any obvious holes in Yasuko's manufactured alibi and yet is still sure that there's something wrong. Kusanagi brings in Dr. Manabu Yukawa, a physicist and college friend who frequently consults with the police. Yukawa, known to the police by the nickname Professor Galileo, went to college with Ishigami. After meeting up with him again, Yukawa is convinced that Ishigami had something to do with the murder. What ensues is a high level battle of wits, as Ishigami tries to protect Yasuko by outmaneuvering and outthinking Yukawa, who faces his most clever and determined opponent yet.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    TranslatorAlexander O. Smith
    Release dateFeb 1, 2011
    ISBN9781427211965
    Author

    Keigo Higashino

    Born in Osaka and currently living in Tokyo, Keigo Higashino is one of the most widely known and bestselling novelists in Japan. He is the winner of the Edogawa Rampo Prize (for best mystery) and the Mystery Writers of Japan, Inc. Prize (for best mystery), among others. His novels are translated widely throughout Asia.

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    Reviews for The Devotion of Suspect X

    4/5

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    • 4/5
      This is really an upside down mystery... you know who dunnit from the outset, but are taken on a path of wondering if and how the police will solve the crime. It's a complex path, created by one of the main characters, a math professor who is accustomed to taking advantage of his student's assumptions to create difficult mathematical problems. He does the same in covering up a murder which leads us and the detectives down an intriguing path. Even knowing this was the basis of his strategy, and loving a good logic puzzle as much as anyone, I never saw the ending coming. I listened to the audio book, it's well read and has a nice pace that made me look forward to my next run so I could listen to more.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      Der vorliegende Roman ist nach "Mord am See" (hier nicht besprochen) der 2. ins Deutsche übertragene des japanischen Erfolgsautors. Am Anfang steht die Tat, begangen von der alleinerziehenden Yasuko aus Tokio, die ihren gewalttätigen Ex-Mann in ihrer Wohnung erdrosselt. Ihr Nachbar, der in Yasuko verliebte, geniale Mathematik-Lehrer Ishigami, hilft ihr beim Beseitigen der Leiche, beim Legen falscher Fährten und gibt ihr genaue Anweisungen, wie sie sich der Polizei gegenüber verhalten soll. Er findet seinen Widerpart in dem Physikprofessor Yukawa, der wiederum den leitenden Kommissar Kusanagi in seinen Ermittlungen unterstützt. Der eine will die Wahrheit vertuschen, der andere aufdecken, wobei der Leser mehr mit den Tätern mitfiebert. Der wohltuend altmodisch geschriebene Krimi erfährt viel Spannung durch den intellektuellen Wettstreit der beiden Naturwissenschaftler und endet mit einem echten Knaller als Auflösung des Falles. Ganz nebenbei vermittelt das Buch auch noch Einblicke in das Leben im heutigen Japan. Deshalb zumindest ab mittleren Beständen gerne und unbedingt empfohlen. Namen: Yasuko Hanaoka, ihre Tochter Misato, ihr neuer Freund Kudo
    • 4/5
      In the interests of full disclosure, I had set the bar very high in my expectations for The Devotion of Suspect X, so maybe I was doomed to a little disappointment. Which isn't to say this is a bad book-- it isn't-- it just didn't live up fully to my expectations.I won't rehash the plot here; numerous previous reviewers have covered that. What's strong in the novel is that you have a very nimble-minded detective who's willing to go with his gut and not accept things at face value, mixed with a physics professor who's brillant and whose perspective is beyond the scope of the reader to grasp, mixed with the cunning mind of an obsessed man. Throw these three brains into a box, shake well, and you have a cocktail for quite an intriguing game of cat-and-mouse. No one is exactly working together; no one is fully disclosing information to anyone else; it's never clear who is on whose side, and all these things hold true for the reader as well-- you never know where you stand with any of the principal characters. You are never treated into a glimpse inside their minds, so you never know what is being revealed versus what is being concealed, or for what reasons. Mysteries within mysteries, in other words: the actual mystery of the plot plus the mysteries of human motivation.Complex scheming plays a heavy role in the novel, and unraveling this scheming through dialogue is the principal way the novel moves; it's not an action-based novel by any means. This is a plus or a minus depending on what you seek in a novel. I