Author

Keigo Higashino

Keigo Higashino
Birth Date
February 4, 1958 (68 Years)
Associated Country
Japan
Keigo Higashino is a Japanese novelist widely regarded as one of the leading writers of contemporary mystery and crime fiction. Known for his intricate plots, logical puzzles, and psychologically rich characters, Higashino combines traditional detective storytelling with thoughtful explorations of morality, justice, family, and human relationships. His work is distinguished by its intellectual rigor, emotional depth, and ability to balance suspense with profound insight into human nature.

Before becoming a full-time writer, Higashino worked as an engineer, a background that influenced the precision and analytical approach found throughout his fiction. His novels frequently move beyond the question of "who" committed a crime to explore "why" it occurred and the emotional consequences that follow. Through carefully constructed narratives, he examines the complexities of guilt, sacrifice, loyalty, and redemption.

Over the course of his career, Higashino has become one of Japan's most acclaimed and internationally successful authors. His novels have been translated into dozens of languages and adapted into numerous films, television series, and stage productions. Through his masterful blend of mystery, psychological drama, and social observation, he has established himself as one of the defining voices in modern crime fiction.
Books
Laplace's Witch, Book 1
Two people die in hot spring towns in different parts of Japan from hydrogen sulfide poisoning. Investigating the case is geochemist Shusuke Aoe, who witnessed the same mysterious girl, Madoka, at...
Mayu has just moved back to her hometown to plan her wedding when tragedy strikes. Her father is murdered. Her uncle, Takeshi, a former Las Vegas marquee magician, impulsively decides that he'll catch...

Guilt 2026

Homicide Detective Godai of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is assigned to investigate the death of a lawyer, Kensuke Shiraishi, whose body was found on a Central Tokyo riverbank. His...
The body of a young man is found floating in Tokyo Bay. But his death was no accident — Ryota Uetsuji was shot. He'd been reported missing the week before by his live-in girlfriend Sonoka Shimauchi,...
Kyoichiro Kaga, Book 4
A decade ago, Tokyo Police Detective Kyoichiro Kaga went to collect the ashes of his recently deceased mother. Years before, she ran away from her husband and son without explanation or any further...
A popular young girl disappears without a trace, her skeletal remains discovered three years later in the ashes of a burned out house. There’s a suspect and compelling circumstantial evidence of his...
Kyoichiro Kaga, Book 3
In the Nihonbashi district of Tokyo, an unusual statue of a Japanese mythic beast—a kirin—stands guard over the district from the classic Nihonbashi bridge. Late at night, the body of a murdered...

Newcomer 2019

Kyoichiro Kaga, Book 2
A woman is found murdered in her new apartment in the Nihonbashi area of Tokyo. Living a quiet life, with nothing remarkable in her past and no known enemies, this newcomer’s murder is as baffling as...
“From exactly midnight until daybreak, the Namiya General Store advice box will be reopening for one night only.” When three delinquents hole up in an abandoned general store after their most recent...
Battle-tested project leader at a PR firm and slippery bachelor, Sakuma sees himself as a player. His smug self-regard doesn't seem entirely unfounded, both in love and at work. When his idea for a...
Manabu Yukawa, the physicist known as "Detective Galileo," has traveled to Hari Cove, a once-popular summer resort town that has fallen on hard times. He is there to speak at a conference on a planned...
In Osaka in 1973, the body of a murdered man is found in an abandoned building. Investigating the crime, Detective Sasagaki is unable to find the killer. Over the next twenty years, through the lens...

Malice 2015

Kyoichiro Kaga, Book 1
At the crime scene, Police Detective Kyochiro Kaga recognizes Hidaka's best friend, Osamu Nonoguchi. Years ago when they were both teachers, they were colleagues at the same public school. Kaga went...
Yoshitaka, who was about to leave his marriage and his wife, is poisoned by arsenic-laced coffee and dies. His wife, Ayane, is the logical suspect—except that she was hundreds of miles away when he...
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...

Naoko 2004

An everyman, Heisuke works hard at a factory job to provide for his wife, Naoko, and young daughter, Monami. He takes pleasure from the small things, like breakfast with both of them after a night...