Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.37 AVERAGE
3.37 AVERAGE
This acclaimed novel is set against the backdrop of Japanese-American tensions at the time of its writing - each side apprehensive, protective of their own territory and culture. The plot revolves around an American female's murder in Nakomoto, a Japanese corporation on American soil - and that distinct setting sets the wheels of this novel in motion. The intricacies of etiquette, culture, duty that is inherent to Japan plays a key role as the investigation begins to unfold. Only one man can identify and effectively communicate with the Japanese - enter Captain Connor, played deliciously well by the ultimate Sean Connery in the movie adaptation of the book.
Crichton, who must be fluent in Japanese, intersperse random Japanese phrases and customs throughout the book. One of my favorites is the sempai-kohai relationship between Captain Connor, the sempai or the mentor and coach, and Lieutenant Smith, the kohai or trainee. I remember one afternoon picking up a book comprised of Japanese traditional expressions soon after this book - so inspired I felt in learning the thousand year old expressions of their culture. I barely made it past fist few pages of my book, "The Japanese have a word for it"; it was overwhelming to consume in one sitting. The sheer complexity of each expression and its history wore me out. The demands of society and pressures of tradition are tremendous on the lives of the Japanese and puzzling to the rest of the world - the non-Japanese ones of us who can neither fully grasp nor appreciate the depth of servitude felt by this nation.
As one who is fascinated by the Japanese culture, language, country, eccentricities and mysteries, this books adds an intense and mixed angle of perspective for me. The story is a mystery murder and while interesting, it does not make up the core of the book. While the murder plot carries you through the pages, nothing is more engrossing than Connor's brutal honesty about how the Japanese think and do business. "Business is war to the Japanese", he repeats over and over - and you will see why if you read the book.
The suspense of the murder mystery is no simple maze to follow. Twists and turns into the investigation thicken, as they should in every good story, and yet remain realistic to the reader. The plot spoiler warning applies here as I disclose the vast difference between the endings of movie and book. In Crichton's novel, Theresa and Lt. Smith do not end up together, there exists no previous relationship between Theresa and Captain Connor, and Ishigoro, the Japanese employee, is the real murderer as opposed to an entirely different character in the movie. This is no small difference as the entire story is built to incriminate Ishigoro in the end. Imagine my disappointment as I learned that Sean Connery not only played Captain Connor but was also the executive producer of the film - and he allowed for such a large deviation from the novel? I would defer to Crichton whose imagination first brought us to the world of the Rising Sun. I prefer the ending in the book.
Crichton, who must be fluent in Japanese, intersperse random Japanese phrases and customs throughout the book. One of my favorites is the sempai-kohai relationship between Captain Connor, the sempai or the mentor and coach, and Lieutenant Smith, the kohai or trainee. I remember one afternoon picking up a book comprised of Japanese traditional expressions soon after this book - so inspired I felt in learning the thousand year old expressions of their culture. I barely made it past fist few pages of my book, "The Japanese have a word for it"; it was overwhelming to consume in one sitting. The sheer complexity of each expression and its history wore me out. The demands of society and pressures of tradition are tremendous on the lives of the Japanese and puzzling to the rest of the world - the non-Japanese ones of us who can neither fully grasp nor appreciate the depth of servitude felt by this nation.
As one who is fascinated by the Japanese culture, language, country, eccentricities and mysteries, this books adds an intense and mixed angle of perspective for me. The story is a mystery murder and while interesting, it does not make up the core of the book. While the murder plot carries you through the pages, nothing is more engrossing than Connor's brutal honesty about how the Japanese think and do business. "Business is war to the Japanese", he repeats over and over - and you will see why if you read the book.
The suspense of the murder mystery is no simple maze to follow. Twists and turns into the investigation thicken, as they should in every good story, and yet remain realistic to the reader. The plot spoiler warning applies here as I disclose the vast difference between the endings of movie and book. In Crichton's novel, Theresa and Lt. Smith do not end up together, there exists no previous relationship between Theresa and Captain Connor, and Ishigoro, the Japanese employee, is the real murderer as opposed to an entirely different character in the movie. This is no small difference as the entire story is built to incriminate Ishigoro in the end. Imagine my disappointment as I learned that Sean Connery not only played Captain Connor but was also the executive producer of the film - and he allowed for such a large deviation from the novel? I would defer to Crichton whose imagination first brought us to the world of the Rising Sun. I prefer the ending in the book.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Car accident
Ooooh boy. I usually like Michael Crichton a lot but this book is incredibly racist. The entire plot revolves around hating Japan and Japanese people. No lesson is learned except how that’s RIGHT(??????) and correct. Ugh. Deeply uncomfortable to listen to. Never turns around. Stays racist the whole way through. Don’t do it.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
En rigtig fin, underholderne crime-thriller, der også giver noget insight i forskellene på Amerikansk og Japans kultur og især forretningsmetoder, så det var ikke bare tomme kalorier (selv om jeg ikke kan lade være med at spekulerer over hvor velresearchet bogen er). Når det er sagt kommer det på et tidspunkt til at føles lidt konspiratorisk hvilket jeg generelt ikke kan lide.
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I struggled to get into this book and it pains me. I love MC books and have recently become a huge fan. He has hits and misses, this one was a miss. I have it a 3.9/5 and it hurt to rank it so low. I am not complaining about "racism" or how it's a book "written for a specific time", such stupid reviews are simply small minded. The story moves, but it delves into too much detail at times and takes away from the story. It could have built up a stronger story with those wasted pages of details. Maybe even throw a better twist in there. This is absolutely no Disclosure (5/5 all day!), but it could have been better. It also hurt to see how stupid they made the main character sound throughout the whole book. I just feel like it was a wasted effort... it was exceptionally slow and too convoluted.
adventurous
informative
tense
medium-paced
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