didn't mind the lengthy discouse overall but would have preferred that a little more happen-- say, that we could have seen a little more gumshoe work on the part of the detective, for instance. But, again, that's a matter of personal preference.Something that did bother me is that the two main female characters, Yasuko and her daughter, are quite passive and seem to exist mostly to set in motion the events that allow the "big brains" to have their showdown. They are emotional and impetuous, wild cards in the tightly controlled cover-up and investigation. There are some strong female characters at the fringes, but having these two unstable female characters at the center bothered me. I wish I had gotten more of a sense of place out of the novel. Perhaps I've been spoiled by the highly atmospheric nature of some of the recent crime fiction to have come out of other countries recently, but I didn't really feel immeresed in Japanese culture when reading this novel. That's an element I would have liked to have had.But you can't have it all, and this novel does give you a lot. The tightly-wound puzzle, the meeting of the minds . . . there's a great deal there. The unusual element of knowing the culprit from the start will throw the avid mystery/suspense reader of his or her usual expectations and force him or her to think in new directions and throw away assumptions about crime novels. New thinking about a popular genre: that's a good thing.Bottom line: If more of this series were to be translated into English, I'd probably read it. The professor, who I understand to be at the center of these novels, is quite an intriguing character, and I'd like to delve deeper into his mind, follow his thinking patterns more closely.
    • 5/5
      A captivating plot, clever character, well paced storytelling and a great ending.
    • 5/5
      This book wasn't at all what I was expecting. Less than twenty pages into it and I was already thrown off. I was anticipating a typical murder mystery/whodunnit type story, not something with third person omniscient POV. I was expecting the main character to be the Detective Galileo but instead it was more of an ensemble cast. And from the very beginning we already knew the murderer! But I figured it's not bad to go with something atypical. Plus the writing was engaging and interesting - there is a quietness to the overall style that I quite enjoyed. (There were a few moments of awkwardness with the writing, but honestly I figure most of that is down to the translation.)

      I also expected some juicy inter-character drama but the book didn't go in that direction either. Instead, thirty or so pages from the end, I was slammed. I'll admit, I had figured out a tiny portion of it, but the big reveal was totally unexpected. I think the calmer characters and writing style had lulled me into a false sense of security about where the book was going. I really enjoyed being surprised like that.

      I probably could have done with a little more moral ambiguity at the very end but then I suppose the way it ended was almost required for the proper type of closure in a murder mystery novel. And in that way, the ending was good. Overall a very enjoyable reading experience.
    • 3/5
      Amusing idea, but like most of the thrillers and detective stories nowadays it allows their characters to solve the mystery “off-screen” which kills all the fun. Some of more dramatic scenes (like that last one) were unnecessary.
    • 3/5
      I received The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino through the Early Reviewers program of LibraryThing. I had been very excited when I had won it and sat down to read it soon after I had received it from the mail man. I gave the book many tries in the 14 days that I have had it and I must sadly admit I stopped on paige 134, it is a very well written book but I find it slow and very misleading as a murder mystery. You already know all the facts and you end up reading through a cat and mouse game of "when will the police catch on, will they catch on?" I very much enjoy murder mysterious but this one for some reason just isn't for me. I do recommend it as a read, it is very well done with very likeable characters, even if the story is slow it has a lot of promise and I am sure most mystery readers would love it. It is worth the try to see if you like it.
    • 5/5
      What is certain in life? Logic has an answer but is it the correct one? So, much math, philosophy, friendship and very creepy but fascinating circumstances in this story. So, much to unravel. Wow! I’ll definitely be reading more by this author. Truly inventive and original characters in a classic mystery of genius misdirection.
