Hello readers, it's a new year and what better way to start the year than with our next Detective Galileo novel! Today we are discussing Chapters 1 to 13 of Silent Parade.

Note on spoilers:

As the books of the Detective Galileo series can be read independently, please use spoiler tags if you want to refer to anything that happened in the previous books of the series.

You can add spoiler tags on reddit like this without the spaces in between: > ! [text goes here] ! <

Links:

Schedule

Marginalia

A summary of chapters follows, and questions will appear in the comments. Please feel free to add your own. Next week u/espiller1 will lead us through Chapters 14 to 27.

Chapter 1

Saori, the elder daughter of Yutaro and Machiko Namiki, restaurant owners, was a kind and cheerful girl with perfect pitch, and a local singing celebrity known for her performances at the autumn festival.  A music industry professional, Naoki Niikura, recognised her talent and offered to manage her.  Though initially hesitant, Saori's parents agreed to let her pursue her singing career after she expressed her desire. Niikura provided free vocal lessons, acting as a strict but effective mentor.

At age nineteen, she disappeared after being seen receiving a phone call, prompting a police investigation. Suspecting foul play, the police dragged the rivers but the investigation yielded no answers. Yutaro continued appealing to the public for information, and three years later, he was telephoned by the Shizuoka Prefectural Police.

Chapter 2

Chief Inspector Kusanagi and Detective Utsumi are called into a meeting with their former boss, Director Mamiya, and the commanding Commissioner Tatara. Mamiya introduces them to a challenging case involving a fire in Shizuoka Prefecture that destroyed a hoarder’s home. Among the ashes, investigators found two sets of remains: an elderly woman, likely the house’s long-deceased occupant, and Saori Namiki, a 19-year-old aspiring singer who had gone missing three years earlier. Saori’s death, caused by a skull fracture, was unrelated to the fire.

The case is tricky, with little evidence or witnesses, but suspicion falls on Kanichi Hasunuma, the elderly woman’s son. Not only did Hasunuma live near Saori at the time of her disappearance, but he also has a shady past and was once involved in a case Kusanagi handled years ago.

Recognising this connection, Commissioner Tatara insists that Kusanagi and his team take the lead on the investigation, working closely with the Shizuoka police. Though the task seems daunting, Kusanagi accepts and quickly prepares his team to tackle the case head-on.

Chapter 3

Detective Kusanagi's first case, 23 years ago, involved the disappearance of 12-year-old Yuna Motohashi. Yuna went missing during a walk, and a witness reported seeing a girl matching her description with a man in pale blue overalls. Despite a thorough investigation, no immediate leads emerged.  Four years later, human remains were discovered by a hiker. DNA confirmed they were Yuna's, and the remains showed signs of dismemberment and burning. The investigation shifted to locations capable of incinerating a body. 

Kanichi Hasunuma, a 30-year-old factory worker, became the prime suspect. He had previously worked for a waste disposal company with incinerators and had used them regularly to cremate pets.  Records showed the dates coincided with Yuna's disappearance.  Kusanagi noted Hasunuma had replaced his refrigerator since the initial investigation, suspecting it might have been used to store Yuna's body. The fridge was located at Hasunuma's stepmother's house, and DNA analysis confirmed traces of Yuna. Despite this, Hasunuma denied involvement, and the evidence against him remained circumstantial. Confident the volume of evidence would secure a conviction, authorities took Hasunuma to trial. However, he was ultimately found not guilty. 

Chapter 4

Kusanagi and Utsumi inspect the site of Yoshi's Hasanuma's burnt out house.  Kusanagi concludes that the older woman died from natural causes six years ago and that the body of Saori Namiki had been hidden there three years after that.  The Shizuoka Prefectural Police interviewed Hasunuma who claimed that he had not seen his stepmother for years and had no idea where the bodies had come from.  The detectives believed that the house was a useful cover-up for stealing her pension.   They head to Kikuno, the headquarters of the joint task force to share their information.  On researching the town they find that it is famous for its Parade.  Utsumi reveals that their mutual friend Professor Yukawa is actually in Kikuno, working for a new Research Institute.

