Character Thoughts On: The Devotion of Suspect X

KEYWORDS: Murder, Plot Twists  

SPOILERS(???): I will spill the murderer, which I don’t think really matters because the book informs the reader who the murderer is in the first chapter anyway.

In a nutshell, The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino, centers around the murder of Togashi. The story mainly featured four characters: two suspects, a detective, and his friend: Yasuko, Ishigami, Kusanagi, and Yukawa. Besides the crime, the story also depicts the intense intellectual battles of two geniuses standing on opposite sides. One is willing to give everything and anything to save his devotion; the other, standing in the same line with justice and truth, will give anything to disclose the crime.

Ishigami was definitely one of the coolest and most paradoxical characters I’ve ever encountered. He is a genius mathematician and a mess between sensibility and rationalism. Although Ishigami himself claims to be rational and his college confidant Yukawa states, "he is a man made from logic", proving all of his decisions will be executed strictly under careful calculation, technically making him culpable of anything. However, I personally think Ishigami is not. All of his motivations are driven by his sensibility, or, in other words, his devotion. Rationality and logic are only his weapons to defend his sensibility.

Yasuko, on the other hand, is a single mother and a beauty. However, apparently, fate doesn’t favor beauty. In fact, fate distorts her life. Yasuko had two husbands; the first she had a daughter (Misato) with but passed away at a young age; the second, Togashi, domestically abuses her whenever he’s drunk. Although Yasuko was able to escape from him through a divorce for 6 years (Togashi went to jail for his business & domestic issues), instantly after being discharged from prison, he kept coming back to mentally and physically harass her and her daughter.

March 10, when he showed up at Yasuko’s door, once again haunting her and her daughter, seeking money. Misato finally had enough of it; she assailed the scum from the back with a vase. Already irritated by Yasuko’s reluctance and Misato’s disgust towards him, Misato’s action became the final push infuriating Togashi. Tumbling, Togashi threw himself on Misato, trying to strangle her. What can a mother do at the moment? The likelihood of death creeping upon Yasuko and Misato with Togashi around is already unimaginable. Yasuko had to save her daughter. She did everything she could at the moment. Even when attacked, Togashi is still much stronger than her, even with his head wounded. Fist-fighting is ruled out of the game, and the closest lethal object she can find around her is an electricity cord. And without a second thought, she pulled it around his neck as tight as possible.

My feelings were quite mixed and stirred after finishing the book. If you are a fan of mysteries you should definitely check it out. The book is ingeniously plotted and has a somewhat "happy ending". Yes, the truth eventually was disclosed; the perpetrators received their punitive nemesis. However, behind what one could call "justification," there is endless forlorn pain for many (Ishigami never going back to his math problems, Yasuko disappointing everyone that trusted her during the investigation, Yukawa forever losing his college confidant, Kudo losing his almost bride, Misato’s depression and attempt to commit suicide, etc.). Everyone embroiled in the case is a victim, sarcastically, of the victim (Togashi).

There was a quote I heard lots of years ago, stating, "If you put one step off, the whole game is screwed." I don’t even remember who wrote the quote, but I feel like this quote applies to many scenarios in this book, whether it’s Yasuko’s life or Ishigami’s plan. A lot of irreparable mistakes are caused by impulsive decisions. The story brings a clear message, reminding future readers to think twice before doing something. The nature of people can be complicated.

Sidenote x1: Yes I do find this book very enjoyable, and I did feel really, really, really bad for the characters, but I DONT SUPPORT MURDERS

Sidenote x2: It deeply amazed me when Ishigami used math in the way he did. Personally I thought it was super cool. But again, I DON'T SUPPORT WHAT HE WAS DOING THOUGH. NO KILLING, I DO REPUDIATE VIOLENCE.

Thank you for reading :D

Ruijing