    • 2/5
      What do you call a thriller that isn't really thrilling? In The Devotion of Suspect X, we get one dimensional characters that we could pretty much not care less about along with a plot that is as predictable as it is flat. There is a minor twist at the end, but, by that point, you don't really care. Clearly something was lost in translation here.
    • 5/5
      Takes a minute to get into the story but once engaged, hard to put down.
    • 3/5
      I received The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino through the Early Reviewers program of LibraryThing. I had been very excited when I had won it and sat down to read it soon after I had received it from the mail man. I gave the book many tries in the 14 days that I have had it and I must sadly admit I stopped on paige 134, it is a very well written book but I find it slow and very misleading as a murder mystery. You already know all the facts and you end up reading through a cat and mouse game of "when will the police catch on, will they catch on?" I very much enjoy murder mysterious but this one for some reason just isn't for me. I do recommend it as a read, it is very well done with very likeable characters, even if the story is slow it has a lot of promise and I am sure most mystery readers would love it. It is worth the try to see if you like it.
    • 4/5
      This book reminded me of some of Ruth Rendell's work. Higashino makes one think that you are just following detective Kusanagi as he solves the crime, but the reality is very different. Very good book and story.
    • 5/5
      This was one of those books that caught me off guard. I picked it up one night and I found myself crossing the finish line less than twenty-four hours later. Sometimes reading feels like a chore, you feel like the pages are bogging you down, and you stop and pick it up, stop and pick it up, and maybe you even wonder why you’re even reading such drivel in the first place. Not so with Suspect X. This book provided me with the stellar wonder that reinforces my love of reading: a water-tight, flawlessly executed, intelligent and fun novel. The story is that of Yasuko, a working class single mother that finds herself being harassed by her ex-husband. When he invades her apartment one night, she kills him. Ishigami, the gifted mathematician next door helps her to cover up her crime, providing her with alibis and instructions and it transforms into a game of mental chess with a breathtaking checkmate. I read this book near the end of the year 2010—not a big mystery reading year for me, I admit, but I prior to this novel I would have lauded The Girl Who Played With Fire (which I adored) as my Best Crime Novel of the Year. Suspect X made me rethink that choice. If you’re going to pick one mystery in 2011, make it The Devotion of Suspect X. No other literary crime you follow will be able to outrank it.
    • 5/5
      The unusualness of the characters, not your average mystery scenario.
    • 5/5
      Wow what a plot twist. An incredible read. I love Japanese writers. So original!
    • 4/5
      In [The Devotion of Suspect X], Keigo Higashino, one of Japan’s bestselling novelists, beautifully creates a Holmesian atmosphere and still manages to portray the frustration inherent in trying to sift through the inner workings of a criminal mind. Ishigami, a once promising math scientist, teaches high school math during the day and works on nearly unsolvable mathematical problems alone in his apartment through the night, his only pleasure watching his neighbor, Yasuko, the woman he loves from afar. Every day, on his way to school, he stops at the lunch box shop where she works, hoping to find the courage to speak to her intimately, hoping that she will notice his fondness for her. When Yasuko kills her ex-husband in a passionate act of self-preservation, Ishigami is listening next door, and he finally finds a way to become part of her life. He helps Yasuko dispose of the body and creates an alibi for her, and in so doing, becomes a suspect in the murder himself. Yukawa, Ishigami’s former class-mate and friend and a genius himself, aids Kusanagi, the police detective, in the investigation. Yukawa eventually sees through Ishigami’s intricate plot, but even in deducing Ishigami’s love for Yasuko, he never learns the whole truth of the lonely math teacher’s devotion. The most famous and most popular fictional sleuths, like Sherlock Holmes, are the ones able to pierce the mind and predict the behavior of criminals with nearly superhuman powers of observation and deductive reasoning. Higashino constructs a masterful Homles character in Yukawa. And Kusunagi plays a perfect Dr. Watson, smart and instinctive, but never quite able to put all the pieces together. Ishigami’s brilliance in constructing an alibi and disposing of the body and Yukawa’s brilliance in deducing the truth might