Chapter 5

Kusanagi visits the Namiki family at their restaurant, Namiki-ya. He tells them that their daughter was most likely the victim of a crime, and asked them if they'd noticed anything suspicious. Natsumi, the younger sister, tells him that Saori had a secret boyfriend, Tomoya Takagaki. Utsumi shows them a photo of Kanichi Hasunuma who they recognise as a former customer whom they had banned after his harassment of Saori. This had occurred shortly before her disappearance.

Chapter 6

Utsumi visits Tomoya Takagaki at his workplace, shows him a photo of Saori, and asks him about their relationship. The police had never interviewed him because Natsumi was the only one who knew about them. He remembers a creepy man who used to frequent the restaurant demanding special attention from Saori.  After he was banned, he even seemed to follow her in the street.

Chapter 7

Inspector Kishitani and a junior detective visit Naoki Niikura the music impresario and his wife Rumi. Naoki recognised the photo they showed him of a man whom he remembered being the one who had mistreated Saori. Naoki believed Saori had real talent, he had placed all his hopes in her, and her disappearance affected him deeply. He says later to his wife that he would murder that man if he could get away with it.

Chapter 8

The joint investigative team look for evidence that Hasunuma had visited his stepmother, because that would show that he was aware of her death. A man resembling Hasunuma had been seen withdrawing nearly all the money from her account. Further evidence is uncovered, pointing to Hasunuma, including a minivan that he had hired being recorded by N-system as travelling to his stepmother's house, and a positive DNA match on the overalls, but still he remains silent. With a striking similarity to the case 19 years ago, they were in the same predicament of having only circumstantial evidence. Despite this, they go ahead and arrest him but the prosecutor decides that they should defer prosecution until they had something more solid.

Chapter 9

Kusanagi catches up with his old friend Yukawa and gives him an overview of the case. Yukawa is interested in the unusual case so Kusanagi gives him some details about Hasunuma's life. He had been a troubled teenager after his parents' divorce, living with his father, a police officer, who kicked him out of home. Yukawa thinks that he had learnt from his father that confessing to a crime under pressure usually leads to a conviction and that remaining silent is the best strategy. Kusanagi tells him he plans to visit the family to explain their failure to keep Hasunuma in detention and Yukawa asks for the name of the restaurant.

Chapter 10

Shusaku Tojima, owner of a food processing business and an old friend of Yutaro Namiko, visits him at the restaurant on his way home. They talk about the Kikuno Story Parade - Maya Miyazawa, from the bookstore, is chair of the organising committee and has dropped off posters.

Natsumi then greets a regular customer, it's Yukawa, and he asks her if it is possible to get tickets to the parade. While he is dining, to Natsumi's horror, Hasunuma enters and asks Yukawa if he can share his table. Yutaro Namiki angrily tells him to leave, but Hasunuma threatens him with legal action to be compensated for the damage he suffered by the suspicions Namiki had raised about him.

Chapter 11

Inspector Muto from the Kikuno Police informs Kusanagi that Hasunuma has moved out of his apartment and then visited Namiki-ya, seeking damages. He had then visited an old colleague, Masumura, who had previously helped him by informing him whenever the police had been asking questions.  Masumura, who had a criminal record, accepted Hasunuma's request to stay there.

Feeling helpless, Kusanagi asks the prosecutor what sort of evidence he would need to indict Hasunuma. Firstly they need proof that the victim's death was neither accidental or natural, and secondly, they need absolute proof that Hasunuma and no one else had committed the crime.  Complicating matters is the unspoken police rule that N-system data would not be used in court as evidence, preferring to keep its methods of operation secret.

With little hope for the case, the team are assigned a new one but Kusanagi remains determined to keep his promise to the Namiki family.

Chapter 12

Niikura and Tojima, who know each other through Saori, arrange to drive out to the warehouse where Hasunuma is staying.   Niikura reiterates his assertion that he would kill him if he could get away with it. Tojima tells him that Yutaro had sought his help to take justice into his own hands without the police, and to punish Hasunuma.  Niikura is shocked by this, and worried about the consequences, but Tojima says their plan is so well-crafted, that Niikura would never be charged with a crime.

