Arcadia Public Library

Suddenly, a mysterious (kidnapping site) appeared on the Internet. The site published the names and photos of six shabby-looking men with the phrase, "We kidnapped the following people. Is this a case or a prank? And who are these men in the photos? The police, media, and netizens were skeptical, but the kidnapping site demanded a ransom from the "surprising party". An unprecedented (theatrical crime) involving the whole of Japan is about to begin!...

Acclaimed bestselling novelist Kunihiko Hidaka is found brutally murdered in his home on the night before he's planning to leave Japan and relocate to Vancouver. His body is found in his office, a locked room, within his locked house, by his wife and his best friend, both of whom have rock solid alibis. Or so it seems. At the crime scene, Police Detective Kyochiro Kaga recognizes Hidaka's best friend, Osamu Nonoguchi. Years ago when they were both...

"When a body wrapped in a blue plastic tarp and tied up with twine is discovered near the bushes near a quiet suburban Tokyo neighborhood, Lt. Reiko Himekawa and her squad take the case. The victim was slaughtered brutally--his wounds are bizarre, and no one can figure out the "what" or the "why" of this crime. At age twenty-nine, Reiko Himekawa of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police's Homicide Division is young to have been made lieutenant, particularly...

When a man about to leave his wife is found murdered and the wife has a too-convenient alibi that convinces a smitten lead detective of her innocence, Professor Manubu Yukawa is tapped by a concerned Kaoru Utsumi to solve a seemingly impossible case.

This compelling murder mystery focuses on the murky world of Internet chat rooms. Veteran Desk Sergeant Takegami finds himself in center stage of the investigations after his colleague is hospitalized.