be slightly overdone, but the technique doesn’t detract from the overall story.In the real world of crime, the question of motive is elusive. The subtleties of the human mind and heart often place the answers to questions of reason firmly in the regions of the unknowable or the incomprehensible. Yet how someone commits a crime, especially in the most extreme cases like murder, is usually closely related to why the crime was committed. The best that a detective can hope for is to understand enough of the how and why to properly identify the right person and bring them to justice. Cases are solved and adjudicated every day with dozens of questions unanswered. The ending of Higashino’s novel pays tribute to this real world fact, and even if the reader is let in on the secret, the author makes it clear that no one else will ever know.The principal defect in the book cannot be attributed to Higashino but to the translator. Several passages, especially in the initial pages of the story, read awkwardly and flat. Perhaps the translator made his best effort to communicate ideas that could not be translated from the original language, but the English version definitely suffers in tone and pace. Bottom Line: A Holmesian detective novel with a firm foundation in the real world of crime, even if the criminal and the detective are slightly too brilliant. Read past the early translation difficulties as the ending is worth the effort.4 bones!!!!
    • 5/5
      What a unique twisted and suspenseful book. Grabs your interest entertaining at the same time deep and philosophical. Really makes you question the gray areas in society and life. Oh what an addictive book.
    • 5/5
      I was very pleased to have received this book as an early reviewer. A new mystery writer from a different culture than the ones I'm used to (North America and England) is always a treat and this book opened up a view of Japanese culture similar to what the Stieg Larsson "Girl...." books did for Sweden. Unlike those, The Devotion of Suspect X is an introspective and quiet book with very little action. It features a high school mathematician who is a genius but has never been able to establish social relationships outside of his field of interest. The murder is not a mystery but the book relies on the period after it to develop characters, including the police investigator and another mathematician from the same university. Since logic is the primary interest of Ishigami (Suspect X of the title) one assumes that logic will be needed to ferret out the conclusion of this page turner. It certainly does not follow the typical clues of western mystery novels. I have to say, though, that I completely agree with fleurdiabolique (below) that the first chapter was execrable and read as if it had been written by a different author or translator than the rest of the book. Hopefully the publisher will do something about this before it is released.I enjoyed this book very much and will keep Higashino on my radar for future books.
    • 5/5
      Yasuko is a single mother working in a lunchbox shop is unpleasantly surprised by a sudden reappearance of her deadbeat, abusive ex-husband. When he immediately starts back up with his old, manipulative ways, things get out of hand and Yasuko finds herself and her daughter in their apartment with a dead body. Enter their next-door neighbor Ishigami, a quiet math teacher who is secretly in love with Yasuko. He quickly takes over and handles all the details of covering up the murder, and his brilliance has the detectives on the case baffled. However, an old college friend of Ishigami is just as much of a genius, or maybe more. Will Detective Galileo be able to crack the case or will the lengths Ishigami is willing to go to protect Yasuko be more than anyone can imagine?This mystery is a cool twist on the usual layout of the reader trying to figure out the murderer along with the detectives. Instead, we witness the murder first and follow along as the police struggle toward the resolution. The real mystery is something else entirely, and its result is clever and surprising. I loved it. The story is inventive and great, and the characters have an emotional depth you don't see that often in this kind of procedural story. Definitely recommended.
    • 5/5
      This book by Keigo Higashino is fabulous. While the book is the first of the Detective Galileo series, it is the second book I have read in the series. As in Malice, you know the main culprit at the outset. From there on, you dive into the investigation. Keigo Higashino brings his characters to life. The writing seems simple, but it is not. There is complexity here. It's brilliant. There is a big surprise at the end. I did not see it coming!
    • 5/5
      For a book that gives so much information at the beginning, it was still filled with twists, and the ending absolutely stunned me.