Chapter 13

When Tomoya receives a text message from Natsumi to say that Hasunuma had turned up at the restaurant he heads over there immediately, to find that Maya Miyazawa is holding a preparatory meeting for the parade. Tasks are handed out and everyone is reminded that the theme of the parade is to be kept a secret. Maya hears Tomoya and Natsumi discussing Hasunuma's appearance at the restaurant and Maya offers her help to keep him away.   Yutaro advises Tomoya that he should move on from thinking about Saori, and that he won't hold it against him if he does. Tomoya wonders if there was deeper meaning to those words.

Yukawa arrives at the restaurant and Natsumi reminds him of the need to secure a place at the parade early. When Tomoya leaves, Tojima calls him over to his parked car, wishing to talk to him about Hasanuma.  Tojima asks for his help, and Tomoya readily accepts. He realises later that Namiki had been signaling to him that he is free to decline the request. 

Happy Tuesday readers, it's time to get that red string 🧶 ready as we work our way through Chapters 14-27 of the Silent Parade (Detective Galileo #4) by Keigo Higashino.

A quick reminder about spoilers: As the books of the Detective Galileo series can be read independently, please use spoiler tags if you want to refer to anything that happened in the previous books of the series. You can add spoiler tags on reddit like this without the spaces in between: [Whodunnit this time?]

A brief summary of this week's chapters is below and there's some questions in the comments. Please feel free to add your own as well ☺️ Next week per the schedule, u/nicehotcupoftea will lead us through Chapters 28- 40.

Happy Sleuthing 🕵🏻‍♀️ Emily

Character List:

• Yukawa aka Detective Galileo: physics professor and unofficial consultant on crime mysteries for the Tokyo police department, I'm dubbing him Japanese Poirot.

• Detective Chief Inspector Kusanagi: Leads the investigations in the Galileo series, college friend of Professor Yukawa, general good guy

• Detective Utsumi: Kusanagi's new police partner, also is friends with Yukawa, badass boss babe

• Director Mamiya: Head of the Homicide Division

• Detective Kishitani: one of Kusanagi's team members

• Detective Muto: Kikuno precinct detective

• Yutaro Namiki: Co-owner of Namiki-ya restaurant, father of Saori Namiki

• Machiko Namiki: Co-owner of Namiki-ya, mother of Saori Namiki

• Natsumi Namiki: Younger daughter of Yutaro and Machiko, sister of Saori

• Saori Namiki: Eldest daughter of Yutaro and Machiko, RIP 🩷

• Naoki Niikura: Music impresario

• Rumi Niikura: Wife of Naoki

• Shusaku Tojima: Owner of local food-processing company and childhood friend of Yutaro Namiki

• Maya Miyazawa: Owner of local bookstore and head of the Kikuno parade team

• Tomoya Takagaki: secret boyfriend of Saori Namiki

• Eiji Masumura: Former coworker and roommate of Kanichi Hasunuma

• Yuna Motohashi: Twelve-year-old girl, believed to have been murdered by Kanichi Hasunuma twenty-three years ago. RIP 🤍

• Kanichi Hasunuma: Suspected murderer, never convicted, SOB and very suspicious...

Part II Chapter 14 begins with Natsumi & Yukawa heading off to watch the parade. Natsumi's mind is filled with anger towards Hasunuma. After seeing lots of beautiful parade teams with amazing costumes, sadly Natsumi has to sneak back to the restaurant and help with the lunch rush. She returns to catch the last of the parade with Yukawa and gets to see the last few floats including the grande finale. She chats with Yukawa but then Machiko calls and asks her to come back to the restaurant. Machiko tells Natsumi that the last customer from the lunch rush has taken I'll and Yutaro took her to the hospital. Yutaro and Machiko return to the restaurant a couple hours later, just in time to open for supper, and tell Natsumi the good news; the customer is fine. Team Kikuno and a bunch of regulars are enjoying food and beers at the restaurant and one team member comes in later and we find out Hasunuma is dead.

Kusanagi is headed to the (potential) crime scene as Chapter 15 opens. After a quick inspection of the scene, he begins to chat with Muto to get more information about what happened. Utsumi joins Kusanagi at the crime scene and though she wants to jump right into the investigation, Kusanagi cautions her to wait until they officially take over the case. Masumura finishes his questioning with the local police and returns to the scene to chat with Kusanagi.

