Detective novels are either puzzles or labyrinths. And then there’s The Devotion of Suspect X, an intricate mathematical proof — deceptively simple at first glance, only to reveal layer upon layer of ingenuity as one delves deeper. Keigo Higashino’s most famous work outside Japan is not just a mystery novel — it is, quite simply, a masterclass in misdirection.

At its core, the book is a battle of wits between two formidable minds: Manabu Yukawa, a physicist with a penchant for detective work (our ‘Detective Galileo’), and Tetsuya Ishigami, a reclusive mathematics genius who finds himself drawn into a crime that is, for lack of a better word, perfect. When Yasuko Hanaoka, a single mother, inadvertently kills her abusive ex-husband, Ishigami steps in—not merely to help, but to orchestrate a cover-up so meticulous that it borders on artistry. The story, however, is not about whether the crime will be solved, but how—and more intriguingly, why.

What makes The Devotion of Suspect X stand out in the crowded field of detective fiction is Higashino’s ability to play with reader expectations. This isn’t a traditional whodunit, no, we know from the outset who committed the crime. The thrill, then, is in the chase — a cerebral game where every move and countermove is executed with surgical precision. The novel operates in a space where logic is king, yet human emotion — raw, tragic, and deeply moving — dictates the final outcome.

Higashino’s writing is spare, almost clinical, yet he wields it like a scalpel. Within this economy of prose, entire lives unfold. Yasuko, with her quiet resilience, and Ishigami, with his monastic devotion to mathematics (and something else), are rendered with such restraint that their emotions hit all the harder when they finally surface. Even Yukawa, the so-called detective in this tale, serves as more than just an intellectual foil—he is the only character who truly sees Ishigami for who he is.

It is difficult to discuss the novel without touching on its ending, which is nothing short of devastating. If the build-up is a lesson in logic, the denouement is a gut-punch, proving that even the most brilliant calculations cannot account for the irrationality of human emotion. Higashino subverts the very notion of a ‘twist’ by giving us something far more unsettling: an ending that is as inevitable as it is tragic.

Is this then the ultimate detective novel? That depends on what one seeks from the game. If your idea of perfection lies in labyrinthine plots where every clue is a potential red herring, The Devotion of Suspect X may not be your cup of tea. But if you appreciate a crime novel that challenges the very structure of storytelling while delivering an emotional wallop, then welcome to the party.

One might say that The Devotion of Suspect X is less about crime and more about the nature of devotion itself. Whether it is to numbers, to justice, or to another human being, devotion — blind, unwavering, and ultimately self-destructive — lies at the heart of this novel. And it is precisely this devotion, rather than the crime itself, that lingers long after the final page has been turned.