A taut psychological thriller about the hidden demons that guide our convictions, our biases, and our deepest desires, available in English for the first time from "Japan's Agatha Christie." (The Sunday Times) In the middle of the night, a car drives off a pier. An elderly man drowns, but his young wife lives. The wife's name is Kumako Onizuka, and with a past stained by yakuza entanglements and criminal activity, she is accused of orchestrating the accident for a large insurance payout. Onizuka's guilt seems obvious to local journalist Moichi Akitani, and while he enjoys newfound success after writing a series of articles about the crime, his portrayal of her as a devious femme fatale turns the community against her. Onizuka's lawyers are hounded by the press, yet all the reporters can glean is her unwavering declaration of innocence. This amuses Akitani, who continues to bask in his journalistic renown. But when a surprisingly scrupulous public defender takes on her case, Akitani begins to doubt himself, and he fears what might happen if Onizuka ever gets wind of the contempt he spread. Seichō Matsumoto was born in 1909 in Fukuoka, Japan. Self-educated, Matsumoto published his first book when he was forty-one years old and he quickly established himself as a master of crime fiction. His exploration of human psychology and Japanese post-war malaise, coupled with the creation of twisting, dark mysteries, made him one of the most acclaimed and best-selling writers in Japan. He received the prestigious Akutagawa Literary Prize in 1953 and the Kikuchi Kan Prize in 1970. He died in 1992. Translated by Jesse Kirkwood; Introduction by Alafair Burke.