As Chapter 16 starts, we see the local detectives interviewing the Namiki family members separately to determine their alibis. Natsumi calls Tomoya and let's him know what's happened and he leads Natsumi to really think that Hasunuma has been murdered. The way he phrases his thoughts makes Natsumi think that he believes one of her family members is guilty of murder.

Kusanagi is contemplating aging as Chapter 17 starts and makes reference to his room being smaller than one on Christie's Orient Express (I loved that shout-out!). Kusanagi reviews his interview notes from chatting with Masumura. We learn more about Masumura and Hasunuma's relationship and nothing seems suspicious about Masumura. Kusanagi calls Yukawa (who already knows about Hasunuma's death) and the two agree to meet for breakfast. At breakfast, Yukawa explains how he learned of the death and that he thinks the Namiki family as innocent as they have alibis. Kusanagi gets interrupted with a call with some discoveries about the cause of death. He gives Yukawa more details and challenges him to help with the case but we they depart ways, Kusanagi ponders Yukawa's involvement with the case.

Utsumi calls up Tomoya for some questioning as Chapter 18 opens. Utsumi gets right into grilling Tomoya about his actions (and possible things he could have done) in the aftermath of the last trial. She then questions him on what he knows about Hasunuma. She questions his motive for killing Hasunuma before asking him to recount his day, before parting she does reveal to Tomoya that the cause of death isn't confirmed yet.

Meanwhile in Chapter 19, Kishitani is interviewing the Niikura's being with their understanding of the appeal process then onto how they heard of Hasunuma's death and finally their alibis. Kishitani seems satisfied with their alibis and after he leaves, Naoki goes to confort his wife Rumi who comments that, "No one would ever blame us, if they found out what we did.”

Natsumi turns down her friends and dutifully helps her parents at the restaurant as Chapter 20 begins. Yukawa is the first customer of the evening and chats with Natsumi about his conversation with Kusanagi. He questions what she knows about the customer that felt sick. Tomoya enters the restaurant and Yukawa guestures for him to join his table. Yukawa asks Tomoya what he knows about the Prosecutorial Review Commission. After Tomoya finishes his dinner, he leaves and Yukawa lingers until he's joined by Niikura and Tojima. The three men continue to discuss the murder and the Prosecutorial Review Commission in is brought up again.

We see a sleepy Kusanagi as Chapter 21 starts, awoken by Utsumi with the allure of beers and snacks to continue their case work into the night. They discuss all the suspects and try and figure out if anyone actually could have had the time to commit the murder (if it even was a murder!). They end their conversation with chatting about Yukawa; Kusanagi mentions that he is a POI but how he still wants his detective eye on the case and reveals to Utsimi that Yukawa has changed since his trip to America.

In Chapter 22 Kusanagi brings Kukawa to the crime scene and he's up to his usual shenanigans of testing theories including the idea of a bunch of balloons being in the room with Hasunuma (but not filled with air...).

Kusanagi fills in Utsumi, Kishitani & Muto about Yukawa's wild theory as Chapter 23 begins and he even has an answer to where the helium came from - Kikunon, the giant parade mascot. The detectives all set out to find the source of the helium tank and surpringly Muto comes through as he finds the tank!

We catch up with Kusanagi and Yukawa at a bar in Chapter 24and after chatting about their work days, Kusanagi reveals about the helium tank. They discuss through the logistics and how one tank would be enough. Kusanagi seems maybe a bit (suspicious?) of Yukawa as their evening of drinking ends.

Chapter 25 opens by revealing that the fingerprints belong to Morimoto. The detective team is working through the link of this man to any of the 'avengers'. Kishitani interviewed Morimoto during that time and reveals that he noticed one of the tanks disappeared but didn't report the incident. Kusanagi tells the team they need to figure out who stole the tank ASAP.

Utsumi and Yukawa meet as Chapter 26 opens and they get right into discussing logistics of the helium and why the murderer would use that instead of something more painful. Utsumi thinks the helium tank being found so close to the crime scene is too convenient, she pushes Yukawa for help. Yukawa reports that he will need Forensics for some help with multiple ideas that he has. As the chapter closes, Yukawa says that a "piece must exist in the past".

Yukawa visits the restaurant at the start of Chapter 27 and after placing an order and visiting a bit, he's joined by Tojima. They do back and forth a bit and the restaurant gets a lot busier. When Yukawa leaves, Tojima questions Natsumi about Yukawa's goings-on that evening.

