Olivermagnus's Reviews > Six Four

Six Four features a middle-aged prefect policeman named Yoshinobu Mikami. His teenage daughter, Ayumi, has been missing for months, an apparent runaway. In the novel’s first scene, he and his wife, Minako, are at the morgue to view a body that fits their daughter’s description. Happily it's not her.

He has spent most of his career as a detective, until a recent, unwanted transfer to Media Relations. He's been told to prepare for an important commissioner’s visit to publicize a renewed effort to solve the 14-year-old kidnapping and murder of a young girl. The detectives refer to it as “Six Four” because the crime took place just before the death of Emperor Hirohito put an end to the Showa period, which had lasted into its 64th year.

Mikami feels pulled in all directions, both at home and, especially, at work. He hates that he is forced to give reporters as much information as possible while divulging nothing that could compromise an investigation or violate the privacy of innocent parties. This constantly embroils him in conflicts. The press plan to boycott the commissioner's visit and Mikami is being stonewalled at every turn. He starts to suspect that there’s another agenda, maybe even a cover-up.

The novel is complex, ingenious, and demanding. I found myself caring more than I expected about the bureaucratic maneuvering of the Japanese police system. It was excellent and illuminated Japan's deep tradition of hierarchy and control.

I gave this novel five stars but I understand not everyone will feel the same. Non-Japanese readers may find some difficulty with the many “M” names (Mikami, Mizuki Murakushi, Minako, Mikumo, Matsuoka, Meikawa) and the various positions within the police force. The twists along the way will be less shocking to a lot of American thriller readers. There is a clever twist in the final part of the book, but we spend a lot of time with Mikami before we get there. But that's okay because I really liked him.

Six Four is an oddly gripping and unexpectedly original novel and I don't think I’ve ever read anything quite like it.