Tokyo Zangyo

by Michael Pronko

Overview

In Tokyo, your job can kill.

Winner Mystery of the Year BestThrillers.com (2021)

Gold Medal Reader's Favorite Mystery (2022)

Gold Medallion Book Readers Appreciation Group (2021)

Gold Award Literary Titan Book Award (2021)

Silver Award Independent Publisher Awards IPPY (2022)

After a top-tier manager in Japan's premier media company ends up dead in front of company headquarters, Detective Hiroshi enters the high-pressure, hard-driving world of Tokyo's large corporations. Hiroshi quickly finds out the manager fell from the roof at the exact same spot as an employee suicide three years before.

With little more to go on, Hiroshi can't tell if the manager's death was a guilt-ridden suicide, a careless accident, or a grisly personnel decision. The only certainty is that Japanese workplaces rely on "zangyo," unpaid overtime that drives employees to quit-or to kill.

Teaming up with his mentor Takamatasu, Hiroshi scours the off-record spending, lavish entertaining and unspoken agreements that keep Japan, Inc. running with brutal efficiency. Working overtime himself, Hiroshi probes the dark heart of Japanese business, a place he's tried to avoid all his life.

"A superb procedural thriller with an always entertaining and appealing cast." -Kirkus Reviews

Tokyo Zangyo is the fourth book in the Tokyo-based Detective Hiroshi series by award-winning author Michael Pronko.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781942410249
Publisher:	Michael Pronko
Publication date:	07/30/2021
Series:	Detective Hiroshi , #4
Sold by:	PUBLISHDRIVE KFT
Format:	eBook
Pages:	284
Sales rank:	605,847
File size:	10 MB

About the Author

Michael Pronko is a Tokyo-based writer of murder, memoir and music. His writing about Tokyo life and his character-driven mysteries have won awards and five-star reviews. Kirkus Reviews selected his second novel, The Moving Blade for their Best Books of 2018. The Last Train won the Shelf Unbound Competition for Best Independently Published Book. Michael also runs the website, Jazz in Japan, which covers the vibrant jazz scene in Tokyo and Yokohama. During his 20 years in Japan, he has written about Japanese culture, art, society and politics for Newsweek Japan, The Japan Times, and Artscape Japan. He has read his essays on NHK TV and done programs for Nippon Television based on his writings.A philosophy major, Michael traveled for years, ducking in and out of graduate schools, before finishing his PhD on Charles Dickens and film. He finally settled in Tokyo as a professor of American Literature at Meiji Gakuin University. His seminars focus on contemporary novels, short stories and film adaptations. More at: http: //www.michaelpronko.com/ https: //www.facebook.com/pronkoauthor https: //twitter.com/pronkomichael

Editorial Reviews

"Splendidly depicted, the metropolis, the characters, and the cultural lifestyles and traditions came to life. The story is impeccably written, with a stunning and deeply involved plot, an incredible setting, and extraordinary characters."—Reader's Favorite 5 stars

"The author uses his wealth of sheer passion for Tokyo and its people, and writes this unique color and vibrancy into his characters and their surroundings. This continues to be an international police procedural that is suspenseful and has its own amazing flavor."—Reader Views 5 stars

"A spectacular plunge into the dark heart pumping beneath Tokyo's shining streets…from the gripping opening scene that sets a deadly tone, to the breakneck investigation's dramatic climax, this novel rarely lets up in intensity or intrigue."—SPR Review 5 stars

"A complex mystery, fast pacing, and a cast of charismatic (and often gritty) characters…his ability to offer such interesting and diverse characters to the reader brings this novel alive."—Wishing Shelf Book Review 5 stars

"The novel starts out with action and never lets up until the mystery is solved, taking the reader on a twisted ride. Not only is this a fast-paced mystery, but it's also an immersion into Japanese culture."—The BookLife Prize

"With the dank, narrow streets and thick cigarette smoke, the story has the feel of classic noir imbued with Far East culture—a strange and engaging concoction that goes down smooth yet packs a punch."—IndieReader

"With a believable cast of characters, an engrossing storyline, and superb writing, Pronko has delivered a hard-boiled whodunit any murder mystery fan will enjoy. Tokyo Zangyo is one of the best in the mystery genre."—Literary Titan

"Pronko’s appreciation for Japan is palpable. His writing is crisp and always engaging. After this latest engrossing story, readers will be eagerly awaiting the series’ fifth installment."—Blue Ink Review

From the Publisher

2021-09-09
Tokyo police detectives investigate a case that’s either a suicide or a homicidal act of revenge in this fourth installment of a mystery series.

Detective Hiroshi Shimizu’s job as a forensic accountant in Tokyo’s homicide department keeps him busy. But despite his preference for working from his office, the chief sends Hiroshi to check out a mangled body on a sidewalk. The victim, Shigeru Onizuka, took a 20-story plummet off the Senden Infinity building where he worked. He may have cut through the fencing on the roof, but nothing at the scene points to a potential murder. It turns out Onizuka was a rather appalling boss; his harassment and overworking of a female employee three years ago drove her to a fatal jump off the same roof. Hiroshi and fellow detectives focus on the woman’s family, including her parents, her best friend, and her American boyfriend, a jazz musician in Japan. But there’s no shortage of suspects, as several employees brought complaints against Onizuka for his incessant bullying and mistreatment. He was also a man harboring countless dark secrets, such as the possibility that he was guilty of embezzlement, a crime right up Hiroshi’s alley. One thing the detectives definitely know is that Senden is a powerful company that nearly ruined a lawyer’s career for filing a suit against it. If Senden’s executives don’t want authorities nosing around, they may resort to sinister or even lethal deeds. And as the chief wants this case closed quickly, Hiroshi and the others are running out of time.This latest volume continues Pronko’s consistently engrossing series. While this book isn’t quite as suspenseful as the preceding ones, it presents a remarkable mystery. For example, individuals with understandable motives crowd the suspect list, as the dead man was a ruthless villain, and the killer may actually be one of his victims. Hiroshi and other detectives make a welcome return, from chain-smoking Takamatsu to former sumo wrestler Sakaguchi, whose previous injury forces him to endure a knee brace that’s too small. With the murder mystery underway, the author effectively underscores women’s mistreatment in the workplace, not necessarily only in Japan. Male bosses criticize female employees for how they dress and pressure them to have drinks after work and to put in overtime. Hiroshi is even surprised that his live-in girlfriend, Ayana, suffered similar abuse at her bank job years ago. As the story progresses, the Senden roof becomes a recurring setting; detectives reexamine the scene or meet people there for questioning. It’s also an ideal spot for Pronko to display his crisp, noirish prose: “Takamatsu ground out his cigarette, ducked under the tape, poked his head out the V” in the fence, “and leaned forward to look at the black tar on the outer ledge, where it sloped down to a rain gutter, no fence or rail, and beyond only air and gravity.” The final act, which boasts a convincing and satisfying wrap-up, is sure to leave readers eagerly awaiting Hiroshi’s next case or seeking out previous series installments.

A superb procedural thriller with an always entertaining and appealing cast.

Kirkus Reviews