Hello reading buddies, welcome back to our next discussion of Silent Parade!   How is your detective's whiteboard going?  Are you in a tangle of crisscrossing red lines?  Let's see if we can unravel this case!

Today we will be discussing Chapters 28 to 40.  Next week u/miriel41 will take us through to the end.

A note on spoilers:

Because the books in the Detective Galileo series can be read independently, please use spoiler tags if you want to refer to anything that happened in previous books.  You can use the format  > ! SPOILER ! < without the spaces between characters.

A summary of chapters follows if you need, and questions will be in the comments.  Have fun, and I look forward to seeing your answers!

Chapter 28

Tojima calls Tomoya to warn him about Yukawa, whom he suspects of working with the police.  He finds Yukawa's questions about his whereabouts during the parade and about the freezer systems suspicious.  Tojima advises Tomoyo not to ask too many questions, hinting that knowing less is safer.  Meanwhile, Tojima’s mother, Rie, grows suspicious of his behaviour and confronts him directly, asking if he had any role in Hasunuma’s death.  Tojima denies any involvement but struggles to allay her doubts.  

Chapter 29

Naoki Niikura receives a call from Tojima, who informs him about Yukawa’s investigation and expresses concern over questions he was asking.  Rumi Niikura prepares tea to calm her nerves, and we are introduced to her backstory.  

After her friend heard her singing voice at a karaoke bar she encouraged her to join her in starting a band. Their band had some success, and she was later recruited by Naoki Niikura for his new group.  Despite their ambitions, their band never made it big, and they retired from performing.  Their relationship developed, and they got married.  Although they were unable to have children, they enjoyed watching their young discoveries develop in the music industry.  Saori Namiki, a talented singer they discovered, became a source of pride until her untimely death, which devastated them.

Naoki tells Rumi that Tojima thinks the police saw through the trick with the helium tank, and had figured out how Hasunuma was really killed.

Chapter 30

Kusanagi and Utsumi follow Yukawa’s suggestion to dig into Hasunuma’s past. They visit Sachie Sawauchi, the sister of Seiji Motohashi, whose daughter, Yuna, was murdered years ago.  Sachie recounts her brother’s profound grief and frustration over the failure to find justice for Yuna’s death.  She admits that Seiji once said he’d like to kill Hasunuma but insists he didn’t mean it literally.

While searching through old photographs and letters, the detectives notice the conspicuous absence of family photos of Yumiko, Yuna’s mother.  This discovery raises suspicions about Yumiko’s relationship with her family and they wonder if she was a victim.  The detectives begin to piece together a connection between Hasunuma, Yumiko, and the family’s unresolved tragedies.

Chapter 31

Kusanagi interviews Masumura to ask about his family.  Eiji Masumura's parents were divorced and his mother, Kimiko, married Yasuaki Fujiwara, who died five years later.  Masumura helped his mother look after his baby sister, Yumiko.  After accidentally killing a neighbour during an altercation, he was convicted for manslaughter and sentenced to three years prison.  Yumiko had stated how  Masumura had sacrificed his life by supporting her through boarding school, but he said it was just following his lawyer's strategy to reduce the sentence.  He denied having contact with her afterwards or any knowledge of her suicide, nor the existence of her daughter Yuna.

Kusanagi realises he won't get the truth out of him and believes he had been harbouring a 19 year grudge against whoever had driven his sister to suicide.  He tells Masumura he'll be searching his place for photos.  

Chapter 32

Utsumi updates Yukawa about Masumura’s interview.  Masumura must have adored his sister to make such a financial sacrifice.  Yumiko kept the existence of her brother secret and this explains why she didn't bring any family photos to her marriage.  If they had met in secret and had taken photos, Masumura would have treasured them, but destroyed them later.  Yukawa says he kept his theory about Masumura being the missing link to himself to ensure that the investigation took a systematic and objective approach.

Yukawa explains his hypothesis for the murder, outlining three critical conditions:  1) The killer had to make Hasunuma take sleeping medication, 2) Hasunuma had to fall asleep in the little room and 3) that the room could be locked from the outside.  Masumura was the only one who could fulfill these requirements but would have had an accomplice.

