THE DEVOTION OF SUSPECT X by Keigo Higashino

5 Stars

Wonderful. I rarely give out five stars, but this one earned it.

My second book that I've read by Higashino and I love his writing. This one was even better than THE NAME OF THE GAME IS A KIDNAPPING, and I can see how readers who enjoyed THE DEVOTION OF SUSPECT X first might have been disappointed. Again, there's an adroit use of misdirection and again, I I saw so many pieces, but one--a delightful twist.

This appealed to me, and while the mystery itself, the game is great, I enjoyed the interactions between Ishigami and Yukawa best. In fact, the rest of the story became rather irrelevant as I just fell into the story of friendship and competition.

And the math. I suppose I understood Ishigami very well, that compulsion and drive that can tune out reality so that all that is left is the puzzle--it's a very addicting thing where reality is a distraction from the hunt. And while some may find this tragic, I don't. At first perhaps, but when it all settles I think Ishigami has found his answer.

"I told him there is no such thing in this world as a useless cog, and that even a cog may decide how it is to be used."