    • 3/5
      An ex husband is accidentally killed and a mathematician helps cover up the crime. Not my preferred writing style. Author over explained everything making it hard for the reader to form their own opinions.
    • 4/5
      Like a kick in the gonads.
    • 4/5
      The Devotion of Suspect X is part of a series about Japanese police detective Kusanagi that has been translated into English. Unfortunately this story didn't totally work for me. The description was that a veteran detective matches wits with a brilliant adversary, the Suspect X from the title. What I actually read was that the veteran detective seemed to focus on one suspect when he had no evidence to support his theory. He appeared to simply zero in and didn't seem to bother to look elsewhere. Luckily his very intelligent friend was along to help point him in the right direction.Although the readers knew exactly whodunit this was still a clever mystery as the pieces were slowly put together and the reasoning behind everything was exposed. The ending was rather a surprise and I admit to being a little disappointed in how it was wrapped up. Overall I didn't find [The Devotion of Suspect X] to be different or intriguing enough for me to go looking for more of these mysteries.
    • 4/5
      The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Hagashino This detective novel will make you gasp as the final truth unfurls.No spoilers here. Having read a few novels translated from Japanese I guess the cultural differences just seemed normal to me. If you aren't used to Japanese ways and this was the first one you read it may leave a bit bewildered. I am referring to the sense of order and duty that pervades Japanese culture. If you weren't used to that you may well read this and think "why didn't she ....?" or "why did he...?". However, I am digressing.This is one of the cleverest novels I have read in a long time. I would never have got to the ending unless I read it. You know what it is like with some novels you have sense of how it will end without having all the details. As the plot unfolds you get swept along with it, the writing, characterisation and narrative are flawless.If you like a good crime novel you will love this. It wraps itself across several genres with ease.

      Simply Brilliant and absolutely one of the best crime novels I have read...ever!
    • 4/5
      It took me a while to get into this because of the clumsy translation, but the story is so good that I got caught up in it. Yasuko Hanaoka thought she had escaped her violent ex-husband, Togashi, but he turned up at her flat making threats and demanding money. When Togashi is killed, the brilliant mathematician in the adjacent flat, who is secretly devoted to Yasuko, concocts the perfect alibi. Kusanagi, the head of the police investigation, suspects Hanaoka, but can find no evidence against her. He is no match for the mathematical genius, Ishigami, but Kusanagi's friend, the physicist Yukawa, is Ishigawa's equal. Will Yukawa crack the alibi? Does he want to?
    • 4/5
      Woah!!!! What a mind wrangling book!!! This was a gripping, thrilling, confusing, awesome story. What seemed idiotic in the beginning seemed logical in the end. What seemed unbelievable seemed the only believable thing in the end. I probably have to read this again to soak in the nuances but
    • 4/5
      A very satisfying mystery. The characters are intriguing, the plot makes sense (if you are a little generous), the ending is satisfying. The touches of Japanese culture, and of math and computer science give it a je ne sais quoi that's usually missing in blockbuster police procedurals.
    • 4/5
      This is the first Japenese book I have read albeit in English. The main 2 characters in this story are Yasuko Hanaoka a single Mother to her daughter Misato.The other character is their weird next door neighbour school teacher Ishigami. Yasuko's ex husband Togashi calls for her, she doesn't want to see him. Misato attacks and kills him. Ishigami takes charge of the situation and tells them to get a good alibi. A body is found down by the river. The Police with the help of Ishigami's old colleague from college Yukawa unravel the case. Ishigami had killed a tramp and pretended the body was Togashi's. Ishigami was devoted to Yasuko and agreed to take the blame for the murder.He goes to jail happy to have protected Yasuko honour.She then also confesses to the murder. Easy to read good book.
    • 4/5
      This is the first novel I've read by this author. The writing is competent. The story line is innovative. I enjoyed the book. I was a little disappointed in the ending, it seemed amateurish compared to the rest of the book. Still, I am intrigued by the author and will read a couple more to sample his other works.