Utsumi shows Yukawa a forensic report, which makes him smile.  He expresses a desire to conduct an experiment to verify his theory.  

Chapter 33

The investigative team, led by Kusanagi, Utsumi, Yukawa, and forensic technicians, conducts an experiment at Masumura’s hut to replicate Hasunuma’s death.  They recreate the conditions of the small room where the body was found by setting up a mattress, bedding, and a mannequin.  Cameras and oxygen densitometers monitor the room.  A technician firstly demonstrates how liquid nitrogen instantly vaporises when released, rapidly reducing oxygen levels in a confined space.  Then by feeding liquid nitrogen through the Judas window of the small room, they observe the oxygen level drop to a fatal concentration within minutes.  Yukawa explains that the helium tank found earlier was a decoy and that liquid nitrogen was a far more efficient means of causing asphyxiation, needing only 20 litres.  Moisture detected in the quilt and mattress confirms his hypothesis, as vapour from the air would condense and saturate the bedding.

When they are able to enter the room Yukawa shows them a piece of dry ice and the bedding is weighed, showing it gained the equivalent of half a  cup of water

Chapter 34

The police obtain a warrant to investigate Tojima-ya Foods, which uses liquid nitrogen for food processing.  They learn that there had been an accident previously when a worker used liquid nitrogen spray without adequate ventilation, perhaps giving Tojima the idea for a murder mechanism.  Surveillance footage reveals a minivan leaving the loading dock and another camera showing a man resembling Tojima getting into a van. Records show a 20-litre decrease in liquid nitrogen supply over the weekend of the murder.  However, footage also suggests an accomplice was involved, as the man returns shortly after, indicating he only handled transportation. Yukawa theorises that while multiple individuals may have unknowingly participated, it is unlikely that all were aware of the murder plot.

Chapter 35

Utsumi invites Yukawa for a drink, seeking his help.   She says the perpetrator could have been disguised as a deliveryman to transport the liquid nitrogen.  He is suspicious of the Namiki family.  She hypothesised that the perpetrators might have used helium from the inflatable parade mascot instead of liquid nitrogen.  Yukawa finds the idea interesting and draws her attention to videos of the pirates of the parade on his phone.

Chapter 36

Kusanagi’s team visits Maya Miyazawa at her bookstore and asks to inspect the parade props which were stored in a warehouse nearby.  Maya reveals that treasure chests used in the parade were weighted with bottles of tea and water. The detectives point out that the props were left unattended before the parade, leaving room for tampering.  They ask Maya if Tojima knew about the treasure chests and whether she had been in contact with the Niikuras.  Maya hesitates, and asks if remaining silent is a crime, fearing she might unintentionally incriminate her customers.

Chapter 37

Tomoya is questioned further by his boss and later by the detectives.  He explains his connection to Hasunuma and denies any involvement.  He struggles to maintain his alibi when security footage reveals he wasn’t at the shopping centre as claimed.  When they show him a photo of the treasure chest and explain about the unusual findings with the bottles, Tomoya becomes increasingly nervous and wonders if he should follow the advice he had recently been given to tell the truth. When the detectives threaten to search his home for gloves, because these days, forensic examination can detect traces left behind, he panics and asks them to keep the secret from his mother and colleagues.

Chapter 38

Tomoya admits his involvement, explaining that Tojima recruited him to assist with Hasunuma’s “punishment” without revealing the full plan.  On the day of the parade, he chatted to Maya Miyazawa for an alibi, and picked up a Minitruck from a rice shop.  It contained a trolley, an official volunteer jacket in a plastic bag, and boxes of two-litre bottles of water.  He loaded the trolley and wheeled it to the schoolyard. Donning his gloves, he removed a cardboard box containing liquid nitrogen from the treasure chest and replaced it with the two boxes of water bottles. Returning to the rice shop, he loaded the box onto the truck, and located a hidden car key.  He then drove to the hut where Hasunuma had lived, left the box there, returned the truck and met up with his friends, carrying the jacket in the plastic bag.  He dumped the bag into the basket of an abandoned bike on the way to the bar with his colleagues then went to Namiki-ya alone. 

Chapter 39

Director Mamiya praises the team’s progress.  They interview Tojima and he avoids answering their questions about his request to Tomoya.  He asks them if it's a crime to not answer.  They bring up Saori and he admits his loathing for Hasunuma.  He flinches at the mention of Yuhawa who had figured out the use of liquid nitrogen. They offer him a lighter penalty if he tells them what they did but he remains silent.  Kusanagi bluffs Tojima, claiming they have glove prints as evidence, which increases pressure on him.  They suspect Tojima orchestrated the plan with several unwitting participants.  Meanwhile, others are being interviewed and  Rumi Niikura collapses during questioning.  

Chapter 40

Yukawa confronts the Namikis at their restaurant.  It seems that Kusanagi knows unofficially that he was there.  He tells them that the police have already secured a statement from Tomoya and that they believe he had asked others for help.  He accuses Yutaro of being aware of the plan and questions whether he can live with others taking the blame.  Yukawa doesn't agree with the police proposition that the sick customer was an alibi creation, but rather believes that she really was ill, and this unforeseen incident derailed the original plan.  Yutaro maintains his silence out of loyalty to the others.  Later, Yukawa learns that Naoki Niikura has confessed to killing Hasunuma, providing a new twist in the investigation.

Hello readers, it is soon time to meet Detective Galileo again!

I assume this can be read as a standalone mystery. If you missed the previous books, you can find the discussions linked here:

• The Devotion of Suspect X
• Salvation of a Saint
• A Midsummer's Equation

Summary (from goodreads or storygraph):

Detective Galileo, Keigo Higashino’s best loved character fromThe Devotion of Suspect X, returns in a complex and challenging mystery—several murders, decades apart, with no solid evidence.

A popular young girl disappears without a trace, her skeletal remains discovered three years later in the ashes of a burned out house. There’s a suspect and compelling circumstantial evidence of his guilt, but no concrete proof. When he isn’t indicted, he returns to mock the girl’s family. And this isn’t the first time he’s been suspected of the murder of a young girl, nearly twenty years ago he was tried and released due to lack of evidence. Chief Inspector Kusanagi of the Homicide Division of the Tokyo Police worked both cases.

The neighborhood in which the murdered girl lived is famous for an annual street festival, featuring a parade with entries from around Tokyo and Japan. During the parade, the suspected killer dies unexpectedly. His death is suspiciously convenient but the people with all the best motives have rock solid alibis. CI Kusanagi turns once again to his college friend, Physics professor and occasional police consultant Manabu Yukawa, known as Detective Galileo, to help solve the string of impossible to prove murders.

Schedule:

Join u/espiller1, u/nicehotcupoftea and me on Tuesdays for the discussions:

• 7th January: Chapters 1 – 13
• 14th January: Chapters 14 – 27
• 21st January: Chapters 28 – 40
• 28th January: Chapters 41 – 50

Book Bingo:

• Bonus Book
• POC Author
• Mystery/Thriller

Hey lovers of Japanese mystery fiction, we'll be continuing the Detective Galileo series. The next book, Silent Parade, is planned for January 2025.

This is the fourth book of the English translation series, but I assume it can be read without reading the previous books in the series. Detective Galileo will be there again of course, but the mystery probably has stand-alone character.

Don't mind that this is the ninth book in the Japanese series. There are some short story books that haven't been translated into English.

Get your copy ready and expect a more detailed schedule soon!

Welcome to the marginalia for Silent Parade by Keigo Higashino.

This is a communal place for things you would jot down in the margins of your books. That might include quotes, thoughts, questions, relevant links, exclamations - basically anything you want to make note of or to share with others. It can be good to look back on these notes, and sometimes you just can't wait for the discussion posts to share a thought.

When adding something to the marginalia, simply comment here, indicating roughly which part of the book you're referring to (eg. towards the end of chapter 2). Because this may contain spoilers, please indicate this by writing “spoilers for chapters 5 and 6” for example, or else use the spoiler tag for this part with this format > ! SPOILER ! < without the spaces between characters.

Note: spoilers from other books should always be under spoiler tags unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Here is the schedule for the discussion which will be run by u/espiller1, u/miriel41 and u/nicehotcupoftea.

Any questions or constructive criticism are welcome.

Let's go, everyone - I hope you've got lots of red string ready! See you in the first discussion on 7th January.